 Poster: A snowHead
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Always been keen to drive to the Alps for some reason. We live in Glasgow, so it would be a long drive we know. Thinking now kid in school it would be a good use to the Easter holidays, and get a bit more than a week skiing in. Intention would probably be leave early morn, drive to Dover way, stay overnight in a site there and get an early ferry in the morning. (This is what we did driving to champagne region one summer) Do most of the drive and have a stopover, then the remaining drive the next day.
Main query - Is it possible to stay with a caravan in a ski report? Has anyone done it? I did see motorhomes in a site in Pila, but they would have been able to get up the winding road, don't think I'd do it with a van, is it even possible? Not even asking the OH these questions as he would just say yes!
Are there any resorts that you don't have to do the winding hill climb that will have a site with electric (obviously the site question is for anyone who has knowledge of the sites available) I'm guessing the hill climb would be mad with a caravan, and I'm not keen on them at the best of times, so for first time even with just the car I'd be freaking probably, although the OH won't. I think I remember Morzine didn't have the hill climb?
I've thought about Pila as really like it, and was thinking there may be a site near the bottom of the gondola?
We'd prefer not to be driving when there, as we do like a beer or two at lunch, and perhaps some on the slopes after skiing, we don't like to be restricted to someone having to drive.
Reason we're thinking of taking the van rather than just driving is that roughly costing the price of diesel for the drive, wouldn't make it cost effective, we'd probably just be better getting a late deal if we could (although that would only be for one week, so I suppose the benefit comes from over a weeks skiing) Will need to do a proper costing of the diesel, but at the moment just trying to gather some ideas at the moment.
Anyone driven from Scotland?
Open to any resort any country.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Plenty of caravan sites in Austria that are at valley level. Just about all the major resort areas have some and they are really popular with the Dutch and Scandinavians. A lot are not far off major motorways and the drive down through Belgium and Germany would be relatively straightforward as well. Not sure what the cost of a Austrian vignette for a car and caravan is but it small in comparison to French and Italian motorway tolls I would think.
Easter is a wee bit earlier this coming season so is the caravan fully winterised?
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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Samerberg Sue, Thanks for the info. I should add although I say Easter, our school holidays stick to the 1st two weeks in April no matter when Easter is.
What do you mean by caravan fully winterised? If you are meaning tyres, then no, but this is the info that I need.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Full service campsite in Bourg St Maurice. Close to supermarkets, ski hire and a cafe, and a short drive to the centre of town. Easy drive from Calais, without any steep access roads to the town. The campsite is a short drive (less than 5 minutes) to the mountain funicular which takes you from Bourg direct to the pistes of Les Arcs. There's free parking at the funicular, and the journey time up the hill is about 7 minutes IIRC.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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We've driven from Scotland with a motorhome in the summer a few times, and I would suggest you look carefully at the costs vs convenience of one of the long ferry crossings - they sometimes do deals so caravans go free. This Easter we're driving to Avoriaz (in a car) and after lots of looking we've decided to go Newcastle-Amsterdam - times to resorts are not greatly different compared to driving from Calais (some Austrian and Swiss resorts may be closer, but I've not looked) but the much shorter drive on this side is attractive - we're just north of Perth. In the past we've used the tunnel, and the Hull-Zeebrugge crossing, so the Newcastle route is a change. We're going at Easter because our son has just gone up to high school - while he was at primary, we had few qualms about taking him out for skiing, particularly the year when our holiday coincided with his school's ski week at Glenshee; if schools here had a week off anytime between Christmas and Easter, it might have been different.
People have suggested some Austrian resorts - if France is preferred then there are some without long climbs, but they're not likely to have skiing down to the village at Easter -Samoens is a good example, and quite a nice site in a nice village, the skiing is Grand Massif, it's a fairly short walk from the campsite to the access lift (depending in where on the site you pitch)
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Easter can be a lovely time to take the caravan to Alps for some late season skiing, the weather is often beautiful with lots of sun, the downsidse are that you need to be able to get high to have a reasonable chance of good snow and that if the weather is bad you are likely to have mud around you on site rather than snow.
We've always headed for the French Alps so I can`t tell you much about winter sites elsewhere other than (having stayed on some in summer) those sites with pools in Austria/Germany can be strict about what times children may use the fascilities.
In terms of winterisation, you need to know that your van is adequately insulated and adequately heated, with a strong roof to cope with snow. You also need to have either an inboard water tank (again adequately insulated from any outside walls) or keep your water carrier inside all the time, or for Easter on the lower sites you may get away with an well insulated aquaroll (stand on thick polysterene, wrap in hot water tank insulation, cover with thick plastic rubble bag, keep in awning if possible, cover pipes with pipe lagging and some folks use water heaters similar to those for fish tanks.
Use a bucket, not a tank, to collect waste water as its impossible to empty the frozen contents of a tank.
If you use an awning, (it makes life a lot easier if you do) make it a small one with a sloping roof and re-inforce with extra poles if snow may fall. Clear roof of awning of snow frequently.
As well as gas central heating you may choose to take a couple of low wattage fan heaters. We generally leave these on frost guard all the time. Get the quietest ones you can to avoid disturbing light sleepers.
Our very first winter camp was at Morzine because we were familiar with the resort but the camp site is a little way out and we found other more convenient locations.
Samoens is a good one to start with. Its an easy drive from the ports. We have done it back to Essex in a day. The road to the resort is very straightforward and the site is directly over the road from the big cable car. The ski room is enroute between pitches and lift as is a convenient pattisserie (for hungry children on the way home  ) If you go there though do watch where you pitch as some areas of the site are prone to water logging and we once woke up with a paddling pool in the awning!
Bourg-St-Maurice also has a convenient site. Again its an easy run towing a van, and you can either walk (further than I wanted to) or drive (large easy car park 5 mins up the road) or take the navette to the funicular up to Les Arcs. It also easy to drive to several other resorts for the day if you choose. There is a super market just over the road and a swimming pool next door. Bourg is further than Samoens though!
I can tell you about plenty of other French sites if you wish, our criteria for deciding a good site changed as our children got older, it was also different for Easter, Xmas or mid-season.
Its great fun taking the caravan skiing, though I would never have believed it before we did it!
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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Yellow Pyranha, Thanks for that, yes the Hull/Newcastle ferries would be an option, as could also take the saving in diesel into the equation. I was initially looking at Dover due to a good deal of £112 plus some camping cheques, or also the option of tunnel with Tesco vouchers. Not opposed to taking kid out of school and may well do that, looking at various options, and keeping an eye out for late deals. If we decided on Easter, I'd prob still be on the lookout for a late deal either NY, his Feb few days off (he is a week earlier than most schools so avoids high prices) or March, so we get two holidays!!
waynos, That site looks good, ski and boot room in a campsite - fab!!
holidayloverxx, Thanks for that, if we do decide on it, will get the OH to look into all that.
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Zirngast, as recommended by Waynos, also has one of the best value restaurants in Schladming. It's a 10-15 minute flat walk to the Planai or a 4-5 minute bus ride.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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CaravanSkier, Thanks for all the info, I may come back to you on site info. Just all the winterisation is putting me off, plus we have quite an old van, inherited from my dad, it's a Burstner, so I have heard well made, but how do you know your roof is strong enough? These things would worry me when there. We do have an awning, it is a large one though, and I don't think I'd want to fork out for a smaller one, and wouldn't take the big one, although our friends have a small one we could borrow, but they may come with us and therefore would use it. Our boy will turn 6 when away.
Yellow Pyranha, Are you staying in an apartment in Avoriaz? There is only the 3 of us, and finding it not much cheaper to drive and stay in accomodation, hence why considering the caravan. We do have a 7 seater, and our friends are a family of 4, so we could all fit in, but no room for luggage! Not sure we'd fit all the gear in a roof box, plus 4 sets of skis and boots.
Decisions decisions!!
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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Your Burstner should be fine, especially April on low sites. Continental caravans have been built to a higher spec for a very long time!
We have not always used an awning, we chose not to bother for example one Easter in Pralognan La Vanoise where the weather was really sunny. We did not have an awning at all for the first couple of years and with most sites now having large drying rooms and warm ski and ski boot storage for overnight it is a lot easier. Don`t let not having a porch awning stop you. An awning is useful for certain storage and a useful transition between outside weather and inside warmth but with one six year old you are not likely to have all the stuff our 3 boys wanted with them as they got older. On reflection I rather think we used our large awning one Easter at Bourg, no snow was forecast that low down.
At six I was looking for either somewhere a quick drive to the slopes with very easy parking right by the lifts or somewhere a very quick walk away. The need for apres ski pools and skating rinks kicked in when they were older. Actually the same criteria apply when looking for any other sort of ski accommodation.
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Gilly28, yes, we've booked an apartment -barely bigger than a shoebox, but we've no longer got the motorhome, so that's not an option. The cost difference compared to a TO package is marginal, but we're planning a stopover each way. And, of course, an apartment can be higher up than you might want to take a caravan.
I always enjoy the bit where you have to compare the options - weighing up higher costs vs shorter drives, and chance to stop at, say "Hollywood in Germany" theme park, and Amsterdam's galleries (the boy loves Van Gogh)
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You know it makes sense.
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Yellow Pyranha, You have a point there, about other things to do enroute........worth some thought. Very cultured boys you have there!
One of the things I do hate about towing the van, is that you have to think about stops more, you can't just think "Oh that looks a nice town, lets pop in there" We're more campers, but have inherited the van, our friends have a van, so we do the odd holiday with it.
CaravanSkier, Thanks, taking the van seems quite exciting.
Think we will need to have a proper look at various accomodation, incase we can find something reasonable, then we can make a decision as to whether the caravan is the best option or not.
Good to hear though taking the van is not ruled out, as I thought it may be ie van need to stay lower, Easter skiing has to be higher.
Thanks everyone, keep suggestions coming for sites!
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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Gilly28, there's a site at about 1700m in Les Saisies, ski in/out, but could be chilly. And site costs for fully serviced sites aren't that cheap. http://www.legrandtetras.fr/index.html
If you take into account the extra costs of towing, plus the site costs, I don't think you'd be far off the cost of renting a nice warm apartment! The extra days skiing could be sorted out if you find an apartment which doesn't insist on Sat/Sat bookings - there are some, ask on here. Easter is low season in French alps - accommodation needn't be expensive. €350/400 a week for good quality two bed slopeside apartment. Less for a small tatty one.
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Poster: A snowHead
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The is a caravan site in Brides Le Bans, almost next to the gondala that goes up to Meribel 3v.
We have camped there in summer but have no idea how it would be in the winter.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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There are plenty of sites higher up mountains, which actually I tend to prefer because staying in snow is better than mud for me. BUT for most folk on a first trip I believe a lower site with easy access to high skiing is probably a better option. Towing a caravan in a blizzard round twisty Alpine roads, snow chains on the car, to get to or fro a site is not every ones idea of a good start or end to a holiday. Temperatures tend to be lower the higher you get, particularly at night, we have camped at minus 20 degrees one February in Les Contamines, so again not an ideal initiation into winter camping in the Alps.
When we had a couple of weeks at Easter we did the whole detour to look at nice places, and visit local attractions etc, so stayed on different sites. If we were just blasting down for a week in the Alps we over nighted in auto route aires. If you do that do exercise common sense about where you park up and which aires you choose.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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Interesting stuff, am still thinking about Easter trip with our van and the Bourg site looks good.
Gilly28, we bought a small porch awning (Sunncamp) for £90 of Amazon which takes about 5 mins to put up so is used on overnight stops as well.
I think it is the travel which is putting me off, as lack of leave means we drive there and back in a day - you cannot cruise at 85-90mph with a van in tow! Plus in the 6-months we've had the van, we've already managed over 30 nights away so an apartment would be a nice change!!!
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