Skiing is a sport for the bold and adventurous, for visionaries, and for disruptors who look for octane adventures that push boundaries. From cat skiing by the ocean, ski touring volcanoes and heli-skiing waist-deep powder, all these extraordinary experiences are available via Mabey Ski. And founder Nickie Mabey prides herself on the ability to make moments real for her customers and allow them to unravel the destination authentically, just like a local.

Thinking ouside the box

Mabey Ski creates unforgettable escapades, from off-piste powder chasers in Japan to sail and ski tours in Norway or lodge-based heliskiing in Canada. Each trip is bespoke, so you will not find a single itinerary that’s been done twice. Indeed, Nickie and her team go out of their way to create exceptional experiences that keep their clients coming back for more. Mabey Ski work with ultra-luxurious private owners, bespoke hotels and chalets to offer a super luxe experience. They can organise mega chalets with helipads and private gondola access and helicopter rides or stays in some of Japan’s most luxurious properties. Alec Baldwin follows Mabey Ski and they also organised a tour for Alex Orbison. Many VVIPs choose Mabey Ski because they are known for their expertise and guides on the ground and making memorable holidays. What makes Mabey Ski unique is skiing into volcanoes and organising wine tastings on the top of a mountain or skiing off the back of a yacht. Those are moments money simply cannot buy. Nickie says: “I believe in trying stuff first-hand. If I get goosebumps from an experience, then it’s something I want to recreate for my customers.”

Women lead the way

The founder of the company, Nickie Mabey hails from a long line of inspirational women skiers. Her great-grandmother Dorothy began the ‘family obsession’ with the winter sport in 1912, when she moved to the Swiss Alps.  She inspired a love of all things alpine in successive generations. Along the lines, each  female member of  Mabey clan has pushed the boundaries to prove gender isn’t a barrier to gaining success in the skiing world. Nickie now resides in Canada and is the CEO and founder of Mabey Ski, an adventure company that organises tours for intrepid skiers.

“My family on both sides are all mad skiers,” shares Nickie. “My grandparents met through skiing and my parents did too, so I was introduced to snow as a baby. As soon as I could walk, I was on skis. My great-grandmother Dorothy started off with a passion for skiing in 1912. At that time the sport was quite new, so she was skiing on two-metre skis in a long skirt and blouse. When she moved to Switzerland, she introduced her kids to the sport and one of them was my granny, Penny.

She was skiing from a young age and inspired that passion in my dad and my five aunties who all grew up racing.

“One of my aunties, Isy raced for Great Britain and was even asked to compete in the Olympics. However, she had a knee injury that prevented her from going to the Games. She was the first female racer to be selected for the British Universities Ski Club. I am in awe of all my female relatives, and they sparked a passion within me to ski myself.”

“My auntie was part of the Ladies Ski Club, which is about to celebrate its centenary. She was one of the first to get women into the sport. I’ve got lots of cousins who live in the mountains in France who are instructing. Many of these are racing professionals. There are lots of us still in the industry and the surname is quite rare. Therefore, if you see a Mabey in the ski world, we are probably related.”

One of Nickie’s earliest memories is of being in a ski school with her brother. At the end of one session, she thanked her ski instructor, and as she took off her beanie, he saw her long hair and exclaimed “Oh you are a girl! He had misheard her thinking she had introduced herself as Nicholas. Yet being mistaken for a boy made her more determined to follow in her female relation’s footsteps and prove gender is not a barrier to success. At that moment Nickie realised her gender was not going to define her. Indeed, her femininity has helped her carve her own niche in the alpine world.”

Mabey Ski is born

This resolve and innate enthusiasm for the sport inspired her to launch her own company Mabey Ski in 2010. She says: “I always knew I was going to start a ski business but at that time just didn’t know what it would look like. I moved to Asia and took up skiing in Japan where I met locals, tasted incredible food and skied through volcanoes. It was then I began to shape my business based on those experiences. She moved from Singapore to Whistler in 2010 and introduced a new arm to the business with a focus on local experiences during the pandemic from British Columbia.

At the time catered chalet holidays were all the rage, but then Airbnb shook up the scene as people started to enjoy going out for dinner. Influencers amplified their observations on social media after seeing new places and exposing the local secrets. Suddenly, these influencers gained huge followers and this movement inspired Nickie to launch her own travel agency which focused on creating her own take on ‘moments to experience life as a local’.  She said: “I began organising accommodation and ski lessons but then spotted the niche of bringing authenticity together with skiing. I wanted people to get outside resorts and visit the most authentic restaurants all those things that make a holiday truly special.”

Mabey Ski ‘s clients

Nowadays, Mabey Ski’s clients are from the UK, the US, Asia, Australia and Europe. Many of them are adventurous skiers. Japan is still the number one market, followed by Canada. In the future, they will be introducing more itineraries in Argentina and other parts of South America. Such variety gives access to year-round skiing for our clients. Mabey Ski works with Kimamaya boutique hotel in Niseko which has nine bedrooms or Season’s Residence, in Annupuri village in Niseko, which recently featured on Netflix. This luxury property sleeps 13 and has private chauffeurs; personal chefs and a menu designed around your needs. It is a place where families can unwind. Mabey Ski has also worked with Bella Coola, a yacht headquartered in Whistler which allows you to heliski along the coastline of Western British Columbia.  Mabey Ski has also introduced back-country luxury tours to Norway, partnering with HMS Gaston, an old Minesweeper ship where you can experience summit-to-sea skiing.

Japan

With the recent launch of new winter ventures in Japan, the company is embracing this exciting destination. “Each time I go to Japan, it always keeps me on my toes. Skiing new terrain, trying new foods, taking road trips out of traditional towns where you won’t see many tourists. We take our clients to resorts tucked away from the crowds so they can access some of the great backcountry ski opportunities. You can ski down a volcano crater, which is just unreal and an incredible place for marriage proposals. It’s one of the coolest experiences ever and it took my breath away standing at the top and peering into that crater filled with snow. Then there is cat skiing by the ocean whereby you ski down to the sea. In Japan, you’ll find the softest snow. If you’re a beginner you’ll be utterly spoiled but if you’re a keen skier who is fed up with Europe, it is just the dreamiest skiing. After a day on the slopes, you can have a bowl of hot steaming ramen on the mountain and once you have refuelled, you’re off again.”

New Zealand

Nickie Mabey spent her first season in New Zealand in 2009 where she worked in a luxury travel agency. Australian clients that ski in New Zealand and a couple who absolutely loved skiing and wine. The ski resorts are quite close to the Central Otago region, so I called some friends and contacts and organised a heli-ski morning where they flew a winemaker up to meet them at the top of the mountain. We set up a big cheeseboard paired with the wine tasting and sat there for a couple of hours sharing stories before going on a tour of the vines.

Canada

In Canada, where the company is based, there is a super long season that runs from the end of November through to May. This means that they can host picnics on tables made out of snow. In Whistler we created a heliski experience from Vancouver Airport up to the resort. People can land and literally just ski their way up to the resort while their luggage is transferred by car.

The locals are the best source of inspiration. I love discovering backcountry cabins. Once you dig a little deeper you can enjoy some incredible luxury experiences. Winter glamping cabins with Egyptian cotton sheets and champagne are also very luxurious and in the warmer months you can land on a glacier where a delicious meal awaits on a table made from snow with the smell of west coast barbecue food tickling your nostrils as you sip on some local BC bubbles surrounded by soft linens and fur rugs.

British Colombia is a vast place where there are many places to ski both on and off-piste, including areas that have not even been discovered. Whitewater and Kickinghorse go beyond your typical touristy resorts. In Whitewater, you can enjoy some of the best powder skiing between some of the tallest trees. The remoteness of the resort means that you’ll struggle to get a signal, which inspired the launch of lodge-based avalanche courses, heli-access base camps, and backcountry courses. These take a beginner ski tourer to a more intermediate level, working on navigational skills and more advanced ski tours in Calgary. Mabey Ski has also organised an introduction to ski touring in Whistler for women to give them a safe space to enjoy the sport so they’re not competing with male egos.”

The secret to Mabey Ski’s success

Being experts in their field is something that Mabey Ski are experts in. Local knowledge helps us to sell our destinations. We try to make anything happen if it’s safe if we do it within the weather conditions. Safety’s number one priority and then there’s also legal to consider. There’s a lot of terrain out here that can’t be accessed by a helicopter. Some places are off limits, but by getting permits in advance we can make that happen. A lot of people want to hire a videographer or photographer to capture those moments in the deepest powder tracks.

Passion is another factor that is instrumental in the success of the company. “All our contacts have been gained on the ground,” says Nickie Mabey. “We know the best to work with and it’s important to get the right people in place. That is why we work with those who share our passion. We are brimming with enthusiasm and that goes for our team. We want our guests to share that passion. Thinking off-piste is another one of our core values, which allows us to be more creative in our thinking and come up with more inspiring and memorable experiences. Another is deeper connections and experiencing destinations like a local. It is about building those intimate connections, so our guests have local experiences that are personal and authentic. We live by these values within the office as well as being authentic and passionate about what we do. We are creative in our thinking. That applies to the suppliers and contacts we work with and hopefully our guests would agree.”

Skiing offers freedom to be yourself

For Nickie, skiing represents freedom and gives her the chance to be herself: “When I’m skiing, I love the fresh air and pushing the boundaries. I get an adrenaline rush and I am truly in my element. I love it when there is no signal and I’m immersed in nature. It is a time that I can properly disconnect. It is all about those ‘feel good moments. I love going into the backcountry into steeper terrain for the first time, there’s nothing like it.”

Overall Mabey Ski is excited for the future. “This season looks set to be our busiest yet. The Aussies were booking super early, and we are getting a lot more European, British and US inquiries. Further afield we will also launch our new tours to Georgia and Antarctica.”