Thredbo Resort and Thredbo Village have very well-developed facilities and services.
Thredbo Ski Hire and Snowboard Rental
Thredbo Resort has two equipment rental outlets at the base of Friday Flat and Valley Terminal, so these are really convenient locations to access the slopes or if you want to swap your gear over. It’s also handy because you can store your gear at these shops if you don’t want to lug it up the hill to your accommodation. However you’ll pay a premium for Thredbo ski hire with the resort. They have ouch worthy prices and then provide a discount if you purchase rentals at the same time as your lift pass, but the pricing remains very high. The Thredbo rental shop at Valley Terminal also has backcountry equipment rentals such as touring skis, splitboards, skins, collapsible poles and snowshoes.
Another option is to rent your gear from Larry Adler and they provide a concierge service whereby you can get your gear delivered to your Thredbo accommodation.
Off the mountain you can make big savings. Harro’s at Lake Crackenback Resort has a large range of standard and performance ski and snowboard rentals, as well as an array of backcountry equipment.
There are many Jindabyne ski hire shops, so prices are somewhat reasonable due to the amount of competition. There are also a few Cooma ski shops that do a big trade in equipment rentals.
Facilities for Children
Thredbo is very popular with families although it’s just average with respect to family friendliness. One plus is that Thredbo Resort has a very comprehensive kids ski school program and it usually has child care, but the inconvenience is that these are located at Friday Flat, which is great if you’re a day tripper or staying in one of the handful of hotels or apartments near Friday Flat. If you’re staying in the main village, it entails traipsing the kids up or down lots of stairs to catch a bus.
There are a few off-slope activities for kids and events, but everyday snow play is difficult at Thredbo. There isn’t always adequate snow at the base to build a snowman and tobogganing is banned. Not providing a spot for dedicated tobogganing or tubing is great for controlling the numbers of cars in the car park, but not so great for families on holidays.
Thredbo Child Care may have been covidised and is not operating anymore. It used to look after babies as young as 6 months up to 6 years of age, with half or full day programs. As an alternative, there are a few babysitting outfits that provide child care in your accommodation. Or there is an early childhood centre over near the golf course that’s popular with seasoners.
Kids Ski School Thredbo
Tiny tackers aged 2 to 4 can start off with a one hour private ski or snowboard lesson.
Thredboland at Friday Flat is for ages 3 to 6 for skiing. It’s a full day program from 9:30am and includes lunch. Drop-off is from 8:30am so unlike at some ski resorts where parents miss out on the best part of the skiing day, at Thredbo parents might even score some fresh lines on a powder day. One of the fun parts about the Thredboland lessons is that the kids ride up the slope in a cute snow train which they seem to love.
Kids ages 5 to 6 can start snowboarding group lessons with the Riglets program.
Kids standard group lessons for ages 7-14 are at 1pm, or first-timer lessons are in the morning or afternoon. Once kids know the basics they can head into the Freeriders Program, which is an all day affair. Or there are 5 day camps throughout the season, which is the most popular way that kids do lessons at Thredbo.
Thredbo Ski School – Adults
For adults (15+) there are first-timer and standard 2 hour group lessons, and the occasional camp, or there’s the option of a private lesson. Even for the latter, the only option for the meeting point is Friday Flat.
Eating On Mountain
Thredbo has a good range of on-mountain dining experiences.
Top of the pops is Kareela Hutte on the Supertrail, where grown ups go for lunch. This restaurant offers an a la carte menu and table service, with a range of Euro inspired dishes. It’s incredibly popular and you’ll need to make a booking well in advance, even if you want to have lunch at 11am! There are also special dinners at Kareela where you ride in a snowcat to get up to this iconic restaurant.
Eagles Nest at the top of the Kosciuszko chairlift is proud that it’s the highest restaurant in Australia. The restaurant offers lovely vistas, yummy brunch, a small lunch menu, and a wide range of wines and beers.
Merritts Mountain House is popular with pedestrians who ride up the gondola to watch the many ski and snowboard lessons on Cruiser. It has pretty funky décor and offers coffee and an abundance of pies and sausage rolls. Drinking beer out on the deck is popular.
Cafeteria style dining can be found at Black Sallees at the top of the Snowgums Chairlift and the Friday Flat Bar and Bistro at the base of the beginners’ area. Also at the base of Friday Flat as you walk towards the day car park is the doughnut shop that pumps out the most enticing aromas – it’s sheer cruelty for anyone trying to watch their weight.
There are a few eateries near the Valley Terminal base where you can get a quick feed, or you can wander up into the Thredbo Village to the bakery or one of the restaurants. If it’s a nice day, you could sit on the deck at the Local Pub.
Thredbo Ski Shops
In addition to the two Thredbo Resort ski shops at the base of the slopes, the Thredbo Village offers a handful of ski and snowboard shops.
Gravity Thredbo is a great Thredbo ski shop if you’re looking for a new pair of skis or boots, whilst the Burton shop is the best Thredbo snowboard shop.
And if you want to keep up with some of the fancy folk wandering around wearing fancy threads, there are a few ski shops that sell stylish ski gear, après wear and mountain clothing.
Other Thredbo Shopping
Thredbo Village has a supermarket which also contains a post office. The grocery store has basic supplies and a small stock of fresh produce.
The village also has a pharmacy and a gallery/gift shop and homewares store.