A ski instructor who's worked on luxury resorts like Switzerland's Verbier has revealed the secrets of the slopes, from staff's competitions to sleep with the most guests, to £900 tips from rich holidaymakers.
The British chalet girl, who requested to be anonymous, told the Daily Star that the experience can be wild and "chaotic", and that she has spent years having fun on the mountains, as well as planning to return for more ski seasons.
She explained: "I was living in an apartment with seven other instructors. It was quite a tight squeeze but we were bang smack in the middle of the resort next to the slopes, could even ski in/ski out with enough snow. We had a tiny kitchen between eight which was chaotic, rarely did we cook proper meals all together instead we lived off sandwiches from a stall right next to the lift station.
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"It's a totally different experience than a holiday, on a season the resort becomes your home, you have to go food shopping each week, learn to budget, visit the doctors.You also don't eat out every day on the mountain, like you would imagine you do on a holiday. I loved learning all about the resort not just as a place for tourists but for the people who live their all year round. Also having the mountain practically to yourself in the off-periods whilst everyone is at school or workings, is pretty magical."
Despite the chaos of the lifestyle, the ski instructor claims to have loved the "bubble" of the ski resort. But, it seems that the fun of the resort wasn't all because you were outside of the rat race. She explained: "On the whole everyone becomes friends with everyone, and it becomes a very close knit family. Lots of hooking up – one-night stands were a regular occurrence in my flat, more with the seasonaires rather than the tourists.
"We even had a chart documenting what everyone was doing, with prizes for the most people kissed or slept with. Some people get into relationships, but not so much in my experience." However she added: "There was always this urban myth of people having sex in the gondolas." So who knows if that's true....
It's not clear whether ski instructors are banned from sleeping with resort guests like they are on cruise ships where it's a fireable offence (but still happens). But, it doesn't seem like the workers are discouraged from x-rated fun – although maybe don't get your bum out on the slopes like one influencer did.
The young woman added: "My favourite part was how busy I was all the time. I had gone from school and was suddenly dropped into this little alpine bubble full of exciting new people, and so much to explore.
"As seasonaires we got a lot of discounts in pubs and restaurants and also because everyone knew everyone in Verbier outside of all the tourists, we were all friends all going to the same pubs and creating all our own fun. It was so far away from my normal life."
Apparently, her top tip for ski instructors is to get to know your fellow workers in the resort and town. The youngster noted: "Get to know all the bar staff, including the bouncers outside, they will be your best friends, and guarantee cheaper drinks or free shots. Same goes for the guys in the ski repair shops, we have some friends who worked there and got free ski servicing all season long!"
Plus, it seems the families that stay at the resort are extraordinary too! The ski instructor noted: "I got some cash tips but nothing ever that huge, mainly around 50 CHF (£46.31). However, a friend of mine got given a 1000 CHF note (£926.24) once, if you haven't seen one before they are absolutely huge, like at A5 piece of paper."
Plus she added that a rumour went around the ski resort of a "Very rich, maybe royal family from the Middle East who had rented out a block of one of the major hotels in Verbier". The ski teacher added: "They were all driven up the mountain from Geneva in blacked out LandRovers, and by the end of their week in the resort, they gifted each ski instructor a car to use for the rest of the season."
She also said: "Verbier is definitely one of my favourite places, outside of London, where I grew up, its somewhere I feel I know inside out and feel fully comfortable in. The skiing is amazing because, again I know the areas so well and every time I've been back since my season, I feel like I'm coming home."
