If you’re anything like me, after a certain age snowboard trips with your mates became synonymous with sex and alcohol as much as shredding. You found yourself spending more time on the piss than on the pistes and all too often a day’s “riding” became a quest to get your head out of the toilet and hot foot it to the télépherique in a desperate attempt to make the last lift. The run down was then of course punctuated by a pit stop at a piste-side pub, before you headed back to the resort to sink the first Jaeger-bombs of the day.

I no longer want all my weeks away to resemble Club 18-30s holidays (complete with piss-ups, parties and orgies)

Perhaps it’s because I’m getting older, but recently I’ve found that I can’t quite keep up with that rate of alcohol-induced attrition. And anyway, I no longer want all my weeks away to resemble Club 18-30s holidays (complete with piss-ups, parties and orgies). It’s in this slightly more mature frame of mind that I’ve recently rediscovered the joys of going on vacation with the parents.

If you’re not one to look the gift horse in the mouth, time on the snow with the elders holds numerous advantages, not least the fact you’ll probably get a lot more riding in. All of these should be seriously considered before completely writing off the idea of a potentially free holiday although of course there are numerous pitfalls that must also be taken into consideration.

So here is a fool-proof guide to the top 10 “do’s and don’ts” of taking a snowboarding trip away with your parents, which we hope will avoid any potential confusion or embarrassment.