Inghams Home Ski Holidays Walking Holidays Lapland Holidays
Call us today 02045388944

Opening times

Mon-Fri: 10:00 - 18:00

Sat: 9:00 - 17:30

Sun: Closed

Ski trivia - Do you know your way around the Alps?

Guide Ski Ski Trivia

We’ve pulled together some fun ski facts, that may just blow your mind. Read on to discover the highs, lows, ins and outs of the Alps. And feel free to steal for your next virtual quiz!

1: The ski scene from Bridget Jones: Edge of Reason was filmed in Lech, Austria

Who could forget the iconic scene when Bridget falls off the ski lift - it's happened to us all, right?

2: The British romantic comedy ‘Chalet Girl’ was filmed in St. Anton, Austria

You can ski straight pass the actual chalet, look out for it on your way back from Krazy Kangaroo après.

3: The first ever Winter Olympics was in 1924 and was held in Chamonix, France

Since then, it has been held in France a further 2 times, Grenoble in 1968 and Albertville in 1992. Val d’Isere featured in the latest 1992 Olympics. La Face black run, was chosen for the flagship event in – the Men’s downhill. Millions remember one of the most impressive downhill races of any Winter Olympics where just 0.1 second separated the top three places.

4: The longest black run in Europe is 16km long

The Sarenne black run is 16km long and can be found in Alpe d’Huez. The descent is completely on-piste and descends more than 2,000 vertical metres. It's especially challenging in parts with glaciated slopes at the top. Can you feel the burn?

5: James bond frequently finds himself on the slopes, there are in fact 007 films and counting where Bond hits the pow.

George Lazenby in On Her Majesty’s Secret Service (1969)
Roger Moore in The Spy Who Loved Me (1977)
Roger Moore in For Your Eyes Only (1981)
Roger Moore in A View to A Kill (1985)
Timothy Dalton in The Living Daylights (1987)
Pierce Brosnan in The World is Not Enough (1999)
Daniel Craig in Spectre (2015)

6: The ‘OK’ piste in Val d’Isere is named after 2 Olympic champions

The 'OK' piste was named after Jean Claude Killy and Henri Oreiller. Although neither was born in Val d'Isere, they were brought up and based there. Killy won three gold medals at the Grenoble Olympics of 1968, while Oreiller won two golds at St Moritz 20 years previously.

7: The world’s steepest groomed ski run has an average incline of 78%, that’s not too far from vertical!

This run can be found in Mayrhofen in Austria. The name of the run is Harakiri – named after the Japanese ritual of suicide by samurai. Would you dare?

8: Austria has the most ski resorts in Europe

Austria has 275 ski resorts, which works out as 1 ski resort per 28000 people.

9: The highest ski resort in Europe reaches heights of 3899m

Zermatt is the highest resort in Europe and ranked 4th worldwide. The highest resort in the world is Jade Dragon Snow Mountain in China, the entire resort is located between 4,500 and 4,700 metres!

10: Snowboarding only made its Olympic debut in 1998

Before 1998 snowboarding was not included in the Olympic games, whereas Cross-country skiing has been part of the Winter Olympics every year since the competition began, in 1924 and downhill skiing became an Olympic sport in 1936.

11: The word 'Ski' is derived from the Norwegian word 'skíð' which means a split piece of wood

The history of skiing is uncertain, but it is thought that the ancient origins of skiing can be traced back to prehistoric times in Russia, Finland, Sweden and Norway, where skis were used practically to cross wetlands and marshes in the winter when they froze over.

12: Walter Ingham was one of the pioneers of the modern ski holiday - famed as 'the man who took Britain skiing'

Back in 1934, inspired by his passion for the mountains, he put an advert in the Times for people to join him on a group trip to Austria to go skiing. Over 85 years have passed and we are still carrying on his good work...

Ski destinations

  • Region Image

    The Ski Juwel Area

    Austria

    Ideal for families and beginners Crowd-free pistes Rustic ski huts
    • Manchester Int.
    • London Gatwick
    • Bristol
    • Edinburgh
    • Birmingham Int.
    • London Heathrow
    • +6 More
    Properties available: 8 From £831 View accommodation More info
  • Region Image

    SkiWelt Wilder Kaiser-Brixental Area

    Austria

    Large variety of slopes Fantastic for intermediate skiers and snowboarders 284km of pistes
    • London Southend
    • London Stansted
    • Leeds Bradford
    • Belfast Int.
    • Manchester Int.
    • Bristol
    • Edinburgh
    • Birmingham Int.
    • London Gatwick
    • +9 More
    Properties available: 8 From £928 View accommodation More info
  • Region Image

    Skicircus Saalbach Hinterglemm Leogang Fieberbrunn

    Austria

    Extensive ski terrain with over 270 kilometres of slopes Lively apres-ski Charming Austrian villages with picturesque views
    • Birmingham Int.
    • Manchester Int.
    • London Gatwick
    • London Stansted
    • Leeds Bradford
    • London Southend
    • Belfast Int.
    • Edinburgh
    • +8 More
    Properties available: 10 From £1,240 View accommodation More info
  • Region Image

    Kitzbuhel Alps

    Austria

    Rugged peaks and extensive ski areas Includes some of the most popular resorts in Austria Huge variety of pistes for all levels of skiers and boarders
    Family Holidays First Time Skiers
    • London Stansted
    • Edinburgh
    • London Southend
    • Leeds Bradford
    • London Gatwick
    • Belfast Int.
    • Bristol
    • Birmingham Int.
    • Manchester Int.
    • +9 More
    Properties available: 6 From £902 View accommodation More info
  • Region Image

    Arlberg Ski Area

    Austria

    Austria's largest linked ski area 304km of interconnected pistes 200km of 'deep snow runs'
    • Manchester Int.
    • Birmingham Int.
    • Bristol
    • London Gatwick
    • London St Pancras
    • Edinburgh
    • London Heathrow
    • +7 More
    Properties available: 14 From £1,119 View accommodation More info
  • Region Image

    Portes du Soleil Ski Area

    France

    600km of skiing and 307 slopes One of the largest ski areas in the Alps 8 French and 4 Swiss village-resorts in the area
    • Newcastle
    • Bristol
    • Leeds Bradford
    • London Luton
    • London St Pancras
    • London Heathrow
    • London Gatwick
    • London Southend
    • Birmingham Int.
    • Bournemouth
    • London Stansted
    • Glasgow Int.
    • Southampton
    • Manchester Int.
    • Belfast Int.
    • Edinburgh
    • Cardiff
    • +17 More
    Properties available: 11 From £679 View accommodation More info
  • Region Image

    Three Valleys Ski Area

    France

    600km of ski slopes Fantastic vaiety of slopes for all levels of skier or boarder High altitude and glacier skiing
    • Southampton
    • London Luton
    • Leeds Bradford
    • London Heathrow
    • Glasgow Int.
    • Belfast Int.
    • Bournemouth
    • London Stansted
    • Bristol
    • Birmingham Int.
    • Cardiff
    • Manchester Int.
    • Edinburgh
    • London St Pancras
    • London Gatwick
    • +15 More
    Properties available: 37 From £719 View accommodation More info
  • Region Image

    Paradiski Ski Area

    France

    425km interconnected pistes High altitude skiing across two glaciers All mountain resorts with off slope activities
    • Leeds Bradford
    • Edinburgh
    • Birmingham Int.
    • London Gatwick
    • Manchester Int.
    • London St Pancras
    • Cardiff
    • Belfast Int.
    • Bournemouth
    • Bristol
    • Southampton
    • Newcastle
    • London Heathrow
    • Glasgow Int.
    • London Stansted
    • London Luton
    • +16 More
    Properties available: 25 From £619 View accommodation More info
  • Region Image

    Milky Way Ski Area

    France

    Family friendly with off slope activities Stunning alpine scenery Cross border skiing across France & Italy with 400km of slopes
    • Manchester Int.
    • Edinburgh
    • London Gatwick
    • London St Pancras
    • Birmingham Int.
    • Bristol
    • +6 More
    Properties available: 3 From £749 View accommodation More info
  • Region Image

    Tignes-Val d’Isère Ski Area

    France

    High-altitude ski areas with excellent snow records 300km of ski slopes Fantastic après ski scenes
    • Bristol
    • Edinburgh
    • Belfast Int.
    • Manchester Int.
    • London Stansted
    • Leeds Bradford
    • Southampton
    • Birmingham Int.
    • London St Pancras
    • London Luton
    • Newcastle
    • London Heathrow
    • Glasgow Int.
    • London Gatwick
    • Bournemouth
    • Cardiff
    • +16 More
    Properties available: 31 From £639 View accommodation More info
  • Region Image

    The Dolomites Ski Area

    Italy

    Incredible Dolomites scenery 1,220km of pistes Varied ski terrain
    • London Gatwick
    • Bristol
    • Manchester Int.
    • Birmingham Int.
    Properties available: 50 From £699 View accommodation More info
  • Region Image

    Aosta Valley Ski Area

    Italy

    World class skiing surrounded by some of Europe's highest peaks High-altitude slopes and glacier skiing with stunning mountain views A unique blend of Italian and French influences with a rich Roman history
    • Manchester Int.
    • Birmingham Int.
    • Edinburgh
    • Bristol
    • London Gatwick
    Properties available: 13 From £749 View accommodation More info
  • Region Image

    Milky Way Ski Area

    France

    A vast linked ski area crossing the Italian-French border Olympic-grade facilities 400km of linked ski slopes and 6 ski resorts
    • London Gatwick
    • London St Pancras
    • Manchester Int.
    • Edinburgh
    • Birmingham Int.
    • Bristol
    • +6 More
    Properties available: 9 From £809 View accommodation More info
  • Region Image

    Graubünden Ski Area

    Switzerland

    Switzerland's largest ski region with high altitude skiing Unique combination of world-class ski resorts, reliable snow coverage and stunning alpine scenery Easily accessible using the efficient Swiss rail system
    Large Ski Area Advanced Skiers
    • London Gatwick
    • Manchester Int.
    • London Heathrow
    • London St Pancras
    Properties available: 7 From £1,350 View accommodation More info
  • Region Image

    Jungfrau Ski Area

    Switzerland

    206km of ski slopes with skiing up to 2,970m Stunning mountain scenery in Bernese Oberland Includes Mürren-Schilthorn, Grindelwald-First and Grindelwald-Wengen ski areas
    • London Heathrow
    • London Gatwick
    • London Stansted
    • Glasgow Int.
    • Belfast Int.
    • Southampton
    • Manchester Int.
    • Bristol
    • Birmingham Int.
    • Edinburgh
    • London Luton
    • London St Pancras
    • +12 More
    Properties available: 16 From £500 View accommodation More info
  • Region Image

    Four Valleys

    Switzerland

    Extensive ski area with 410 kilometres of ski slopes Perfect for all abilities with world class off piste Family friendly with off slope activities
    • London Gatwick
    • London Heathrow
    • Southampton
    • Bristol
    • Glasgow Int.
    • Birmingham Int.
    • Manchester Int.
    • Belfast Int.
    • London Stansted
    • Edinburgh
    • London Luton
    • +11 More
    Properties available: 1 From £1,088 View accommodation More info
Find more like this:
Knowledge Alpbach Alpe d'Huez Andorra Aosta Valley Ski Area Arabba Arinsal Arlberg Ski Area Austria Avoriaz Banff Canada Cervinia Chamonix Champoluc Cortina D’Ampezzo Corvara & Colfosco Courchevel Davos Ellmau Filzmoos Flaine Four Valleys France Graubünden Ski Area Gressoney Grindelwald Hinterglemm Hochgurgl Ischgl Italy Jungfrau Ski Area Kitzbuhel Kitzbuhel Alps Klosters Kronplatz La Clusaz La Plagne La Rosière La Villa Lake Louise Lech Les 2 Alpes Les Arcs Les Menuires Livigno Madonna Di Campiglio Mayrhofen Meribel Milky Way Ski Area Mont Tremblant Montgenèvre Morzine Mürren Myrkdalen Niederau Norway Oberau Obergurgl Obertauern Ortisei Paradiski Ski Area Pas de la Casa Portes du Soleil Ski Area Saalbach Saas Fee San Cassiano Sauze d'Oulx Seefeld Selva Serre Chevalier Sestriere Skicircus Saalbach Hinterglemm Leogang Fieberbrunn SkiWelt Wilder Kaiser-Brixental Area Sölden Soldeu Söll St Anton St. Johann in Tirol St. Moritz Switzerland The Dolomites Ski Area The Ski Juwel Area Three Valleys Ski Area Tignes Tignes-Val d’Isère Ski Area Val d'Isere Val di Fassa (Canazei, Campitello, Alba & Penia) Val Thorens Vancouver Voss Wengen Westendorf Whistler Zell am See Zermatt

Seeking more ski inspiration

Insider Guides