Baby’s First Tobboggan Run in St Anton, Austria

Our baby’s first tobboggan run in St Anton am Arlberg took place on a warm sunny day. She was about 15 months old and loved it. We only did half a dozen short slides for her first time and they were all smiles.

The time

We picked a nice warm and sunny day so that she didn’t get put off by getting too cold. We also left it quite late in the day so that the slopes would be quieter, around 4pm. Lunch time would also have worked; we were using the beginner slopes which would have been quiet during the lesson lunch breaks. We did have a few skiers coming past, but there were enough people tobbogganing and walking there for them to be being careful.

The clothes

We made sure that D was well dressed in proper ski jacket and trousers, with layers underneath. Our main problem is finding warm socks and waterproof gloves as she is so petite. Gloves are essential though, for you and baby, as you can easily get a nasty friction burn from contact with hard packed snow.

The slope

We used a very gentle, short and smooth stretch at the bottom of the nursery slopes. We went for the nursery slopes at the Nasserein end of St Anton as these are the most gentle. I was surprised how little slope we needed to get going. We picked a spot where the little kids learn to ski, as there was a nice flat run out at the bottom to stop on. I think my rule of thumb will be if the slope is gentle enough for D to walk up, then it is gentle enough for her to slide down.

The equipment

We used a standard bumboard; holding the handle with one hand, while holding D sitting up on our laps with the other. Brakes and steering are your feet! There are probably all sorts of safety reasons to use a ‘proper’ tobboggan, but as we were only sliding a few metres, this felt safe enough to us. Note it is recommended that kids wear ski helmets for tobbogganing, but as you can see from the pictures we did not follow this advice. I will leave you to do your own research and make your own decision. We were lucky that she really enjoyed it, but would have stopped immediately if she was not finding it fun.

 

The Places We Will Go

13 thoughts on “Baby’s First Tobboggan Run in St Anton, Austria

  1. What a great age to be starting to get her ready for the snow. My oldest two adore the snow but Iwould have loved to have got them enjoying it a little earlier. Confidence in the snow is such a wonderful gift to give kids I think. #awanderfulchildhood

    1. She used to touch the snow and look at it in a really confused fashion. I don’t think she could work out why it was so cold!

  2. We rented a toboggan on our ski holiday last year, about 8 Euros for the whole day, a proper one with steering and brakes (my kids are older and wanted to go on steeper slopes lol), they had a fabulous time! #theplaceswewillgolinky

  3. I absolutely love to see your photos on instagram they are really wonderful. Its lovely to get used to the snow too at such a young age. Thanks for sharing #Placeswewillgo

    1. Thank you – I am enjoying getting back into photography, it is one of the benefits of starting my blog!

  4. This is just brilliant! I don’t think my kids have ever done this as we never get snow! Would love to take them somewhere where they could have a proper go though. Thanks so much for linking up to #ThePlacesWeWillGoLinky

    1. It took D a while to get used to the snow – I don’t think she could figure out why it was so cold to touch!

    1. I can’t wait for my toddler’s feet to be big enough for ski boots so that she can give it a go!

    1. To be completely honest, I have never been a fan of tobogganing – I am having to review my opinion now I have a toddler!

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