 Poster: A snowHead
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Title says it all.
Mixed group, some people who will mainly ski on blue runs only, some who will be off-piste as much as possible and a couple inbetween. I want somewhere which isn't too expensive, has some pubs/restaurants but apres isn't the biggest priority. We can fly to Geneva, Munich or Milan although the Geneva flights are double the price of the others at the moment, don't mind 4-5 hrs transfer at the other side as long as there is decent public transport as we won't be hiring a car.
I have been thinking about ..
Laax although it is quite along transfer from Geneva and the flights to Geneva are pretty expensive
Pila but I keep reading it has a poor snow record?
Serre Chevalier, whats the off-piste like??
Any other suggestions????
Thank you!
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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lynseyf,
If you are thinking SC, then locally there are decent routes to fund but you'd be better of thinking in terms of the whole valley... from Montgenvre to AdHand inc L2A.
For that you would need transport altho if you go guided, then that might get you round that part of it.
Eng_ch knows all about Laxx so you could PM her...
I would say Annivers but again, best done with a car...altho I guess you could do just Grimentz and Zinal which is bus connected. I think getting to St Luc without a car would be a pain....
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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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lynseyf, you'd be better off flying to Turin for the northern Italian resorts like Pila, it's a much longer journey from Milan. Ditto Serre Che.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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lynseyf, When are you planning? I would point you towards Turin -> Montgenevre or Serre Che earlier in the season, and consider Champoluc / Gressoney later season, all good value extensive areas with local charm, some rusticity and off piste that isn'tt skied out within the first hour.
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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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lynseyf, I'm going to Laax next year which looks as if it would fit your bill, but I'm flying into Zurich. The journey there from Geneva would be a lengthy one though, 5 hours or so, it's one side of Switzerland to the other.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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You choose the airport first, then the resort.
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lynseyf, Turin or Lyon or Chambery for Serre Che. Geneva is doable but is a longer run.
Off piste haven is La Grave down the valley. If you want to find out about off piste in Serre Che, have a look at this years snow reports and Weathercams blog.
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lynseyf, Have you considered Austria?
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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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lynseyf, it is not really possible to do Serre Chevalier by public transport from Geneva or Milan, but there is certainly pleny of off-piste if that is what floats your boat, as well as blue runs for the others. Best airports are Turin, Grenoble (daily coach service from bus station), Lyon (longer but direct transfer from airport), or even Marseille (shuttle bus on Saturdays)
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Thanks for the replies.
We want to fly from Edinburgh hence the limited airports, can't do Grenoble or Turin and can't fly to Zurich on a Saturday which I would imagine would make finding aprtments in Laax a pain. I really don't mind a transfer as long as its easily doable by public transport. Have done Munich to Mayrhofen ( on crutches  ) and Geneva to Tignes quite happily.
JT, Thanks but don't want a car, there are 7 of us anyway and trying to get everyone to the slopes is enough of a hassle without bringing anything else into the equation.
Martin Nicholas, end of February/beginning of march, some are going for 1 week, some for 2 and I might do 10 days 
Colin B, Yes I really like the look of Laax but the flights to Geneva are coming in around £150 without any skis or bags which is putting me off  . The train to Chur only takes 4hrs which is similar to Geneva to Zermatt so really not bad, can I ask where you booked your accommodation through?
MarjMJ, Can do Chambery will look into that
alex_heney, yes happy to go to Austria, enjoyed Mayrhofen 2 years ago. Just really looking for suggestions to narrow it down as it is pretty overwhelming choosing somehwere from "everywhere" or "anywhere" as my friends suggest.
Thanks Helen Beaumont, am I right in thinking Serre Chevalier will be a bit cheaper than Tignes where I was last year?
Thanks for the suggestions everyone.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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lynseyf, I've booked a small apartment, there are only 2 of us, through Interhome.
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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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lynseyf, I haven't been to Tignes, but I would think so, it is certainly much cheaper than Courchevel and Val Thorens.
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Bergfex is the site I found all my accommodations everywhere in the Alps except France. For Laax we stayed in a hotel of about 5 min to the main chairlift station. The cost was 151 Euro per couple half board per night. It was cheap because the hotel owner made a mistake and in the end he asked us to pay a bit extra to cover his mistake and so 151 Euro was the daily cost to us. We stayed for 5 nights there. The B&B for two anywhere in Switzerland we visited in that year was over 100 Euro. We choose the resorts we want to visit and so ending up paying the full market price.
To ski Serre Chevalier we stayed at Briancon Mercure hotel that charged 59 Euro per double room with 12 Euro per head for the breakfast. We did find Serre Chevalier very affordable.
To ski Tignes we managed to book a self catered apartment in Bourg St Maurice and were charged a total of 480 Euro for two week between Christmas and New year. That works out less than 34 Euro per room per night for a couple. We had a car to drive to Tignes which is 17 miles from BSM. The chalet owner since leased his apartments for the whole season to a company.
I would think staying at Tignes or Val D would be expensive because it is at the dead end of a valley so visitors have little choices. Serre Chevalier on the other hand is on a French truck road to Italy with the huge Milky Way domain able to absorb any number of visitors thrown at it. Skiing wise the 250km piste of Serre Chevalier is comparable to the Escape Killy that has 300km piste of Tignes and Val D combined.
Personally for preferring less people and more space so Serre Chevalier would be my choice.
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You know it makes sense.
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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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lynseyf,
Serre Che has a pretty good combination of blue and off piste IMO.
If you are doing Chambery the Maurriene valley has some decently priced resorts with a mixture of off piste and blue runs and is reachable from Chambery though I don't know exactly how the public transport works.
Both places are a lot cheaper than Tignes.
Ryanair are doing flights both from Edinburgh and Prestwick, Can't remember the Edinburgh flights but you can get too both Grenoble and Turin from Prestwick.
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Poster: A snowHead
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lynseyf, The Zillertal was one of the places in Austria I was thinking would be suitable for a largish mixed ability group.
Kitzbuhel might be another decent choice, and is actually slightly closer to Munich than Mayrhofen.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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T Bar, I can't see the Ryanair flights to Grenoble from anywhere other than Stanstead or Dublin?
Whichbudget.com does say they fly there but the Ryanair website doesn't show them at all??
easiski, I have always done DIY but looked every year for last minute cheap deals to see what I was missing and the answer seems to be not a lot flying from Scotland anyway so DIY again for next year. I think bedrooms are for sleeping in and living rooms for living in but most tour operators seem to disagree so by the time I have added all the supplements on for ONLY having 2 people in a 1 bed flat the deals don't seem that cheap. Hadn't really thought of LDA, was ruling most of the better known resorts out on cost.
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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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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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lynseyf,
Sorry, they did them last winter, don't know if they have withdrawn them or not put up their winter flights yet.
Went to the Maurienne this year from Milan but I hired a car doubt it would be easy by public transport.
You could look at La Thuile from Milan which fits your criteria, no idea what the transport situation is though.
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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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thanks everyone
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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lynseyf, the snow in the Monte Rosa area tends to be better late season so your dates sound fine. Its 2 hrs from Milan, huge ski area which is only busy at weekends. Champoluc is mor Italian, Gressony more Germanic. Alagna more for the Chamonix style hard cases. We have had 2 good trips there with Ski 2 who only do 2 resorts, and one of the directors lives in Champoluc year round, so you get great service.
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FAQ
This part of France is MUCH cheaper than Tignes/Val, although I understand ADH is more expensive than here (not my opinion, but from friends/clients). Of course if you came here your off pistie bieasties would spend most of the week in LG - they would need a guide to make the most, or even scratch the surface of the area. Look at Swirly's thread in the snowboarding section for an idea of what's available. 
I can eat out comfortably for €15 including a drink (OK, 1 drink and I'm veggie), but still - I couldn't eat out for that price in Bath. 
s have apartments here, and I know a self-catering chalet that's available too. 