 Poster: A snowHead
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I might be travelling to my apartment in Switzerland, the weekend before xmas (assuming it's finished).
I was thinking of leaving booking the ferry, to a couple of weeks before the travel date.
But is there usually availability at this time of year?
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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ssnowman, suggest you keep checking prices, as they go up nearer the time, and as the ferries fill up.. Lots of booze cruisers on weekends leading up to Christmas I suspect. Hold out as long as your nerva and your pocket allow. I have got my crossing for 22nd December booked already.
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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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Helen Beaumont, I don't want to book without knowing that the apartment will be ready. But I don't want to be in a position where they are full either!
Where is the best place/ferry company to book with?
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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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Eurotunnel.
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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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Definitely Eurotunnel
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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Agreed. Faster, easier, and you don't get seasick. If you book, then need to postpone your travel, they don't charge extra unless you switch to a more expensive crossing (you just need to tell them within 24 hours of the originally booked time)
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ssnowman, you could book a flexible fare which would allow you to change it if necessary, we use Eurotunnel if we have enough Clubcard points, and have also used Seafrance. Cheapest is ususally Speedferries, and there is also p&O and Norfolkline.
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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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boredsurfin, if I could use my Tesco Clubcard vouchers to pay for them I would.
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Ferries did get VERY busy last year..as all the Poles go home for Xmas..!!
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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ssnowman, More choice of crossings with Eurotunnel would make me book a ticket now then alter it nearer the time if I had to. It may even be worth losing the crossing rather than risk not getting one at all. When we got our apartment, we booked ours for the right time, and still used it at the right time, although we had to book alternative accommodation for a couple of nights. It gave us the opportunity to get the remaining stuff for the apartment, and a small bit of skiing.
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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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ssnowman, another vote for Eurotunnel - flexible, quick, smooth
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ssnowman booked eurotunnel crossings last week out on 26th dec back on 31st, prices nice and low at the mo, cost £98 return
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You know it makes sense.
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Boris, I get torn between tunnel and ferry in the summer 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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Helen Beaumont, We have previously used ferries in summer to get to Brittany, as so much more direct. But, there prices in summer are getting stupid now, close to £400 for popular overnight crossings.
With a sub £100 Chunnel crossing, I'll take the longer drive and book into a hotel somewhere to break the journey
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Poster: A snowHead
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Boris, only use the Dover-Calais, so not a problem. £89 including charge for dog.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Helen Beaumont, don't think I'd ever go back to ferry for Dover-Calais - Chunnel for us is just so much easier and of course I don't get seasick on it.
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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 do feel sick on the cunnel .. think i need a visual reference to avoid chucking up... im fine on ferries unless of course its dark.. chunnel everytime for me
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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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Thanks for the replies everyone. I think I'll be booking the tunnel!
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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: |
you could book a flexible fare which would allow you to change it if necessary
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This is something I don't understand about eurotunnel. I always book the cheapest, and as I book with Tesco vouchers I have to speak to someone, and they always say that the booking can't be changed. But then if you ask "what if we want to change it" they just say to tell them within 24 hours AFTER the booked time, and they'll change it with no problem, and no charge either unless you switch to a higher price crossing. I've also pitched up at Calais 3 days early, just punched in the number at the automatic check in and been put on the next train. So I'm really not too sure what more you get with the much more expensive tickets - maybe you can get a refund if you don't travel at all, which you can't with the cheapest ones.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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There's a hell of a difference between the fares.
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I tend to go P+O or seafrance, depending on who has best fare. Never had issues booking at Christmas (typically a week or so before), and usually arrive early enough to drive straight onto the previous ferry (due to 6 hour drive, and driving too fast on autobahn). Not been on Channel Tunnel since before it opened to the public (we went on a travel agent's press day before it opened fully), but may check it out for this Christmas.
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ssnowman, unless you really need the flexibility, I'd go for the standard fair - this gives you two hours either way as it is. On the one occassion we were well outside this, a £10 was the only payment required to make the difference in prices.
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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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So, what's the point of the super flexible fare at twice the price? You get to drive on in a different lane?
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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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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gwaelod, and ny car is more than 1.85m high, so we can't use the lounge anyway.
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You know it makes sense.
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gwaelod, yes mine too (once the skis are on top) making the expensive ticket a more complete waste of time than ever. Given that it takes so few minutes to get all the vehicles of the train, even "priority boarding" (assuming it also means priority disembarking) is not too expensive at £100. Get a Tesco clubcard. I pay for three returns on the tunnel each year with mine. Doesn't necessarily mean spending billions at Tesco, I have a Tesco credit card and the expenditure soon mounts up! I love the tunnel, though we had one extremely irritating crossing in the summer when a load of complete prats with the Paris - Monte Carlo rally were in headless chicken mode, too busy revving their things to get into the queues properly, and made us miss our train. You should have seen them. Lots of ageing boys with more money than sense (or hair) and more over made-up bimbos than you could shake a stick at.
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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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As we're a high vehicle, we're usually in the single-deck coaches, which are at the front, and get off pretty quickly.
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Poster: A snowHead
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I have been taking part in some customer research involving frequent travellers. One subject is seperate check in lanes for different types of ticket. If any of the research is put into practice time will tell. But I get the impression that changes are coming. Hopefully they will be for the better. Mc Donalds in the Calais terminal has already gone 
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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boredsurfin, I would love to book some freuqent traveller tickets, but until I can use Clubcard vouchers to pay for them, it is cheaper not to.
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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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| Helen Beaumont wrote: |
| boredsurfin, I would love to book some freuqent traveller tickets, but until I can use Clubcard vouchers to pay for them, it is cheaper not to. |
Just got hold of my new Tesco credit card to bump my points up. Sadly we spend a lot at Tesco (about £700 to £800 including petrol) so we should see a big increase in our points.
Not 100% relevant to this thread but another trick with clubcards is not to join into a single account a husband and wives. We have seperate club cards with seperate accounts and the computer gets confused. When my wife books the on line shooping she does it under her account. This month Tesco sent me a deal to register for home shopping and an extra 750 points (£7.50 = £28  ) if I registered for home shopping and did one shop for over £75. So did a £75 shop and got £28 back not bad.
We often get sent points and money of deals seperately as the system hasn't married! up that the 2 clubcards are linked.
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FAQ
