Ski holidays in Arosa with children: a winter family guide

For ski holidays in Arosa with children, one scheme shapes the plan: children and teenagers up to 17 get free group ski lessons when the family stays at least 2 nights at a hotel or holiday apartment that takes part in Arosa's Ski School Included programme. Around the lessons, the ski area Arosa Lenzerheide offers 225 km of pistes and 43 lifts, with free beginner areas for small children in the village. This guide covers how the free lessons work, where young children learn, which sledging runs suit which age, what to do on afternoons off the slopes and where to stay in winter 2026/27.

How the free ski school for children works in Arosa

Ski School Included is a programme run in Arosa for families staying in the village. Children and teenagers up to and including 17 get free group ski or snowboard lessons, one lesson for each night of the stay, when the family books at least 2 nights at a participating hotel or holiday apartment. The accommodation issues the voucher, and the children join a normal group class at the ski school.

The offer at Altein, Arosa

Altein, Arosa takes part in Ski School Included. Every child aged 4 to 17 gets one free half-day group lesson for each night you stay, on stays of 2 nights or more, for the whole winter season: a family staying 5 nights has 5 lessons per child. You receive a voucher at check-in and redeem it at the Swiss Ski and Snowboard School Arosa or the ABC Snowsports School. Lessons usually run from 10:00 to 12:00 or from 14:00 to 16:00, in German, English or French, with children grouped by age and ability. Places are limited in the Christmas and February weeks, so book early and give the number and ages of your children. The full conditions are on the free ski school for kids page.

From what age children can join

The children's group course at the Swiss Ski and Snowboard School Arosa starts at age 4. Beginners meet at the ski school centre in Innerarosa, where the first levels are taught on easy terrain. Once a group can ski the blue runs, it moves to the Tschuggen area, the part of the ski area best suited to families.

Where small children ski: Honigland, Beerenland and Tschuggen

Two public beginner areas give small children room to practise away from the main pistes, and both are free: Honigland at Prätschli and Beerenland in Innerarosa. The terrain in both is only slightly sloping, which suits a first morning on skis with a parent before ski school starts or an extra hour after the lesson.

When children are ready for longer runs, the Tschuggen area is the family terrain on the Arosa side and the meeting point for the ski school's more advanced groups. Children's lift passes are sold at the resort ticket counters and online. Check the prices for your dates in the official Arosa Lenzerheide ticket shop.

Sledging in Arosa with children

Arosa's sledging runs are free to use; accident and liability insurance is your own. Three runs cover most ages, from a short first run for small children to a longer descent out of the village.

Prätschli to Obersee

The run from Prätschli to the Obersee is 1 km long with a 165 m descent and ends next to Arosa railway station. The free local bus takes you back to Prätschli in a few minutes, so younger children can ride it as often as they like.

Tschuggen to Innerarosa

From the top station of the Kulm gondola, this run covers 1.4 km and 196 m down to the valley station in Innerarosa. Sledges travel free on the gondola, and on Thursday evenings the run is used for night sledging.

Untersee to Litzirüti

For older children, the run from Arosa Untersee to Litzirüti is the longest of the three, at 3.4 km with a 240 m descent.

At Altein, Arosa you can hire a sledge at the hotel for CHF 8 and keep it in the ski room overnight. Our page on sledging runs in Arosa has more detail on each run.

Afternoons off the slopes: ice rink, Märligondel and the bears

Ice skating at Ochsenbühl

The Ochsenbühl artificial ice rink is Arosa's main open-air rink in winter. It is open daily from 10:00 to 17:00 when the weather allows, and on Monday and Thursday evenings it opens again from 20:00 for evening skating.

The Märligondel

On selected winter evenings, children ride the Arosa-Weisshorn cable car while a storyteller tells fairy tales in German, for about 45 minutes. Arosa Tourism announces the dates during the season. Our page on the Märligondel in Arosa explains how the evening works.

The Arosa Bärenland on Thursday afternoons

The Arosa Bärenland, a park for rescued bears, is at about 2,000 m next to the middle station of the Arosa-Weisshorn cable car. In winter it opens every Thursday afternoon from 13:00 to 16:00, which fits after a morning ski lesson. Our family guide to the Arosa Bärenland covers the visit in detail.

Where to stay in Arosa with children

Altein, Arosa is 600 m from the Arosa-Weisshorn cable car valley station, a 9-minute walk, and the free ski bus stops close to the hotel. Arosa railway station is 500 m away, 8 minutes on foot. The hotel is open for winter from 2 December 2026 to 4 April 2027.

For families there are rooms for 3 and 4 people, and cots for children up to 3 are free. Room types are described on our family hotel in Arosa page; check the booking engine for availability and prices on your dates. Children up to about 6 have a play room, and older children a game room with pinball, video games, table tennis and a pool table. The 950 m² wellness area has an indoor pool with a lazy river, where children up to 12 swim with an adult. Skis and boots stay in the ski room, which has 186 boot warmers, and Carmenna Sport gives hotel guests 15 percent off ski hire.

Planning your winter week in Arosa

Christmas and the February school holidays are the busiest weeks in Arosa's ski schools, so book the room and register the children for lessons early. Children need a helmet, goggles, gloves and warm layers; skis and boots can be hired in the village. A week with a ski lesson every day still leaves time for one sledging run, an afternoon on the ice and a Thursday at the Bärenland. For more ideas for your stay, explore more Arosa experiences.