• If you are flying, check packages from companies like Rocky Mountain Tours (www.rockymountaintours.com) and ski.com, which specialize in snow getaways.

• Look for kids-ski-free deals at resorts like Steamboat in Colorado (www.steamboat.com) and Snowbird inUtah (www.snowbird.com).

• Mount Sunapee Resort in New Hampshire (www.mountsunapee.com) invites grandparents over 60 to bring their grandkids and get half off the kids' lift tickets.

• Other resorts, like The Canyons in Park City, Utah (www.thecanyons.com), are throwing in two adult lift tickets -- and discounted tickets for the rest of the gang -- for each unit you book for each day you stay. Consider that adult lift tickets cost $79 each this season. Kids six and under always ski free.

• At neighboring Park City Mountain Resort (www.parkcitymountain.com), where kids six and under also ski free, the Extraordinary Family Package allows a family of four to stay and ski for three nights for under $400 a night, as long as they can come early or late season. That adds up to more than $500 in savings. And since Park City Mountain Resort has night skiing, you can stretch your day into the evening.

• Book by Nov. 23 at Copper Mountain Colorado (www.coppercolorado.com) and you will not only save 20 percent on your lifts and lodging package, but kids 12 and under ski free.

• At Winter Park in Colorado (www.skiwinterpark.com), they'll throw in a fourth night of lodging and lift tickets, if you book by that same date, while for much of the season, the Family Package at Whistler Blackcomb in British Columbia (www.whistlerblackcomb.com) gives the kids free airport transfers, as well as lifts and rentals.

Avoid the holidays and head to the snow before mid-February, you will find that kids 12 and under not only ski free, but fly free (one child per adult) -- from Steamboat to Jackson, Wyo., (www.jacksonhole.com) to Vail Resorts (www.vail.com). If you're a beginner, look for deals during the month of January, the designated Learn-a-Snow Sport month (www.winterfeelsgood.com).

You can also save some bucks by opting for smaller resorts -- often a good bet for beginners and those with younger children. For example, check out the E-Z price Bolton Valley packages in Vermont (www.boltonvalley.com), which offer lodging, lifts, even breakfast. Packages start at $79 a night for adults -- less than the cost of a lift ticket at some places.

At Powder Mountain (www.powdermountain.com) in Utah, night lift passes are being rolled back to 2002 rates -- just $15 for adults and $12 for kids. And night skiing starts at 3 p.m.!

Look hard enough and you can find deals even for holiday weeks this season. Spend Thanksgiving on the slopes and leave the cooking to the chefs at the historic AltaLodge (www.altalodge.com) where the kids, including teens up to age 18, stay and eat breakfast and dinner free the entire weekend.

Book by Nov. 15 for Christmas at Aspen's new kid-friendly Limelight Lodge (www.limelightlodge.com) and save 20 percent, while Crested Butte Mountain Resort (www.skicb.com) offers a four-night Grandest Christmas Package for ''under a grand'' for a family of four and the Rock Resorts (www.holidaysonus.com) promise a free night of lodging on the most popular holidays, when you book four nights.

Stay five nights, Jan. 15 to Jan. 19, 2009, at Smugglers' Notch Resort (www.smuggs.com) in Vermont and get packages for $430 a night for a family of four, including lodging, lifts and all-day programs for kids and adult beginners.

''Give it a try,'' urges Bridget Kerr. ``Even when it's cold, it's really fun to be outside in the winter.''

Absolutely. See you on the lift line.

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