 Poster: A snowHead
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...specifically somewhere between Grenoble Airport and Val Cenis if I'm honest! We land at around 22:30 and won't be in resort until around 1am at a guess. Somewhere along the way it would be darned useful to stock up on tawdry items like bread, milk, coffee and so on and some of the essentials like beer & wine.
Anyone know if there's any chance of a large hypermarket being open anywhere along the way (around Grenoble itself would probably be the most likely, I'd have thought?)
Have had a quick hunt using Carrefour's website but I struggled to find anywhere open later than 21:30 unless I'm reading it wrong! Damn part-timers...
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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carled, You might get some UHT milk at motorway services.
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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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carled, No idea sorry but by chance do you know if it will be snowing that evening? 
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carled, sorry, have never come across an all night supermarket around the Alps. They really like to go to bed you know, these Frenchies.  But unless you're very overweight (baggage-wise...) take coffee with you, BOGOF in Tesco is cheaper than France now, at current exchange rate. If there's a local "Sherpa" they would probably deliver to your accommodation.
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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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carled, On a Saturday night (assuming that is when you are arriving), you wouldn't get any UK supermarkets open after 22:30 either.
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Fairly obviously it will be snowing furiously as Hertz (allegedly) don't offer snowchains at Grenoble airport and there will be nowhere open for us to buy them from. Hence we will spend the night in a snowdrift somewhere in the vicinity of Modane!
alex_heney, fair point.
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brian
brian
Guest
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alex_heney, our local Asda and Tesco's are both open 24/7. 
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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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brian, but that's in Scotland, where you don't have to suffer England's archaic Sunday Trading Laws.
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| DaddyLouLou wrote: |
| brian, but that's in Scotland, where you don't have to suffer England's archaic Sunday Trading Laws. |
Pretty sure my local tesco (in the uk) is open 24/7 until Sat midnight when it closes to re-open for the 10-4 or 5 on the Sunday
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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bertie bassett, indeed, but those laws do not apply in Scotland, where 24/7 opening is possible, and in places common.
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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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carled, Like pam w, says, nothing usually is open after about 8pm, so you may have to pack essentials and have a leaping out of bed early moment to get other stuff. You can get bottles of wine and beer in the bigger services, and snackies if you want - can't remember if they do milk etc,. Leave getting bread till first thing in the morning - good gawd, you're going to France 
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| Quote: |
Leave getting bread till first thing in the morning - good gawd, you're going to France
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yeah but, yeah but.... they're arriving in the middle of the night and want to go skiing, not shopping. I'd be tempted to breakfast off top quality muesli with UHT milk (carried from the UK along with the Tesco BOGOF coffee) then get out on the first lift. Or if bread is essential, a couple of those "half cooked" bake-yourself baguettes. Plenty of time to shop after the lifts close. And there are plenty of little French places where your accommodation could be several miles from a source of fresh bread.
Last edited by 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  on Wed 4-11-09 15:07; edited 1 time in total
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You know it makes sense.
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Yeah I know we can leave it 'til morning, but as it's a Sunday they probably won't open the Sherpa until 9am and by then we'll want to be hammering on the door of the lift office!
May investigate getting Sherpa to deliver stuff to the apartment in readiness for our arrival.
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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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carled, not a chance !!! But motorway services may have milk etc. We've definitely bought it in other places, but the ones along the valley to Modane are pretty small ones. We get our apartment manager to buy basic stuff for guests arriving late. Your boulangerie will be open at 7 or 7.30, and the supermarket probably by 8am.
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Poster: A snowHead
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pam w, you read my mind... 
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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I'd be tempted to breakfast off something nice from the local patisserie pam w, carled, Like Helen Beaumont, the bakers open early! And good point about shopping after lift closing. It has never really ever been a problem.
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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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Cheers Helen. I like Pam's idea of the part-baked baguettes, to be honest. They're not too heavy either. May also decant the coffee and tea into plastic bags to avoid weight of glass jars.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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| bertie bassett wrote: |
| DaddyLouLou wrote: |
| brian, but that's in Scotland, where you don't have to suffer England's archaic Sunday Trading Laws. |
Pretty sure my local tesco (in the uk) is open 24/7 until Sat midnight when it closes to re-open for the 10-4 or 5 on the Sunday |
Most of them in England & Wales close at 10:00 or 10:30 pm on a Saturday, rather than going all the way to midnight. And they don't usually open until about 6:00 am on Monday either.
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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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Unless you're in a resort you'll be lucky to find a supermarche to even open on a sunday, our local SuperU in Bourg St Maurice only opens on sunday in high season.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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| carled wrote: |
| Cheers Helen. I like Pam's idea of the part-baked baguettes, to be honest. They're not too heavy either. May also decant the coffee and tea into plastic bags to avoid weight of glass jars. |
I've done that myself before.
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and as it is going to snow heavily from 2 am, after carled's arrival at his accommodation, he may not want to dig the car out and fight the early morning snowploughs to get to the boulangerie. It is one of the myths of rural France that there is a boulangerie within a couple of minutes walk of everywhere.
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pam w, surely there will be in resort though? Even in November one of our boulangeries is open, and he is in Val Cenis in the ski season
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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Helen Beaumont, well at our place the nearest is in the main resort, which by road is 5 kms (much less by ski). There's no way I'd trek round there before breakfast, especially if it's snowy and/or eating into scarce ski time. And even within a resort, it can be a trek - I remember doing it in Plagne 1800 on the morning of the chalet staff's day off. After a foot of snow fell overnight. It was a lovely walk and I worked up a great appetite for breakfast, but not to be contemplated after a 1 am arrival.
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pam w, I've never had the experience of a long walk to the boulangerie. There was either a delivery service to reception, or it was a short walk. On chalet day off, our bread was still there as usual.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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There are large supermarkets in Modane (Champion and Casino) but neither is open particularly late.
Guess for booze there is always the duty free for the first night, which is not part of the weight allowance.
I think you would be a bit unlucky to need snow chains, you follow the valley floor and its not particularly steep anywhere.
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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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Helen Beaumont, this was a very cheap last minute Ski World effort! I was happy to volunteer to walk, as it happened, and it was quite exciting chomping through a foot of powder in my Moon Boots. Our apartment is in a very quiet spot - it's possible to order baguettes through one of the restaurants beside the chairlift but you need to remember to phone the order down, and it's still a 15 minute round trip on foot to collect them (just two minutes to ski down on the piste though!). I make practically all our bread because French baguettes have just about the worst GI of any bread, and as the OH is diabetic it's pretty important to try to have low GI. They do make superb croissants, but at the present exchange rate to feed a hungry family on top quality boulangerie croissants costs a fortune! And they're hyper-fattening. And when we're there out of season the nearest boulangerie is 700m vertical and 10kms away down in the valley.
My French neighbour drives into the boulangerie every morning whilst hubby and kids lounge around in their pyjamas waiting for her to come back and make their breakfast. But then she's French! And my home made bread is very good.
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carled, regarding the bag of coffee...Morrisons at the moment are doing a bogof of buy a jar of coffee and get a free "eco friendly refill pouch" - Kenco coffee. Would be perfect!
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You know it makes sense.
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pam w, I've never had the experience of a long walk to the boulangerie.
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Not our experience either. And unlike pam w, lovely French neighbour I have a willing DH to go out to get bread - something DH positively looks forward to! That gives me the time to stomp around in a grumpen stupor making porridge and coffee....Ah the joys...sigh....
However, not sure about Sunday opening times. As we are only usually a couple, I'd get by till Monday, but if you have sproglettes etc, then, I can see it is a differnt proposition!
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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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What about one of the resort shopping businesses that will leave a box at your apartment? Having said that they seem to be greared more to the Tarentaise market.
You might even be able to get your letting agent to get your cleaner to bring things on for you for a fee if you fax a list of basics over.
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Poster: A snowHead
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MarjMJ, hubby and dog go out for thier morning walk. I'm sure dog could even go by herself and bring a baguette back.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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http://www.sitedesmarques.com/magasin-super-hypermarches/sherpa-alimentation-lanslevillard-73480-148458.htm
is that anywhere near? I think Sherpas deliver as a general rule. You obviously all live and holiday in much more urban areas than we do! Can't see my hubby taking kindly to a 10 km round trip for a baguette in the mornings!
MGM are building loads more apartments in our area. I expect when those are up and running (something I'm not looking forward to, as I love the present peace and quiet) it'll be worthwhile have a little "alimentation".
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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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pam w, we're not treally urban, it's a small French village, but it is a working village, with farms and people who live here outside of the ski season.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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I know it smacks a bit of little scotlander but I have started taking a massive pack of smoked back bacon with me from home. 'Proper' bacon rolls before you head up the mountain, magic. This supermarche lark is a problem though, somewhat mitigated this year in Nendaz with the opening of a very chic COOP.
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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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Fifespud, I could murder a bacon butty this morning.
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