 Poster: A snowHead
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Hi all, i’d really appreciate any advice. i’ve been spending too much time looking at options I’m going stir crazy!
I’m looking at self catering for the wife and our 3 young kids over the school hols at Easter and (think) i’ve got it down to 2 holidays. Either Edenarc apartments in Les Arcs 1800 or LAmara in Avoriaz. I can afford Les Arcs at a push but Avoriaz is £1600 cheaper when i tot up all the figures for flights, transfers, accom, kit, lessons and passes!!! My worry (as always) is snow at this time of year. kids will be in half day ski school, we want easy access to morning variety.
What would you do? £1600 could be the difference between having a summer holiday or not… but i the skiing holiday is the priority.
thanks everyone!
Dom
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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You're really asking for a weather forecast for next Easter, and obviously that’s not going to be forthcoming. Avoriaz is a bit of a gamble, Les Arcs perhaps less so. £1600 is an awful lot of money though, so for me it would be Avoriaz - mornings for ski school should be ok, even if it gets a bit stodgy in the afternoon. Look on the bright side - either might be brilliant!
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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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@Dom4106, how much can your kids ski already? EdenArc apartments are very nice and a great location for ski in and ski out, but if your kids can’t ski down to the ski school meeting point (easy blue or an even easier path) you will need to use a small pedestrian gondola down to the centre of the resort to the ski school meeting point. This is straightforward, but does get a little busy at peak times (like ski school start and finish times).
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I’m not sure why Les arcs is more expensive as l’amara should be a higher standard of accommodation and I thought the portes du soleil lift pass would be more too.
I would go to Les Arcs but stay in Arc 2000. La cime des arcs and la source des arcs are well located for ski to and from the door and a bit higher up. The ESF ski school in arc 2000 meets nearby or you could take the gondola to arc 1950 for the ESI ski school.
You could cut the price of Les arcs down by getting the Les arcs only ski passes rather than the whole paradiski one.
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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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@Dom4106, what week are you looking at? Easter is fairly early in 2024 but I appreciate the school holidays don‘t necessarily align with the Easter weekend. I‘ve never been to Avoriaz but it has a reputation for being fairly snow sure. Three young kids (how young/how much skied?) don‘t need access to a huge area with loads of snow. And unless you have them in full day wraparound childcare you probably don‘t either.
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It's the ski passes that are making a big difference. The Les Arcs holiday includes just les arcs lift passes but the Avoriaz holiday is with full PDS passes (there's a great deal on the Avoriaz website with big savings before Nov 15th).
@rob@rar, the kids have done 2 years so after the first day I reckon should be fine skiing down.
I've skied the PDS a long time ago and so my plea for advice / opinion is based on people's past experience or knowledge of the area. I'm a bit worried a lot of the PDS skiing is lower than Avoriaz whereas at Les Arcs we'd mostly be going up.
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| Dom4106 wrote: |
| @rob@rar, the kids have done 2 years so after the first day I reckon should be fine skiing down. |
In which case the EdenArc development is a great location to immediately access the ski area. I've skied Les Arcs a lot at Easter time, and with just one exception the snow has always been good enough that almost every piste has been skiable down to the lowest altitudes. Only skied Morzine/Avoriaz a couple of times at that time of year and I'd guess in a typical season conditions between your two options will be similar. If it's unseasonably warm lower altitude pistes are going to suffer more, but it's impossible to say what the conditions will be like next April.
With younger kids I doubt that the Les Arcs-only lift pass would be a limitation. There's plenty of terrain available without needing the option of heading across to the La Plagne side, which would be restricted in terms of how far you could travel by the kids being in ski school.
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@Dom4106, Out of curiosity could you let us know the breakdown of costs for each holiday. I suspect the main difference is in transfer costs and we may be able to advise. If you are flying then, once again an assumption, the flight, getting to the UK airport etc are the same.
EdenArc is one of the more expensive parts of Les Arcs. Savings can be made by using some of the older properties.
@snowymum, Looking at https://www.calameo.com/avoriaz/read/002827892e5b49c12fb11?page=1 the price of lift passes in Avoriaz is very low 154€ for a 6 day lift pass until April 1st - then, unusually it goes up to 174€. On the other hand a 6 day Les Arcs pass is 330€. A portes du soleil pass on the other hand is 342€ and AFAICS only avialbale after March 29th https://www.calameo.com/avoriaz/read/0028278924cada32df7ed?page=1
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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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Difficult for me to judge the finance, but the choice I'd make it the one you've already pinpointed in Arc 1800. And not to chase a whole area "Paradiski" pass.
Plenty to do in just LA domain, excellent location at EdenArc too. 1800 is just perfect for families with a interest, pace and facilities that are ideal.
Note to others, this isn't criticism of PdS, just that I find it much more nuanced for shepherding a family group around at this level of skill in comparison. Having been to Avoriaz, Morzine, Les Gets & Champery over the years, plus significant number of trips to LA, feel comments are valid.
Arc 1800 has a lot to offer in this instance. I'd take that choice and look to explore others as family progresses more in coming years. LA always seems to give more than the sum of it's raw numbers to me. Many happy memories skiing it for me in formative years and introducing my family and other's to it.
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@rob@rar, I skied one year in Morzine at Easter (it was earlyish that year). in Morzine over a metre of snow disappeared in one day and the area became unskiable. The snow stayed fine in Avoriaz and was typical for that times of year, rock hard in the morning, deep slush in the afternoon. We spent most of the trip getting the lift up from Morzine.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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| johnE wrote: |
| @rob@rar, I skied one year in Morzine at Easter (it was earlyish that year). in Morzine over a metre of snow disappeared in one day and the area became unskiable. The snow stayed fine in Avoriaz and was typical for that times of year, rock hard in the morning, deep slush in the afternoon. We spent most of the trip getting the lift up from Morzine. |
The lower altitude of Morzine and Les Gets can be an issue early and late season, particularly if it's unseasonably warm. Having said that, in (late) Easter 2011 when I was in Les Arcs the 1600/1800 slopes were almost entirely snow-free as it was bonkers hot. The Arc 2000 bowl was mostly open but we didn't bother skiing, instead had an enjoyable holiday exploring the Tarentaise, Albertville and Annecy. As a rule of thumb I think the advice to go high in early and late season continues to hold true, but you'd hope at the start of April most of the large resorts would offer plenty of skiing even if their lowest slopes might suffer from poor snow.
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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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@Dom4106, I've done both areas at Easter and, all things being equal, my preference would be for Les Arcs as it just gives you a few more guarantees. However, if there really is a £1,600 difference and that could mean a summer holiday or not - then I would go for Avoriaz.
Avoriaz is a great family resort (with a great swimming pool for the kids, and horse & carts trotting around). There are plenty of slopes above 2000m on the slopes above Avoriaz and towards the swiss side. You'll need to drop into the Lindarets bowl quite a lot which is only 1500m, but the slopes in the trees tend to hold the snow pretty well. We had a fantastic time on our Easter trip.
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L'Amara apartments are really nice, we've stayed in them many times. What the snow will be like at that time of year is anyone's guess, but that's the same for most resorts. What I would say is that the conditions in Morzine and Les Gets are largely irrelevant, if you're staying in Avoriaz, as you're really not very likely to go there. You'd be heading towards Chatel and the Swiss resorts in all likelihood, so it's more about what conditions are like in that direction.
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You know it makes sense.
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Having skied the PdS many times, both early and late season I'd not have any reservations about Avoriaz. I was out for opening week in 2016, when down in Morzine the Pleney run was still green...but the Avoriaz area was 90% open and the snow was fine.
If your children are beginners you'd probably be fine with just the Avoriaz lift pass for them too. If you do want to take them on an adventure one day you can just buy half day lift pass for them for the full PdS area, which should be all you need after you've piked them up from ski school and topped them up with hot chocolate, and you'd still be quids in vs. buying full week PdS passes for them.
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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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| rob@rar wrote: |
| johnE wrote: |
| @rob@rar, I skied one year in Morzine at Easter (it was earlyish that year). in Morzine over a metre of snow disappeared in one day and the area became unskiable. The snow stayed fine in Avoriaz and was typical for that times of year, rock hard in the morning, deep slush in the afternoon. We spent most of the trip getting the lift up from Morzine. |
The lower altitude of Morzine and Les Gets can be an issue early and late season, particularly if it's unseasonably warm. Having said that, in (late) Easter 2011 when I was in Les Arcs the 1600/1800 slopes were almost entirely snow-free as it was bonkers hot. The Arc 2000 bowl was mostly open but we didn't bother skiing, instead had an enjoyable holiday exploring the Tarentaise, Albertville and Annecy. As a rule of thumb I think the advice to go high in early and late season continues to hold true, but you'd hope at the start of April most of the large resorts would offer plenty of skiing even if their lowest slopes might suffer from poor snow. |
Yep, I did a working season in Les Arcs in the 2010-11 season. My season was supposed to end on 16th April but allof the staff based in 1800 ended up being sent home two weeks early as there was a pitiful amount of snow left, and therefore barely any travelling customers. To be fair, it hadn’t been the best season for snow; it was epic from starting day to Boxing Day but then had completely minimal dumps throughout the rest of the season. The last days of the season were shorts and T-shirt weather in resort during the day, it was so hot, I don’t think I bothered skiing for the final week or two there as conditions were getting so poor even higher up. On my last day of skiing the run down just past Arpette was a muddy track.
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Poster: A snowHead
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@porkpiefox, if you don't mind me asking, assuming you stayed in L'Amara, how many of you were there? There's 5 of us so unless there's the option to upgrade to a larger apartment, one of us will be on the lounge sofa bed, was your apartment ok size wise?
Also, thank you everyone for taking the trouble to reply, really really helpful so far, 20 minutes ago I was thinking "definitely Les Arcs" and now I'm swinging back to Avoriaz!!!!!!!!
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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'm starting to feel a bit guilty in that whenever I have been unable to make Easter ski trips and my wife has gone on her own the snow has been terrible. That included 2011 and IIRC 1999. I've skied almost every Easter since 1984 and in every case had snow that was at worst adequate and at best excellent. That includes the Morzine trip where we skied in Avoriaz. For those that trust in perhaps spurious correlations I'll be in Les Arcs over Easter 2024.
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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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| Dav wrote: |
| Yep, I did a working season in Les Arcs in the 2010-11 season. My season was supposed to end on 16th April but allof the staff based in 1800 ended up being sent home two weeks early as there was a pitiful amount of snow left, and therefore barely any travelling customers. To be fair, it hadn’t been the best season for snow; it was epic from starting day to Boxing Day but then had completely minimal dumps throughout the rest of the season. The last days of the season were shorts and T-shirt weather in resort during the day, it was so hot, I don’t think I bothered skiing for the final week or two there as conditions were getting so poor even higher up. On my last day of skiing the run down just past Arpette was a muddy track. |
It was an odd season, wasn't it. I had great pre-season snow for a couple of trips to Tignes on the glacier, opening week in Les Arcs was very good, and it improved with very heavy snow in Christmas week so was excellent through Christmas and New Year holidays. But then conditions just declined steadily until the premature end of the winter. Fortunately for me when it was grim in Les Arcs I was in Japan, and got lucky with some brilliant conditions 
In 20+ years of skiing Les Arcs the latter half of that 2010-11 season that was the worst conditions I've seen there.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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| johnE wrote: |
| For those that trust in perhaps spurious correlations I'll be in Les Arcs over Easter 2024. |
Excellent news!
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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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You'll need to Register first of course.
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...sorry, actually my head says Les Arcs too, its just my flippin' wallet that's the issue!!!!! 
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| Dom4106 wrote: |
| Also, thank you everyone for taking the trouble to reply, really really helpful so far, 20 minutes ago I was thinking "definitely Les Arcs" and now I'm swinging back to Avoriaz!!!!!!!! |
One thing that's worth remembering - unless it's a REALLY warm winter, at which point nowhere will be safe, there WILL be snow in both Avoriaz and Les Arcs and at the end of the day that's likely all your children will care about/remember and so long as they enjoy themselves, well that's 9/10th of a good family holiday.
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This. I think it's a nobrainer the moment you mentioned " £1600 could be the difference between having a summer holiday or not".
With all due respect to skiing and winter hols, you'll be able to ski for more than a couple of hours even in the worst case in both options.
You will be able to enjoy the views and the slopes in both options and it doesn't matter if one will have more hard snow mileage than the other.
Take your kids to Avoriaz and enjoy every moment then plan a nice summer vacation with them as well.
Those are the most precious moments we have in our lives, family time.
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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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| Dom4106 wrote: |
@porkpiefox, if you don't mind me asking, assuming you stayed in L'Amara, how many of you were there? There's 5 of us so unless there's the option to upgrade to a larger apartment, one of us will be on the lounge sofa bed, was your apartment ok size wise?
Also, thank you everyone for taking the trouble to reply, really really helpful so far, 20 minutes ago I was thinking "definitely Les Arcs" and now I'm swinging back to Avoriaz!!!!!!!! |
We've been there in a family group of anywhere between 6 people and 10 people, so have had 2, 3, 4 and 5 bedroom apartments (we've only once used the sofa bed and have opted to get a larger unit on all other trips). They are good sized apartments though, they're not the stereotypical French boxes, so there are larger apartments, although that will obviously cost you more. Ultimately you've got to go for the resort that you fancy and I suspect you'll be happy with both, but from an Avoriaz standpoint they're a good set up.
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| drporat wrote: |
This. I think it's a nobrainer the moment you mentioned " £1600 could be the difference between having a summer holiday or not".
With all due respect to skiing and winter hols, you'll be able to ski for more than a couple of hours even in the worst case in both options.
You will be able to enjoy the views and the slopes in both options and it doesn't matter if one will have more hard snow mileage than the other.
Take your kids to Avoriaz and enjoy every moment then plan a nice summer vacation with them as well.
Those are the most precious moments we have in our lives, family time. |
Yes 100% agree with all of this
The head should be saying that in all likelihood the skiing will be great in both places, so go to Avoriaz and I'll have saved £1600 for a cracking summer holiday.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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I was told a cold beer in a frosty glass tastes different in the summer
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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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@Dom4106, L'Amara are the newish premium apartments in the Falaise area, having first dibs on the easy 'ski-out' Proclou run. Having done late season at Les Arcs (once), and many times at Avoriaz (this year too), it's a no brainer that the latter is superior in all respects. Les Gets and Morzine can run out of snow, ending up with just man-made ribbons, but there'll be plenty in Avoriaz.
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You know it makes sense.
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| Quote: |
Having done late season at Les Arcs (once), and many times at Avoriaz (this year too), it's a no brainer that the latter is superior in all respects.
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Beg to disagree.
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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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| drporat wrote: |
| This. I think it's a nobrainer the moment you mentioned " £1600 could be the difference between having a summer holiday or not". |
Or if conditions really are THAT bad - you have £1,600 to drink through while you're not skiing
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Poster: A snowHead
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@drporat is spot on for me. Avoriaz + summer holiday
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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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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Avoriaz.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Well, thanks to everyone who chipped in with their advice and opinion. I love this place, sooo helpful.
In the end, after even more searching, scribbling, tapping on calculators I got the holiday that I actually deep deep down really wanted and now I've booked it I'm buzzing.
Edenarc. Here we come.
@kettonskimum, thankfully that late night research led me to the Les Arcs pass discount page which, in the end, was the deal breaker and brought the two options on the table a lot closer together.
I skied Les Arcs staying in 1950 about 20 years ago and it was a white out for a week. I'm so excited to be going somewhere different for the first time in ages... and now with the wife and kids.
Thanks again everyone.
Now I need to Google "best ski weekends to celebrate your 50th with your mates" 
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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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@Dom4106, Great choice.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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| Dom4106 wrote: |
Well, thanks to everyone who chipped in with their advice and opinion. I love this place, sooo helpful.
In the end, after even more searching, scribbling, tapping on calculators I got the holiday that I actually deep deep down really wanted and now I've booked it I'm buzzing.
Edenarc. Here we come.
@kettonskimum, thankfully that late night research led me to the Les Arcs pass discount page which, in the end, was the deal breaker and brought the two options on the table a lot closer together.
I skied Les Arcs staying in 1950 about 20 years ago and it was a white out for a week. I'm so excited to be going somewhere different for the first time in ages... and now with the wife and kids.
Thanks again everyone.
Now I need to Google "best ski weekends to celebrate your 50th with your mates" |
Excellent news! It's a great feeling when it all comes together, and in your gut you know you've made the right choice. Great shout by @kettonskimum to flag about the flash sale. Hope that means you get your summer holiday too.
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