Is ski season life as good as they say it is? What is unique about the ski season lifestyle?

Is ski season life all it's cracked up to be?

Teaching young kids takes lots of energy and patience

Getting away from the commute. Getting away from the Hussle and bustle of the city. Escaping to the outside. Living freely. Getting away from horrible bosses. Living without routine.

Have you been craving any or all of these things? Reckon a ski season will give you the freedom you've been looking for? I'm here to help you keep things in perspective. Let's not kid yourself, without retiring from work completely you're always going to have responsibilities to think about. You just have to figure out which ones are you willing to compromise on.

Your current lifestyle may be getting you down at the moment and the thought of moving on to something different can seem glamorous in itself let alone moving into an industry that is majorly glamorized for those who love the outdoors. What you may not realize is that ski season life might be more similar to your regular 9-5 than you previously thought, or you may learn that it has a whole list of new compromises to think about..

Are you fed up of waking up early and want to have more lie ins?

Sorry no can do, the snow waits for nobody and neither do the people wanting to learn how to ski. They are excited for their first tracks in the snow and they'll just have you waiting for them to turn up since they were clueless as to how long it takes to get all their gear sorted on day one.

One of the main things people used to moan at me about is their long tedious busy commute to work everyday in the traffic or the smelly underground.

I hate to tell you but all seasonaires gotta live out of town most of the time to save the pennies. So guess what that means... Staff busses that only run like 4 times a day at the most inconvenient times and stop everywhere to get everyone home or to their work places. Although they're pretty beautiful journeys most of the time and you're usually sat next to your good friends and colleagues.

Are you sick of eating the same packed lunch in the office everyday and crave the fancy mountain resort food?

Sorry to disappoint but ain't no season aire gunna be able to afford to eat on the hill each day, so keep up those packed lunches and pray for generous guests that buy you lunch. My best advice is to aim to live with housemates that are great cooks or learn how to cook some basic meals on a budget yourself.

Wish you could enjoy a pint after work more with your mates?

Haha seasonaires have such a stereotype of getting on the piss all the time. And we'll, people aren't exactly wrong. But those of us who keep working seasons just like you keep at your job, surprise surprise, we drink a lot less than what we'd like and sleep and lot less than we'd like and generally feel like we have no time to do anything other than cook lunch and dinner, shower and do our washing before bed. So trust me when I say, without making yourself ill, you'll probably end up drinking and socializing as much if not less than what you are doing now.

Fed up of your family demanding your attendance and attention?

Don't. You don't know how good you've got it til you get into season work and don't see your family for years and shit hits the fan and you can't be there to support anyone. It can literally feel like you're stuck in a bubble without being able to here anyone or help until you pop the bubble and go home.

Friendship groups got you feeling like you want some time to be by yourself? Want some new friends and a fresh start?

Take some time to think about this one a bit more. Season friends are like your favourite bartender, they're there for a good time with you but as soon as a better opportunity comes along they're gone and not bothering to say bye cus they didn't even consider you that important in their life. It isn't you, it's just the circumstances and it can be really shit sometimes especially if you do multiple seasons.

Are you bored of living in the same place for years on end?

Ski season life might just be the solution you're looking for, living in a new place every 4-6 months.

Oh wait, you mean I have to advertise myself, search for, view, and evaluate, negotiate, put a bond down and move into a new location every 4-6 months possibly more if you can't stay in the shoulder season? Yup that's correct. And it can be a total nightmare at times because ski towns are known for their accomodation and housing crises, not to mention the prices you may end up having to pay just so you have a roof over your head.

I just want to travel. See different countries. Ha, keep dreaming.. season work is hard yacker but pays like a child's pocket money and leaves you with no energy to do anything afterwards. If you want to travel you're better off staying at your day job and saving up to have an extended holiday than you are trying to get work in a ski resort. As soon as you sign that seasonal contract you're hooked into working whenever they need you and/or more than they need because you need more money to pay rent and food.

Are you fed up of working as part of a team or collaboration in your company and people are contacting you constantly for advice or want answers and progress updates? Well you'll be pleasantly surprised to hear that this is actually one of the big unspoken perks of ski instructing. We work as part of a team within the ski school with all the benefits .Being part of a big supportive team who see each other daily and live together and socialise together but in our classes we are the only one responsible and once the class is finished our job is done, no homework, no follow-up, no questions from colleagues, no help needed either. In many ways as instructors, we are our own boss in our lessons. So if you like having people do parts of your job for you, constant evaluations and peer reviews and the like, then ski instructing may not be for you and similarly with other ski season jobs.

If you have got to this part of the article and still feel positive about living ski season life then great! My big rant must have also succeeded at showing you the light that shines between the cracks sometimes.

If you're a fellow ski instructor or ski season worker and you have more to rant about please please get in touch by commenting on this post, sharing your rants by tagging @the_ski_nomad on Instagram or sending me an email or direct message! I'd love to hear from you!

The Ski Nomad