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Caravan

 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
Hi , has anyone taken a caravan to the mountains for a couple of weeks. ?
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 Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Yes, both in summer and winter. As this is Snowheads I am assuming you are talking about winter though Very Happy
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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?
@CaravanSkier, yes it's winter I'm thinking of and was looking for advice , where to go , pitfalls etc off clued up people Smile
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
Beware! As you drive up into the lovely mountains the pressure will be dropping. Meanwhile the pressure inside your air tight toilet cassette will remain at sea level (considerably higher). If the contents of the cassette were not emptied before your ascent they will be very eager to get out....... Crying or Very sad
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 Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Some info here:

http://motorhomeski.com/
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 You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
@altis, thanks for the link although I was looking for info on taking a caravan for a ski holiday primarily Smile
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 Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
@Markab1971, Difficult to know where to start really, without knowing more about your own experience and what you want to know.

Complete basics, make sure your caravan is fully winterised (ie proper insulation, integrated water system or facility to keep water inside - or at a push aquaroll well insulated under cover outside can work if its not too cold, heating - 2 x low wattage electric heaters left on overnight made me feel safer than our gas blown air system did, bucket rather than wastemaster for grey water because you try emptying a frozen wastemaster lol etc) A good, small awning with a steeply sloping roof is very useful for aiding that transition from bad weather to dry van as is a jolly good mat just inside the door! I`m happy to discuss that kind of detail if you need more! We tried all sorts of things in various awnings for drying kit etc years back but most sites now provide all that for you now!

I also found my slow cooker useful, mine allows for dry cooking so putting large jacket potatoes in before going out in the morning meant tasty spuds, though with soft skin, ready for opening and putting raclette cheese on when we got in with hungry sons!

You obviously need a suitable tow vehicle and to be comfortable towing on alpine roads in appalling conditions and able to fit chains in poor conditions! I am happy to discuss any of that in more detail if you wish.

Assuming you are aware of all that then where to go is dependent on what you want. I am only really familiar with French sites, though we have checked out a few potential ski sites elsewhere in the summer.

If you want ease of getting to the site, then somewhere like Samoens, easy flatish run, site just opposite the big cable car to the ski area, or Bourg St Maurice, again an easy run with the big site not too far from the funiculaire up to Les Arcs.

If you want pretty, then Pralognan La Vanoise may be the place, but there is a bit of a climb which complicates things if its snowing, and the skiing is not as extensive as many places.

There are lots of good sites that I can list if you want.

The only real advantage I can see these days for taking the caravan is that you still presumably have the flexibility to go where the snow is good at the very last minute. Its a fair few years since we took our van because escalating fuel prices and the family growing rather too large (grown up sons plus partners all wanting come along lol) has made renting an apartment a better option for us.

I did enjoy enjoy our years of taking the van though it can be lots of fun!
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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!
Love it caravan, but skiing is the one holiday we go with apartment.

Knowing the amount of wet clothes etc that 5 of us will generate, and faff getting to slopes, it just doesn't appeal. When just me and Mrs B will give it a go though
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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.
@CaravanSkier, thanks for all that information , I have a German built caravan that should be up to the job , what problems have you had if any , getting the van away from site at the end of the trip , digging it out of snow , frozen brakes or steadies etc. ? We took our motorhome through Andorra many years ago enroute to Spain and I remember ice freezing around the tyres through the night and having to break the ice up around it to get it out . Was wondering what similar problems may arise after a fortnight ! :-/
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 Ski the Net with snowHeads
Ski the Net with snowHeads
Most sites are very good at snow clearing so apart from immediately around your van you should not need to do much clearing.

The only time the brakes froze on was after we had left it on site at Pralo for the weeks between half term and Easter. When we got back at Easter the electricity hook up closest to us had been demolished by a mini snow plough so before we could be 'up and running' we had to move the caravan. It just took a couple of rocks forward and back to free them though.

Our caravan once (at Allemont over the New Year) ended up sited in a frozen 'lake' well puddle really! rolling eyes Laughing We pitched in the semi dark in the falling snow on what we thought looked a reasonably 'good' place. We decided it was indeed fine in the morning whilst the snow sat prettily everywhere and stayed put. However a few days of warmer weather melted the snow and we discovered that each day we were in a shallow puddle and every night in skating rink! Of course the day we wanted to leave was extremely cold and we had to hack the steadies out 'with a claw hammer' if I`m remembering correctly. Laughing We also had to leave the awning floor tarpaulin behind as it was submerged under the ice. The site owner was ok with that and clearly indicated it was not the first time that had happened. I don`t remember any problems with the tyres being frozen in situ but I might just have forgotten.

It is important that you pitch yourself in a good place, avoid hollows/dips in the ground (like the one we inadvertently found ourselves in in Allemont) and watch out for any really exposed pitches (that one on the edge overlooking the valley with the wonderful views may well receive the full brunt of any bad weather) .

Many sites will offer to tow your caravan on and off pitches with a large 4x4 or tractor in really heavy snowfall, but be wary of letting an inebriated site owner do so on News Year Eve (Morzine) unless you are happy to have a few knocks to the caravan! Laughing Our then 3 small boys thought it was hilarious!

We had lots of adventures, and lots of fun, but you do need to be able to laugh when things do not go quite as planned!
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 snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
@Boris, Go for it! Very Happy
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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.
@CaravanSkier, I think it would be a great adventure , looking on line a lot of the Austrian sites seem to have a small type chalet/drying room / shower with the pitch , which looks good with 3 young uns ! Is this the same in France on campsites or is that just specific ll what the Austrians do?

Thanks Mark
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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
Hi Mark
CaravanSkier has given you good advice learned from experience, and sometimes hard experience! We have been skiing in our motorhome throughout Jan and Feb for 4 or 5 years now and although we tend to stay on aires rather than sites we have stayed on a few across the alps. Do have a read through motorhomeski as there are a lot of tips on there that are equally relevant to caravans.

We've stayed at Camping Solden in Austria which is a very high quality site, I think the one you queried is the one at St Anton. The sites in Austria and Switzerland are better than French sites but also a fair bit more expensive. Camping Solden will already be fully booked over christmas & new year and I would think it will be the same for many ski campsites, not sure about Easter bookings.

Have fun, make preparations for which gas bottles you are going to use as your calor bottle will last 4 or 5 nights then be useless. Best to get the adaptors/hoses for French or German/Austrian bottles before you go, the campsites will have local bottles. Although the sites will have hookup they will probably be limited to a few amps in France or be charged at 70p per Kwh in Austria and Switzerland, ie not much good for serious heating.

Kev
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 You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
Boardiek has much more recent experience than I have but times past some sites charged for electricity at a flat rate which sometimes varied with how many amps you requested, others charged per amount used. Such information is usually available on site websites. Because we chose to use our 2 low wattage fan heaters on frost guard or a little above all the time, turning them up when were in residence and awake, we aimed for sites with a flat rate. The gas was used for cooking and some top up heating and hot water or if we had an overnight off site and its a good point about having enough gas and/or local hose and adaptors.

We have not stayed on a french site with individual pitch facilities in the winter though we have in summer. There now may be some, again campsite websites will give such information.

In Austria we stayed at a site in Gran that had individual family bathrooms for hire which I remember thinking would be useful with very young children. We were there in the summer but it, like most of the Austrian sites we checked out, did not have as easy access to lots of high skiing that many french sites have, and was also strict about not allowing children in the pool at peak times of day ie when everyone gets back from the slopes.

We found that choosing a site with a pool complex was the very best way to get tired children washed and ready for bed. Once past around age 7 they always had enough energy (give them a snack as you leave the slopes) to go for a swim (shower - swim - shower being the mantra) but especially in the teenage years suggesting a shower before bed once they had collapsed back in the caravan was not well received! Laughing
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 Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
We caravanned in Scotland for ski holidays for a few years.
We still have the "Snow-Awning" which was an absolute boon (PM me if you want it, its old but buffers the outside cold )

You will also need some method of keeping the aqua-roll from freezing up. I chose to not use it in the end, and installed onboard water with the ability to use the onboard pump to fill it.
Only to find the waste pipes were run around the chassis in a u bend, so the waste never drained...

We also found the on-board heating left some parts of the caravan (the kids bedroom as it happened) very cold, and had to re-route some of the ducts.

Other than that, a Discovery to ensure forward progress at all times.

Great fun though. We look back, even though it was only 4 years ago, and thank God we went for it. As a family experience, absolutely second-to-none and absolutely unrepeatable in later years (exams/Uni etc)
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 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
@Strax, our new caravan has the Alde wet heating - gives a lot more even heat through the van, quieter than blown air and of course can be programmed

Now just need to take it skiing
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 Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Boris wrote:
@Strax, our new caravan has the Alde wet heating - gives a lot more even heat through the van, quieter than blown air and of course can be programmed

Now just need to take it skiing


All mod cons! Laughing

In the days before we had a well insulated on board water tank, the aquaroll (tucked inside the porch awning) was well wrapped in a hot water tank jacket with a bin liner over it and stood on a really thick square of polystyrene insulation, the pipes had pipe insulation tucked around them. It worked most of the time! Folks we met had an aquarium heater tucked inside the aquaroll but I never saw it so don`t know how it was wired in! We always kept a water carrier inside for that vital morning cuppa, just in case Laughing

This thread has made me feel really nostalgic! As Strax said above, quite an experience!
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