If hopping out of a helicopter on the top of a mountain with nothing but fresh white powder beneath you is your idea of heaven, then you’ve come to the right place, because it’s on our bucket list too.

You can’t just jump on a heli anywhere though. Tight regulations and an over-zealous addiction to ‘elf and safety had made it impossible to heli-board in France, for example. The Frenchies banned it in 1985 to protect the mountain environment which is obviously fair enough, but we’ll save that story for another day.

Tight regulations and an over-zealous addiction to ‘elf and safety had made it impossible to heli-board in France

It’s generally regarded that for the ultimate heli-boarding experience you need to head across the pond to Alaska and Canada. If you don’t want to remortgage the house, however, there are a few places in Europe that will provide you with an equally exhilarating, and slightly less expensive alternative.