 Poster: A snowHead
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The Edinburgh flight that i will be on 4 weeks today is showing a near 3 hour delay. 
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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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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Yip - the fog rolled in (the forecasters had a 40% chance in their predictions last night), probably due to lack of forecast wind - luckily Grenoble cleared just in time for the main push in the morning (although the early Monarch did go round in circles for a bit). Its a glorious afternoon there so all should be good.
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I flew in to Chambery last Saturday from Gatwick, no delays, no problems, 1hr 05mins flight on Titan airways, apart from having to guess which carousel my luggage was on, all was good, same on the return yesterday, no delays, no problems all went well despite me dreading it after reading the horror stories on here! We fly there again in March, hoping for a repeat performance 
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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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Our FlyBe flight out of Chambery to Gatwick was delayed about 2 hours by the weather yesterday. Fog and heavy cloud all the way down from Val d.I. Espirit room was very useful in keeping the wee'uns entertained and out of too much mischief.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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Richard_Sideways, what time was your flight? Mine was 11.30am I didn't notice any delays, not an airport I'd want to be stuck in for hours though!
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IIRC we were due out at 1320 and left just after 1500.
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Suspect a Flybe issue rather than a Chambery one - don't think there was any weather issues at Chambery yesterday.
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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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Quite possibly - had assumed it might have been weather related due to the amount of very low cloud we'd been through on the way down to the airport.
I'm watching you FlyBe, had the infamous 'Standby' label on my snowboard bag when it arrived on the carousel at Gatwick. Hmmmm.
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At least one of the BA Cityflyers out of CMF was cancelled yesterday, so not just Flybe.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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I've been watching the performance of the Edinburgh flight and it departed 10 mins late at 12:40 so agree with chocksaway that the issue was probably a Flybe one.
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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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Many flight companies have problems at Chambery. It is total pot luck on the weather when you fly. I have booked next years ski trip already and opted for Geneva with a longer transfer time. For me an extra 40mins to an hour on a bus is fine to reduce risk. (I said reduce not eliminate).
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As it appears that both the kids may be inhereting their parents stomachs for coach travel, We'll keep choosing the shortest transfers possible so Chambery it is.
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You know it makes sense.
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Richard_Sideways, A wise choice then. Chambery is great when the weather is good. If you get delayed just head to the Esprit kids area where you will find a table and chairs. No one will know if your Esprit or not, but if your kids are young there is plenty to keep them busy. (its on the first floor, the stairs are right in the middle of the airport)
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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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Richard_Sideways, yes same here, travelled from La Rosiere yesterday, put my earphones in stuffed my scarf in my face and shut my eyes, too much spewing going on! 2 hrs bad enough but better than 3.5 to Geneva! My son finds those wristbands really help and a later in the day journey, next time we have the late afternoon flight.
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Poster: A snowHead
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As annoying as Chambery is the short transfer is great. Now I'm questioning my choice 
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Last year we were the last flight to land at the airport before everyone else was diverted to Turin / Lyon. Felt very lucky.
Apparently the problem is that the mist/fog 'hangs' in the valley and therefor only one plane can be in the air at one time. Either landing or approaching
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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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I don't think this is just Chambery that is affected although i have had previous nightmares there. I flew into Salzburg on the 18th january and we were delayed half an hour at Edinburgh whilst the aircraft computer was fixed to cope with a fogbound landing. This was well worth the delay as although we never knew the plane was on the ground until we hit it, we were one of very few aircraft that landed that day.
The crystal team had a nightmare as all the transfer buses were at Salzburg and all the flights had been diverted to Munich and Linz. most of the reps on coach duty were on until 4am and some guests at our hotel did not arrive until after midnight. So glad we had a plane with the right equipment.
although chambery seems to get the worst reviews i think a lot of it is also to do with it being such a rubbish little airport. There is nothing to do and very few seats if you get a delay.
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mikeelsa, I was supposed to be flying Monarch from Innsbruck on Sunday, the plane couldn't land at Innsbruck due to an error message related to the spoilers (meaning they might not be able to stop on the short runway at Innsbruck), so diverted to Salzburg which apparently has a longer runway. The error message was found to be spurious, but by this time the weather had closed in so we had to bus to Salzburg from Innsbruck, which takes about 2.5hrs.
Then I slept in a hotel in Gatwick (arrived about 23.30), got the early flight to Aberdeen and went straight to work. Fun 
I'm guessing similar problems happen at Chambery since it's a fairly short runway in a mountainous area.
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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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Maybe a coincidence, given the flak that Chambery is taking, but Inghams have switched their Bristol flights from Chambery to Geneva from early March.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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Told you it was crap 
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Still found myself stuck in on both in and outbound flights this year. We booked Geneva but TO switched our flights to Chambery on the weekend of chaos. GRRRRRRRRR.
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@Mike-H, how incredibly annoying. Some people do complain loudly about the charter terminal in Geneva though I have no quarrel with the main airport which works better than any of the local alternatives.
The propensity of TOs to make unilateral changes too late for you to make alternative arrangements is one of their most annoying characteristics. Happened to us in Austria years ago. Ended up in a crappy hotel instead of a catered chalet. Found out only on arrival though they had known for ages that the supposed chalet had no kitchen. 
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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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To be fair they gave us months of warning but we were trying to avoid the place. An extra hour with a book on a bus in so much more peaceful than Chambery. Looking ahead to next year the TO only offers Chambery from my local airports so may need to add an hour on both sides to avoid the place.
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@Mike-H, maybe travel DIY and tailor make the arrangements to suit yourself? Different set of possible problems, of course, and doesn't suit everyone.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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@Mike-H, maybe travel DIY and tailor make the arrangements to suit yourself? Different set of possible problems, of course, and doesn't suit everyone.
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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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@pam w, I do when I travel with friends. However, for family holiday with 2 children we need, childcare, assistance getting eldest to ski school, child friendly chalet etc. so we are limited to very few TOs.
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I am doing Chambery-Rotterdam with Transavia several times a year since many years and i have never problems at all
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You know it makes sense.
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This is not filling me with confidence. I have just booked for 6 of us to fly into Chambery on Saturday the 17th. The suggested option via thompson was to fly somewhere else (cant remember where) at 2 p.m. British Time.
However I noticed the Chambery option underneath for an extra 20 quid. The transfer was an hour less than the first option and we leave Bristol Airport at 6 a.m British Time, so it meant more time in the resort. I thought it was a bargain for an extra 20 quid per person. This may not prove to be a wise decision as the 14 day weather forecast states it will be snowing on the 17th too! *Fingers Crossed*.
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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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@Gethin89, I wouldn't worry about the forecast for the 17th yet - we aren't sure what's going to happen this weekend yet! It should be a more quiet week at the airport as well......
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Poster: A snowHead
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@Gethin89, there is no getting away from the fact that Chambery is a glorified hanger. If more than one plane offloads at the same time security can be busy, but the check is very cursory any way so the queue keeps moving. Baggage collection is a bit of a bun fight and check in for the return flight can be very busy, but my personal experience of flying into and out of there many times is that there are far fewer problems than the reports here suggest.
Ducks and runs for cover.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Chambery can be great on a Thursday. I,d give it a wide berth on busy Saturdays but probably worth a punt in mid January. There are no good options on a weekend like new year though travelling independently means you can make your own decisions. But anyone renting an apartment like mine could be stuck with no electricity. And waiting patiently for EDF. Or even wondering how to get hold of them.
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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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It works out that the option I chose gets us to the resort 9 Hours earlier than the cheaper option (albeit we have to leave South Wales at 2 a.m.).
The last three years when we have gone to different resorts and traveled around the 2 p.m. mark and has meant picking ski hire up in the morning, so hopefully if all goes to plan, we will be in a resort bar and sorted ski hire out by 3 p.m. and can relax the rest of the evening and get on the slopes earlier on the Sunday. I suppose the risk will be worth it if it pays off 
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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@Gethin89, You are spot on choosing earliest arrival. we also did that with Geneva flight only to get the Chambery one in the afternoon. GRRRRRR
Jan 17 is no where near as bad as New Year weekend. As long as there is not crazy weather or heavy fog you will be alright. Chambery is in a valley and planes cannot land in bad weather. Worst case you may get diverted to Lyon but you will still arrive ahead of your other option.
I hope you get a smooth run and chill with a beer on Saturday afternoon. If you do, sit back, relax and think 'what was all the fuss about'.
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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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I hope you're right Mike-H. I will let you know how the experience goes when I arrive home. Not long to go at all!
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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@Gethin89, It's the luck of the draw. I was on the same flight last year and we circled over the valley for the best part of an hour before the fog lifted (the pilot said he was on his last chance before having to divert). We were 3rd in the stack and there was one other behind us. They all landed in rapid succession. The Immigration "hall" / marquee couldn't cope, so there was a queue of a couple of plane loads of people standing outside waiting to get to the queuing area. The baggage collection was mayhem. I hope you fair better but I've had enough of Chambery (been using it since 2001, IIRC).
Back in the day when Crystal ran their Chalet Hotels on a Sunday to Sunday basis, Chambery was great. OK, there were few facilities (there isn't much more now) but there were only a couple of planes going in/out all day and it was a very relaxing experience.
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I am afraid I will never use Chambery again as it is just hideous during any school holidays, which I have to use. A good few years ago BA left the whole flights luggage there on return flight due to wind. If you have a choice go for Geneva (which I have used many times without major problem, even on very busy days).
If you are already booked be prepared for a lot of standing and take loads of snacks with you for any children and be prepared for the fact that your flight might not be able to land there.
I
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I don't think there is much wrong with Chambery per-say, it would be a highly pleasant airport during the summer months, it just doesn't have the capacity to be a skiing hub airport efficiently!
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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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@pam w, why would someone renting an apartment like yours be stuck without electricity or waiting for EDF?
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Landed in GVA 18:00 last Saturday, Main terminal not charter shed, was chaos in reclaim - over two hours for my skis
Not just chambery can have issues
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