Top five cars to take skiing

It’s the ski season again, so thousands of people are getting up in the wee small hours, heading to provincial airports in brightly coloured coats and catching crammed flights to places you’ve never heard of, like Chambery and Innsbruck.

We think there’s a better way to go skiing though – drive. You get up when you want, you don’t have to have your knees crushed by the fat bloke in the seat in front and there’s no waiting around in tiny airports with one baggage carousel handling 12 flights.

Driving is clearly the only way to arrive in the Alps feeling halfway human, but the question of what to take remains. We’ve rounded up five of the best cars for the task.

Ford Kuga 2.0 TDCi Titanium 4WD

Ford Kuga leasing deals here: Business / Personal

It’s tempting to think of the Kuga as a budget Range Rover Sport, but that would be doing this accomplished SUV something of a disservice. As we found out back in 2014, it can certainly cope off road, while its on-road credentials have never been in doubt – it rides and handles brilliantly.

Choose the 2.0-litre, 177bhp diesel engine and the high-spec Titanium trim level, and you’ve got a car that will carry your family in comfort, style and economy all the way from St Albans to St Anton and back without faltering. What more do you want?

Audi A6 Allroad

Audi A6 Allroad leasing deals: Business / Personal

Combining sharp styling, a premium badge, fantastic build quality and a modicum of off-road ability, the A6 Allroad would be a great car to take in search of the white stuff. It’s more subtle than many jacked-up estates, but it’s still a competent 4x4.

Power is abundant and comes courtesy of 3.0-litre twin-turbo diesel engines, while the usual A6 comfort and luxury is present and correct. The only differences are the smart-looking bumpers and the Quattro four-wheel-drive system.

Range Rover Sport HSE Dynamic SDV6

Range Rover Sport leasing deals: Business / Personal

Arguably the ultimate all-rounder, the Range Rover Sport is possibly the most complete skier’s car out there. Not only will its legendary Land Rover off-road capabilities ensure it can traverse the snowy peaks, its sumptuous luxury will make the drive through Europe a doddle.

Even the autobahns of Germany can be tackled with ease by the 3.0-litre V6 diesel engine, and the car’s desirability is such that even when it’s plastered with grit and grime, it’ll fit right in with the well-to-do communities of Crans-Montana and Lech.

Skoda Octavia Scout

Skoda Octavia leasing deals: Business / Personal

If you like the idea of an A6 Allroad but don’t like the idea of spending £400 a month, then this is the car for you. Based on Skoda’s excellent Octavia Estate (itself based on VW’s equally excellent Golf), it’s the four-wheel-drive estate car for those with more sense than money.

Go for the 181bhp 2.0-litre diesel engine and you’ve got Golf GTD performance and economy, as well as the capability afforded by the electronically controlled four-wheel-drive system. It looks good, too, thanks to Skoda’s sharp styling and that rugged body cladding.

BMW 330d xDrive Touring

BMW 3 Series leasing deals: Business / Personal

No, we haven’t lost our minds, and yes, we know that the 3 Series is notoriously terrible in the snow, but the BMW has always been a great cross-continent cruiser and the Bavarian company has found a fix for its ever-popular executive estate’s lack of traction: the xDrive four-wheel-drive system.

Specify this, and you turn the already stunning 330d into a great ski trip car. It’s roomy, comfy, efficient and powerful, and though it doesn’t have the ground clearance of the other cars here, xDrive will be enough to stop you falling off slushy Alpine roads.