 Poster: A snowHead
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Howdy,
My cousin and his wife are possibly coming out with us for a week at the end of Jan (nothing booked yet).
They are completely new to the cold stuff, and are planning to learn to ski. Obviously they'll be hiring equipment, but according to them, they have absolutely no suitable clothes - no outdoor stuff, no waterproofs, nothing!
Would it be best for them to get down to TK Maxx and buy some bargains, or should they hire in resort?
I've never hired clothes before, so I don't know what sort of prices or quality we would be talking about.
There is a possibility of them going again sometime, but unknown at the moment - they might hate it!!
Anyone have any insight?
Cheers,
Dave
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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We had friends who hired stuff in the UK last year for their first every trip, worked out fine and cheaper than even buying cheap stuff at TK Maxx....
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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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ebay?
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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alfabus, I've never hired, and don't know anyone who has, so can't offer any wisdom there, I'm afraid.
If they don't have anyone they can borrow from, then Ebay is very good for first timers. I have bought and sold many items of skiwear and - buying - have never been disappointed. They are likely to be in good condition as many people buy new stuff just because they are bored or see a bargain (in the likes of TK Maxx!) so think "why not"? Alternatively, TK Maxx  They can pick up ski jacket and salopettes for around £60, gloves around £10, and even if they never ski again, have decent cold-weather clothing in the wardrobe for other uses
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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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alfabus, in all the years I've skied (I began in 1959) I've never been conscious of people hiring skiwear in ski resorts. That doesn't mean it's impossible but I'd be careful in relying on its availability (especially in high season, if you can't be sure of pre-booking correct sizes etc). One exception is a major British operation in Courmayeur and the Val d'Aosta - Interski - which does package holidays for groups and I think has plenty of skiwear availabile for rent.
I'd be sure of obtaining everything in the UK, personally.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
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alfabus, You can't normally hire in resort in Europe. Hiring in the UK should be fine, and is a good idea for people without their own gear. Probably several alternatives but one good one is Filarinskis in Havant. Perfectly good gear - jackets and trousers. I don't think you can hire gloves, headgear etc. They're certainly available in resort, tons of them everywhere, but T K Maxx can be a good bet for gloves.
Persuade them to think about a cheap pair of something warm, flat, waterproof and secure-soled to wear on their feet. One first timer in a party who borrowed our apartment insisted on taking stilettos "for the evenings" and was disconcerted to find 6inches of snow/slush/mud between the apartments and the restaurant. She had been warned.
Same person had bought not just one but TWO complete ski outfits and a pair of boots, though she'd never worn ski boots and had no idea what they were supposed to feel like. Then dropped out of lessons after day 1 (though to be fair her introduction had been difficult, with nil visibility).
I'm sure your friends will be far more sensible!
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This is why I was concerned about hiring... The only time I can ever think of anyone hiring kit was when a friend visiting me in Wanaka, NZ hired absolutely everything, right down to gloves, goggles and a hat!
that was from a little shop in town, it wasn't a specialist hire shop or anything.
Never seen anything similar in Europe.
They are not short of funds, in fact they are very 'flash gits' (engagement rings from tiffanys etc.), so I worry that if I tell them they have to buy stuff, they'll go and kit themselves out in full on spyder suits or something and it will be a waste. I'm having trouble picturing them digging through the bargain bins in TK Maxx.
I think the inner cheap-skate in me can't cope with other people frittering money away 
Thanks for your help,
Dave
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What else would they do with their money? Take them to Harrods.
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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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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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1. Have you no spare clothes to lend them?
2. I cannot think of anything more unpleasant than hiring somebody else's sweaty clothes. Ugh. Dirty, tatty. Would put me right off skiing before I'd started. (A keen snowhead on holiday in NZ who suddenly decided to go skiing is quite a different matter.) Moreover, the waterproofs wouldn't still be waterproof, and they probably wouldn't be breathable either.
TK Maxx for Dare2Be or similar breathable kit would be my suggestion, though I note OP's friends' attitude to bargain bins...
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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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For my first couple of holidays I hired jacket and trousers from Ellis Brighams (though this is many years ago and I'm not sure if this is a service they still offer).
The quality was very very good and they'd obviously been recleaned and waterproofed. They also used new stuff every year.
We were given the choice of handing the stuff back at the end of the week or paying a small sum to keep it.
Consequently I have a very nice Columbia jacket and trousers that are still going strong after thirteen years. This is the set that I now lend out to people.
I bought gloves, goggles. I already had walking boots for wearing at night and I made sure any tops etc I bought I would be able to wear the rest of the year.
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alfabus, Charge them £400 each. Take their measurements. Go down to Lidl and buy all the gear for £200. Put £600 towards your holiday.
Job done!
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You know it makes sense.
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| Quote: |
I cannot think of anything more unpleasant than hiring somebody else's sweaty clothes. Ugh. Dirty, tatty. Would put me right off skiing before I'd started. (A keen snowhead on holiday in NZ who suddenly decided to go skiing is quite a different matter.) Moreover, the waterproofs wouldn't still be waterproof, and they probably wouldn't be breathable either.
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complete stuff and nonsense. The gear, as SnowboardVicky notes, is impeccable. I just bought one of last year's hire trousers from Filarinskis - Colombia, £10, perfect. And that's one of the ones they're NOT renting out this year... I can only speak of the shop I know about, which I visit every 3 weeks or so (to gaze wistfully at the new gear or buy ex-hire stuff), and from which friends have hired in the past.
The shops James the Last has hired from are clearly worth avoiding. Perhaps he could tell us which they are, so we can avoid them?
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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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My first ever week skiing was in hired kit (Sierra Nevada, Espana). Was the worst thing I could have done - was total crap, not waterproof, with not very good seams, and not a very good fit (was all they had in!). The first thing I did when I got home was buy my own stuff. I guess it all depends on pot luck, but we have a newbie skiier coming with us this year, and short of using a pair of gloves and googles borrowed from me, he has been instructed to hit the TKMaxx bargain rails for kit.
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Poster: A snowHead
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Pam W disagreeing with me, well that makes a change, you're getting boring, sweetie.
I have hired all sorts of clothing in the past: sailing kit, predominantly, from supposedly good(certainly expensive) providers. Ugh. Sailing is a foul, filthy activity, and you can sort-of put up with horrid clothing that leaks and sweats. Skiing is a nice, clean activity that for many is predominantly about sitting in the sun, in bars, drinking; who would want to hire somebody else's pre-worn sweaty stuff to go out for dinner?
It's a bit like hiring a morning coat to (watch somebody else) get married in; ugh!
Somebody else's sweaty helmet? What a delight.
Hired boots are incredibly unpleasant too unless you're the first user.
It's all about standards; I'm sure that students and people like Pam are happy to sleep on floors and get married in hired stuff. For somebody who can afford it, I cannot imagine a better way of running the *risk* of a really unpleasant holiday than making them rent clothes. Ugh.
Why bother with that risk when decent new stuff is so cheap and OP's cousin so wealthy?
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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You can hire ski clothes in Central Sports Wengen
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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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Hmmm, if they're flash g!ts, they may as well buy. Are you similar sizes? If so, do you not have anything to lend? (or alternatively encourage them to splash out on great kit that will really make a difference to their holiday, and then if they hate skiing, voila, new kit for you!  )
FWIW, my bro-in-law always hires clothing from www.edge2edge.co.uk and collects at Gatwick on his way out. He's always been happy with the kit, and the fact that I don't know the brands they provide doesn't mean that it is rubbish. He has never had any problems with waterproofing or breathability etc.
I have never hired as we ski a lot and it wouldn't cross my mind to not have my own ski gear, but each to their own. If they end up hiring, perhaps they can go and look at the kit before they commit?
Having said that, by the sounds of them, they are going to want to buy anyway!
D
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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A lot of our school groups used to rent clothes (usually Ellis Brigham), quality seemed pretty good.
James the Last, snooty git, aren't you? 
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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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Lizzard, yes! Fussy too.
edge to edge want £37 to hire jacket & trousers.
TK Max will sell you a breathable jacket for £40-£50 and trousers for £20-30. Two trips = paid for. Can't see why anybody would want to hire - particularly as I guess (if it's like Moss Bros) it means two visits to the shop: one for a fitting, one to collect.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
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James the Last, You said that hired ski clothing would be dirty, tatty, not waterproof and probably not breathable. Two of us, in this thread, who have first hand experience of hiring in the UK have said the gear was clean, good quality, etc etc. Top quality shops like Ellis Brigham or Filarinski would not rent out dirty, tatty, worn out gear. Why do you come up with such absurd statements when you have no firsthand experience? If you found sailing "dirty" then I suggest you get some knowledgeable advice before you try it again. It can certainly be uncomfortable, or downright frightening, at times, but even the people I know who don't like sailing have never suggested it is "dirty". Neither do you have to put up with "horrid clothing that leaks and sweats" . You really are rather quaint and querulous; are you sure you're not Adrian Mole?
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| James the Last wrote: |
| ... particularly as I guess (if it's like Moss Bros) it means two visits to the shop: one for a fitting, one to collect. |
this confirms my suspicion that James the Last skis in a tweed suit 
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Arno, But not a hired tweed suit
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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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Hmmm, if being soaked by sea water and coming into contact with grease doesn't constitute dirty and foul, I don't know what does (I didn't say it's not fun! but it has more in common with being in the spin cycle of a cold wash of a washing machine than it has with skiing). I guess your idea of sailing involves a dozen men in white uniform dealing with the engines and delivering gins and tonics on the hour, every hour, and is not conducted in (indeed has no need for) non-breathable leaking oilskins.
Unless you end up in the mud, skiing is generally conducted in a very clean, white environment. As OP's cousin doesn't even seem to own an umbrella, let alone waterproofs, I guess he is expecting it to involve a lot of sitting around, sun bathing and drinking vin chaud. If your skiing holiday is enhanced by wearing somebody else's clothes, then great; go for it. Mine wouldn't be; my guess is that Tiffany-engagement-ring-wearing showoff might well be put off skiing by wearing rented clothing.
Arno, no tweed suits in Moss Bros the last time I looked; these days they major on ill-fitting, probably-polyester morning coats...
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alfabus,
I have never rented but on my first trip i bought "ski" jacket and trousers cheaply in my local town.
I would not reccomend this to a newby, the quality was low, so I looked bad but more importantly they gave hardly any protection against the cold and wind.
I would reccomend they spend as much as they can on a proper ski jacket with Gortex or similar and grab some second hand trousers off ebay with similar tec materials
Both should have zip vents to dump heat, you get very knackered at first if you are struggling to ski for the first time and need to get rid of excess heat
If it turns out they do not ski again, they will be left with a very good winter jacket, that will last for years and the pants can be put back on ebay
I would say as a minimum spent £150-200 on a jacket and £50- £80 on pants to get some good gear
Hope this helps
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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