Most ski holiday packing lists stop at the bottom of the lift. This one also thinks about the evening: the self-catered apartment, the chalet and the question of who in the group brings what.
Last updated: 12 September 2026
What is a ski holiday packing list?
A checklist of everything you pack for a week's ski holiday: clothing and kit for the slopes, first aid and documents, plus whatever the apartment or chalet is missing. The list here is worked out for seven days, travelling by plane or by car.
💡 By the way: for the chalet evening you pack a second ski – our SwigSki3000® travels taken apart in a velvet pouch and is then roughly the size of a wash bag.
Ski holiday packing list: the short version
If you only want to keep ten things in your head, make it these:
- Ski jacket and salopettes
- Base layers and a warm mid layer
- Three to four pairs of ski socks
- Two pairs of gloves
- Helmet and goggles
- Hat and neck warmer
- High-factor suncream and lip balm
- Passport, GHIC and your lift pass booking
- Charging cables and a power bank
- One thing for the evening. For us, that's the SwigSki3000®: four wooden pieces in a pouch, unpacked a ski for four glasses.
Most often forgotten
The second pair of gloves, the suncream, slippers for the apartment, the charging cable and the printed or saved lift pass confirmation.
For the slopes: clothing and kit
On the slopes, layering is the rule: one layer that wicks sweat away from your skin, one that keeps you warm and one that keeps out wind and snow. That way you adjust in a moment, from minus ten degrees in the morning to full sun at lunchtime. Cotton stays at home, because it gets wet and stays wet.
Ski packing list for a week: how many of each
| Item | Quantity | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Ski socks | 3–4 pairs | One pair dries while you wear another |
| Base layer tops | 3 | Change every two to three days |
| Base layer leggings | 2 | Dry overnight |
| Fleece or light down jacket | 1–2 | Mid layer for cold days |
| Gloves | 2 pairs | Wet gloves won't be dry by the morning |
| Neck warmer | 1–2 | Against the wind on the lift |
Hire rather than haul
You can hire skis and poles in almost every ski resort. For a week, ski hire often costs roughly as much as sports luggage on a budget airline, there and back; where skis travel within your checked allowance (e.g. BA on fares with a hold bag), taking them is cheaper. Hiring mainly saves you the hauling. Your own ski boots, on the other hand, are almost always worth bringing: a boot that fits makes more difference to your day than the ski. If you drive, take both and skip the wait at the hire shop.
First aid, skincare and documents
A small first aid kit saves you a trip to the pharmacy down in the valley, which is usually closed in the evening:
- First aid: plasters and blister plasters, an elastic bandage, painkillers, something for colds, your personal medication.
- Skincare: suncream with SPF 30 or higher, ideally 50 (fresh snow reflects up to 80 per cent of UV radiation), lip balm with SPF, and a rich face cream against the dry air from the heating.
- Documents: passport, your GHIC for state healthcare in the EU and Switzerland, plus travel insurance with winter sports cover that pays for mountain rescue and repatriation – the GHIC covers neither. Add the booking confirmations for accommodation and lift pass and, if you drive, your driving licence and, where needed, the vignette.
Self-catered apartment or chalet: what's usually missing
Self-catered apartments come furnished, but rarely complete. Ask about bed linen and towels before you leave, and pack what experience says will be missing:
- Dishwasher tablets, washing-up liquid and tea towels
- Salt, pepper, oil, coffee and filters or capsules
- Bin bags and kitchen roll
- Slippers, because ski socks get cold on tiled floors
- An extension lead for chargers and glove dryers, plus a travel adapter, because UK plugs don't fit the sockets anywhere in the Alps
How your group handles the shopping, the kitty and the cooking teams is covered in our guide to the ski trip with friends.
For the evening: the chalet box
The chalet box holds whatever carries the evening: a speaker, cards, fairy lights, corks for the glasses – and the Shotski. So that you don't end up with five speakers and not a single deck of cards, split the box up in advance; the group kit further down shows how.
Right on top goes the head torch. It's for the way home from the mountain hut, long after the lifts have stopped: on foot along the cleared path or by taxi – not on skis and not down the piste, because that's where the piste bashers are out at night. For the evening, a warm jumper and comfy trousers are all you need; if you want to make a bit more of an effort, you'll find ideas in our guide to the apres ski party outfit.
Four people, one ski on the dining table of the apartment: the photo your holiday album starts with, before the first lift has even run. Anyone who wants to catch the first gondola tomorrow gets non-alcoholic shots in the same glass.
The group kit: who brings what
In a group, not everyone has to pack everything. Share out the big items in the group chat beforehand:
| Item | For 4 people | For 8 people |
|---|---|---|
| Speaker | 1 | 1 |
| Kitchen basics (spices, oil, coffee) | 1 bag | 1 bag |
| Dishwasher tablets | 1 pack | 2 packs |
| Deck of cards | 1 | 2 |
| First aid kit | 1 | 1 |
| Shotski | 1 | 1 + Miniski bundle |
| Corks, one per glass | 4 | 8 |
With eight people, one person brings the ski and another the Miniski bundle: four shot glasses on mini skis to wear round your neck, the eyelet already on the binding, the lanyards in the pack – nobody in the apartment has to hunt for a screwdriver. The glasses are worn indoors, in the chalet or the apartment – the glass doesn't come out onto the slopes. The Miniski bundle can't be extended; if you'd rather have all eight on one ski, extend the Shotski with two extension sets – how long it then gets is explained in our guide to the chalet weekend with friends.
Flying or driving: how to pack
When you fly, weight decides. At British Airways, skis travel as part of your checked baggage allowance, and a separate boot bag can go on board as your larger piece of hand luggage if it fits the size limits. easyJet takes skis as one piece of sports equipment up to 20 kg for a fee; pack the boots into the ski bag or take them into the cabin as your hand luggage. Ski boots can go in hand luggage with any airline, but there they count as a normal cabin bag with its size and weight limits. For liquids in hand luggage (as of September 2026), Heathrow, Gatwick, Edinburgh and Birmingham allow containers of up to 2 litres thanks to new CT scanners, while Manchester, Stansted and Luton are sticking with 100 ml. Check your departure and your return airport: the flight home from the Alps can mean 100 ml again, and different rules can apply when you change planes.
In hand luggage every kilo counts, and the Shotski only puts around one on the scales – less than a single alpine ski boot. Taken apart, it's four wooden slats the length of a ruler, which fit into a cabin trolley next to your laptop and jumper. The glasses travel empty. How else to stow glass and binding is covered in our guide to the apres ski set for four.
If you drive via Eurotunnel or the ferry, the car needs winter kit: in the mountain areas of 34 French départements, the Loi Montagne requires four winter tyres with the 3PMSF symbol or snow chains or snow socks in the boot from 1 November to 31 March, and Austria requires winter tyres from 1 November to 15 April in wintry road conditions. Snow chains belong in the boot anyway, because you have to fit them from the blue snow chain sign onwards. Add an ice scraper, a UK sticker if your number plate doesn't already show the UK identifier, and the vignette for the motorways in Austria and Switzerland – buy the digital annual vignette for Austria in good time, because bought online it only becomes valid on the 18th day. The ski boots ride in the rear footwell, so they're warm when you arrive.
Ski holiday packing checklist
To tick off, copy, or print using your browser's print function:
| Area | Pack |
|---|---|
| Slopes | ☐ Ski jacket ☐ Salopettes ☐ Base layers ☐ Fleece ☐ Ski socks ☐ Gloves (2 pairs) ☐ Helmet ☐ Goggles ☐ Hat ☐ Neck warmer ☐ Ski boots |
| First aid & skincare | ☐ Plasters ☐ Blister plasters ☐ Bandage ☐ Painkillers ☐ Suncream ☐ Lip balm ☐ Face cream ☐ Medication |
| Documents | ☐ Passport ☐ GHIC ☐ Travel insurance with winter sports cover ☐ Bookings ☐ Driving licence ☐ Vignette |
| Tech | ☐ Charging cables ☐ Power bank ☐ Extension lead ☐ Travel adapter ☐ Headphones |
| Apartment | ☐ Slippers ☐ Dishwasher tablets ☐ Tea towels ☐ Kitchen basics ☐ Bin bags |
| Chalet evening | ☐ Head torch ☐ Speaker ☐ Deck of cards ☐ Fairy lights ☐ Shotski in its velvet pouch ☐ Miniski bundle (chalet only) ☐ Corks |
Frequently asked questions
What should I pack for a week's ski holiday?
Clothing you can layer, three to four pairs of ski socks, two pairs of gloves, helmet and goggles, a small first aid kit, your documents – and for the evening a warm jumper and the head torch for the way back.
How many pairs of ski socks do you need for a week?
Three to four pairs are enough if you hang them up to dry in the evening. You wear one pair, one dries and one stays in reserve.
What do people forget most often on a ski holiday?
The second pair of gloves, suncream, slippers, charging cables and the lift pass confirmation.
Can you take ski boots in hand luggage?
Yes, as normal hand luggage, as long as they fit the airline's size and weight limits. Whether they can also go on board as an extra item on top of your cabin trolley is up to each airline. Otherwise they travel in your booked sports luggage, with many airlines together with the skis as one item.
Take your own skis or hire them in resort?
If you fly with an airline that charges for sports luggage, hiring skis and poles often costs about as much as transporting them. Hiring then mainly saves you the hauling. Your own ski boots are almost always worth it, because the fit decides your day.
What do you need in a self-catered apartment on a ski holiday?
Usually missing: dishwasher tablets, tea towels, spices, coffee, bin bags and slippers. Ask the owner about bed linen and towels beforehand.
Sources: GOV.UK (GHIC and winter sports abroad, driving in the EU); NHS, Sunscreen and sun safety; World Health Organization, Ultraviolet (UV) radiation; British Airways and easyJet, sports equipment; Which?, airport liquid rules in 2026; French road safety authority (Loi Montagne); ÖAMTC (winter tyres and vignette in Austria); airline information on sports luggage and airport information on liquids in hand luggage (as of September 2026, varies by airline, airport and security lane). German-language sources: Lufthansa, sports and special baggage; ADAC, winter tyre and snow chain rules abroad; German Federal Office for Radiation Protection, UV protection in the mountains in winter (5 January 2026); Verbraucherzentrale Niedersachsen, insurance for your ski holiday.