 Poster: A snowHead
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Hi  's.
Just wondering whether anyone can give me some insight on chalet hotels. To date, all of my skiing has been done on work ski trips where we stay in a hotel or in Hemel Snow Centre so the world of chalets etc is a mystery to me. I will be part of a small group (4-6 people most likely) which is sort of tagging along with a huge group of 24 people who are all in a large chalet. At least two of our smaller group will be brand new to skiing, the rest of us will just crack on.
I really just have a few questions:
1) Do chalet hotels tend to feel more like hotels or chalets? I get that the decor, rooms, style of building etc may feel chalet-like but for things like evening meal, does it tend to be smaller groups at their own tables etc?
2) Cost-wise, will self-catering where members of the group will likely be lazy and only cook half the time (if that) mean that it would end up costing a lot more than a chalet hotel?
3) Similarly, are normal hotels more expensive than the chalet hotels when eating out? I'm guessing yes to both of these questions.
4) Are the prices of lift passes usually included in the prices from tour operators? Or is that extra?
Also, if anyone has any general tips and advice on Morzine (2nd - 9th of Feb) then that would great, whether they are accommodation related or not!
Cheers!
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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1) it depends. But typically I would expect smaller tables, more like a hotel. It's Morzine where are you thinking of?
2) Self-catering may be [i]in/i] a "chalet" but it's not really a "chalet holiday", by the classic definition. If there's 24 of you, organising catering will be a nightmare. A total nightmare.
3) I don't understand the questions.
4) It depends. It seems to be an increasingly popular thing.
My perception is that "included" lift passes are subsidised by you booking accommodation committed to by the operator.
F'rinstance, If I have an empty week in one of my apartments, which I own, and I don't save any money if it isn't booked, I could make it look more attractive by, reducing the price, or reducing the price by a little and de-risking your purchase by including a lift pass.
In both cases you pay the same amount in total.
Some hotels will say, yes Mrs TO, you can book Xmas, NY and the 5 weeks of the school hols, but you also have to pay for January and March/April.
So it is in my interests to use less popular weeks as loss leaders.
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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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Thanks for the reply.
Sorry, should have been a little clearer above. The 24 people are already sorted themselves. We're a small group of 4-6 (maybe  who just need to sort out some accommodation for ourselves. We're going to be in Morzine as that's where the crazy big group is heading.
1) Cool. Will bear that in mind and may do some inquiries.
2) I meant self-catering for the 4-6 person group. We're all probably going to be really lazy and not cook so would have to eat out. I'm guessing if we did that then the cost of the apartment plus eating out would get very very high.
3) It's basically the same question as above really but with hotel instead of self-catering. So obviously in that case the option of cooking would be gone and we would be forced to eat out.
4) Understood. Thanks for that. Had no idea! Makes a lot of sense.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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| IrishAmateurSkier wrote: |
Thanks for the reply.
Sorry, should have been a little clearer above. The 24 people are already sorted themselves. We're a small group of 4-6 (maybe who just need to sort out some accommodation for ourselves. We're going to be in Morzine as that's where the crazy big group is heading.
1) Cool. Will bear that in mind and may do some inquiries.
2) I meant self-catering for the 4-6 person group. We're all probably going to be really lazy and not cook so would have to eat out. I'm guessing if we did that then the cost of the apartment plus eating out would get very very high.
3) It's basically the same question as above really but with hotel instead of self-catering. So obviously in that case the option of cooking would be gone and we would be forced to eat out.
4) Understood. Thanks for that. Had no idea! Makes a lot of sense. |
With respect to 2), it really is like asking how long a piece of string is. You can spend as much or as little as you want. Going out doesn't have to be that expensive, pizza/pasta dishes are going to come in somewhere around the €15 mark, plus whatever you want to spend on drinks, tap water €0, pint of imported cider/beer €8 roughly.
Alternatively, you could quite easily rack up a much bigger bill, it's really down to what you want to do.
Personally, the majority of my ski holidays are self catered and probably a 75:25 ratio of cooking in and eating out, favoured towards cooking in to keep costs down.
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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 you're gonna eat out and meet up with your mates, then why not just go fully SC ?
Then if you decide to have cheap night, you can drain a bottle of pastis as an apero, have spag bol washed down with a jerry can of red in your apartment, a bottle of Remy as digestif, and then you'll be all set to meet up with your friends.
You can probably save as much on your passes with an early-bird or other online promotion than by combining it with accommodation.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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| swskier wrote: |
With respect to 2), it really is like asking how long a piece of string is. You can spend as much or as little as you want. Going out doesn't have to be that expensive, pizza/pasta dishes are going to come in somewhere around the €15 mark, plus whatever you want to spend on drinks, tap water €0, pint of imported cider/beer €8 roughly.
Alternatively, you could quite easily rack up a much bigger bill, it's really down to what you want to do.
Personally, the majority of my ski holidays are self catered and probably a 75:25 ratio of cooking in and eating out, favoured towards cooking in to keep costs down. |
Yeh I think the string could get quite long based on the fact that there will likely be reasonable amount of beer and wine consumed. I doubt people are going to do a 75:25 cooking to eating out split but definitely would be something I'd look at with family or if it was just my other half and I.
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| WindOfChange wrote: |
If you're gonna eat out and meet up with your mates, then why not just go fully SC ?
Then if you decide to have cheap night, you can drain a bottle of pastis as an apero, have spag bol washed down with a jerry can of red in your apartment, a bottle of Remy as digestif, and then you'll be all set to meet up with your friends.
You can probably save as much on your passes with an early-bird or other online promotion than by combining it with accommodation. |
They're all in a fully catered chalet but your drinking and spag bol logic speaks to me. Your choice of drinks not so much!
Yeh I just checked on Morzine passes not through tour operators and they're pretty reasonable with a 10% early bird discount. Cheers.
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@IrishAmateurSkier, on the eating out thing, remember that you can get very cheap table wine in cartons, boxes or 5L jerry cans in France, after the second or third glass you won't care. (Which you may want to do anyway for in accom drinks).
Morzine isn't the cheapest but e.g. Bec Jaune and the resto in the Hideout are both pretty reasonable value. I'm a little out of touch otherwise.
Sadly I think Mamma's has closed down, as it was mighty fine. Don't know if the Etale will be back in action for the season.
Re Q 3) Hotels are often half-board, so if you choose to eat out, you're paying twice for dinner.
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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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Great. Thanks for this. All very useful. Especially anything that would avoid paying twice for dinner - although could be good for cultivating that winter layer!
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Why don’t you just book into a chalet as the 6 of you?
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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@under a new name, +1
Can't go wrong with the Etale: big portions, reasonably priced.
Last season we only ate in Morzine a few times: La Chaudanne and La Grange were both great.
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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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@WindOfChange, Is the Etale back up and running?
Good to hear the Chaudanne is still good.
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You know it makes sense.
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@WindOfChange, Good news. And my word, they actually have a website (even though it hasn't been updated since the end of winter (last winter?)).
Had my first ever dinner in Morzine there in December 1988.  hasn't been decorated since, which is reassuring, unless the fire damage has caused some renovation?
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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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| under a new name wrote: |
| Sadly I think Mamma's has closed down, as it was mighty fine. |
If I remember correctly from last year while it's tru Mamma's has closed...it's been replaced by someone doing exactly the same sort of thing, including sizes and prices.
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Poster: A snowHead
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@Mjit, ah, could be.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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We almost always grab food there on the chalet staff night off, so I should know...but that usually involves going out drinking first (ideally watching The Dixie Micks in Dixie Bar)...so memories of food are usually a bit, umm, hazy. And I honestly can't remember what happened this year
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