 Poster: A snowHead
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Hi all, I am wondering whether there are any clever options that will allow me a third (yep!) ski trip with my kids next winter. I can't take them out of school, we are going at Easter (Les Arc) anyway, so I'm stuck with 11th Feb. Anyone aware of a great place to ski that is child's friendly but hasn't realised it is half-term?  Any and all thoughts (keep it clean!) welcome.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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@Langers Utd, Drive down to Baqueria in the Pyrenees.
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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 ended up flying to Paris CDG and driving to Samoens this half term to keep the costs down, EasyJet were wanting over £1000 for two flights from Manchester to Geneva without any baggage included. CDG was coming in at a third of the price and even with tolls it still worked out a lot cheaper. The drive was hard work though. It also meant I could do a day in Paris seeing my brother so added bonus on the way back.
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our school has the following Monday off so we are going Monday-Monday Flights much cheaper.
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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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If by "hasn't realised it is half-term" you mean "not eye-wateringly expensive" - then I'd recommend Superdevoluy.
We've done half term there a couple of times (and once at easter) with Snowtrex.
Self catered accommodation including lift passes for three of us came in under £1k for half term week. You'd need to get yourself there on top of that. The resort isn't pretty, but there's a fair bit of skiing to be had (they claim 100km). Only ESF or ESI for lessons if needed, but our lad (aged 6, 8 and 9 on his three trips) had a great time with the ESF lot. Our accommodation had a swimming pool attached to it, and there's a bowling alley and other bits and pieces to keep them amused when not skiing. There aren't many Brits in resort, which may or may not be to your taste, but it's really friendly. Writing this, I'm a bit sad to not be going this year.
This season's half term trip for me and the boy (Mrs Ukuleledave having decided to take a year off) will be on the sleeper train to Serre Chevalier with an Airbnb room in Briancon. All looking good for a cheap trip so far (just waiting for the sleeper train booking horizon to appear), but we'll have to wait until next year to decide whether its a 'clever option'.
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Have a look at Chiesa Valmalenco in Lombardy through Phil at Bella Ski Italia. It's not a big ski area so a bit limited for those wanting to notching up kms, if that's your thing, or too taxing if you are after a hard day, but, it is a very friendly resort full of happy Italians and great value on and off the mountain. Although busy at half term, it's wasn't chaos when I had my first trip there and flying to Milan is usually good value with plenty of options.
On the child friendly aspect it depends what you mean and how old the kids are? It's not a complicated series of runs and most go through a large bowl where beginners are stationed so you'll always feel 'in touch'. If they are out on their own then it's unlikely they can go MIA
Hotel Genzienella, although basic rooms can't be beaten for hospitality or food Andreinna and her family are first class
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Copied from duplicate topic, now removed:
| NickyJ wrote: |
When I for last Feb half term I noticed cheap flights to Norway with BA and found some reasonable looking self catering places. Might be too late now to get for this half term at decent price but worth a quick look.
Oh and don't be tempted by Bansko we managed a cheap week there but the area is just too busy for half term. |
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Last year my husband and I went to Gressoney over half term week It was virtually deserted and cost us less than we would normally have spent on a week in January in the Haute Savoie - particularly on the mountain. T'was fab!
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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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I can sell you a unicorn.
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You can get flights to Geneva for about £200 return each (all inc, on BA, on any flight with seats). Then its down to accomodation (availability rather than price will be the issue; £1000 for an apartment for the week would be doable), transfer and food.
What's more, the way you get flights for that price means you'd have another return flight each available for free at some other point in the season - again, any date, any flight...
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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I have a Feb half term trip booked in Austria. Less than 2.5k for two adults and two kids all in, including lessons for kids.
It's not an especially busy week for Austria.
Tips to save money... self drive, self catering apartment.
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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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Get yourself to Are in Sweden. Cheap direct flights to Are on Easyjet (there were when I last looked). Apartment for less than £1000 if you stay outside the centre of Are. About £1000-1200 in the centre. And the Bjornen area of Are is great for little kids.
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Don't have any beer.
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You know it makes sense.
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If you buy it from the Boozeshop it's OK, @Norrin Radd.
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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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If you drive it's really only accommodation which is more expensive than any other time and s/c accommodation is generally only a small part of the overall cost if a holiday. Very crowded slopes are much more of an issue for me. So, avoid France (as it's also French school holidays) and avoid all other resorts on the British TO lists.
That leaves you absolutely tons of choice.
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Poster: A snowHead
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We've done half-term week for about £400 each all in but that does involve driving down, self-catering and seeking out a lift pass bargain.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Only been away once for half term. Decided a week or two before and went with Snowcoach skied Wednesday-Saturday. Quite reasonable price wise and Valmeinier was nowhere near as bust as I thought it might be - only queued once all week.
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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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For the same week last season I got cheap flights to Munich with Easyjet, hired a car and drive to Nauders. Decent hotel at a reasonable price, great skiing and while it was busy on the weekend it was fine on other days. We went Thursday to Tuesday to suit my work commitments but that also gave us the best flight costs.
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We're flying to Munich as well then driving into Austria - delayed slightly so didn't get the very cheapest flight, and it's gone up again since we booked  Barcelona and Milan also look to have not-too-expensive flights as well. Sun-Sun is much cheaper, or even look at leaving late Friday. flights.google.com is great for exploring where you can fly cheaply. Then map search on booking.com or similar for self catering accom, put in a maximum price, zoom into the map so you can see the ski runs and look for the closest flag to a lift! There won't be many, but there were family apartments in Zell am See last I saw for well under £1000. Car hire can be had fairly cheaply still. Our trip will be about £2500 for the basics (2 adults, 2 kids, flights, car, accom, lift passes+ski hire) although we could have got cheaper accommodation.
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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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@elczkc, good tip about Sunday to Sunday flights, but is there much choice in accommodation in high season if you do that?
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You'll need to Register first of course.
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Probably not quite so much as sat-sat but there is still stuff out there and it didn't look like the prices were any different. Sometimes it helps if there's less choice, especially when certain members of the family like to review each option in great detail before making a decision...
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@dobby, I really fancy Sweden, have you skied there? Would you recommend? Any down-sides?
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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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@Langers Utd, there are a few Scandi fans. I live in Sweden so I'm a bit biased. Minimal queues, good all round value, great for families, mostly all accommodation is ski-in ski-out, friendly people who love to speak English. Self catering, but lunches are pretty good value or plenty of warm huts (varm stuga) to grill your own food. Limited après, alcohol expensive in bars and restaurants, but ok from off licence (systembolaget). High latitude but low altitude, meaning weather is a bit of a lottery. Though, as they say there's no bad weather, only bad clothing. Quite a lot of drag lifts, which some tend to dislike. As the mountain tends to be the highest thing around, spectacular views and very different feeling to the alps. Smaller vertical drops, but still a good range for all skill levels. Goes dark early, but days start to lengthen quickly from mid January. Night skiing on offer.
Pretty easy to DIY. For Åre, fly with Easyjet to Åre/Ostersund. Or to Trondheim. Or via Stockholm. Changeover day is Sunday. Book accommodation and everything else through Skistar. Or look at Trysil in Norway. There are tons of smaller resorts too, including some awesome spots in Norway that are on my list to get to.
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Forgot to say w/c 12 Feb is week 7. Half term (sportlov) is weeks 7-10 depending on region, with 9 being Stockholm region and most pricey. Week 7 is Gothenburg and middle of Sweden, so I don't think it will be expensive.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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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've done half-term for a great price next year...flights on Friday with Alitalia to Milan £95 inc skis/luggage...one night in a B&B at the start of the valley for £50 per room, then a 2-bed apartment nr Pozza in Val di Fassa for £350...car at £180 divided 4 ways...these costs are about £250pp, plus food liftpasses & equipment hire.
There's no half-term in Italy, though some regions have a long weekend off for Carnevale, but that's a couple of weeks later on 26th Feb. Although it is peak season being Feb and there may also be some Danish, Polish & Czech families as some of those are also on school hols that week, I'm sure we'll find some fairly quiet spots, esp midweek.
http://www.zigzagski.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/Calendrier-Europeen_vacances-Scolaires_16-17.pdf
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@Langers Utd, what @Themasterpiece and @Hyst say. I have skied Are (sorry, cannot find Angstrom on UK keyboard) once and Hemsedal in Norway twice. Prefer Are. Reviews for both places on Snowheads somewhere. Going back to Are this year (probably staying in Duved because the kids like it and it's a bit cheaper than Are itself). If you don't eat and drink out much, then it can be a good value holiday.
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You know it makes sense.
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We did Are last April as it was cheaper than Alps with it being Easter Holidays. Was really easy to do DIY (Amsterdam then Trondheim- KLM) and would go back.
As others have said lot of drag lifts so you don't get a sit down. Alcohol wasn't as expensive as I thought it would be- probably about the same as a French mega resort.
All the locals were really friendly and spoke perfect English. Had a private instructor for a morning and he was great.
Booked accommodation, passes and rental through Skistar- their changeover day is a Sunday to tie in with flights to Trondheim
Weather was a bit like Scotland though
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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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OP, have you thought about flying out on the Friday evening to save money? We are flying into Munich and did this previously (stayed in Kirchberg) although we haven't booked our hotel year for this year. Just got 4x Half term flights for £220!Howver, our half term starts on 18 Feb this year.
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Poster: A snowHead
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Our family of 5 is doing Feb half term with mid week (Thurs/Thurs) flights to Munich, car hire (VW Passatt estate) and decent apartment in Zell Am Ziller for £240 each all in... better than the £1000 quoted by Crystal!!!!!
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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The cheapest method of Half-term ski that we have found is:
- Drive through the tunnel (11pm from Dover) and drive through the night sleeping at a service station
- Huge resorts but not Tour Operator Villages (Paradiski=Montchavin or Les Coches, Portes du Soleil= Turche side of LesGets)
- Look for self-catering chalets that are > 200m from the lifts and ski-bus (walk!).
- Self Catering buying food at the closest SuperMarche at the bottom of the valley
- Flasks of Hot Chocolate and Soup with packs of cookies & mini-chedders for picnics on the mountain
- Wine&Beer in the evening in your own Chalet (no going out to Bars etc).
- Drive back to the tunnel for the 2am crossing
Happily... those penny pinching days are behind us (we still go at half-term). By saving the pennies it allowed us to ski when our daughter was young and money was tight(er).
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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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@UkuleleDave, Hi, You mentioned a sleeper train, where does that go from/to? Thanks in advance?
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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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@jamescollings, Thank you for the good advice, some good pointers. Interesting you say to head for the big resorts, is that simple supply economics kicking in?
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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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@luigi, Thank you. I'd love to ski in Italy (not been yet!) so will definitely take a look.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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@Langers Utd, I think Dave is referring to the Paris Briancon sleeper. You'd need to get Eurostar to Paris then cross Paris for the Paris Briancon sleeper. We used it once for Puy St Vincent and the children enjoyed it (they were only 5 and 2 at the time). I would book it asap if you are thinking of half term - have a look at the Snowcarbon website for more info on skiing by train and how to book tickets.
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as metioned above.
Drive - Petrol is the same price in half term as out of half term. (be flexible with ferry/tunnel times) you dont have to arrive there at 4PM saturday. Aim to say arrive sunday morning instead not losing skiing time as a rule.
Find a super small resort that links into a biggish resort. Somewhere like St Jean D'Arves, Les Bottieres, St Columban des Villards, which links to the Sybelles ski area.
Self Cater- Fill your car with food and shop in supermarket in Chambery etc
Book ski hire online and get the discounts.
Buy family passes and save a little money.
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Diy is normally cheaper for groups/families
My kids are off 18th-26th (North West) we got a great deal flying from London (LHR) to Barcelona 2A+2C £550 inc 4 x 23kg Sat-Sat very good times - early out late home.
If you are can drive out of your region, you can save. We are staying over near LHR night before only cost £119 for family room inc 8 days parking.
Also checkout Google and SkyScanner whole month view, flying Friday/Sunday/Monday can be much cheaper. Try to be as flexible as you can, e.g. places like Andorra have less TO's operating so its easier to find hotels for 6,7 or 8 nights with flexible change over days.
look at http://myschoolholidays.com/ to work out what regions are off when.
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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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| Quote: |
I got less than a euro to a pound on £1000 into my French bank account on HIFX yesterday, once I'd paid the transfer charge Sad Sad Sad )
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Gulp!!! I need to transfer some money for next season but do I stick or twist? Will it get worse. I suppose we will not know until we have left the EU
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FAQ
