Ski Diaries with Kathy of Island Fever Sisters

My name is Kathy and I head up a luxury lifestyle and mommy blog Island Fever Sisters.
Living in Hawaii, you get island fever, where you need to get off the rock and travel (you can get stir crazy-Ha!), hence how I came up with the name of our blog with my sister. I’m a wife to my talented husband Kenji who is a professional photographer and videographer. He does everything for the blog, including photography and web design.  A year and a half ago, we welcomed our little daughter Kaia into the world. She’s been so much fun now that we can see her little personality! Her favourite thing to do is sing her ABC’s, dance and she loves to FaceTime.

DO YOU OFTEN GO SKIING?

We don’t go often. The first time we went was in Oregon and Kaia was only 4 months old, so I was just hanging out with her. This time, we decided to go to Park City since my husband was doing some work there after the New Year.

WHAT DO YOU LOVE MOST ABOUT SKIING AS A FAMILY?

Since we live in hot weather year-round, we love to go away for the holidays where it’s cold. It’s so fun to get bundled up, sit by the fireplace and drink hot cocoa. It just doesn’t feel like a holidays when it’s 80 degrees and sunny. Haha!

THE DESTINATION

We went to Park City, Utah where it is one of the best ski towns in America. It’s so beautiful there! The flight there from Honolulu is about 6.5 hours and they do offer non-stop service, which is great. When you land in Salt Lake City, the drive to Park City is about 45 minutes.

SNOOZE IN STYLE

We stayed at Stein Eriksen Lodge in Deer Valley, which is down the mountain from Park City.
This hotel was named the world’s best ski hotel and Utah’s Forbes 5-star Hotel. It is a gorgeous European style ski-in/ski-out hotel. My husband was doing work here, so we decided to just stay there. With a family, it’s so nice to indulge and have a large suite. We had a full-size kitchen, washer/dryer, large dining room, living room, bedroom, huge master bath with a built-in steam room and outdoor hot tub. It’s nice to cook, wash clothes (especially with kids), relax in the hot tub while the baby sleeps, etc. Splurge, you’re on vacation!

EAT LIKE A LOCAL

If you’re a foodie like I am, Park City has an amazing food scene and it’s all got a local flare. Some of my favourite places were Riverhorse and Handle. These two were hands down the best! Riverhorse has an amazing view of the town if you’re seated near the window. The dishes are divine- go hungry! The handle is another great local spot that has a new menu daily. They get all their food from local farmers near the area, so every day they are serving new dishes. They both were amazing!

WHAT ARE THE ESSENTIAL ITEMS TO PACK?

Dress warmly is all I can say! Definitely some warm boots, jacket, pants, knit hat, gloves and scarf. I’m a huge fan of Spyder for adults because they tailor so well for a women’s body and give you shape for bulky winter clothes. For kids, Alex and Alexa carry some great brands including Poivre Blanc and they are so stylish for kids. Kaia got so many compliments on her pink snowsuit.

WHAT WERE YOU MOST LOOKING FORWARD TO DOING AND SEEING?

I honestly couldn’t wait to hit the spas! You don’t need to ski to go to Park City. It’s a spa lovers dream.
The spa at the Montage Deer Valley is definitely a must. Spend the whole day here!

WHAT ABOUT KAIA?

Kaia is 17 months so she is still too young to ski. The ski age for kids start at 3 years old, so we are doing other things like building a snowman and taking a ton of baths. She is such an island baby, that all she wanted to do was stay warm in her bath. Haha! If your kids are 3 years old and older, there are so many things for them to do like ski, take lessons, dog sledding, horse carriage rides, etc.

WHAT WAS THE MOST MEMORABLE THING THAT HAPPENED DURING THE TRIP?

When it started snowing, Kaia kept saying, “Wow!” The look on her face was priceless. Our hotel had an actual snowman building kit and all three of us got to build a snowman together and it was really cute! It was a memorable moment for sure.

WHAT DO YOU ENJOY DOING WHEN YOU AREN’T SKIING?

Sitting near the fireplace and having a glass of wine!

ANY TIPS FOR FAMILIES WHO ARE TAKING THEIR LITTLE ONES SKIING?

Make sure the hotel is great for families. This really helps in making sure everyone has a great time. Schedule a few days to have a babysitter so you can enjoy the slopes or the spa, and book the kids ski lessons so they don’t hurt themselves during the trip. Safety is key and not fun if someone gets hurt.

With thanks to Kathy of Island Fever Sisters X

Polar Fleece Jacket | Pink Ski Suit with Faux Fur Trim | White Polar Fleece Pants

Pink Infants Ski Mittens | Bogner Navy Lenz Beanie | Hunter Wellington Boots