I live about four hours from some of the best skiing in the country, maybe even the world, and I can’t tell you the last time I was on skis. Sad. I used to ski. When my husband and I first started dating, he actually taught me how to ski. There were some lessons thrown in there too, but for the most part I learned while trying to keep up with him.

Then I got pregnant, had a baby and got pregnant again. Skiing …

I recently wrote an article for our friends at Shermans Travel highlighting three family favorite ski areas in North Lake Tahoe: Sugar Bowl, Northstar-at-Tahoe, and Squaw Valley. Each of these resorts offers a very different ski experience. The beauty is they are located close enough together that you can easily try all three ski areas in a single vacation.

It’s time for part 2 of our report on where kids can ski free in Europe (yesterday we covered Switzerland and France).

I spent the morning calling ski resorts in Austria, Germany, and Italy. Most resorts in these countries offer some kind of free skiing for very young kids.

I put together our now-annual list of family ski resorts where kids can ski free in the US and Canada a few weeks ago. Now, it’s time for Europe! The good news is a surprising number of resorts offer some kind of ‘kids ski free’ program. The list is so big that I’m breaking it up into two posts. France and Switzerland are the subject today and then I’ll cover Austria, Germany, Andorra, and Italy tomorrow.

In France, only Chamonix has a truly compelling program for older kids where the first child …

Even if you go to a resort where kids ski free, family ski vacations are expensive. Skiing is also a lot of work. But done right, the payoff is huge when every member of the family is active and having fun.

The better the amenities and facilities, the better the experience (see our article on how to choose the best family-friendly ski areas). A good kids’ ski program is essential.

This is an interview with Nicolas de Rochambeau, the founder of Switzermatt, a company offering travel services in Zermatt including accommodation booking, ski instruction, shopping, and babysitting. Nicolas is that resource we wish we had in every destination—an insider with impeccable tips and advice.

We found him during an emergency calling frenzy a few weeks ago when we realized we had to unexpectedly bring our dog skiing with us and needed to find a dog sitter. After about 30 calls …

Many of the top-rated family-friendly ski resorts across the US and Canada offer kids ski and/or stay free programs for families with young children. This is a great way to cut some of the brutal expense out of skiing with kids.

We published a Where Can Kids Ski Free in 2010 list last year and it was so popular that I just updated it with 2011 promotions. Good news …

Does an upscale catered ski chalet in a fantastic family-friendly ski resort complete with ski-out lift access, daily childcare, and inclusive meals sound too good to be true?

It’s not!

We just finished our holiday ski vacation at Les Gets in the French Alps. After hours and hours of research, I concluded that a hotel for 4 adults and 3 kids was too expensive over the holiday peak period, not to mention too confining for a group.

Planning a family ski vacation is a daunting task given the sheer number of ski destinations. While some are more kid-friendly than others, skiing is an family sport and most ski areas cater to them in one way or another. The planning challenge isn’t identifying family-friendly ski areas, it’s choosing between the long list of seemingly good—i.e. overwhelming—options.

Stowe, the self-proclaimed “Ski Capital of the East” is a fabulous destination for families who love to ski or want to learn to ski. In my opinion it’s the closest thing you’ll find to west coast skiing on the east coast.

Stowe boasts the highest vertical elevation in the state of Vermont. Skiing at Stowe offers the chance to ski two mountains, Spruce Peak and Mt. Mansfield. The services offered are comparable to those you find in some of the tonier ski resorts out west, complimentary lockers, overnight ski storage, a high speed gondola