 Poster: A snowHead
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Thanks to a kind poster on another thread ( who I'll pm later) we are now looking at snowcoach l'aigle for a large group of mainly children. Some of our group are really interested.
Trouble is, on the surface it looks perfect. However a small number of poor tripadvisor reviews. Are scaring me and my husband, in particular. Can anyone help me get a balanced view of what it might actually be like. Grotty rooms and poor quality food are my main worries, btw. But it is great value...apparently.
Thoughts?
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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It's fine. Far from luxury, but beds are comfortable and it was easy to get to sleep. Rooms on the whole were clean, fixtures and fittings were a bit dated especially the carpet and curtains. Food was perfectly fine, but nothing special. We were on the same floor as the ski hire room, which stunk out the whole corridor, but the smell didn't waft in to the room. Downstairs there is a games room for the kids and a bar with free wifi (although it's restricted to x number of connections at a time).
The only let down for us was the equipment hire, it was pretty poor. If we went again with them we'd used the hire shop a few metres from the shop. I didn't sleep on the coach but everyone else seemed to, so I think that was a personal thing!
Position wise it doesn't get much better, it took about 30 seconds to get to the pistes. The ski area is very good too.
The only caveat I would give is that we're not very fussy!
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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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The only caveat I would give is that we're not very fussy!
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 a great health warning on a review. Some people who post on trip advisor seem to expect 4 star quality for 1 star prices. From my own (distant) experience I'd agree about the ski hire. Adults in our group had their own. Some of the kids got fairly grotty gear from Snowcoach but they didn't complain, learnt to ski and had an absolute ball.
(I'm not very fussy either - used to camp sites, sharing loos on yachts etc. )
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| Quote: |
The only caveat I would give is that we're not very fussy!
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a great health warning on a review. Some people who post on trip advisor seem to expect 4 star quality for 1 star prices. From my own (distant) experience I'd agree about the ski hire. Adults in our group had their own. Some of the kids got fairly grotty gear from Snowcoach but they didn't complain, learnt to ski and had an absolute ball.
(I'm not very fussy either - used to camp sites, sharing loos on yachts etc. )
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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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A big thank you for this, Hammerite. I wouldn't say we were fussy either, but....It's hard for me to see past the stained carpets and mouldy bathrooms pictured on tripadvisor...when you say you're not fussy, did you experience anything like that?
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Pam....hi! I tried to pm you but couldn't figure out how! My brother is totally sold on the idea, but DH has some concerns. We are perfectly happy with basic clean accommodation and we too are used to yachts and campsites. The things I'm talking about that would bother us are stained pillows, mouldy shower curtains and the like.
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@Noo72, I can't help any more, really, because my experience of snowcoach was too long ago to be specific now. Frankly, I don't know whether the pillows were stained or not - we didn't take the pillow cases off to check. Can't remember what the shower curtains were like either, but the odd mouldy spot probably wouldn't bother me much either....
Anyone who is content to cope with the inevitably slightly smelly Lavac on a boat which is heaving up and down and gently infused with diesel fumes should really have no problem.......
If you want to be sure of everything you are going to have to pay a lot more. 
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Thanks, pam. Fair comments! I'm probably sounding fussier than I am, lol.
I'm just trying to see past the marketing and get a realistic picture of the place. Thank you 
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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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We didn't have any stains on our carpet and our bathroom wasn't mouldy either. But we only stayed in one room out of possibly 100.
Neither of those things would bother me too much (assuming it was little spots of mould as Pam says). We were just very pleased to get 4 great days skiing over half term for relatively little cost - compared to other half term options. Our last day we skied 50+ mile inc lifts without busting a gut, started at 8.15am with 30-50cm of fresh covering every run, as it was a Saturday it was also very quiet too - doesn't get much better than that.
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We were only really in our room to sleep, shower and get changed. Spent hardly any time in it. Mrs Hammerite keeps a spotless house so it doesn't hurt us to rough it a little bit on holiday
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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we went to their operation in st gervais twice a while ago and it was ok basic and fine as we were on a tight budget and I always work on a value for money basis wether it be 5 star or 1 but what put me of going again was the other guests, who I came away with the opinon that either they or I were social misfits
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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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I had a similar feeling with mountainsun , but it was cheap.
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I and my family have been with Snowcoach on perhaps 10 times and I am off to Hotel L'Aigle week after next. I have never had problems with stained bedding or similar and have never seen mould in the bathroom etc. I was at L'Aigle year before last and would agree with pretty much all Hammerite says.
The food has been very good, excellent even --umm-m apart from the time when the staff walked out of the kitchen and dinner was 2 hours late. They kept us happy with as much wine as people wanted to drink though!! I have been with a number of ski operators and I have detected minor staff problems and disaffection in them all. I think it is endemic in the industry.
Things like the carpets at the front door have been a bit thread worn, but then you don't have to worry about your children messing up the place so much.
The staff have always been helpful and accommodating to any problems that arose. On one occasion I dragged the maintenance lad away from his dinner to deal with something I felt important. No complaint from him whatsoever.
Snowcoach seem to have a big turn over of staff and my only feeling is that they don't treat them as well as they should. However I have always found the staff to be enthusiastic in front of me. Also I'm not sure they always pay their bills on time. There is a complaint somewhere on the web by somebody owed £600 or so. Also I remember being at one of the hotels where some water heaters wouldn't work. The local electricians would not, as I understand it, turn out to fix it because they were owed payment for a previous visit. It did not inconvenience us too much because there were other heaters. Just meant the hot water ran out quicker than it should have. But no biggy in the end, just indicative and may be down to individual staff at the time. Everybody will have these problems.
I have continued to go with Snowcoach over the years because of the ease of travel. Roll up at Watford Friday dinner time, £40 to park the car for the week, dump kit on bus, next stop, apart from toilet and ferry on the way, the French Alps and skiing at 10:30 to 11am if we are lucky with the traffic. No airport fuss which not only do I hate, also takes two days out of skiing. (Went on the Euro train for the first time last year - lovely! but still cost skiing time.) Also and perhaps most important is that Snowcoach usually work out to be more than £200 cheaper for the 8 days skiing than any other firm doing 6 days.
Also you get ski guiding if you want it. The guiding has always been by young, but quite capable, enthusiastic kids and consequently, fun. There are evening things like quizzes and a fancy dress party at the end of the week. L'Aigle had a happy hour on some evenings which brought in a lot of the locals and brightened the place up, but in general though I thought drink prices in the bar were a bit high.
I have my own gear but my friends and family who rented from Snow coach had no problems. It may depend on where in the season you are and how battered the stuff is. Also it may depend on the skills of the particular technician at the time.
My only disappointment with Snowcoach is how I have seen them reduce from the huge operation they had when I first went with them - several resorts in France, Austria, Italy I think, with at least three club hotels and a large number of Chalets and using several local private hotels. My favourite was Hotel Val Vert in Bride les Bains ( a real French hotel in every way if you want to sample one - but sadly no longer used by Snowcoach) giving access to Les Trois Vallees.
Hotel L'Aigle scores over Hotel Terminus in St. Gervais, for me, because of its direct access to the slopes not requiring a bus ride. I wanted to go to ValCenis this year but that is the latest casualty of Snowcoach's resorts.
Last edited by 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  on Mon 19-01-15 9:03; edited 1 time in total
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You know it makes sense.
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We used to go with them multiple times a year, France and Austria, mainly because of their guiding staff (Elaine was a legend), until in 2010 at Val Cenis there was a staff mutiny over unpaid resort bills, the lift pass company refused to deal with them and the guests has to have a standup conference with the resort manager at departure because of a 5 hour late departure and no food.
They were banned from operating in Austria and the owner had a warrant out on him for unpaid taxes in Mayrhofen.
finally, their coach maintenance was questioned in a terrible crash that killed people. Not sure what the outcome was but we were once driving back at night across Germany and the coach ran off the road in snow. Petrifying. One chap demanded the driver stop to check the tyres were ok.
Apart from that, good value 
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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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Poster: A snowHead
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The mere thought of that long on a coach without sleep kills me
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It's no different from a long haul flight really (in fact better than a flight in Economy).
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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| pam w wrote: |
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The mere thought of that long on a coach without sleep kills me
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It's no different from a long haul flight really (in fact better than a flight in Economy). |
I've realised in recent years that I can operate the next day ok on no sleep. Although the first day my movement was shocking.
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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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Not sure what it is tbh, I can deal with the journey time better if we're driving to airport, doing a bit of shopping, having some food, getting on the plane and catching maybe an hour, then its the coach stage then maybe get another hour and so on. I can't ever sleep on public transport full stop other than 40 winks here and there so if I fall asleep it's a bonus, if I dont then at least I've managed to occupy myself at various stages along the way. 13 hours (or whatever it is) sitting in the dark overnight on a coach watching everyone else around me snore and dribble, trying to read with a teeny tiny spotlight is not my ideal. I unfortunately really hate longhaul flights too! sorry...#OffTopic
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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| Csb123 wrote: |
They were banned from operating in Austria and the owner had a warrant out on him for unpaid taxes in Mayrhofen.
finally, their coach maintenance was questioned in a terrible crash that killed people. Not sure what the outcome was but we were once driving back at night across Germany and the coach ran off the road in snow. Petrifying. One chap demanded the driver stop to check the tyres were ok.
Apart from that, good value |
This is all very damming. Do you have any web references we could look at? Surely within the EU you can not evade tax in one country by hiding in another.
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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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Oh dear. I have found a reference to the crash in 2005. Very sadly one of the staff was killed and some passengers injured. I have not been able to find the outcome of any court case yet. I have to say that I have always been happy with the state of the Snowcoach coaches I have travelled on. I'm not a motor mechanic but I am a mechanical engineer and I do always take note of things like that.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
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I've also found references to the coach crash in 2005. German police attributed the crash to a lack of winter tyres. It appears the coach was otherwise modern and in good condition. The use of winter tyres in Germany wasn't mandated by law until 2010. Things can change a lot in a decade.
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When I was travelling to French Alps with Snowcoach in 2013, the French police were stopping people and making them put their chains on. Our coachy had already stopped and put his chains on so we were ok. However, it was a bit worrying that he had clearly not put chains on this particular coach before and struggled a bit doing it.
On a brighter note, the year before that we went to ValCenis (no longer on offer from Snowcoach) and the driver, having his girl friend on board went through the middle of Paris to visit the Eiffel Tower at midnight. Around midnight the Tower's lights put on quite a show before they switch off and there are a lot of people there. If you ever get the chance to see them it is very entertaining.
Apparently though, Snowcoach track their coaches by satellite gizmos or whatever, and the driver got into hotwater for the detour. It didn't cost us any time though and we still arrived on time and were skiing arounf 11am.
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However, it was a bit worrying that he had clearly not put chains on this particular coach before and struggled a bit doing it.
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par for the course, I think. We had quite a major delay on a Ski Olympic coach once, because the drivers had to put chains on before we got to Bourg St Maurice (en route to La Rosiere). It took them forever.
My daughter and BF were in an Action Outdoors coach - reached the Eurotunnel terminal at Dover, got in the queue and one of the drivers leapt out and did a runner. With Eurotunnel security in hot pursuit. Turned out he was "new" and the remaining driver had thought there was something a bit odd about him.
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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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This string has made me look into the history and background of Snowcoach, and it is quite saddening. I have been with Snowcoach for many years and they deliver exactly what I want. Cheap as possible with, for me, no hassle transport to the snow (at least as cheap as self drive). I'm lucky in that I have no problem on a coach. I know that is not so easy for others. You also get 8 days skiing as compared to other's of 6 days. The Saturdays and Sundays have always been quite empty pistes because most everybody else is travelling, though this might change becuse of the growing popularity of weekend packages. Nobody else seems to offer exactly what Snowcoach does.
I am in a good position to be able to judge Snowcoach, having been with them for almost a third of all my skiing holidays and the other two thirds with a whole range of tour operators. I would say that I have had about the same number and types of problems with all the tour operators. None of them have spoiled my skiing. I would go further and say that I have enjoyed Snowcoach much more than anybody else. I have found their staff, with a couple of exceptions, to be the most enthusiastic and fun I have come across.
The coach crash is tragic though and does worry me. I suppose I still feel that I will be safer in a coach than self drive. Particularly after an exhaustive week of skiing even if I am sharing the driving with friends or family.
I certainly don't like the way that Snowcoach appear to treat their staff. These people are their most important investment and should be carefully managed and looked after. The French Alps are there for all the tour operators. It is the people running the show who make the difference!
I will probably continue to go with Snowcoach in the near future because I think they way they behave is probably on a par with what I have seen in other tour operators, but as far as I am concerned they are now on notice.
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| pam w wrote: |
My daughter and BF were in an Action Outdoors coach - reached the Eurotunnel terminal at Dover, got in the queue and one of the drivers leapt out and did a runner. With Eurotunnel security in hot pursuit. Turned out he was "new" and the remaining driver had thought there was something a bit odd about him. |
Oh dear! Did they manage to continue the trip?
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Did they manage to continue the trip?
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They had to get a new coach and French drivers at Calais. That coach broke down and they spent 3 hours in a service area waiting for a replacement! They did get to Flaine eventually and were delighted to find that their room in the UCPA centre was very comfortable and had a balcony with a good view of the mountains.
But they were two adults, both experienced travellers who had known much worse. That sort of problem takes on a whole different dimension if you have children with you. As somebody said "There are just two classes of travel; First Class and With Children."
So true.
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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 wrote: |
But they were two adults, both experienced travellers who had known much worse. That sort of problem takes on a whole different dimension if you have children with you. As somebody said "There are just two classes of travel; First Class and With Children."
So true. |
Ha! Couldn't agree more! Been there - done that!! Though wrt this string, I have seen a number of children coach over reasonably successfully. At least they have more room in the seats!! Also when I was a teacher I participated in several school trips in coaches onto the continent. --- It's ok! I am much better now!
Having said that, I think a baby would be almost impossible. One of my son's and daughter in Law started self driving when our grand daughters arrived. They stop at a motel or similar along the way.
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a baby would be almost impossible
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Small babies are no problem, particularly if they are breast fed. They can't run away, crawl under the seat or drop little bits of Lego down the neck of the man in front.
I have done a lot of long haul flying with small kids, from 6 weeks. It's just work.
My kids unanimously opted for the coach over self drive - they hated being three in the back of the car. We did three return trips on the coach (two with Ski Olympic, one with Snowcoach) with no problem. But you do need to think ahead, and have the esssentials to hand. In one coach the heating was either roasting hot or arctic cold (after people had asked the driver to switch it down). I had to keep putting clothes on and taking them off my daughter, who was about 7. At one point in the middle of the night she was practically naked and I had to scrobble around on the floor finding her discarded clobber and getting it all back on her.
I don't see why a coach journey which goes smoothly is any worse than, say, a transatlantic flight. And at least you can get out and walk around occasionally.
One of the coaches had a "bacon bap" servery downstairs at the back. You could go and get a mug of tea or coffee and a bacon bap, from about 5 am. And they showed good films. Not a hardship really, for 2 days extra skiing and a substantial saving over flying. We got on the coach somewhere in the Midlands and got off it outside our chalet.
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You know it makes sense.
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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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| TCSC47 wrote: |
| Csb123 wrote: |
They were banned from operating in Austria and the owner had a warrant out on him for unpaid taxes in Mayrhofen.
finally, their coach maintenance was questioned in a terrible crash that killed people. Not sure what the outcome was but we were once driving back at night across Germany and the coach ran off the road in snow. Petrifying. One chap demanded the driver stop to check the tyres were ok.
Apart from that, good value |
This is all very damming. Do you have any web references we could look at? Surely within the EU you can not evade tax in one country by hiding in another. |
Search on here for the explanation by Huw Jenks who worked there that year, a situation corroborated by others I have spoken to. Mayrhofen was their main resort with 3 chalets running and hugely popular.
No idea if it is still owned by Dave and Linda Stewart, may have changed. They had an amazing start in the business, running coaches out to Spain whilst Europe was still bordered and before flights became cheap (and hence the name cantabrica).
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Poster: A snowHead
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| Csb123 wrote: |
Search on here for the explanation by Huw Jenks who worked there that year, a situation corroborated by others I have spoken to. Mayrhofen was their main resort with 3 chalets running and hugely popular.
No idea if it is still owned by Dave and Linda Stewart, may have changed. They had an amazing start in the business, running coaches out to Spain whilst Europe was still bordered and before flights became cheap (and hence the name cantabrica). |
I have found the references now. Although I can not find any court action over it, my feeling is that such an accident could have happened with any operator.
To be fair to Snowcoach it is they who made skiing affordable for me and I think I owe them quite a bit for the fun they have given me. I don't remember many other firms doing the coach thing back in the 80's so I think they were pioneers. Also and I have said this several times in this string, it is so easy and convenient for me to travel with them. Sling your kit on the bus and wake up next morning in the Alps.
I have met Dave twice and Linda once at their resorts. Although he seems a bit terse, I think his success with Snowcoach is because he is a skier and just wants to ski. At least that's how it seems to me but I am making many presumptions.
I don't like to hear of any firm not paying their bills on time, but I don't know all the details so I shouldn't judge. I suppose on a selfish level, more than anything, I am worried what will happen to Snowcoach and who will give me the sort of skiing I like if they disappear.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Just to bring the story up to date, (Winter 1916) Snowcoach no longer use their own coaches. Last year I travelled with them to Valmeinier and they used an excellent external coach company. Very professional drivers and the coaches appeared brand new and more spacious than I have experienced before. I am going to Valmeinier week after next and really looking forward to it. Eight days skiing for less than the cost of most other's seven days. Park up in Watford Fri afternoon for £40, after motoring down the M1, get on the coach and skiing by 10 or 11 am, the next day, if we are lucky with the traffic. End up saving £200 or £300 over anybody else.
Snowcoach have guided skiing and big communal dinning tables so the solo skier which I am this year, can get to know other skiers more easily. I have opted for a shared room to save the £100 but the two previous times I have done that I didn't need to share because there were enough rooms, so I'm hoping this is the case again this year.
The firm that I think is probably the nearest to Snowcoach in ease of access and price is Skiweekend, but you don't get the extra two days skiing or the communal dinning table (that may be preferable to some I suppose) or the guided skiing.
However, what Skiweekend do have is access to Les Trois Vallee, which Snowcoach used to do but not any more. I desperately want to get back there so maybe next year! I don't have many ski weeks left as I am almost old enough for a free lift pass!
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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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How do you edit here? Winter 2016 for Goodness Sake!!
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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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Just to add to my post above, I had a great time at Valminiere last year and am going again this year.
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FAQ
