Emily is the quintessential 'Activities Queen'. There is no sporting, leisure or cultural activity that is ever beyond her reach. What has slowed Emily's around-the-clock penchant for living life to the max is having two tiny children.
After maternity leave hiatus and a mother-in-law visit ( translation: free babysitting and a few days off) I was not a bit surprised to learn that Emily was heading down from Sydney to stay in Thredbo accommodation.??Thredbo in the non-ski-season is?fast becoming the new?activities mecca, what you can do there may surprise you.
Thredbo summer season activities [caption id="attachment_6226" align="alignleft" width="300"]
Beautiful nature trails at Thredbo[/caption]
When you think of Thredbo in the NSW Snowy Mountains you think skiing. But not so in the Summer Season.
What aligns Thredbo with many USA or European (Alpine resorts) is the ability to flick the switch by turning the Snow Resort into a thriving successful hub of leisure and sport when the snow melts.
Thredbo does this well by aligning existing facilities (indoor pool, sports hall, bobsled and tennis court) with chairlifts that carry walkers, mountain bike riders or sightseeing visitors up to parts of Kosciuszko National Park that would otherwise be inaccessible to non-skiers. Emily visited in the last week of January 2014 and found the weather hot and the activities plentiful including:
- Bobsledding - Hiking - Mountain Biking - Swimming and water slides - Dining - Scenic touring via chairlift - Nature walks and fly fishing -?Horse riding & more.Getting the family to Thredbo
Taking a leisurely seven hours to get from Sydney to their Thredbo accommodation, instead of the usual five to six, suited Emily?s young family.
"It's such an easy drive in that it bypasses most places and is a really good road".
Driving had the extra advantage of allowing her to take loads of extras that flying to a holiday destination elsewhere would make prohibitive, like two prams, a portacot and loads of extra clothes.
Why choose Thredbo over other 'holidays with kids options'? [caption id="attachment_6225" align="alignleft" width="300"]
Catching some chairlift action[/caption]
Reasonable prices are the order of the day. From October to May, Thredbo's All Mountain Pass?transforms the region into an all-you-can do mecca of activity. At $49 a day for an adult, ($98 for a family or $27 for a child) an All Mountain Pass gets you:
- all day Scenic Chairlift access; - three bobsled rides; - one day Thredbo leisure centre access; - one hour tennis court hire and last but not least; - one round of golf. Add just $30 and you've got yourself mountain biking access for the day to explore Thredbo's new downhill mountain bike trails?and chairlift access to get you up there. Otherwise ride your own bike at your leisure. There really are lots of activities here. Emily did some research before she arrived and was completely impressed by all the options. She hadn't been there before but was referred via word of mouth from her sister, who took her young family and parents there a few years ago and found it to be "really good". Globally, ski resorts can be perceived as expensive so Emily was surprised how reasonably priced it was. "It's a shame to spend lots of money going somewhere when you won't make the most of it (having little kids)".- 1 Day MTB Access Adult: $69.00; ?Child: ?$49.00 ,
- 2 Day MTB Access, Adult:$119.00; ?Child: ?$84.00,
- 3 Day MTB Access ?Adult:$129.00; ?Child: ?$90.00
What's the best aspect? Worst aspect?
[caption id="attachment_6228" align="alignleft" width="300"]
Great golfing to be had[/caption]
All those activities in the Thredbo mountain pass means a lot to do in a little time. Extend it to a three day pass: $93 (adult), $60 (child) and $186 (family) and you'll get even more fun for your money.
Emily found the problem was akin to the rich man complaining of too much money. "We almost didn't have enough time to do everything as well as leaving time to relax at our Thredbo accommodation. I'd say that was the shame. So many activities, we didn't spend enough time by the pool". Poor Emily indeed, but here's what she did do:
- She swam at the "lovely outdoor hotel pool"; - played tennis and nine holes of golf - caught the chairlift to the top and walked to the Kosciuszko lookout; - used the Leisure Centre for the water slide and; - went on the bobsled, which she rated A for "AWESOME". In terms of pricing, kids can be aged up to 14 years, which is fairly generous, and carries a lot of weight for families who know what it's like to find different ways to entertain young teenagers or find activities to share together or bond with kids.?The?all mountain pass?definitely packs a punch for outdoor activities and action adventures. Brett Vale is one of Australia's former ski racers. As part of plying his trade, he has sampled ski resorts all around the globe both in winter and summer seasons. Brett has a soft spot for Thredbo in the "summer' season", as he calls it, and rates it as?"an all-round adrenalin place, with an Austrian feel. A really cool little place". Possibly due to his specialty being the Super G downhill race, Brett has his eye on the mountain biking Thredbo offers and says "usually with mountain biking its hard work going up with all the mountain bike body armour and the fun part is going down but Thredbo's chairlift lets you relax on the way up. That?s the DIFFERENCE". Brett likes the thought that has gone into building the tracks for mountain biking "They're unbelievable. You can choose from the new, cruisy ?Flow Trail or the legendary Cannonball Run.?Would you go there again?
Emily is emphatic in her enthusiasm to return to Thredbo to take advantage of this mountain action gem, Australia's version?of Queenstown in terms of adrenalin-junkie stakes minus the bungee, "We would definitely go back, but we'd stay for longer". [caption id="attachment_6230" align="alignleft" width="300"]
Bobsled family action. Go Jamaica![/caption]
While staying there Emily made enquiries about long day care available for holidaying with kids. "It's really reasonably priced in the off-season. So I think we'd take friends, book the kids into the daycare and ensure we had more time to relax, drink coffee and read".
Chad from Manly also visited Thredbo in February 2014 to take advantage of the mountain biking on offer and rates the Thredbo mountain bike trails as?"amazing". A tall compliment coming from a surfing/ snow boarding adrenalin junkie used to travelling the world in search of the next thrill.
Bad bits? If you don't like the outdoors, beautiful scenery or enjoying life, staying at Thredbo accommodation in a resort-like atmosphere may be a struggle. For Emily's clan of baby-boomers and young families this presented no problems at all. ?"We all loved it. It was so peaceful and beautiful and there were no crowds". Food Experience?Having young children limited Emily's night dining on her reconnaissance tour but she reported the takeaway food from the pub was " really good", preferring to BBQ another night complete with beers on the bistro deck and ordering takeaway pizza to eat back at their Thredbo accommodation on their last night. T Bar and Alfresco Pizzeria are two pizza options, open most of the year, including School holidays, long weekends and Easter. For non-pizza options Cascades?at the Alpine Hotel?is open all year as well as the Bistro Bar (pub) for diners preferring fish and chips or burgers.
Accommodation [caption id="attachment_301" align="alignleft" width="300"]
Lantern Apartments are spacious and stylish[/caption]
Check out The Lantern Apartments for a range of Thredbo accommodation deals from 1 bedroom apartments to 4 bedroom chalets. They have some specials online, including kids free passes if two adults purchase passes. Definitely great to be self-contained to cover all bases when you're too tired to go anywhere after all the action of the day.
Thredbo All Mountain Pass & Bike Holiday Packages
The Thredbo All Mountain Pass can be bought online . Lantern also has a special deal?on bike holiday packages for those wanting to try mountain biking with the kids these April School Holidays. Book a mountain bike weekend with 3 nights accommodation, 2 days bike and equipment hire, introductory safety tour and 2 days chairlift access from only $479 per person, ?even less if you bring your own bike.
Overall ImpressionsEmily's assessment of her non-ski season Thredbo experience was a generous 9/10 "for young families who like activities and outdoorsyness".
You can visit?what's on in Thredbo?for further activities and events and be sure to check out our range of quality?Thredbo accommodation for 2014.