Best Ski school for a family near Orlando

[jercrane]

I have fiendishly convince my wife of an amazing vacation plan. My girls are really getting into skiing. My oldest is starting to play around in the course and really wants to get better and my youngest is just getting up on 1. So I pitched the idea of taking veterans weekend, flying to Florida and spending 3 days as a family getting some coaching.

 

And oh my god she bought it!

 

The only trade off is she wants to do a day at Universal Resort. Fine I can suffer through that if on the backside I get 3 days of ski school coaching to hopefully make me not suck quite as bad as I do right now.

 

So what do folks recommend for a family ski school trip near Orlando in November? Jack Travers and Boarding School are both in tbe running right now. I’m leaning Jack Travers as my oldest might be interest in doing 2 week summer camp there next year but honestly totally open to suggestions.

[DavidN]

Hands down - Sunset Lakes Jack Travers in Groveland.

About 50 minutes from downtown Orlando, but totally worth the drive.

(Or stay on site!)

[ScottScott]

Jodi's Ski Skool. Hes great with the kids, and great with advanced skiers. We were there this morning as he was helping my girlfriend start to learn the course. Got her up to going around 1, 5 and 6. He's very close to Disney, but not a far drive from Universal either. You would want to contact him to check his schedule as he has a couple tour stops scattered throughout the fall in Asia and South America.

[skibug]

Swiss Ski School in Claremont

[jayski]

Drew Ross, Winter Garden...minutes from Disney, easy quick trip to Universal

[bigtex2011]

rini's for real

[m_pags]

The Boarding School. Travis and Freddie are great with kids too. Great vibe on the dock not just churn and burn. Oh and the lakes are awesome!

[skihart]

Where are you staying? Most ski schools don't have on site accommodations. Some are closer to the parks than others. Depends on your priorities.

Jodi is very close to Disney, Rini isn't too far from from Disney or Universal. The Boarding school is a bit further out of Orlando but has great accommodations on site, in a house and also a separate apartment. Jacks is also a bit of a hike but may also have accommodations?(Dont quote me on that)

[jimski]

The boarding school

Great crew, great accommodations

[Chef23]

If you are looking to stay on site Travers has housing options including condos/houses that they manage for the owners on site. I believe you can get housing at Swiss also. Going with a family if skiing is your priority it is nice to be staying right on the site. I have skied at Travers and it is a great place with super people running it.

[lpskier]

Well, that narrows it down. One vote for everyone.

 

Jodi’s, Drew’s Rini’s and LaPoint Ski Park are closest to Universal. LaPoint Ski Park is closest, maybe 10 minutes away. Rhoni is really great with kids and your daughters will relate to her, but she’s a half hour drive east from Universal. The Boarding School is about the same. Jack’s, Boris’s and Swiss are at least that far northwest, but at least you’ll go against traffic.

 

There are no bad choices and you’ll have a good experience whichever you pick.

[Lars]

Really depends on accommodations you're looking for. If you want to stay in a VRBO type house on the lake with your own pool, Swiss is hard to beat. If you want to stay in a resort near Disney and just drive to the lake to ski, then lapoint's is probably the most economical, especially since you can pay for just a ride without coaching.

[jercrane]

Thanks folks. Some good spots to research I guess. I guess I’ll interpret the many scattered votes as it’s hard to go wrong. I’m not too worried about distance to one of the parks as we are likely to only do one day at a park. Nice place to stay on site with a pool is probably the ideal. Good coaches that my daughters will dig is probably more important. Would be super cool if they could have a really great female coach. I’d love for them to see a woman rip up the course.

[lpskier]

You’ll find females at Rhoni’s, Rini’s (Whitney and Paige) and Jack’s. Rhoni is particularly good with kids.

[markn]

Have to give a recommendation for Swiss Ski School. Plenty of on-site homes for rent, most with pools, golf course, world class ski lakes and excellent coaching. They use Nautiques exclusively and coach all levels from beginner to short line. All this and still close to attractions. Enjoy your ski vacation where ever you decide to ski!

[Keith_Menard]

I can't comment on the others as Rini's is the only place we have gone. We did Disney and ski school. Cole and Matt were both very good with the kids, and almost more importantly...with my wife.

 

It isn't a place where you are going to hang out and do much more than ski...but if you are looking for a laid back atmosphere with good coaching and no gators...I was very happy.

 

 

 

 

 

[The_MS]

Luckys

[jercrane]

Where does Rhoni coach? I haven't been able to find anything via search for a camp or school she is connected with. Anyone have a website? @lpskier or @nikandsteve

[ScottScott]

@"Keith Menard" not to scare anyone away from ANY florida ski school...but.... ANY body of water in florida is just assumed to have gators. It may not, but no one can say 100% sure there isn't one. And if there isn't one today, doesn't mean there won't be one tomorrow. They're generally sleeping during the day at the bottom of the lake.....if you don't see one, it doesn't mean they're not there. That goes for ALL florida ski schools equally.

[slvrbulit]

I am going to be down in Orlando the same time as @jercrane . I was thinking about Rinis. @"Keith Menard" how did you get your ski down there?

[Keith_Menard]

 

I got a sleeve with the fin protector, put it in a padded bag...put it in a snowboard bag...filled the void with clothes and stuff.

 

https://www.facebook.com/Matt-RInis-Waterski-School-434596836690050/

[jercrane]

ok now @ScottScott has me concerned, anyone else have opinions on Gators?

Is this the kind of thing where every school does like a gator talk before your first lesson and there are signs all over the place. I can guarantee my girls will never get in the water if thats the case.

[ScottScott]

@jercrane. While it's important to know that there are gators, and never assume a body of water doesn't have one......I've never heard of a significant accounter between a gator and a water skier. They don't like people, and particularly don't like boats and they stay away. There are A LOT of skiers in central florida, all skiing in lakes that have gators. I just replaced a turn buoy that had a gator bite that deflated it. Dove in, swapped out the buoy, skied a couple sets. No different than swimming in the ocean.

[dvskier]

Don't worry about gators. I've never seen one at a ski school in FL. Not saying they aren't around but with the boat traffic they steer clear.

[skihacker]

There are sharks in the oceans, and bears in the woods, I've skied a fair bit all over central and south florida over the years, never once saw a gator anywhere near a running ski boat. I've seen them in golf course water hazards, other quieter park ponds and so forth, go ski......don't mention to the family.

[Garn]

Matt Rini is the best ski coach that I personally have ever had. I want to go back there so bad. And I didn't see any gaters.

[MISkier]

@jercrane, I’ve never seen signs or been advised of gator potential. The possibility of their presence in any Florida lake exists. If you aren’t the first people to ever ski in that lake, then your likelihood of an encounter should be a bit less. People running a ski school should be relocating (or otherwise handling) any gator that is 5 feet or more. If you are bigger than the gator, they aren’t likely to bother you. I’ve skied three different times in Florida, multiple days for two of those. I never even saw one. My visits were in April and January. I’m not sure what their activity level is now or in the fall, but they are supposedly inactive at the times I was there.

[Killer]

@jercrane its an unspoken fact. It's florida so there are gators, snakes, spiders, etc. Were you not aware of that? nobody's doing gator talks lol. They are rarely ever seen and there are no signs, don't worry about it. No different than going for a walk in the New Hampshire woods - there are bears, coyotes, snakes, etc.

 

 

[Zman]

Deleted by OP

[dhofert]

I spent a week at The Boarding School last April and only seen one small gator. I was worried before I got there a little bit. I just told myself that im not the forst one to ski there and with constant boat traffic daily most of them should stay away. Not one time did I even think about it while in the water.

[DavidN]

https://www.wakesurforlando.com/single-post/2018/05/07/Alligators-in-Florida-Lakes-and-their-role-in-Towed-Water-Sports

[ScottScott]

@MlSkier I would certainly say January is an inactive period for gators, but unless it's been a particularly long winter, April is about the time they start wandering around looking for mates......

[Southside_Mike]

The only two places I've been to are Rini's and the Swiss Ski School. I can imagine meeting a gator at the Swiss, but Rini's place is very urban and while not impossible, I'd be pretty surprised if you came across one there. Never bothered me when wakeboarding at OWC either.

 

Frankly, if you prepared to drive around on the I-4, then being worried about gators isn't good risk analysis.

[Zman]

I guess we should let this thread get back to ski school recommendations. I may even delete my gator post.

I have really enjoyed The Boarding School. Been there when @Chris Rossi was teaching, @brooks and @FWinter . All, were great and the lakes ski great.

[Wish]

@jercrane Google deaths/injury caused gator attacks in Fl. Then Google deaths/injury caused by lightning in FL. Basically you know not to walk outside in a lightning storm. Same for gator's in that it's not smart to wander in quiet bodies of water before sunrise and after sunset even though gator attacks are almost 0 and are 0 for skiers. No signs posted warning about lightning and the same is true for most bodies of water for gator warnings. Your girls won't know if you don't tell them. Mention the lightning stats to them and won't go outside if it's even clowdy.

[jercrane]

yeah ok sounds good on the gators. No intention to mention anything as that would be sure fire trip cancellation regardless of logic and rationality.

 

Rhoni location?

 

I like the looks of Swiss. Those accommodations look like something my wife would dig and she probably won't be skiing so thats important.

[APB]

Swiss is great with a really good dock area. Only did say trips but it was awesome. I worked in Orlando at a school and there’s def snakes and gators.... common sense is key.

[rawly]

Boarding School !! Very cool place to hang out between your rides. Call Travis and see if the apartment is available , otherwise you share the house with other guests. Closest sight to Cape Kennedy, and there are a few nice wilderness parks nearby for the kids to see some gators ( when they aren't skiing ) Have fun !!

[jercrane]

@rawly sadly I think the boarding school is where I want to go, just not sure it’s my wife’s jam and this particular trip really needs to be about her thinking this is awesome. Hard to establish a family tradition without the first experience being amazing.

[mbabiash]

I really liked the boarding school. But if you want something close to the parks and other activities. Don’t forget about Thomas Degasperi ski school. Really laid back. Very good coach. I got a lot out of my few sets that I took there.

5-10 minutes from Disney. It is an 8 ball course but it was easy to get used to.

 

 

[Edbrazil]

Getting a bit off the original topic, but is anyone aware of a gator attack on a skier in Florida, at any time? How about at Cypress Gardens on a relatively large lake on all the years since the 1940s? You'd think if there had been a gator attack, it would be well-known in the ski world.

[lpskier]

This is my fourth year at LaPoint Ski Park and I have yet to see a gator. I skied at The Boarding School tonight. No gators. I ski at Rini’s a bunch. Sorry, no gators. Now if you want to see a bunch of gators, ... go to Gainesville.

[lpskier]

@jercrane I messaged you her email address. Rhoni’s on the east side, a couple miles from where 408 intersects with 50.

[Stevie Boy]

Positives for Florida Skiing, Sunshine, Conditions generally are good, Best Water Temp,

Best Coaching, Availability of Equpment/Spares etc.

I am not that comfortable with the wildlife thing, but I go to Florida twice a year for three weeks at a time, year after year, so I guess there must be more positives than negatives.

[jhughes]

The smartest Orlando play seems to be to rent a really cool house with a nice pool somewhere closer to town and have your pick of the litter for any ski school you want to visit. Gives the rest of the family the option to swim and hang out at the pool and you won't be out in the boondocks.

 

We have stayed at Swiss, which is nice, but it's out there!

[jercrane]

@jhughes that’s an interesting thought. I like the idea of waking up and strolling to the dock but maybe house with a nice pool off-site is the better option for first trip.

[jhughes]

Yep, gives you a nice lay of the land and keeps the family happy and close to amenities. Should be able to find a ridiculous house for pretty reasonable money as well.

[Zman]

And, don't forget at least one trip to Performance Ski n Surf.

You'll be like a kid in a candy store.

[Keith_Menard]

@Zman Ya...make sure you budget in that trip...you will be surprised how much you will spend (and the awesome service you will get) at Perf Ski. They also work with some of the local ski schools with some discounts.

[skihart]

I don't think there is a ski school type resort in Orlando to be honest. When I took the family we stayed in a nice condo/hotel that had an awesome pool and was close to the parks. We then drove to Rinis when we wanted to ski for half days and then went back to the condo to relax afterwards or did half day at the parks. Maybe try something in the I drive area. Perfski is really close and Universal as well.