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how long does it take to drive to Samoens from Calais

 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
HI

WE WILL BE TRAVELLING TO SAMOENS IN FEBRUARY BY MINIBUS, DOES ANYONE KNOW HOW LONG IT TAKES TO GET THERE AS WE NEED TO BOOK THE EUROTUNNEL AND NEED TO WORK OUT AN INTINERY. ALSO DOES ANYONE KNOW IF WE CAN GET EUROTUNNEL FLEXIPLUS FOR VEHICLES OVER 1.85 METRES HIGH?

THANKS

SARAH
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 Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
sarahbayliss, It is about 550 miles, so at least 10 hours depending on time of travel, speed etc plus an hour for the change from GMT. Prepare sarnies and flasks and stop at the smaller aires to limit your stopping time. Definately avoid the full service aires between 12 and 2. Use the CB lanes at the tolls - if you are travelling on a saturday the queues will add substantially to your time. Personally I do most of the journey on Fridays then do the final bit early on saturday and get an extra half days skiing in. Smile
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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?
sarahbayliss, welcome to Snowheads. snowHead Your message will be easier to read if you don't "shout" (ie use capitals).

I'm sure you could get flexiplus for high vehicles but can't think why you would want to; it's a huge price premium for not a lot. It will take you roughly 10 - 12 hours of driving from Calais to Samoens, assuming your minibus doesn't travel super fast. Plus stops, of course. And if it's at half term, you'll also need to factor in the traffic flows, and almost certainly add several hours to that estimate. You could spend hours in jams if you time it wrong. There are several Snowheads threads on travel at half term, best timing to avoid the worst of the traffic, etc etc. If you MUST travel on one of those busy Saturdays the best way is probably to travel to somewhere very close to the resort on Friday afternoon/evening, then spend the night, then drive up super early on Saturday morning. If you can't manage that, best arrange to arrive much later on Saturday evening.

Bear in mind that the last three weeks in Feb and first in March are peak French holiday times, and all the Saturdays will be very busy, even if there's no extra problems from snow. If you can avoid Saturday travel, do. Sundays are less busy.

Use the viamichelin.com website for routes, timings and costs of fuel, tolls etc.
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steve,

Thanks for your reply, sorry to be so thick but what is a CB lane?
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
sarahbayliss, CB = carte bancaire where you can use your credit/debit card....they have blue coloured neon signs of credit cards above them so you know which ones they are.
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pam w,

thanks for your reply. what happens if you have a standard ticket and you arrive late at the Eurotunnel? Whats the chance of getting on the next train during school holidays? Madeye-Smiley Madeye-Smiley
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sarahbayliss, if you are late they usually put you on the next train with space available. We use our Tesco clubcard vouchers to book our crossings. We have been late before and not had a problem. It shouldn't be a problem in winter.
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 After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
I have driven a van to Samoens, using Eurotunnel. I think from memory you can't use the standard car ticket for vans/minibuses but the next ticket up covers them, it's a little more expensive. Eurotunnel are flexible if they have space on the next train but being half term you may have to wait a few hours. Vans go in with the coaches etc. I agree with everyone else on the drive time but remember the tolls are more expensive for minibuses so remember to factor this into the cost.
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10 hours plus...as the av speed of a mini bus plus all those people milling around will shed time ....

I can't think of a worst way to travel... but that is just me..
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sarahbayliss, As you're going during holiday time get the earliest possible crossing you can and allow plenty of time as you will hit delays...relax and go with the flow otherwise your stress and blood pressure will reach heights you never imagined possible with inconsiderate driving, beeping of horns and pointless lane swapping to get one car closer etc! Also when you leave, assuming it's a saturday, fill up the night before and again leave as early as you can. If you can't get out before 10 there will be almost solid traffic from the village to the autoroute.
Oh yes I must apologise welcome to snowheads snowHead
Bon voyage!
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sarahbayliss, Welcome to snowHeads, you will find stacks of info about driving by using the search facility. As steve, says above, on the return trip you really do need to leave early, if it's half term week ideally get out of the resort before 7.30am. There is an amusing thread by a snowHead who didn't heed this advice and was very delayed Toofy Grin
PS. From July 1st a triangle and reflective jacket/bib are compulsory to have in your car.
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boredsurfin,

thanks for the useful information. We will aim to get out of there early on the way home. We will be leaving Fareham at about 4 .30 am on the Saturday morning to get the Eurotunnel about 8.30a.m, I cant imagine that we will get to Samoens until around 8p.m so hopefully the traffic will have disapeared by then. Any other useful hints you have would be gratefully accepted. Smile
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steve,

Thanks for the useful information. There are 11 of us travelling in the minibus with 3 drivers. We are just going to go with the flow.!!!! Very Happy
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 You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
sarahbayliss, I don't think minibuses are allowed to go through the CB channel at the tolls - as a non standard vehicle you have to go to the lane where you pay a real person. Only standard size cars are allowed to go through the other channels.

It shouldn't take you as long as 4 hours to get from Fareham to Dover on a Saturday (when Hindhead won't be so bad). So if you allow that time, you should have time to spare. You will hit pretty heavy traffic, even travelling a bit later - maybe especially at Reims the "peage" stops for a bit where the motorway goes straight through thetown. If you get to Eurotunnel at 0830 GMT and get a train at, say, 9 am it will be almost 11 am French time before you hit the road the other side. You won't get to Samoens much before 11 pm, I'd say. But the traffic should be pretty light by then!
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pam w, if they're under 2m they can Toofy Grin
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 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
I can't imagine many 12 seater minibuses being under 2m. A Transit, for example, is 2.3m.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Renault Trafic, Fiat, Vauxhall...................all sub 2m...or rather all fit under the height restriction for the nonmanned tolls and if you go through the manned tolls they only charge you class 1
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
pam w,

We are considering travelling to Folkestone late on the friday night and staying in a Premier lodge. Do you think that by getting a Eurotunnel at about 6.30am on the saturday morning we could avoid the heavy traffic. What time do you think we would get to Samoens? your thoughts would be much appreciated Very Happy
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sarahbayliss, Why not get into France on the Friday night. The chain hotels are half the price of "cheap" ones in the UK.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
rjs,

The reason is that we have friends travelling from Cornwall to our house in fareham (3 1/2 hour drive) on the friday when they finish work (teachers cant get the day off!!) by the time they get to us it will be about 8pm and by the time we get to folkestone it will be about 11pm. We would arrive at a hotel in france at about 1am which we dont really want to do. We have 5 children with us as well. To complicate matters further we also have 2 adults and 2 children joining us from Kings Lynn (also teachers). I think it would be best to get the 6.00 Eurotunnel but wanted others views on wether we would avoid traffic by getting an early Eurotunnel. oh why is everything so complicated......
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sarahbayliss, Hmm. It's really difficult. Leaving at 0600 will probably put you in the worst of the traffic all day, frankly. Is this half term week? Your original plan is probably better, but you would obviously arrive very late in Samoens. It would be much better to travel on Sat/Sun rather than Fri/Sat. Is that not an option?

Another option, depending on whether you and your friends all have the same holidays, would be Easter. Often superior to half term in many ways. I do sympathize - daughter and hubby-to-be are teachers.
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thanks for your reply. I will have to think about it a bit more. i think we may go with the first option and get to the hotel later. That way we can have a good night sleep and start skiing early.
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 After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
sarahbayliss, It's worth booking a hotel on the other side of the channel. Then you don't loose an hour before you start.
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ski, normally that would certainly be the case, but on this occasion it might be better to get a good night's sleep for all concerned, and start later. The traffic, for example through Reims and then down on the A 40 from Geneva towards Samoens, will be heavier earlier in the day.
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pam w,

If we were to start our journey at about 8 a.m from Calais how long realistically would it take?
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I suggest you change your thread title to "How long to Samoens at half term?" because there will be people who have driven down recently at half term, which I would never do! I drove north on one of the busy half term Saturdays last year, having left our resort on Friday to avoid the rush (we have an apartment, so we come home during busy periods, when everyone is driving in the other direction). It was absolutely stuffed through Reims when we left our hotel, which was about 10 am. Huge queues for all the peage gates. There are major holdups further south, too, and you need to avoid Lyons (which is not difficult). Weather obviously makes a big difference. With a big group, including kids, in a minibus you'll realistically need to stop every 2 hours or so, and keep speed reasonable. In normal driving conditions, when you can drive to the speed limit all the way, with just short stops for the loo, or very quick snacks, I would say it's a minimum of 10 hours from Calais to Samoens. People will tell you they do it in less but they also tell you they drive at 150 kph for four hours without stopping, which is just madness. How long to add for the fact that the motorway will be extremely busy? At the absolute minimum two hours, I'd say, and it could be a lot more. Having a decent sleep, and not aiming to start too early, will probably be a good start to the day because everyone else will be aiming for an early start!

Yours is an ambitious bit of logistics; easy Jet flights aren't out yet - you could always hover on the button and your cornish group could fly from Bristol! Or could you not do a Sunday/Sunday holiday?
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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.
hi, we had thought about flights but the costs are a lot more, do you know when the flights get released for February? We cant really do Sunday to sunday as our hotel booking is Saturday to Saturday and once we get back to England our cornwall friends still have an 8 hour journey. we all want to get back as soon as possible so we have a day to recover before we are back at work.
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 So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
steve,

thanks for your reply. In your opinion would our best option be to get the 6.20 am Eurotunnel on the Saturday February half term or get a later one at 9.20am. i have had conflicting reports as some people say go later. we dont really want to arrive at the hotel until 11pm at night. if we got the 6.20am can you tell me a realistic time that we would get to the hotel in Samoens? Bearing in mind we are in a minibus.
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 You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
sarahbayliss,

My advice would be to get the earlier crossing and take your time rather than feeling under pressure to make time up, remember you lose an hour anyway. It's amazing how easy it is to fall behind a tight schedule and the traffic will be horrendous. If you go early you can at least stay ahead of some of the brits. There will be long toll queues and probably an accident or two to slow your progress. You will be lucky to average 50 mph in a minibus so I would say you need at least 12 hours probably more with a few decent stops. Go early, take your time and if you get there earlier than planned it's a bonus. When you are there, if you're planning on eating out you will need to pre-book restaurants as they are very busy during half term especially with your numbers. Loads of info on www.samoens.com. Get to the lift pass kiosks early as well -biggish queues at the GM express first thing. As you have a minibus, it might be worth going up to the old bubble lift- ancient but quieter.
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 Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Whisper it quietly but for those of us with frequent Traveler discount 2009 is bookable but no peak rate dates have been loaded yet. Just booked my Half term crossing Toofy Grin
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 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
boredsurfin, ? sorry, but what mode of transport is that all about?
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
sarahbayliss, another way could be to drive through the night....obviously depends on how many of your adults are able to do a stint behind the wheel...the children will be asleep and ifeach of the adults did 2 hours then they shouldn't be
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
pam w, doh! Embarassed Sorry, le Shuttle Eurotunnel.
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sarahbayliss, the timing of the easyjet winter flights release is a secret..... I check several times a day, as do countless others. You can sign up to an email advisory service, but that always arrives days late. Flight prices can triple in 24 hours, so you need to be very alert.

The advice about lift passes is good - you could spend an hour or two in a queue - you can almost certainly buy them online and it would be well worth while doing that.

I wouldn't bother with a meal on the Saturday night, you'll be too late and too tired. Have a picnic. Driving through the night, on Friday night, would certainly be an option, with enough drivers, and if the weather is OK (ie good clear night, not foggy/snowy/icy). You'll all be worn out, though and will probably have to sort yourselves out without access to your hotel until about 4 pm.

How have you managed half term travel in the past?
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hi

This is our first time skiing, we are beginners although others in our party have flown before. They all wanted to keep the price down. what price do you think flights will be released at for half term?
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steve,

thanks all information is gratefully received. This will be our first time skiing!!! I was worried about breaking bones but i think i should be more worried about major high blood pressure from the jouney!!! Like you said we will go with the flow. as they say forewarned is forearmed!!!
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sarahbayliss, would it be a very selfish thought to drive yourselves, meeting up with your friends in resort? You could then leave earlier on the Friday, stay overnight in France or go through the night (perhaps not a good idea for your first skiing holiday though as you are going to be quite tired enough getting kit, sorting accommodation & kids oh yes and SKIING!!).
Don't forget that there are a few things to do before you get near the snow - ski & boot hire especially takes some time and it will be very busy. Also lift passes, lessons etc which will require visits to respective locations. I would be aiming to get there early on the Saturday to give you as much preparation time as poss, so that it's less stressful on the Sunday morning. It will be worth it in the end but don't underestimate the time it will take to get young children ready for first snowy holiday. Very Happy
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 After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
sarahbayliss, Well you've certainly jumped in the deep end, but I'm sure you'll have a great holiday. Samoens is an interesting village, though not exactly doorstep skiing. Where are you staying? The easy start is to do a package, but you're obviously made of sterner stuff. snowHead What lessons are you planning? There are some snowheads who know Samoens quite well, though I've only actually been in the village itself in the summer. Have you booked accommodation? Don't worry about broken bones; very unlikely.
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We are staying a hotel Neige et roc, we have a studio appartment. We will book our ski and boot and pass hire before we go. Luckily out of the 11 of us only my husband and I are beginners. Even our son can ski. We thought it's now or never!! We have had private lessons on the dry ski slope in Southampton and apart from the first week where my husband broke his thumb and i twisted my knee we have managed to get to level 4. However we are going to Tamworth ski dome in August and will repeat level 3 and 4 again as apparently it's differant on snow. When we get to France we aim to have some lessons but not sure what, any suggestions would be gratefully received.
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Quote:

apparently it's differant on snow.

it is different - and much easier and more pleasant. But even more so on real snow in the mountains! There's a recent thread about tuition in Flaine - somebody else was asking. After all your dry slope work you'll be far too good for beginner group lessons but maybe not good enough for the next level. Some private lessons for you and your husband would probably be a good idea. If you had those, say, your first three days you'd get to know the area a bit; instructors always know exactly where to take you forthe conditions. If your son wants lessons too (always advisable, though the kids don't always think so!) better book early. You get priority on lifts with an instructor.
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