 Poster: A snowHead
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Hi All,
I have just returned from my first ski trip to Val Thorens and loved it.
I am going to look into arranging a trip for about 20 mates next year, most will have ski'd before but a couple won't have.
Not knowing much about other resorts to the three valleys I was wondering if some of you knowledgeable peeps could offer me your thoughts - the kind of thing I think I need to take into consideration is:
- Overall Cost
- Journey time! (from London)
- Quality of skiing/snow
- Accommodation and its locality to the slopes/night life
- Night life - the night life in VT was OK but I have heard you can get much better
- Time of year (Jan was good in 3 valleys, but would Jan be ok for other resorts, And are some months cheaper than others And what are the risks of no snow!) (Also what about going over new year - is this quite pricey?)
- When to book - is it cheaper to book it up super early or does it make little difference
All thoughts & ideas appreciated - I know I am after quite a bit of info and you might call me lazy, but I will be doing lots of other research - any pointers from people more knowledge than me would be useful as a starting point
(Thanks in advance)
PS: I hear that Austria (St Anton is pretty good??)
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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oh_bugger, Welcome to snowHeads. I often use your name when skiing.
A few points for starters.
January is cheap comparatively. New Year is very expensive indeed.
Journey times are much the same to the ski areas.
Quality of snow varies, but high is often the best. Few resorts go as high as Val T.
In my personal view, the 3V is the best skiing there is, so it is all down from now on!
Can't comment re apres. Far too old, sad and boring.
I'd suggest Val T in January is about as good as it gets, though Austria is better from the fun aspect.
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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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how old is the group, how important is off slope activities (during the day for nonskiers (if any)) and during the evening?
If you like the apres and are sub-30 or sub-30 minded you can't really beat austria. Whilst I like self-organsied holidays you've got too many to make DIY east, so I would just book a catered chalet and be done with it.
Off to St. Anton in march with 24 to chalet with Ski Val, and we have 2 other chalets and one other DIY group.. gonna be awesome..
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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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oh_bugger, verbier,good skiing ,good night life,great town,massive ski area,one and ahalf hours from geneva.and its not french,which is a bonus,happy people,unlike the french.and the runs are not to steep,so you can all ski ,or ride together.
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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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oh_bugger, Don't know where you should go but great name, Welcome 
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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oh_bugger,
Generally January is about as cheap as it gets. New Year is a bad time for crowds price and frequently snow conditions.
February is usually pricier with good snow. In March prices fall and conditions are often at there best on higher slopes though low slopes may suffer. I am a confirmed late booker for getting good prices/conditions low season, but if trying to sort a group fo 20 I would personally book early and you will probably get the best deals earliest.
I am not a great fan of the three valleys and reckon you can get just as good skiing in cheaper less crowded and more aesthetically pleasing places elsewhere, though its all a matter of taste. If you are after big areas with some apres ski I would add Ischgl, St Anton, Verbier and Zermatt to your list.
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oh_bugger, welcome to snowheads. I'm a veteran large group arranger. DIY all the time. ALWAYS book your flights as early as possible. You can always find accommodation nearer the time, even if you do need to travel a bit further sometimes!
My experience is that France is FAR more expensive for food/drink (particularly on mountain) than Switzerland and then Austria (in that order). Austria is a lot more... well... jovial and friendly than most French resorts I've been too as well (LDA (twice), Superdevoluy, Serre Chevalier (twice), Isola 2000, Val D'Isere, Tignes, La Plagne, Les Arcs... I've tried a fair few!)
New Year will be HIDEOUSLY expensive. St. Anton will double the HIDEOUSLY expensive bit too... it's not a cheap resort!
What are you after? Apartments? Catered Chalet? Hotel? One big house?
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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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oh_bugger, no useful advice really, just couldn't resist the opportunity to say oh_bugger, without offending anyone. Welcome to snowheads!
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oh_bugger, my main advice would be not to assume that anyone in your party is actually going ot go on the trip until you have their money. Other than that, it's commen sense, the only difficult bit is deciding where to go. We had a couple of good large-party chalet hols in Meribel - not everyone's cup of tea, but there's lots of skiing for everyone on hand. Austria does tend to be jolly, usually lots of pissed up Brits getting underfoot, though.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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My son took a mixed ability group to Les Arcs last week. They paid Crystal £750 each to include flights & transfers/ski pass / ski hire / catered chalet. It was a group of 12 and they had a chalet to themselves.
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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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Cheers one and all - thats great feedback
I will get an idea on pricing options etc. and then get the numbers to commit!
Reckon I might have to forget about work for a few weeks - so much to read in these forums!
Must do some homework on Austria now!
Laters
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oh_bugger, just to add, 20 is quite a big group...so apart from getting flights booked as soon as they're available - assuming you've decided on the general area - I'd get accommodation done asap too.
You will probably get a discount with such a large group - but remember, if you're all snuggled up together on one large bed in Monsieur Gaston's pig shed an hours drive from the skiing because you leave the accommodation too late, there are (probably) 19 people who'll be blaming you. Late booking is fine if you don't care where you go, where you fly from or what pig shed you sleep in - but otherwise...
As a wee example, we had an email circulated on January 30th - "Hi does anyone have anything available for New Year week? We've booked our flights and are beginning to panic."
Frankly, I would imagine every decent bed in Chamonix was booked by September so waiting for a cheap New Year week deal is just not going to happen.
On the other hand, if you would like to stay in my garden shed for the last week of the season, I'm open to offers. It's very nice and has a barbeque and balcony.
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You know it makes sense.
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oh_bugger, Have a look at Soll. www.skiwelt.at This could be just what your group wants
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