How To Have A Ski Holiday On A Budget

Ever wondered how to go on a ski holiday in Australia on a budget? When it comes to the snow, Australia does it just as well as the rest of them, and if the price scares you off, well – you just haven’t done your research…

If there’s one thing that really grinds my gears, it’s when people say, “It’s cheaper to go to Japan and ski than it is to do it in Australia".

Granted, flying to Japan (or New Zealand, or the French Alps) is an incredible way to partake in winter sports, but if you’re lacking in the time department, it’s definitely not the most logical option. Plus, as we discovered, it’s not actually cheaper!

Seeing the snow in Australia isn’t hard, it doesn’t take long, and it doesn’t have to be expensive, you just need to arm yourself with some knowledge before you head off to the slopes.

Avoid the chalets

Staying at a luxury ski lodge or chalet is one of life’s greatest pleasures, let’s just put that out there.

However, if your budget simply doesn’t allow it, it doesn’t mean boycotting your ski dreams and staying home. Do your research about nearby accommodations and decide what you’re willing to sacrifice. For example, would you stay in shared accommodation to save a few hundred dollars a night? Or are you willing to give up comforts like a bar and sauna, but need to stay in a private room? No matter what you decide, there’s a range of options available in Jindabyne. Located just 30 minutes out of Thredbo and Perisher, you can find something within your budget, in close vicinity to the slopes. Likewise, if you’re heading to Mount Hotham; Hotham Heights and Dinner Plain will provide a range of affordable accommodation options.

Here are our budget picks:

Thredbo YHA

Situated in the heart of the village, this comfortable backpacker accommodation is a short walk to the slopes and has a full kitchen to use throughout your stay.

Ski Club of East Gippsland

Ski Club of East Gippsland is just a 10-minute walk from Mount Hotham Alpine Resort and just over 2.5km from Mount Hotham, there’s also free wi-fi and a free area shuttle.

Sundeck Hotel, Perisher Valley

A family-friendly hotel with free brekkie, and only an eight-minute walk to Village 8 Express and Perisher Resort.

Arlberg Hotel, Mount Hotham

Featuring its own bar, bistro, spa and sauna, Arlberg Hotel also has no minimum night stay, meaning you can stay just one night if you like. It also has one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments that sleep up to 12 guests, so families and groups don’t need to split up.

Candlelight Lodge, Thredbo

At the luxurious end of the budget scale, Candlelight Lodge has sweeping views of the slopes and is situated within a 15-minute stroll of Thredbo Leisure Centre. It also has its own bar and sauna.

Feathertop Alpine Lodge, Falls Creek

This luxe-style family retreat is just a 15-minute walk from Falls Express and features its own restaurant, bar and lounge – as well as some pretty decadent furnishings.

Organise your gear ahead of time

So many people fall into the trap that comes with being unorganised. Waiting to hire your snow gear until you get to the slopes means that you’re at the mercy of the retailers who can quite frankly charge you anything they’d like ($50 per day just for the pants and jacket in some parts!).

To ensure you’re not selling an organ to get a set of skis and a jacket, try places like eBay and Gumtree before heading off for the weekend. Better still, ask a friend to borrow theirs – odds are if they’re not planning to hit the slopes, their gear is just taking up room in their house!

Pack your own meals

Sure, part of the attraction of a snow break is the nightlife. The beautiful warming meals, the mulled wine – oh, and the jam-packed restaurants?

Yep. Some of your favourite ski villages just aren’t built to handle the volume of the winter snow crowd. Eateries in places like Jindabyne are often packed to the brim and for those on a budget, can be a little out of the price range. If you’re in a group, it gets even harder to get in to eat – so the best advice is to stay somewhere with a kitchen, prepare your own meals, brew your own mulled wine, and spread out in your own dwelling, without having to give the table back by 8 pm.

It’s also a good idea to buy your supplies before you make the trip, as the supermarkets in ski towns are often much more expensive because they can be.

Buy an annual ski pass, it’s cheaper

For just $1,249, you can buy an Epic Australia Pass . With that, you get unlimited, unrestricted access to Perisher, Falls Creek, Hotham and more during the season. With the annual pass, you also get savings on accommodation options, like 15 per cent off rooms at popular accommodation, The Station. You also get six ‘Bring a mate’ discounted lift ticket invitations to share, up to 25 per cent off lessons, discounts from food and drink outlets and free access to Night Skiing and Boarding.

Ski the smaller mountains

If it doesn’t faze you which mountains you ski, then it could be worth investigating smaller mountains. Mount Mawson in Tasmania is a small club field operated by the Southern Tasmanian Ski Association and is operated and patrolled by volunteers. Catering to the beginner and all the way up to the advanced skier, the snow field features three rope tows and four kilometres of slopes, which are included in your ticket price.

Book for the shoulder season

By booking your ski trip for the month of June or September, you could potentially save hundreds. Though there’s always the risk that the quality of snow could be jeopardised – so that’s something you have to take into account.

A humble trawler turned Hamptons-style dreamboat

inspecting bivalve bounty from the ropes

Inspecting the bounty. (Image: Visit Victoria/Hannyn Shiggins)

It’s a crisp, calm winter’s day, and the sun is pouring down upon Valerie, a restored Huon pine workhorse that was first launched in January 1980. In a previous life she trawled the turbulent Bass Strait. These days she takes jaunts into Port Phillip Bay under the helm of Lance Wiffen, a fourth-generation Bellarine farmer, and the owner of Portarlington Mussel Tours . While Lance has been involved in the fishing industry for 30-plus years, the company’s tour boat only debuted in 2023.

See how these plump and juicy bivalves are sustainably cultivated.

It took more than three years to transform the former shark trawler into a dreamy, Hamptons-esque vessel, with little expense spared. Think muted green suede banquettes, white-washed walls, Breton-striped bench cushions, hardwood tables, bouquets of homegrown dahlias, and woollen blankets sourced from Waverley Mills, Australia’s oldest working textile mill. It’s intimate, too, welcoming 12 guests at most. And yet there’s nothing pretentious about the experience – just warm, down-to-earth Aussie hospitality.

As we cruise out, we crack open a bottle of local bubbles and nibble on the most beautifully curated cheese platter, adorned with seashells and grey saltbush picked from the water’s edge that very morning. Australasian gannets soar overhead, and I’m told it’s not uncommon for guests to spot the odd seal, pod of dolphins, or even the occasional little penguin.

The sustainable secret behind Victoria’s best mussels

Blue mussels sourced just off Portarlington.

Connie and Lance both extol the virtues of mussels. They’re delicious. A lean source of protein and packed with omega-3 fatty acids, vitamin B12, iron, selenium, and zinc. They’re cooked in a flash (Connie steams our fresh harvest with cider and onion jam). And they’re also widely regarded as one of the most sustainable foods in the world.

Portarlington mussels with lemon and chilli

Mussels served with lemon and chilli.

“Aquaculture is [often] seen as destructive, so a lot of our guests are really surprised about how environmentally friendly and sustainable our industry is,” Lance says. “[Our mussels] would filter 1.4 billion litres of water a day,” he adds, explaining how mussels remove excess nitrogen and phosphorus from the water. “And through biomineralisation, we lock carbon into mussel shells.”

Mussels are a sustainable food.

Despite their glowing list of accolades, these molluscs have long been seen as the oysters’ poorer cousins. “It was a really slow start,” explains Lance, who says that in the early days of his career, “you could not sell mussels in Victoria”.

But word has slowly caught on. Chefs as globally acclaimed as Attica’s Ben Shewry and even René Redzepi of Noma, Denmark, have travelled to these very waters just to try the shellfish at the source, sharing only the highest praise, and using Lance’s mussels in their restaurants.

guests sampling Portarlington mussels onboard

Sampling the goods onboard. (Image: Visit Victoria/Hannyn Shiggins)

According to Lance there’s one obvious reason why the cool depths of Portarlington outshine other locations for mussel farming. “The water quality is second to none,” he says, noting how other regions are frequently rocked by harvest closures due to poor water quality. “We grow, without a doubt, some of the best shellfish in the world.” And with Lance’s bold claims backed up by some of the industry’s greatest names, perhaps it won’t be much longer until more Aussies uncover the appeal of Portarlington’s mussels.

How to have a ski holiday in Australia on a budget