UKH

Having cancelled Andorra ski trip as one of the kids in the group wouldn’t have had both vaccines in time for Feb half term, we have booked a property near Aviemore. I had assumed we could just book a lift pass like we would in Europe, but it doesn’t seem that easy.

Lecht online bookings aren’t working yet

Cairngorm don’t show any dates beyond 4th Jan…and up to then they are sold out.

Glenshee aren’t showing dates beyond 2nd Jan. 

Can anyone advise how to get lift passes?

Thanks

I'd check their refund policy before I booked any passes as it's impossible to predict whether there will be snow.

Also, and I know this isn't what you want to hear, Cairngorm has very poor uplift even when there is snow and doubly so this year with the funicular being out of action.

If you're committed to coming to the Aviemore area definitely bring stuff for other activities and don't get your hopes up for too much great skiing.

Thanks. This is the 3rd year our ski trip is cancelled, so happy to risk some losses rather than be in the Cairngorms, with snow, but no lift pass. 
 

I’d welcome suggestions for non-snow activities otherwise we’ll spend the whole week in distilleries!

I’ll not distract you from a fine plan

Cairngorm uplift is in a right mess.  It’s possible to get to Nevis Range and back in a day, so consider that if really good on the West for a couple of days, the outlook is much better than Cairngorm as well. Though it’s a drive so you probably wouldn’t want to do every day.

Other things to do;  MTB the trails and tracks around Aviemore are very good, bike hire is easy if you don’t want to transport your own. Good for thrash in poor weather.

Walks around Loch Morlich, Garten or Loch Eliean can be stunning.  
 

Moray coast villages, Portsoy, Cullen, Gardenstown, Pennan, ect are scenic and if in Cornwall would be rammed with people, they will be very quiet, so much so you’ll predominantly have to make your own entertainment. Again a bit if a drive.

A couple of years ago I was up in Fort William for some skiing with one of my kids. We had a couple of days of skiing - ok at Glencoe, great at Nevis Range, but the third day was too windy for Nevis Range to open, so we drove over to Cairngorm. We got as far as the car park and when we got out of the car, it was so windy I couldn't believe they were selling tickets (I've climbed a lot in the Cairngorms and elsewhere in the Highlands in winter, so it's not that I'm unused to wind). Anyway, we went down to Aviemore and hired mountain bikes from Bothy Bikes and had a great day riding through the old pine forest to Loch Garten. Fun and scenic trails but nothing very difficult and not even that much ascent involved. That could definitely be a good day activity. Loch Garten I think is where the Ospreys were first reintroduced - there's definitely some RSPB stuff there.

Scottish skiing can be excellent, but also can be pretty dire sometimes as well. If you've not skied there before, just don't get too high expectations - go expecting "not great", and then you may well be amazed if you luck out with some days when conditions are good. It can happen, and is marvelous when it does! Good luck. 

just go to the ticket office and buy one when you get there...

also, as others have said, conditions can be so fickle that its not worth buying in advance anyway, you want the ability to be flexible day to day.

the only way that you are going to 'not get a ticket' is if conditions are so bad that there is only very limmited uplift available, in which case you are better off going biking or walking instead anyway.

and if conditions are epic once in a generation kind of good, so that the whole of scotland is trying to get up the mountian, then just make sure you get there nice and early!

and the centres websites arent letting you book anything yet because none of them are properly open yet!

Definitely this, a few flakes of snow in the central belt and guaranteed chaos. Nevis range is often quieter being that little further away from big centres of population.
Or buy touring kit.

If the kids are old enough, get touring kit. Cairngorm queues and uplift were awful when there was the funicular...now there isn't even the funicular!!

You can do some spectacular touring around there, have the place to yourself and make the most of whatever conditions are on offer. 

Or you can go to Landmark/ treezone/ steam train etc if the weather is a bit too Scottish!!

I agree with all the replies above, except this one

It's completely wrong for Cairngorm at half term, and trebly so now that the railway is borked