It is tonight. The useful list is short.

The only list that matters now

Tonight still buys the vignette that actually starts, puts chains and the triangle where you can reach them, screenshots the rescue clause, writes your number on the child, and packs the second pair of mittens. It does not un-book the full-day lesson.

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Six things that still move

1
Vignette
Vignette that actually starts tomorrow, official shop only.
2
Chains
Chains or 3PMSF sidewall, plus triangle and vest you can reach.
3
Rescue
Rescue and repatriation screenshot, or Italy RC plan.
4
Name
Name and international mobile on the child. Phones charged, forwarding off.
5
Mittens
Second mittens, thin socks, gaiter, goggles, sun cream, weight in kilograms.
6
Rest day
Rest day picked. Fence-watching decided against.

The short answer

This is not a packing list and not a new law page. It is a clock. Medical and legal content here is information, not advice.

Still fixable tonight

Second pair of long-cuff mittens, dry, in the daypack

From our packing checklist. That is enough. No "most families forget" line.

One thin ski sock per child per day. Leave the extra pair and the hiking socks out

The boot is sized for one thin sock. Extra fabric compresses the foot.

Neck gaiter in. Scarf out

Loose ends and chairlifts. Packing list.

Goggles as the plan. Spare pair or spare lens if you already own one

Packing and first-trip-mistakes checklists. Sunglasses are not illegal. They are not the plan.

High-factor sun cream and SPF lip balm in the daypack

Apply before you leave the room. Association Securite Solaire / soleil.info, on our mistakes page: UV rises with altitude and snow reflects. Buying these in resort is the avoidable hidden-cost line.

Hand and toe warmers. Never against bare skin

Packing FAQ. No invented burn temperature.

Helmet on the child tonight, with the liner you packed

If the liner loosens the helmet, leave the liner out. Italy wants a CE mark. A helmet they have outgrown is not doing the job.

Write each child's weight in kilograms in your phone notes

European children's paracetamol and ibuprofen are dosed by weight. The pharmacist advises. Do not dose from this page.

Screenshot the travel-policy clauses that name mountain rescue and repatriation

If those words are missing, the policy is not covering them. EHIC does not cover rescue or repatriation (Your Europe, last checked 15 June 2026). Italy's piste RC is third-party only.

Save 112. Add 140 if Austria. Add 15 and 114 if France

Bergrettung Vorarlberg: 140 alpine nationwide, 112 Euro-Notruf. Charge every phone. Inside layer. Call forwarding and voicemail off so rescue can call back.

Write the child's first name and one parent mobile, with the country code, on the pass holder or a wristband

Convention, not a rule. Staff will not look for it automatically. If you do not have the pass yet, pack the label tonight.

Agree who takes the morning photo: each child in today's kit, helmet and gloves on

Our recommendation on the separated-on-the-mountain page. Not an official patrol form.

If you are driving: triangle and one CE hi-vis vest where you can reach them without unpacking ski bags

France service-public F19459 (verified 11 June 2026): triangle plus vest on board. Switzerland: triangle required, vest not required. Pack the vest if any other country is on the route. Statutes are per vehicle, not "one vest per occupant."

If you have not picked a rest day, pick one tonight

First-trip mistakes: a full non-ski day around day three or four. Decide before a morning when the pass is already paid. Day three is not a medical law.

Country forks

Fork	Tonight	Permission
Austria vignette	Buy the 10-day digital vignette at the official ASFINAG shop. Set the start date to the first driving day.	Do not buy the 2-month or annual digital vignette on your phone tonight. Those have an 18-day consumer wait. Ersatzmaut for a family car in 2026 is EUR 200, not 270.
Austria tunnels	If the route uses Arlberg, Brenner, Tauern/Katschberg, Bosruck, Gleinalm, or Karawanken, budget a separate Streckenmaut. The vignette does not cover them.	2026 car single trip on the official ASFINAG page: Gleinalm 12, Bosruck 7, Tauern 15, Brenner 12.50, Arlberg 13, Karawanken 9 euro.
Switzerland vignette	Buy one CHF 40 vignette per vehicle, plus a second for any trailer, from e-vignette.ch / via.admin.ch only.	No cheaper short product exists. BAZG warns of fake shops. Fine not re-verified tonight. Roof box unanswered.
France winter kit	Look at a front sidewall. You want the alpine symbol plus M+S. If you only have M+S, put chains or equivalent removable devices in the boot.	The 135 euro winter-equipment sanction was still unpublished as of the Interior Ministry Senate answer on 12 February 2026. Carry the kit. Stop rehearsing the ticket.
Colorado traction	Find M+S or the mountain-snowflake, or a manufacturer all-weather rating. Measure tread. Carry chains. Check COtrip.	Do not quote a fine. CDOT pages disagree on 2WD and the dollar. AWD is not the whole answer.
California chains	Confirm chains sized to the tyre on the car you will actually drive. Check Caltrans QuickMap and 800-427-7623. Installers cannot sell or rent.	No published dollar fine on the Caltrans chain-control page. R-3 has no AWD exemption. Speed when chains are required: 25 or 30 mph.
Italy skiing	Screenshot a household or travel liability certificate that names skiing and every child, or decide you will buy the operator add-on at the window. CE helmet every head, including the sledge afternoon.	Art. 30 is third-party RC, not rescue. Helmet rule is all ages since 2025/26. New York has no helmet statute. Tyrol and Vorarlberg never joined the 2009 helmet agreement.
Austria weekend arrival	Do the food shop before the federal default wall, or eat what you already have. Save 1450.	Oeffnungszeitengesetz 2003 section 3: shops closed Saturday after 18:00, Sunday, holidays, Monday until 06:00, unless a later section or a Landeshauptmann Verordnung says otherwise. Do not invent your village exception.

Already too late. Put it down.

We booked the full-day ski school

A booking decision. You can still pull them at lunch tomorrow. That is day one, not a tonight purchase.

We bought the kit

You can leave the unused retail bag at home. You cannot un-spend it. Rent outers for a first trip. Buy base layers and socks.

EHIC will get us off the mountain

Your Europe: it will not help with rescue or repatriation. Screenshot the travel policy instead.

A 2-month Austrian digital vignette bought tonight covers tomorrow

It does not. Buy the 10-day.

We will buy chains at the California checkpoint

Caltrans: installers cannot sell or rent. Confirm tonight.

New York or Tyrol will fine a helmetless child

No NY helmet statute. Those two Austrian states never joined the 2009 agreement. Put the helmet on. The legal panic can stop.

Questions parents actually ask

Can I buy the Austrian vignette on my phone tonight?

Yes, the 10-day digital vignette, start date equal to the first driving day, at shop.asfinag.at. Do not buy the 2-month or annual digital product tonight. Those wait 18 days for a consumer online purchase.

Does AWD mean we can skip chains?

No. Colorado: drivetrain is half the condition. California R-2 still makes you carry chains. Caltrans R-3 has no AWD exemption. Check the sidewall and pack the chains for the car you will actually drive.

Does EHIC cover a piste rescue?

No. Your Europe says EHIC will not help with rescue and repatriation. Italy's mandatory piste insurance is third-party liability. Screenshot the travel policy that names mountain rescue, or you do not have it.

Will France fine us 135 euro tomorrow for no winter tyres?

Interior Ministry, 12 February 2026: the obligation is real; the sanction decree had not been published in 2025. Carry 3PMSF or chains. Stop rehearsing the ticket.

What if we arrive in Austria on Saturday night?

The federal default is shops closed Saturday after 18:00 and all day Sunday, unless a tourist-area Verordnung says otherwise. Do the shop before that wall, or eat what you have. Save 1450 for health advice, including pharmacies.

Is there an official lost-child procedure at Alpine resorts?

Our separated-on-the-mountain page searched Swiss Snowsports, SKUS, DSF, and tourist boards and found none published. Do the ten-minute plan tonight: numbers, photo, name on the pass. Do not wait for a procedure that is not public.

The long versions live on the pages this list was compiled from:

Transparency note: This content was created with AI assistance and reviewed by Tom Meredith, our editor. Prices, dates, and availability may change. We recommend confirming details directly with the resort before booking.