Gstaad: welcome to wonderland

All is quiet, the muffled snowy quiet that comes only with a landscape covered in powdery white. Our surroundings are almost painfully picturesque: snow-covered peaks with shafts of sunlight cutting bright across the snow; ice crystals glistening on twigs and pine needles.

"Look," says our guide, "tracks." He asks the children what they think could have made them. They have just decided it must be a hare when the animal appears on the hillside. Apparently unperturbed by our presence, it stops and looks around before leaping off across the snow. We are on a Winter Discovery Holiday in Switzerland, combining walking, cross-country skiing, tobogganing, and this - our first experience of snowshoeing.

Initial impressions of the "shoes" were not favourable. Walking in big clunky metal clown's feet was bound to be hard work but snowshoes have come a long way since Alpine farmers used plates of wood. Modern snowshoes are light and just narrow enough so that you don't have to walk like a cowboy. They attach only to the toe of your boots, leaving the heel free to lift and they even have metal teeth front and bottom that make going uphill a doddle.

Our guide led us off along a walking track. The shoes clanked horribly on the compacted snow - designed for ordinary boots - but as soon as we veered off on to the powder, the dream-like hush descended. It was like walking on water. We knew we should be sinking up to our thighs at every step and yet we were all moving almost effortlessly over the surface. Weaving our way up a steep hill between close pine trees, the kids tapped the branches above to bring mini-avalanches down on each other (and us!). With no special skill, we were right out in the winter wilderness.

"Shhh," said our guide, pointing. Two mountain goats, an adult and a young one, were feeding under a tree just a few metres away. Now we really felt part of the landscape. We stopped by a frozen lake for a picnic and a hot fruit drink with sleigh bells tinkling in the distance. The kids threw snowballs and an eagle circled overhead.

We decided to come back the quick way - straight down. Snowshoes are harder to control on a downward tilt - which made them even more fun. Squeals of joy and laughter shattered the peace as we all (except the guide) rolled in the powder, sliding and cavorting our way down the slope.

Back at the hotel we were amazed to discover that we had walked almost 13km. Sitting by a blazing log fire eating crêpes and cakes we looked out of the huge picture windows at the darkening winter landscape of which we had so recently been a part. The Steigenberger Hotel has the perfect combination of elegant adult luxury and relaxed child-friendliness. The sauna and swimming pool provide the ideal way to wind down after a day in the wilds, and the food is excellent. Kids can eat supervised high tea and then be entertained while their parents dine, or the children's menu is available throughout adult dinner. Perhaps because the atmosphere was so welcoming, the children in the hotel, of which there were many, seemed to have a great time without ever taking over.

We were back in the landscape the following day - learning to cross-country ski. As beginners we were confined to marked "pistes", but this is nothing like downhill; no clanking chairlifts or rowdy queues to mar the scenery. We worried that the kids might find it dull, but they took to it immediately. After a trial run, the older one announced, "Downhill skiing is like a stone in the welly compared to this."

Tobogganing, independent cross-country, a little downhill and lots of hot chocolate filled the rest of the week until our final activity. This was supposed to be dog-sledding, but it was full. Instead, we took a flight over the mountains in a ski plane. One look at the vehicle - like a motorcycle sidecar with wings - and I was ready to run, but I took a deep breath and scrambled in.

The views were extraordinary. We could see the peaks of three countries, and we came so close to cliffs that you felt you could touch them. Our younger son particularly liked peering down at the minuscule figures of skiersand flying low over the frozen lake where we had snowshoed. We passed a hot-air balloon before landing smoothly. I breathed a sigh of relief while our younger son pronounced it "the best".

Juliet Rix travelled to Gstaad with Headwater (01606 720199; headwater.com) on a Discovery at Gstaad package, which costs from £889 per adult, £489 per child, including flights, transfers, half board, snowshoeing, guided walks, children's downhill ski hire and pass, kids' club and evening entertainment

Our favourite wilderness tour

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