Winter is coming and it is time for skiing.
There are some options in Victoria to ski in winter: Lake Mountain, Mt Buller, Falls Creek, and Mt
Baw Baw.
It is said Mt Buller is filed by touring groups and I have
never been there. I once drove to Mt
Bawbaw, but there are too many sharp turnings on the way and the swerves made
me sick, so I swore I would never go there.
I have been to Lake Mountain lots of time; this is a good place for
people to play with snow, which I mean enjoying snow view, skiing on toboggan. There are some ski channels in Lake Mountain
and not many people skied there, mostly for amateurs. But you need to rent at least snow shoes to
be permitted to access there. Lake
Mountain is not far away from eastern Melbourne to Lake Mountain, only about 2
hours driving, so it is comfortable for one day return. There used to be familiar lesson packages
including entry fee and lunch and I like that.
Falls creek is a place for professional skiers and real
learners. But it is 4-5 hours’ driving from
Melbourne, so I would like to spend several days there to compensate for my
effort in driving. I have booked a
cottage off mountain months ago. Off mountain accommodations are usually
cheaper than on mountain rooms.
Snow gears, such as snow clothes, trousers, gloves, hats,
goggles, are prepared in advance. For
beginners, ski, boots, poles can be hired instead of purchase.
There is entrance fee and full fare for a car is $49.5 on
arrival, but if you book online, you can save $4.5 for one day. If you arrive after 1PM, the price will be
$22, after 4PM entry is free.
Snow pass card is a one-off cost which is $5, so what is it
for?
“Your snow pass is a re-usable credit card-sized ticket that
you keep on you whilst you are skiing or snowboarding. There's no need to take
your Snow Pass out to ride the lifts - Electronic gates scan your Snow Pass as
you pass through and automatically open to allow access to the lift.”
This can be purchased online or on arrival at: On-mountain Ticket Offices are located in
Slalom Plaza (at the base of the Falls Express Chairlift), in the Village Bowl
(at the top of Gully Chair) and at all Falls Creek Sports outlets.
Lift pass is quite expensive and I saw many foreigners
accused Australia’s excessive price for skiing due to this! But anyway, there is way to reduce the cost a
little bit; it is said in falls creek’s official website:
“Purchase 14+ days in advance for 15% discount off full
price, purchase 1 - 13 days in advance for 5% discount off full price.”
Be aware, the 15% discount is NOT applied to Children, so there is no need to book in advance.
In addition,” if you purchase lift tickets, group lessons,
or Children's Programs for 5 days or greater and you get the advantage of 2
rest days that you can use at any time. This means that if you purchase a 5 day
pass you can use it for 5 days over a 7 day period. Lift Passes for 5 days or
greater also include free access from 1pm the day prior to the ticket
commencing.”
Snow lesson packages are more economical for ski
learners. For children age 3 to 5:
For children age 6 to 14:
Be aware, the snow pass is not included, but you don’t need
to buy extra lift pass. You can order half a day, the afternoon session does not
include lunch.
