Rob and I are feeling very lucky to have just come back from a beautiful week skiing in Jindabyne, the Snowy Mountains. Gosh, I hadn’t realised how much I needed that time off. You know when you take a long exhale in yoga? It felt like that.
It was my first time visiting the Snowy Mountains and Mount Kosciuszko national park and I was absolutely blown away by the rugged, beautiful landscape. Isn’t it funny how sometimes we gaze on far off distant places for adventures, when those closest to home can hold so much wonder as well? This was my third time skiing and it was so fun to have a week improving my skills and, occasionally, my falling technique. Â Below, I’ve a left a packing guide and a travel overview of our stay, which I hope will be useful if you ever make it to this beautiful part of the world (which I would highly recommend).
Pack / wear
I’d like to say I took a minimalist and orderly approach to packing. However, the reality was that at 10pm on Friday night, after a busy day, I just piled all my warmest clothes into a suitcase and hoped for the best. Because we travelled by car and spent most of the week in ski gear or loungewear I could be a bit less selective with my wardrobe. Nevertheless, given that half of what I brought went unworn, it proved to me (again) why having a travel packing list is so beneficial. Based on what I actually wore on our holiday, here’s a list of things I’d pack if we were to go there again.
- Three pairs of Jeans (one dark grey, one black, one blue)Â
- One pair of black exercise tights
- Four jumpers
- One grey turtleneck
- One pair of pyjamas
- One long grey coat
- One black puffer jacket
- One pair of black heel boots and one pair of runners
- Two pairs of thermals (for under the ski gear).Â
Where we stayed
We were lucky enough to stay at the beautiful Hilltop Ski Chalet, which was quite a treat! The house was beautifully presented with an open plan minimalist interior, clean lines, a black and white colour scheme and simple but comfortable furnishings – just my style. The owners had really thought of all the little details, including a rack to hang our ski gear on, great heating and a well-equipped kitchen (how pretty are the Tasteology salt and pepper shakers?). It was a joy to come back to our accommodation to relax and warm up after a long day of skiing. It was also conveniently situated in the heart of Jindabyne, close to the shops, ski hire shed, cafes and restaurants. It was about a 25-30 minutes drive to the Perisher ski fields.
What we did
Obviously, most of our holiday was spent skiing, something we both love to do. We skied at Perisher, but the Thredbo ski slopes are also situated nearby. However, Mount Kosciuszko national park also has some lovely bush walks and one day we took a break from skiing and went for a bushwalk on the waterfall walking track which is 6km circuit with a lookout near a waterfall.
One afternoon I stopped by Lake Jindabyne to take photos and admire the scenery. We noticed some local wineries and cellar doors on our drive there (such as Shut The Gate which I tried at the Jindabyne Brewery) so you could always visit them one afternoon for something different.
Where we ate
As our accommodation had a large kitchen and we both love cooking, we ate most of our meals in. However, we did eat out at the Jindabyne Brewery on our last night, which I would definitely recommend. They have a lovely warehouse style setting overlooking Jindabyne Lake with good food and relaxed vibes. Just make sure you get there early on a weekend as it’s a popular place.
During the day, we usually went to the slopes early and skied consistently until about 2pm, so we usually had a sandwich in the car on the way home. We found this gave us maximum skiing and relaxing time. However, there were also many convenient places to eat on the slopes if you wanted to have a rest and warm up. Although we didn’t get a chance to try it, Birchwood cafe had good reviews.
Getting around
While I understand that you can get to the Snowy Mountains by coach (see here for a list), we found that car was the easiest option and allowed us to arrive at and leave the slopes whenever we wanted (just ensure you check the requirements for snow chains during winter).
All in all, it was a lovely week away and I can’t wait to get back to the Snowy Mountains again sometime soon.
I’d love to know, have you been to the snowy mountains before? Do you love skiing?
Adie
What gorgeous photos đ it sounds like you and Rob had a well-deserved break. I really relate to your tendency to over-pack when you have the luxury of travelling by car, I do exactly the same thing! I will have to try out the packing list tip next time âşď¸
bridieross
Thank you so much Adie, the landscape was so beautiful it was hard to take a bad photo. We really did, it was so nice to pause and slow down a bit. Hehe I know, I fall into the “just in case I need it” trap. Hope the packing list helps next time! đ