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Stuff to take and not to take when self catering

 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
Family is going self-catering to France this year, and never been self-catering skiing before.

Any top tips of what and what not to take?
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 Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
We're taking a halogen oven this year... make of that you will.

Where we're staying we need to take bedding and towels, but this depends on your agent.
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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?
Feast, cheers. I understand that most apartments don't have ovens, so you have to do wonders with a couple of rings....
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dobby, are you driving?
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Sharp knife......
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A couple of sharp knifes! Never yet found a decent blade self catering!
Take chilli powder/basil/oxo/fave coffee/tbags as a minimum.These are expensive in convenience stores and you might not be near a decent supermarket.
Are you flying or driving?
Which resort? Someone might know whether there is a reasonably priced supermarket or whether you need to get creative with your packing. Very Happy
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no pre-conceptions about french supermarkets wink

Anything your kids will make your life a misery about if they can't have (but only enough for one or two treats)
Apartment knives are notoriously blunt . . . a 'fine' diamond edging file will sort that.
Tea if you can't live without it.

Think that's pretty much it.

Oh if young ankle biters, their favorite plush toy and books, paper crayons etc.
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 After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
Quote:

are you driving?

a key question. dobby, you need to find out all about the kitchen - then go from there. Plenty of apartments have good facilities. If you have no oven a halogen oven would be a great thing to put in a car - top idea. Take the relevant plug adapter too.
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Chilli sauce, +1 for the sharp knife, anything like salt & pepper etc. that you like on your food and don't want to have to buy in resort at hugely inflated prices. British tea bags are a must if you are a tea drinker.
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Bottle opener & toilet paper, everything else is irrelevant Toofy Grin
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Jeez.... okay with the knife, but as for the food.. when in Rome and all that.
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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.
Sharp knife is essential.

If you use a mobile phone etc then of course do not forget the adapter

Check the situation about bed linen, towels etc.

Optionally include:

Chilli powder and curry powder are a bit tricky to find in France

Small containers of salt and pepper would be useful as would a scouring pad/washing up thingy, washing up liquid, half a dozen dishwasher tabs, but to honest they are easily found in the resort and not extortionate prices.

If arriving late bring a small jar of coffee and tea bags and of course a roll of toilet paper in case the previous occupants used it all. I usually buy a 1/2 litre of milk at a motorway service area near the resort. The resort shops usually shut about 19:30

Many of the rental agencies will give you a small pack contain the above on arrival.
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 So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
You only need chilli products if you like chilli products - personally I wouldn't bother contaminating my car with it.

I don't know about a halogen oven - never used one so have no idea if they are useful, but I do make good use of a slow cooker.

Bacon is good - very poor on the continent, and I also take enough meat for the whole week as it seems far more pricey over there. I take it flat frozen and use things like the chicken first and then the pork and save the lamb and beef for later in the week as that doesn't matter so much being kept cool once it thaws out. Sausages will also last a long time. So if you hit chicken, pork, bacon + eggs, sausages, beef mince, lamb steaks and beef steaks in that order there you have 6 meals one for each night during the week. With a bit of luck some stuff will still be frozen when you get there and can go into the ice box of the fridge when you arrive. I take packet seasoning mixes (sorry if this disappoints Masque,) to lob in the crock pot with the meat and some fresh veg, then all you have to take is a sharp knife and some spuds, pasta, rice or whatever you fancy to go with the meat dishes. We raid the veg in the local supermarket on the way to resort - usually good quality.
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 You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
Quote:

a key question. dobby, you need to find out all about the kitchen - then go from there. Plenty of apartments have good facilities


I've had lots of questions about what we provide in the apartment so I've now put a list on my website too. http://www.chamoissiere.co.uk/whatweprovide . If people want to be more specific I have a proper inventory.
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 Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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We take a slow cooker in lieu of halogen oven..... Generally bung dinner on before heading out for day! Tea towels, scourers, cloths and washing up liquid all come in handy too. Kettle is not a bad shout if kitchen doesn't have one.... And veg peeler as well as sharp knife (and chopping board actually)
In my experience a lot depends if the apartment is English owned or not...... If it is then things like kettles/ toasters are likely to be provided!
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 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
If driving a kettle is an idea, unusual in french owned apartments. One thing I might take this Easter is my slow cooker, I like the idea of coming back to a casserole ready and waiting. Neither of the above is practical if flying of course.
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I did make the assumption they were flying . . . And that if their DNA was analysed the chart wouldn't spell 'parsimonious' rolling eyes
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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?
Masque, spot on, but verging towards a bit stingy.
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Claude B, I'm considering packing either a slow cooker or a pressure cooker in January (in the car). I'm not good at getting up in the mornings so the pressure cooker might win. katedenhaag, I'm considering ditching the toaster for a microwave with grill.
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It's not only about not being parsimonious, it's also important - especially for the chief provider of food - to avoid spending more time than is necessary, after a tiring day's skiing, wandering round crowded and unfamiliar supermarkets desperately hoping for inspiration.

It is far, far, better to spend that time relaxing with a glass of wine whilst the meal you planned in advance and prepared in 30 minutes simmers away in the oven.

for the ultra well organised, a slow cooker is great, but a halogen oven better for stuff like pizzas, roasting a chicken, baked potatoes stuffed with delicious local gruyere cheese (plus a packet of salad, job done).

However you like to eat, a little planning can go a long way.

Dobby - are you driving? a halogen oven or a slow cooker would be a struggle even with a British Airways baggage allowance.

My apartment has a full size oven, 4 hobs, an excellent selection of casserole, gratin and quiche dishes and a slow cooker, but no microwave.
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dobby, yep, but lets face it we go on holiday to experience new things, have fun and make friends . . . ya don't do that by dragging your kitchen sink a thousand miles just to close and lock the door when you get there.
There's not a place in the World that I've been to that needs more than box of tea and some Wensleydale to make me more than happy to be there. Smile
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A decent sized mug for coffee 😎
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 After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
Masque, I seem to recall you were positively gleeful when you discovered I was packing a slow cooker in VT wink
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pam w, fair point about time spent cooking and buying food. We'll be flying.
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Quote:

We'll be flying

maybe forget the halogen oven then!

Take measured packs of the seasonings you need for a few planned specific meals, sharp knife, 8 dishwasher tablets. If you can have ALL the ingredients for a good meal on your first night, that will make life more pleasant.

Even the most dismal resort shop will have flour, eggs and milk (the latter possibly UHT if you time it wrong) and most will also have lemons. Pancakes are terrific apres ski snacks. I once did what we reckoned were €60 worth of pancakes, for practically nothing, washed down with mugs of builders tea brought from home (yes, everyone says take tea bags, and they are right).

Taking bed linen is heavy, by air - you can mostly hire it, if necessary.

Where are you going?
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Quote:

If driving a kettle

??????
Laughing
Marmite, tea bags. Oh and mugs cos they always have pathetic little cups.
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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.
If you are flying, forget the sharp knife too. You may end up causing a security alert and closing the whole airport! Toofy Grin
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 So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
Megamum, I didn't need it for m' Tartiflet or bread and butter pud w'maple and Bourbon custard . . . OK I brought the maple syrup Evil or Very Mad
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 You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
Quote:

If you are flying, forget the sharp knife too.

No problem, though you'd be a dope to carry it in your hand baggage!
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 Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
I always take a sieve.
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 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
queen bodecia wrote:
If you are flying, forget the sharp knife too. You may end up causing a security alert and closing the whole airport! Toofy Grin


Not an issue in checked-in baggage.
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 Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Tea bags, start saving up those individual sachets of sugar, salt, pepper, ketchup etc from motorway services and the like. Toilet rolls (if space permits) electrical adaptor. You are unlikely to find a kettle but can always use a saucepan to boil water. Also unlikely to find a teapot but can use the inevitable coffee pot. Mugs for drinking from are useful - you are likely to find only teacups.
What sort of accommodation? Is it through Pierre et Vacances / MGM or similar? If so you will probably have a dishwasher. Ask if they provide tablets or take a dozen. Washing powder - go for tablets and just take enough for a couple of washes. Ask if there is a CD player or DVD player - keep the little ones happy. Breakfast cereal is more expensive there but there is obviously a limit to what you can take.
We generally take a couple of packets of digestive biscuits and some bacon.

But as feef has already said, when in Rome.... More than half of the fun in being in a different country is to give it a go at doing things differently
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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?
dobby, Dishwasher tablets - enough for a week.
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Well I hope dobby is getting more than the usual 15-20kg of luggage pp - and with some operators, that could be 10kg per child.

Otherwise you're taking pretty much what you will on a normal package trip.
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I once did a self-catering TO package to Austria with a pressure cooker and quite a lot of food in the baggage allowance. Anyone who can't get a few essentials into a 20kg suitcase (even with ski boots) is taking too much other stuff. wink
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pam w, off to risoul. Audio book of war and peace packed for the transfer. Think that the supermarkets are ok but a little limited.
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dobby, when we used to fly and stay in Pierre et Vacances apartments I always made sure I took a few extra dishwasher tablets. They make brilliant loo cleaner when you have to clean up before you leave.
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 After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
dobby wrote:
pam w, off to risoul. Audio book of war and peace packed for the transfer

So named for the most miserable character in the HP series and taking Tolstoy for holiday entertainment . . . life and soul of etc ? Shocked

Perhaps hidden depths of hedonism wink
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pam w wrote:
I once did a self-catering TO package to Austria with a pressure cooker and quite a lot of food in the baggage allowance. Anyone who can't get a few essentials into a 20kg suitcase (even with ski boots) is taking too much other stuff. wink


Could you pop round and give me a hand then pam w? wink

I kid you not, between the helmet and bottle of Champagne, I'm right on the limit - trust me, I'm a pretty frugal packer. Must be a heavy bag Laughing
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Masque, nice one centurion. Named dobby after being small and helpful on boys' football tour. And you never know what us house elfs (or is that elves?) get up to of an evening.
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