 Poster: A snowHead
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My son messed up his leg, so I booked a taxi from the hotel in Arc 2000 to Bourg railway station instead of getting the coach supplied by the tour operator, as the pickup point was some way from the hotel and an awkward route for a small child who cannot walk. The driver told me that at the busiest points of the season he - and other drivers - refuse to do airport transfers, as the heavy traffic means the journeys take too long and therefore aren't economically viable. Instead they just stay in the valley, running people between the resorts and to and from their accommodation. So at the time when they are most demanded, the supply of transfers is choked off!
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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I can well understand that, given the moaning one reads all the time on Snowheads from people who clearly earn a good screw but cavil at paying a transfer price which will enable a taxi driver driver to earn a lot less than they expect to do in a day!
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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 did a whole lot of "transfer driving" to Geneva, Chambery and Grenoble and told all my friends and family that if they chose to travel at a weekend they could pay for a taxi. 
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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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Seems perfectly reasonable to me! Took 8 hours to get from Geneva to Val d'I one New Year Saturday (I didn't even need to travel that day  )
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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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| Quote: |
if they chose to travel at a weekend they could pay for a taxi
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@pam w, eminently sensible
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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Yeah, the driver said that on busy days he would literally have no idea exactly how long the journey would take. Given the reality of this, I wonder why there hasn't been a staggering of holiday start and finish dates to try and ameliorate the problem? E.g. I would just as happily have a holiday that ran Thursday to Thursday as one that ran Saturday to Saturday if it made life easier for everyone involved.
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| greengriff wrote: |
| Given the reality of this, I wonder why there hasn't been a staggering of holiday start and finish dates to try and ameliorate the problem? E.g. I would just as happily have a holiday that ran Thursday to Thursday as one that ran Saturday to Saturday if it made life easier for everyone involved. |
France - change runs at a speed that even glaciers would find slow. As a general rule people are very conservative and do not embrace change and it is not even clear why a Tuesday to Tuesday schedule would work better. Most people are set up for a Saturday to Saturday holiday period with Sunday to sort out the washing etc before heading back to work.
As for transfers, when you look at the economics it doesn't look very profitable unless you can get fares both ways.
Last edited by Then you can post your own questions or snow reports... on Mon 16-01-23 11:46; edited 1 time in total
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My French friends, who we met when they bought an apartment next to ours, were "early retired" but still tended to travel down on a Saturday, from force of habit, to start with. When I pointed out they would do better to travel on a Tuesday - or even a Sunday, for that matter - they decided it might be worth giving it a try. 
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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 wrote: |
| My French friends, who we met when they bought an apartment next to ours, were "early retired" but still tended to travel down on a Saturday, from force of habit, to start with. When I pointed out they would do better to travel on a Tuesday - or even a Sunday, for that matter - they decided it might be worth giving it a try. |
My Parents in Law take their summer holidays during August - peak period - even though it would be much more pleasant for them to take them out of season (the south of France is now too hot for July/August holidays unless you are a masochist). They go to the same place they've visited for 40 years. They would never dream of going outside of France as it is "too dangerous".
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Some lovely seaside resorts on the north coast of France start to feel deserted a few days into September. Entire Italian cities are deserted in August. Not a good month to go into an Italian hospital, which will be manned almost entirely by porters.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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| pam w wrote: |
| Some lovely seaside resorts on the north coast of France start to feel deserted a few days into September. Entire Italian cities are deserted in August. Not a good month to go into an Italian hospital, which will be manned almost entirely by porters. |
Holidaying in France, Spain, Italy, etc is a completely different cultural concept.
They seem to want to do it together and at the same time, it's a collective experience enhanced by sharing it with as many friends, family, acquaintances and strangers as possible. They would feel that were missing out on the social possibilities if they went at a less busy time. So, the best possible time to go is when everyone else will be there!! 
Many Italians want their Settimana Bianca (White Week, snow holiday) at New Year and a beach holiday in the weeks around Ferragosto (15th August) with consequent overcrowding and queues for everything, whereas most of us Brits aspire to 'get away from it all', studiously avoiding busy times and places where other Brits are in abundance!
I suppose it's great for any Brits that travel away from these busy times as the facilities are all there, but few people using them. It's worked great for some very uncrowded skiing at half-term! 
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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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My father hated any sort of crowds and we NEVER went on holiday in the school holidays. I missed lots of school in June and July, even school exams sometimes. His ideal holiday was wild camping on the west coast of Scotland, miles from anywhere.
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