Produced in association with our mates at Thredbo.
It’s a universal truth that everything is made infinitely better when you can say you’re doing it après ski. Maybe it’s because you’ve had to work harder for it and can say without hesitation that you’ve earned those five midday beers. Or maybe it’s because if you’re doing anything post-slopes it’s more than likely that you’re already on holiday. Who knows?
One thing’s for sure though: life’s better when you’re on the run [best suited to your ability]. It’s for that reason that we’re more than a little psyched to present to you the following.
First, our guide to making the most out of Thredbo, Australia’s premier alpine resort, and following that, the chance to win one of multiple Ultimate Thredbo Experiences. With a little help from our pals down south, we’re giving away two [x2] double passes for PEDESTRIAN readers to experience a full-blown, balls-to-the-wall winter holiday. Those lucky duos will get to experience Thredbo and their infamous Smirnoff Snow Dome parties in all their glory, including lift passes, two nights accommodation and a satisfaction guaranteed A+ time you’ll inevitably fall in love with.
We’re also giving away ten [x10] Thredbo double lift passes each week so your chances of experiencing everything on offer are appropriately high, and with Thredbo’s September Festival kicking things up a notch as of next week, you’d be well-advised to enter below or forever hold your piste 
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.For more details and a rundown on what to expect from your time on ice, it’s all downhill from here.
GETTING THERE
Is half the fun. The journey south from Sydney should take you roughly six hours, provided you don’t stop for oysters in Canberra like we did.
Other lessons we learned the hard way on the long and winding road include – but are not strictly limited to – ‘quit gas-bagging for a minute and check your fuel gauge when you hit Jindabyne, if not well beforehand’. There’s nothing quite like the feeling of coasting downhill into the Thredbo village’s only petrol station a minute after closing time just as your accelerator finally ceases to give.
Thrilling, sure, but not an experience I would wish on anyone anytime soon.
The #nofilter alpine sunsets on the way are also something everyone should experience daily. Also, don’t forget your National Park permits and BYO snacks.
For the no nonsense guide on how to get there sans hijinks, head here.
DO YOU WANNA BUILD A SNOWMAN?
There has literally never been a better time to visit Thredbo. Having just enjoyed the best snowfalls in over a decade, the resort is both operating at maximum capacity and enjoying some of the best conditions seen not only in Australia but in the history of the resort. No fewer than three long-term residents told us – separately – that they hadn’t seen snowfalls like it in the last quarter century. Plus, Thredbo copped another cold front right in the kisser last week, offloading a further 40cm up top.
We can also confirm that the following run – which I think was actually called the Dream Run – was, in fact, a dream run, set amongst a landscape best described as ‘unable to be dealt with’.
A recent Newspoll indicated that almost half of the surveyed Australians have never experienced a snow holiday, with more than half (60%) having never skied or snowboarded, sadly depriving them of the chance to use a snowboard emoji in the appropriate context. 
If, like me, you haven’t strapped yourself into those boots in over a decade, you’ll notice two things: The first, that it’s an experience not unlike riding a bike, and secondly, that everyone is wearing GoPros now. That said, if you’re one of the 20% of Australians who’ve haven’t seen snow IRL, you’re never short of options where the incline is slight, the pace leisurely and the imported instructors plentiful.
For whatever reason, if you start to feel something akin to the photo below, seek solace in any number of the mid-station pitstops perched across the mountainside, like Black Sallees – the only places where it’s still possible to hear Nickelback and where hot chips and a mulled wine make for an appropriate lunch.
It’s also worth noting that, as a wise poet once said, ‘If at first you don’t succeed, dust yourself off and try again.’ Failing that, you can always just dust yourself off and go off-piste.
GOING OFF-PISTE
A term usually reserved for a style of skiing where the slopes have undergone considerably less grooming than an prospective MP, ‘off-piste’ to us meant everything that’s happening once you step off the slopes – either when you’re forcibly removed or by sheer necessity. Depending on your propensity for throwing yourself down a hill, you might be more inclined to sample at length the pleasures of village life.
It’s there you’ll see another side to Thredbo that you mightn’t have experienced on vacation with your parents or on a school trip – one that more or less operates at a similar pace to the one you’ll be travelling at on the mountain.
‘When in Rome’, should be your ethos here; throw yourself wholeheartedly into the après scene, and it’ll wholeheartedly throw itself back at you. Our recommendations for an off-piste tipple? Should you find yourself in the vicinity of Friday Flat mid-afternoon, The River Inn is where you’ll want to position yourself for some A1 people watching and a few generous libations. As a resident instructor told me on the condition of anonymity, “After a day on the slopes, for some reason at this bar, pretty much everyone just lets it rip.”
After that, forget everything anyone’s ever told you about exposure to the elements and hit up the Poolside Bar – Australia’s only alpine outdoor poolside bar and thus Australia’s most YOLO poolside bar.
From there, the village is your oyster. Bide your time between last drinks and the first chairlift over billiards and darts at The Pub; imbibe an expertly mixed cocktail at Après Bar [pro tip: espresso martinis FTW] or head to Black Bear for some peak charm potential. You can also cut out the middle men and head straight to Schuss Bar to cut sick, or follow our well-worn footsteps to Bernti’s.
Should you be so lucky you’ll meet its owner, Donna [pictured below] and if play your cards right and you could just find your way to her private entertaining suite, The Red Room, next to which I have written in my notes “vat of schnapps. Cash – get cash?” Reflecting on that experience the next day, the only way I could think of describing it was, ‘Like being in an American Pie sequel directed by David Lynch.’ Five stars, would recommend.
APRÈS THE SNOW, IT’S THE APRÈS PARTY
Stationed at regular intervals throughout the week and season at large are an unbelievable amount of events that you’d be well-advised to familiarise yourself with in case you’re one of our eventual comp winners. Better yet: they’re all free.
This Thursday’s Uni Week Snow Dome Party is the first of four marquee events on the Thredbo winter calendar, spearheaded by acts like Touch Sensitive and Alison Wonderland and happening through July to September. All of which promise to look something like this:
To celebrate the winning combination of al fresco freak outs and you, we want to send four lucky punters along to both of the Snow Dome parties happening on Saturday August 9th – headlined by Touch Sensitive, Sosume DJs and Danny Clayton – and on Saturday August 23rd, where Yacht Club DJs and Yahtzel will hold court in the Dome.
Included in your prize haul will be two nights accommodation and a two day lift pass so you can make the most out of your time on the slopes and at the Snow Dome parties.
In the interim, there’s no shortage of things to occupy you between chairlifts. For a full run down of events, head here.
APRÈS THE PARTY, IT’S YOUR HOTEL LOBBY
Here’s where you really come in. We want to give you two winter holidays for two to experience Thredbo. All that’s required is that you enter your vital stats in the relevant text fields so we can contact you before heading to the Facebook comments section below to describe in 25 words or less why you love winter so we can determine the winners.
Runners up will also go into the running to win ten double passes each week. For details on how to increase your chances of winning a Thredbo double pass, keep your eyes on all our relevant channels: Facebook, Twitter and Instagram and subscribe to The PEDESTRIAN Daily.
For all the information you could ever need about Thredbo, you can start by making the jump here.
Terms and conditions apply.*
*Terms & Conditions
Prize to be redeemed on specified dates only )Snow Dome 1: 9th & 10th August; Snow Dome 2: 23rd & 24th August). Transport to and from Thredbo not included. Prize non-transferrable, non redeemable for cash, no refunds for cancellations or change of dates, winner agrees to standard Thredbo Resort accommodation, rental and lift pass terms and conditions. Visit Thredbo.com.au/terms for more.
Passes Terms & Conditions
Prize non-transferrable, non-redeemable for cash, no refunds for cancellations or change of dates, winner agrees to standard Thredbo Resort lift pass terms and conditions.
