 Poster: A snowHead
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When there's a family of 6 travelling, the cost of everything multiplies so we are a little more cost conscious perhaps than others.
So every year we ski we think "we'd really like great skis" and every year we find that Alpinresorts deals on what they badge as "top end" skis in shops in resorts like Tignes are so unbelievably massively cheaper than any other potential supply that we we sign up to them and get skis which are probably in truth pretty much just "OK".
e.g. at "Precision Ski Diva" in Tignes, AlpinResorts will price their "top end" male ski hire at £54 for the week. Via Intersport at their Rond Point des Pistes store booking online, even their lowest end skis are priced at 87Euros for the week, and their "top end" skis would be 175Euros. I could practically buy skis for that price!!
Am I missing something? Is there a way for the big brands like Intersport / Skiset etc to price any where near comparable with the deals that Alpinresorts offer, and am I getting much more bang for my buck if I spend more? Is it just that AlpinResorts use crappy ski hire places and / or the shops bring out only their lower end stock / higher used stock? Alpinresorts website says the ski at their top end would be the "HEAD WC Rebels e.XSR" or equivalent. As someone who isn't really into the tech I can't comment whether that is good or not, nor could I really argue the point if we got to the shop either.
I'm not saying I ever feel ripped off; just that I feel a little bit in the dark as to whether paying cheap hire prices is a massive false economy for your classic family who ski 6x days maybe 2 times every 3 years.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Why worry - if you're happy with the skis you get and they aren't obviously trashed or clapped out?
At the level you describe I doubt you'd get real use out of top performance demo skis anyway.
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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 strongly suspect you're right. I suppose my issue is that I don't really understand the market I'm operating in. I can understand if an online agency can get some discounts, but the size that they appear to get is nuts. They could make a tonne of money even if they only offered half the discount that they put in place!
And actually some of our party are pretty adept at skiing and I have a lingering suspicion that they might benefit from better kit. Our eldest has his own kit and has already done a week this year on that kit and he waxed lyrically about how much better his week's experience was compared to some of the hired kit he's used in the past, so that has got me wondering.
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It's such a lottery isn't it.
One has no idea what 'Head WXYZ' means. And that's never what one gets anyway, so even if one has looked up the WXYZ and knows they're €500 new, one'll be given Salomon PQRSs. And the top-sheet will be scratched to bits, because they always are, because they're hire skis.
And sometimes the skis are 'yay' and sometimes they're 'meh'. And one has no idea how, or why.
I bought my own last season and that's made my skiing life easier.
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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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I think their prices / quality is usually pretty similar to the other ski hire aggregators. I don't think Alpinresorts includes boots in the base price, so the total you'll pay will go up quite a bit if you're also hiring these.
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| denfinella wrote: |
| I think their prices / quality is usually pretty similar to the other ski hire aggregators. I don't think Alpinresorts includes boots in the base price, so the total you'll pay will go up quite a bit if you're also hiring these. |
I don't think and rental shop includes boots by default in their price list. There will always be a skis only and a boot+ski option as well as sometimes extra for the poles.
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| Dave of the Marmottes wrote: |
Why worry - if you're happy with the skis you get and they aren't obviously trashed or clapped out?
At the level you describe I doubt you'd get real use out of top performance demo skis anyway. |
Unrelated to this thread but my son is on a school trip in Italy just now, the rentals there all have core shots top and bottom that have been left unfixed 
Think we’ve maybe been spoiled in Val Thorens where twice now hired kit is near new.
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@larkim, definitely agree with you re Alpinresorts. We have 9 going to Ste Foy in March, and about half need ski's and boots and half just ski's/boards, and it's a fortune cheaper to use Alpin than anywhere else I've come across. Probably min 50 Euros cheaper per person means that we'll spend more in resort on food and drink too.
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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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@Chaletbeauroc, I think with Skiset the boots option is automatically selected, and you can remove it to bring the price down.
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Used Alpin for last few hires as struggle to justify the extra outlay to protect from the perception that the Alpin gear is all in a bin at the back of the shop behind all the shiny stuff people pay more for booking direct.
2 x 3 day hires back to back in Jan; Arc 1950 - Rossignol R10 ti (2023?), a bit scruffy but absolutely fine, Reberty - Atomic Mavericks in mint condition, looked like never been skied on.
Happy with both sets but no idea how much better or worse than the price bracket up/ down they were!! Who knows what I'd have got booking direct but my guess is may have been better, could've been worse...
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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I ignore the different categories and just hire the cheapest skis they offer Bronze/Blue suitable for beginner/intermediate etc.
They always ask what level you ski at anyway , like others have said you might end up with a pair a few seasons old or some that look brand new.Im not that good to notice the difference
They are always happy to upgrade you to a new pair for a few extra Euros.
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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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We always book via Alpin as the price difference is so huge. No complaints here. Last year, the binding on one of my sons skis stretched open so much, he couldn't click in. He skied on one ski right to the shop door (thankfully it was an easy blue back and he loves stuff like that). They took one look at and just swapped his set. No questions asked and no additional charges.
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Thanks all. Reassuring to know it's not just me that thinks the difference in pricing is immense.
I guess to an extent they partner with "lower end" or at least "cheaper" ski hire providers in resort; and the descriptions of what they are offering are linked to what the store normally sells anyway, so there should be no drop in quality vs what the store normally hires out - and if that is a low quality offering in the first place, AlpinResorts aren't contributing to that in a negative way.
I must admit I've wondered about just going for the bottom end stuff and then saying "black and off piste" when they ask how good you are. It does often feel like the technician just looks for a ski in the right size, and that they don't have in store the wide range that the store adverts would suggest that they do. But that's me being cynical. I do wish I was "better" at hiring this stuff, but in the end I've never really had an issue; it's more of a FOMO type attitude.
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You know it makes sense.
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I think a lot of the time it’s pot luck. I remember hiring skis once and probably slightly overstated my ability to the chap in the shop. My ski instructor for the week noticed them and said, “Nice skis” with a knowing nod. They were essentially just below a racing ski (definitely way above my ability).
As it turns out, these were a total blessing as it was the terrible drought at the end of 2016 so everything was just scraped ice. Those edges saved me quite a few times where others in my group were falling. I still wouldn’t be able to get the best from those skis even now 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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I spoke to my local rental shop a few years back, as I had a lot of guests staying with me and renting skis.
The deal they agreed with me was "print out the quote from the Internet, bring it in and we'll match it". They told me the commission for the various providers was about 30%, so they could easily match the price in person.
In the US a couple of weeks back, there's a new membership scheme at the Epic resorts, where a $50 annual fee means you're guaranteed top end 2025 skis for a price that equates to the cheapest skis - I was really impressed by the setup, and could see that working in Europe as well. Best of all - they had a valet service at each main lift, where you could drop your skis at the end of the day and collect again the next day.
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Poster: A snowHead
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| snowdave wrote: |
I spoke to my local rental shop a few years back, as I had a lot of guests staying with me and renting skis.
The deal they agreed with me was "print out the quote from the Internet, bring it in and we'll match it". They told me the commission for the various providers was about 30%, so they could easily match the price in person. |
I think this holds the most insight.
Ski hire shops are just balancing volume and margin, the sites like Alpin and even the big franchise operators (Skiset, intersport, Skimum, Sport 2000) are getting volume through the door. And the skis you get will roughly correspond to the level you book, but there will also be a degree of the shop just giving you what they have in the rack that morning. Some put more effort than other, pre-labelling skis with your name based on your booking details etc. vs just grabbing a set when you arrive; but I'd guess that is just down to how that shop does the organising of their stock rather than them doing anything more than looking at their stock and the level you booked and picking something in the right ball park.
Maybe Alpin charge less commission and that is why their prices are cheaper. Maybe Alpin just capture a different, more price conscious, market segment and therefore the sales though Alpin don't cannibalise their existing customer base so although the margins are lower they're still profitable so nice to have.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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| larkim wrote: |
| I strongly suspect you're right. I suppose my issue is that I don't really understand the market I'm operating in. |
Fair enough. It's actually a very valid question. The answer is the real difference is in the base grind. Cheap French hire shops use very few base grinds. And very cheap, but quick waxing methods. And that's both something you'll feel vividly.
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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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Imagine my excitement after several years of hiring skis in North America to be presented with the prices on the Alpinresort website! Just couldn’t resist.
The outlets used were the same as those used by the package companies. The skis I got were a good choice for me but cosmetically had definitely seen better days.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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| Tristero wrote: |
| larkim wrote: |
| I strongly suspect you're right. I suppose my issue is that I don't really understand the market I'm operating in. |
Fair enough. It's actually a very valid question. The answer is the real difference is in the base grind. Cheap French hire shops use very few base grinds. And very cheap, but quick waxing methods. And that's both something you'll feel vividly. |
This!
The challenge for the consumer is it can all be a bit random. Not all Intersports or all Skisets etc. treat their skis the same, and even then when you show up in store depends a lot on how your skis have been treated. This can lead you to thinking a specific ski make/model is amazing but in reality it is just how the shop services skis. If you luck into a good shop then its notable how many people in the group may say "these are the best ski's I've ever been given" and attribute that them being a Salomon XYZ or a Head ABC rather than just how the shop looks after their kit.
The key is noticing if you've got a pair in need of a service. Do you lose speed on flat bits vs others? You probably need to go back to the shop to ask for a wax. Do the skis struggle to hold an edge? They may feel too 'slippery' when turning, particularly when the snow is a bit more polished. Then you need the edges sharpening. Go back to the shop and ask for them to do it. Not to give you new skis because the model is probably fine, but to service the ones you have so you can feel the difference.
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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: |
| Alpinresorts website says the ski at their top end would be the "HEAD WC Rebels e.XSR" or equivalent |
That is in fact a 'mid level' ski, billed for intermediate to good (i.e 6..8 on a range of 1..10).
I wouldn't say it's top end, that would be the HEAD WC Rebels e-speed, but a good ski nonetheless. You would certainly feel the difference between that a beginner's ski, especially on hard/icy pistes, if the ski has been well maintained.
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| bouquetin wrote: |
The challenge for the consumer is it can all be a bit random. Not all Intersports or all Skisets etc. treat their skis the same, and even then when you show up in store depends a lot on how your skis have been treated. This can lead you to thinking a specific ski make/model is amazing but in reality it is just how the shop services skis. If you luck into a good shop then its notable how many people in the group may say "these are the best ski's I've ever been given" and attribute that them being a Salomon XYZ or a Head ABC rather than just how the shop looks after their kit.
The key is noticing if you've got a pair in need of a service. Do you lose speed on flat bits vs others? You probably need to go back to the shop to ask for a wax. Do the skis struggle to hold an edge? They may feel too 'slippery' when turning, particularly when the snow is a bit more polished. Then you need the edges sharpening. Go back to the shop and ask for them to do it. Not to give you new skis because the model is probably fine, but to service the ones you have so you can feel the difference. |
I too think that the rental shop makes a huge difference. I've seen a technician at a large rental store just feeding a huge stack of skis into an automated servicing machine. I did not see him, at any point, changing the settings on the machine but he was putting a bunch of skis through that have different recommended base and edge angles. That will have a huge impact on how the skis feel and behave.
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Without wishing to start a new thread, does anyone have any decent Alpy discount codes right now? Or do they typically have better deals around Black Friday time...?
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@ratechaser, just had a discount code from them: SKIPRESSO
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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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| halfhand wrote: |
| @ratechaser, just had a discount code from them: SKIPRESSO |
Thanks, that gave 5%. I just went back over a few that (according to their emails) had expired, and most still seemed to work. 5% appears to be the norm, but VIPGOLD gives 7% so that's the current leader. Obviously might be location specific...
I'm also missing out on the extra discount for 6+ people because although there are 6 of us, only 5 need equipment. I suppose I could split the ski/boot hire for one person across 2, and then tell them we'd had a bit of a shuffle around with our equipment, but that would be a bit cheeky!
Last edited by You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net. on Thu 6-11-25 16:51; edited 1 time in total
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I've used Skidiscount previously, which seems to be exactly the same website system as Alpinresorts
We booked some skis and a snowboard, red level (which I believe is better level on a good/better/best scale) but even if we got decent kit, I kind of half-expected it to be a bit abused, as this was mid-April, so end of season. The shop just took our measurements and grabbed the corresponding kit, I highly doubt there was any consideration towards cherrypicking specific items.
Skis were great, seemed to have been really well looked after and serviced, although I have no idea about actual spec and price level (all Rossignol or Dynastar). The board were fine (Salomon base level) but nothing shouted 'high-level' at all - actually the bindings were dogpoop - and all boots felt like they'd had a season's worth of feet through them. But we did pay £580 for 8x sets of skis/boards with boots, 4 helmets and theft protection.... that's a bargain so definitely wasn't complaining and ultimately, for most of the group who are very much beginners, they wouldn't have known the difference between good/better/best kit. The shop even switched my skis for a board FOC and when I said it was too soft, they gave me a much stiffer board FOC. No questions asked or mumbling.
I'll use that website again for this Christmas' trip, as it's just my daughter and wife who are renting skis, and TBH they don't care about performance.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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I looked up 6 days (21st Dec to 26th December) ski hire at Ski Republic Le Capricorne in Les Menuires using alpy.com and ski-republic.com, the shop owner.
Sensation skis came up on both.
Using alpy.com I got a price of £85.04 and using ski-republic.com I got 113.25 Euros or about £100.
Can't see any difference in service, t&c's.
Clearly this doesn't make much sense for Ski Republic... well, it must do... I just can't see it.
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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 had multiple great experience with alpinresort / alpy particularly at precision ski in Val d'Isère where I've used them for at least 10 years and never had a bad experience.
However I was offered a fantastic deal for top range skis including unlimited changes and insurance for about £100 for 15days covering the PSB and PiPAU last year through precision ski in Tignes le lac.
The individual people in the shop were nice but the stock available for hire was absolute crap. They hadn't received any new skis for the current season and their workshop was not open so they were all whatever they were left with at the end of April 2024 including with spring wax on them if any wax at all. The edges were absolutely useless. Even when I went back in and complained they couldn't do anything about it as they said the workshop wouldn't be open until the 13th of December.
I contacted Alpinresort about this and they were useless.
My conclusion is that they can offer great deals if you are in mainstream season and a decent size resort but if it's something specialized you're looking for or early or late season then I would avoid them
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| ratechaser wrote: |
| Without wishing to start a new thread, does anyone have any decent Alpy discount codes right now? Or do they typically have better deals around Black Friday time...? |
They're like the DFS Sale. The 65% is on all the time. They've also rebounded as 'Alpy', which is a bit cutesy for my tastes.
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You know it makes sense.
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@rickboden, out of interest did you get a refund and go elsewhere?
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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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I was looking at Kitzbuhel. With Alpy and the code, it was 180euro for the diamond grade skis. Must admit, I haven't tried direct with the hire shop or the Intersport shops yet.
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Poster: A snowHead
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| Owlette wrote: |
| ratechaser wrote: |
| Without wishing to start a new thread, does anyone have any decent Alpy discount codes right now? Or do they typically have better deals around Black Friday time...? |
They're like the DFS Sale. The 65% is on all the time. They've also rebounded as 'Alpy', which is a bit cutesy for my tastes. |
To be fair though, that's not the sale as such, it's just their advertised USP of being up to 65% cheaper than booking directly. For me it's about sqeezing a bit more out with the discount codes - which, yes, also get thrown around like confetti.
As for names, I try not to pay too much attention, as long as the product is decent. If I were that precious about branding, I'd probably never have latched onto Molton Brown - which, let's face it, does conjure up thoughts of the morning after a vindaloo... 
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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| Layne wrote: |
| @rickboden, out of interest did you get a refund and go elsewhere? |
No, it was all a bit too awkward and too much hassle. I had driven so had some of my skis with me anyway which I used instead.
I had taken the deal as I thought it was both cheap - so not worth servicing my own kit at that price plus a chance to try lots of different things. My mistake, it was too cheap and I got what I paid for in some ways.
AR wouldn't refund anything but have offered me a future discount. I'm not very impressed with them or Precision in Tignes atm.
I'm just going to take and use my own kit this PSB
I'd use them in Val though.
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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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You never pay full price at most of the operators - One time I had to rent skis for a last minute addition to the group and went to a skiset and they just automatically discounted the sticker price by 40% without me even asking...
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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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| AliAfro wrote: |
| You never pay full price at most of the operators - One time I had to rent skis for a last minute addition to the group and went to a skiset and they just automatically discounted the sticker price by 40% without me even asking... |
Generally I agree, although I wonder if that always holds for the most peak weeks - I remember a New Year in Mayrhofen where we were quite late in collecting our rentals, and the shop was pretty bare - got the impression that we were just given whatever they had left! So clearly not always an excess of supply that needs shifting...
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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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| ratechaser wrote: |
| AliAfro wrote: |
| You never pay full price at most of the operators - One time I had to rent skis for a last minute addition to the group and went to a skiset and they just automatically discounted the sticker price by 40% without me even asking... |
Generally I agree, although I wonder if that always holds for the most peak weeks - I remember a New Year in Mayrhofen where we were quite late in collecting our rentals, and the shop was pretty bare - got the impression that we were just given whatever they had left! So clearly not always an excess of supply that needs shifting... |
Oh, I definitiely recommend booking in advance, particualry in peak weeks - but Im just saying that you shouldnt expect to pay the full quoted price when you book. You can google discount codes and find them pretty easily, and if you sign up for their mailing list then they will send them to you regulalry. For example: Skiset currently offering c. 40% off for most online bookings and you can use code: EARLYSK25 for a further 10% off upto 9th Nov (I think this is France only).
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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Can I suggest that if taking ski hire through Alpineresorts and similar to secure the lower prices, that you untick their insurance and when in the shop take the shops own insurance. It's not expensive.
Friends that had hired through Alpineresorts with their insurance had skis stolen and had to pay 400 euro for replacements in shop and told to claim on their Alpineresorts Insurance, which they tried and it all became such a hassle with no response from AR, they gave up.
Another trip, my husband had his skis lifted too, still hired through Alpineresorts for cheaper hire price but we took the shops own insurance when in resort to cover the skis. No issues whatsoever on the shops own insurance, we were handed another set of skis and told to enjoy the rest of our day. No money exchanged hands.
In addition last year, I ripped a binding off one of my skis while in Meribel, my ski hire shop was a different company in Courchevel to the one I asked for help in Mottaret, they phoned my hire shop, had a chat and I was told that as I had shop insurance they could provide me new skis from the Mottaret shop at no charge and the two shops would sort it out between themselves. Again no money exchanged and I got on my way 20 minutes after entering the ski hire shop in Mottaret.
Shop insurance all the way for us these days.
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@GixerGirl, I generally don't hire skis but that is certainly helpful and interesting.
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@GixerGirl, great shout. Didn't even think of that.
looking through my bank account last night, I spotted that I'd booked my ski hire for Christmas (via Alpy) from Hervis, Saalbach, using the SKIPRESSO code;
1x set of COMFORT Lady skis + poles + boots = £108
1x set of ROOKIE kids skis + poles + boots = £55
*(For some reason I've added £8 insurance on the rookie set, think that was a mistake)
For comparison, booking through Crystal (not sure on which shop this would be BTW):
1x Adult ski, poles & boots = £177
1x Youth (10-14) ski, poles & boots = £86
A significant difference in price, although I can't vouch for what (if any) difference there will be in kit quality and condition, but I suspect it being start of the season then there's every chance we'll get decent kit like we did last year in Italy (we had to pull the tags off the boots, they were brand new).
RE: Alpy customer service - I didn't receive can email confirmation, which is what threw me about the money going out of my account - I'd forgotten I'd booked TBH - so I emailed them for it and within 30 minutes had a reply with the booking details. Very swift customer service IMO.
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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've been using them for as long as I can remember - in most cases they just grabs what suits you when you go. As we often go mid-week there generally isn't much choice - this can work either way - sometimes we get really new good skis, presumably because the older ones have gone and sometimes we get them all bashed up (cosmetically) but there's never been any issue with the bases, bindings etc. we always go red.
We know that we sometimes get a higher grade because when husbands skis got half inched in Les Carroz the shop said they were "Premium" and we'd have to pay a lot more - I argued we'd only asked for Red and so we should only be responsible for red. Luckily the skis were returned as they had only been taken in error.
Unless you are really fussed I'd say go for the lowest range you'd be prepared to use
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| ScaredySki wrote: |
| We know that we sometimes get a higher grade because when husbands skis got half inched in Les Carroz the shop said they were "Premium" and we'd have to pay a lot more - I argued we'd only asked for Red and so we should only be responsible for red. Luckily the skis were returned as they had only been taken in error. |
If one thinks that rentals and discount codes are a scam, the insurance costs are a real scam. Often the insurance only covers you for skis up to, say €250 and anything beyond that is then your responsibility. Given the shops will purchase the skis at, what, half ticket price, then they profit hugely when skis are nicked and you have to pay full price. At the same time, if they didn't do that then I guess people would just nick the skis they'd hired and pay the half-ticket-price.
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FAQ
