Ok here is the situation people. Im at Perisher this weekend after riding Thredbo, NZ, Hotham for the last 20 years. Im only on the slopes for 2 days and it's my only trip this year. I absolutely do not want to waste a second on flat areas where im skating. My Perisher trips in the 90s still haunt me with long skates. Compllicating the issue I have a wife and 2 young boys who can only handle green runs. When we are all together which areas apart from front valley will cater to all of us - green runs but with no flat sections. Thanks in advance for any tips.
Happy Valley T-bar- all green. Gives you the option of ducking off to Sun Valley or Mt P for some more challenging runs without being too far away.
And, when they're having a chocolate in Happy Valley you can zip off to interceptor quad for a couple of laps then scoot back to Happy Valley.
Boys have never ridden a tbar. Sounds like Pretty Valley might be the best option. Is there an option to get to Interceptor without skating.
My five year daughter had never riden a T-Bar before our visit to Perisher in August, after some mishaps and some trepidation she got used to it.
They're used to beginners at Happy Valley. So long as you explain how a T works to them before they line up, they'll have a good chance. Maybe a few YT vids beforehand.
You can ride the quad/perisher express to mid station. From there you can ski down to pretty valley. Alternatively you can ski down along the happy valley trails. Instead of riding back up happy valley t-bar you can go down the leichardt loop and catch leichardt chair back up. From the top of leichardt you can either turn left and repeat happy v/leichardt loop, or turn right and go down the bullwheel run. All green and no t-bars. Bullwheel run is flattish, but not really a traverse. If it is fixed, pleasant valley quad at blue cow is good green territory as well. Get back to the terminal by riding up the pony conveyor carpet
There are a few options - Smiggins ... pros: quite a lot of terrain, mix of different lifts (j-bars, t-bars and a chairlift). Cons: the chairlift is very slow and the unloading area is not ideal for beginners. Still it wouldn't be a bad idea to start your day there, once they've done the Hume t-bar a few times you can take the Link T-Bar up to "Smiggins Escape" which gets you to Interceptor or to the Telemark T-Bar. Pretty Valley is quite flat and the chair is very slow. Interceptor does not really cater to beginners (I do not consider the discovery trails to be green runs), you can check the terrain as you go up if you decide to go there and if it's beyond their ability just take the trail down to Pleasant Valley. If the chair is fixed then Pleasant Valley would be a good option, it's a fast chair and terrain is decent, otherwise you'd need to take the Brumby T-Bar up to the resort. Happy Valley has easy access up to Olympic if you want to peel off for a run or two - you take the Sun Valley T-Bar then ski over to the Olympic T-Bar (noting that Olympic operates 10am-3pm).
I don't like Pretty Valley for unconfident riders. The last third funnels many riders into not many options. When the daughter was small it was her least favourite part of Perisher and, unfortunately, it was our second best way to get to our lodge.
Also the chair is slowwwwww. Go the Happy valley, take the occasional detour for yourself to Leichardt and do a few of the more interesting sections, then turn left at the top and meet them back in Happy. Make sure the kids ride the t-bar together - assuming they are relatively close in height it will be easier on them than riding it with an adult.
I'm not sure it matters too much about riding with an adult, but certainly it will be easier than riding alone. Riding together is a lot easier as the lift is designed for two people. Tell them not to worry if they fall off the first couple of times, that's quite normal and you learn from mistakes (the main thing they need to know is if they do fall off to leave the track together in the same direction so they don't block the next people riding). As others already said, just let the lifty know its their first time and he or she will be forgiving and give some instruction on how to ride as well. If the OP starts at Smiggins on Sat the kids can start with the J-Bars which are single-person lifts before trying the T-Bars.
Pleasant Valley is fixed and set to open tomorrow. Meaning you should definitely consider going to the Interceptor Chair at some point - the run through the middle back to the mid-station loading is fairly easy if you take it wide, honestly it may as well be green, but it also gives great variety with steeper parts too. If though you don't like the look of it you can ski down to Pleasant Valley instead.
