 Poster: A snowHead
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Going to Reberty 2000 on 5th April for 6 days - I think I'm ESF Level 3 class - ESF say I'd need a 3 Valleys pass for Level 3 but what happens if upon initial assessment, or after one or two group lessons,
* I get downgraded to Level 2 - which only needs a Les Menuires pass. Can I exchange my 3 Valleys pass for a Les Menuires one and will they refund the cost difference?
* Or can I get the 3 Valleys pass refunded, either fully or pro-rata? Then purchase the cheaper Les Menuires pass?
On the other hand - if I enter class Level 2 - this only requires a Les Menuires pass. But what if upon assessment I got upgraded to class Level 3, then would I be able to exchange it / pay extra for a 3 Valleys pass? Or do I have to add the 'daily rate' of 79 eu each day to access the 3 Valleys with the Level 3 class - but that extra 'daily' payment would cost a lot more than a '6 day 3 Valley pass' and does not take into account what I've already paid for the Les Menuires pass?
Regarding my husband in the beginner's ski class - ESF offer a ski pass for a 'restricted area' for 118 eu. I don't think this is a Les Menuires pass but it might be the same as the Easy Rider beginner's pass offered by the tourism website? (Does anyone know if they're the same thing?) Although the Easy Rider pass seems to cost only 35 eu?
If he wanted to 'upgrade' his beginners pass to access greater amounts of views/runs/restaurants in the afternoons then I assume he'd have to add the daily Les Menuires pass cost of 55.50 eu per half day?
If he didn't want to pay daily to access all the Les Menuires lifts and just wanted to use only the beginners 'restricted area'/Easy Rider lifts, then are there any good restaurants with great views he can meet me at that are accessible via these few lifts? Or are all the best/most popular pubs and restaurants only accessible with the Les Menuires or 3 Valleys pass?
I assume a disadvantage of having to add the whole Les Menuires area daily to a pass is that you can't do it when you're half way up a mountain because I assume there are no ski pass ticket offices at the mountain tops? So that would mean hubbie having to ski all the way back to the town centre lift pass office to add on the extra Les Menuires lifts, instead of being able to ski directly from where the instructor drops him off? Or once you have your physical pass can you add on the daily extra on-line using your phone? Or is the wi-fi not great mid-run or mid lift journey?
Thank you for reading.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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@Mo24, you are unlikely to be able to downgrade and get a refund, but you will almost certainly be able to upgrade. Select the recommended passes for your ski class. Ski school will start and finish at the same point regardless of your level, so meet for lunch there.
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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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@Mo24, My recollection is that the 3V upgrade price per day, is almost the same as the weekly difference between LM and 3V passes. Personally, I'd just buy the top end pass to have scope to go to Val Thorens a couple of afternoons - it's worth going up there to do the sledging.
The easy rider pass is E35/day, so E118/week seems like a decent deal assuming it's the same pass. Speculating entirely - I can imagine that for the first day or 2 for beginners, they can get by on the free lifts, so maybe that's baked into the pricing.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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i do not think you can downgrade after using the pass for a couple of days.
Honestly, i understand your concerns. I am and make almost the same. When i book a ski trip, i examine before almost everything, where to go, where to stay, which pass, where to go with the kids after the course, this or that, which is the best option to eat, drink, ski etc etc etc...
If money is not a problem (at least for the difference between the passes) buy the 3V Pass. Its the last ski of the season. Enjoy it...
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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 you're trying to overoptimise. Just buy the pass indicated for your levels of class and accept that if you get downgraded or only ski in Menuires because of bad weather or whatever that's just life.
As for husband I really wouldn't worry about views and variety of restaurants. Buy the Menuires pass if you think he'll realistically be able/wanting to ski a greater variety of runs by later in the week.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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@Mo24, you cannot downgrade or get a refund on unused days of a multi-day pass once the first day has been activated. The one day upgrade price is (I think) €48 vs €75 difference in price for a 6 day 3V pass vs a 6 day LM/St M pass bought upfront. You can only upgrade at a ticket office and there are none at the top of the mountain so it's better to just buy the 3V pass in the first place.
If you do decide to go with a one valley pass and find yourself in VT, you can buy an upgrade at the office inside the Funitel Peclet to get home. You could also ski back to LM without using any VT lifts at all as long as you don't make any wrong turns via the Boulevard Cumin but that's really for a disaster scenario.
The Easy Rider pass looks good value and there are more than enough lifts on it for a beginner. I assume the €35 is the daily cost so the €118 pass may be different as it looks too cheap in comparison for 6 days? Could be a concession rate for the ESF though, so worth checking directly with them. The Easy Rider pass covers almost all of the best restaurants; the only one I can think of that you won't be able to reach is the Chalet du Sunny and, of course, the ones accessed off the top of the ridge between valleys. That's no great loss.
As a beginner in Reberty, he may start and finish his day right outside La Ferme de Reberty - that's one of the best ones! If he's told to meet at Bruyeres, La Marmite is usually well reviewed and on the snow front.
For somewhere with a view, you could try L'Antigel opposite the Bruyeres mid-station, the l'Ours Blanc hotel (has a glass walled terrasse) or L'Etoile. The last two are on the left hand side of the green run from Reberty to the Croisette. Roc Seven at the top of Roc 1 has been raved about by a few recent posters for its apres vibe. All of these can be accessed on the Easy Rider pass.
I see that the two main St Martin lifts are included but you'd have to take the bus to get there, although you can ski back to LM so it might be an option. Some nice blues (Jerusalem) off those lifts and if you do make it across, then Le Corbeleys and La Loy are both very good and right next to the piste with mountain views.
Last edited by You'll need to Register first of course. on Fri 28-03-25 16:13; edited 2 times in total
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If you're going with kids it's worth checking if they still do the discount rate for families / groups. You all get a 3V pass for the kids price. Might mean you pay the same but get full access. As someone said, even a relative beginner might want to get out to VT by the end of the week and knowing you can go wherever and not get an error buzzer on the lift is nice.
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They do the kids’ rate for all skiers in a family, just about to load my cards, certainly for 3V and I think Les M/St M too. No idea how that works with beginner passes tho, as just one adult won’t qualify for the family rate.
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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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| Je suis un Skieur wrote: |
| €48 vs €75 difference in price for a 6 day 3V pass vs a 6 day LM/St M pass bought upfront. |
Hmm… the OP trying to save €75 but risk costing €48x6 extra?
There’s a saying that goes like… xxx wise and yyy foolish. I forgot the specifics. 
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Penny wise, pound foolish (in the UK at least…)
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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@Mo24, I agree with all of the above, plus I would observe you aren’t in ski school all the time, and you may want to ski a bit further afield in any event. The south and west facing slopes in Les Men that can get very hard going at the end of the day in April. Rather than trying to optimise your ski pass on the basis of cost, you need to optimise your access to the best ski conditions, which are likely to involve at least skiing over the ridge into the top half of Meribel (east facing and shady in the afternoon), and going over to VT.
I second the restaurant recommendations, plus a hidden gem-the Hotel Hillary which is up in Reberty but accessed on skis via the green piste on the Menuires side.
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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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| Je suis un Skieur wrote: |
| The Easy Rider pass covers almost all of the best restaurants; the only one I can think of that you won't be able to reach is the Chalet du Sunny and, of course, the ones accessed off the top of the ridge between valleys. |
It's just occurred to me that actually, the beginner almost certainly can get to the top of the ridge on the Easy Rider pass via Bruyeres. The pass only lists Bruyeres 1 as an eligible lift but there's no cabin change between Bruyeres 1 and 2 so as long as he gets on at the bottom, he would be able to just stay on the lift all the way to the top.
That opens up the possibility to ski a more challenging blue in Mont de la Chambre or even a red run if he's progressing well.
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| abc wrote: |
| Je suis un Skieur wrote: |
| €48 vs €75 difference in price for a 6 day 3V pass vs a 6 day LM/St M pass bought upfront. |
Hmm… the OP trying to save €75 but risk costing €48x6 extra? |
The pricing strategy has changed in the last few years to deliberately push people towards the 3V pass. In Courchevel, it's even more blatant with the 6 day price difference being just €35 more for 3V and a specific note on the price list to say that the 3V pass bought upfront is cheaper than a Courchevel pass plus a 1 day 3V extension.
If you go back 10-15 years, the 3V pass price was usually roughly more expensive by the equivalent of two daily upgrades which is about as much as the average holidaymaker ever went out of their own valley anyway. I looked up 2013 Courchevel prices where a 1 day upgrade was €29 vs €55 for 6 days so only €3 worse off for two away days.
When I was a ski host based out of Courchevel La Tania the absolute most common thing to be said to me on a Thursday or Friday was, " We bought three valley passes but haven't really used them, can you take us to Val Thorens please?" My fellow ski host hated the VT trek but I enjoyed it so I ended up going to VT three or four times a week which got me some very good tips and lunches. 
I don't have the data but my memory suggests it was more common for holidaymakers/TO's to buy/include a single valley pass 20 years ago whereas now I would think most people decide that they don't want to get "caught out" and opt for the 3V pass.
It's a good profit strategy for the lift companies which I also don't really mind because at least in France the profits almost always get reinvested in to the infrastructure.
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You know it makes sense.
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| Perty wrote: |
| plus a hidden gem-the Hotel Hillary which is up in Reberty but accessed on skis via the green piste on the Menuires side. |
That's the one you see on the right as you near the top of the Doron lift isn't it? Thanks, I've never been there, will have to give it a go one day. 
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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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Proper money in there. Lovely, but you pay for it.
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Poster: A snowHead
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@Je suis un Skieur, we had a fantastic lunch there a couple of weeks ago…heartily recommend. Beautiful plat du jour fish dish and then possibly the best crème brûlée I have ever eaten.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Thank you all for your great advice! I took Class Level 3 in the end and got the full 3 Valleys pass which was advised by ESF for the class. Great cos we went into Meribel and Val Thorens during classes.
My husband did get the ESF beginners pass for 118 eu which ESF said covered the same lifts as the Easy Rider pass (great discount!) and he was fine with that as he could still meet me at restaurants like L'Antigel (mid Bruyeres lift) or La Ferme and when he got more confidence we went to Roc 7 at the end of our week. Many thanks @Je suis un Skieur, for your helpful info - we didn't get to try all the restaurants but hope to next time! Yes I know what you mean about skiing runs down into Val Thorens without having to use the lifts back to Les Men on the restricted pass. We almost did this but luckily didn't, as later on found out that the bottom green from VT to LM was closed.
My 7 yr old was fine with his Les Menuires single valley pass (also discounted within his ESF class payment, from 262.40 to 205 eu) and our 4 yr old got a free 3 Valley pass (lovely!) So in the end we had the right passes for our abilities with good discount.
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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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@Mo24, thanks for the feedback - sounds like you had a good trip.
I wasn't aware of the Easy Rider pass before your first post so knowing that the ESF beginner's pass is effectively the same thing at a great price is worth knowing for future recommendations.
Did you happen to find out if the €118 is the price only for the ESF or all LM ski schools?
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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@Perty,
Are you in France for the end of (VT) season, or back home now? We arrived in VT yesterday, for a final fling, and have a week left.
Brilliant snow conditions today, overall, and not busy at all. Orelle was exceptional this afternoon.
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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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@Bergmeister, we are at home in the UK-we didn't come out in April-too busy getting the house sorted to put on the market..a mammoth task!
PS-anyone want a house close to Gatwick airport? 15 mins away-we've done front door to the slopes (handbaggage only) in about 5 hours 30 mins! (4 hours was the record when we went to the Grand Massif).
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