Skiing families desperate for a last-minute getaway at half-term could try Leisure Direction Ski (020-824 3030), which has space left in France's highest resort, Val Thorens. The firm is offering a week's self catering in apartments sleeping up to five people, for a total of £841. Customers have to drive the Alps, but the price covers car-ferry crossings. Val Thorens is part of the enormous Trois Vallées ski network which also includes Méribel and Courchevel. Snowcoach (01727 866177) has full-board, one-week holidays in Austria's Mayrhofen costing £399 for adult and £339 for children. The price includes coach travel from London Victoria, Watford, Bexley or Dover or, for a supplement, from 30 other pick-up points. Departure is on February 16.
How do you pick the right resort? Seasoned observers may disagree with some of its judgments but overall, the Consumer Association's Good Skiing and Snowboarding Guide is a sound starting point. The Ski Club of Great Britain (020-8410 2000/ www.skiclub.co.uk) says it is planning to make it accessible to non-members online for an annual fee of £10 - £5.99 less than the book-shop price of the latest annual edition. The guide is already accessible for free on the internet to members. Fees are £45 or £10 for under 24s and £66 for families.
It is three years since First Choice last offered packages to the American west. It pulled out of the Rockies with the demise of charter flights to Denver. Now the firm is considering offering packages to California for next season.
Heavy demand for ski holidays at Easter has prompted Powder Byrne (020-8246 5300) to extend its season in the Swiss resort of Grindelwald from mid-February until early April. It now offers departures from Heathrow until April 8. Accommodation is available in three hotels, the Regina, Belvedere and Fiescherblick with half-board prices, including flights and transfers, from £726.
If you can slip away before the start of school half-term, there are bargains to be had this month. Among the packages from Thomson (0870 606 1470) are a week in the Colorado resort of Breckenridge for £399. The price includes flights to Denver, transfers and room-only accommodation. Half-board packages to resorts on the Milky Way, which links resorts on either side of the French-Italian border, and which has excellent snow conditions this winter, are on offer from £349. Flights are available from a range of airports. The firm also has self catering deals to French resorts, including Les Deux Alpes and Alpe d'Huez, from £299.
