 Poster: A snowHead
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A little help if you'd be so kind....
I'm trying to research a future holiday for a family of 4 (kids 5 and 8 ), self drive, self catering in France. Needless to say, trying to keep it cheap.
I've searched a few threads on here but these always seem to degenerate into "Look at me, I've just booked a last minute 6 week all inclusive to Whistler for 2 bob and a shiny button" kind of state!
So I'd like to try and find which resorts are:
Not too far from the ports. (Not too bothered about this, not much difference in and 8 hour drive and a 9 hour)
Good for beginners / small people
Reasonably priced lift passes (say 150 Euro's or under for 6 days).
We're really not bothered by glaciers, 10,000km of cable car linked pistes etc., just some small stuff for the youngest and maybe a little bit of intermediate variety for me if I get the chance to sneak off for a quick blast. I have looked at the main tour operators Chamrousse deal which is tempting but would still like to drive if possible.
Any advice appreciated.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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shootingmike, when are you thinking of going - makes a difference, as school holiday times demand special consideration.
A key point will presumably be availability of good quality tuition? If you are thinking of getting private lessons for the kids, you could look at Les Saisies (the local area lift pass just sneaks in under your 150 euros, though the full Espace Diamant pass is more). It has everything you've mentioned, but not having hordes of Brits on package holidays it doesn't have group ski lessons in English. Excellent, and low cost, private lessons though and a big choice of self catering apartments, with easy access to easy pistes and some reds and (mostly easy) blacks for you.
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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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trying to keep it cheap
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shootingmike, you could look at the Peak Retreats website, has a good list of family resorts, they offer a lot of the smaller french resorts and they include Eurotunnel with free flexiplus upgrade as standard. It's a good website generally with lots of useful resort info all in the one place. I haven't booked with them, made an enquiry which was well handled but they were full for what I wanted.
Re. Chamrousse with the TOs, they will probably offer it as a self drive option with a price reduction.
Re. resorts, I'd recommend Montgenevre and Puy St Vincent (Snowbizz do self drive) for what you're looking for, both have excellent ESI ski schools for the kids. They are both extremely kid friendly and have the french 'Famille plus montagne ' award. They are not the shortest drive though.
All the best with it 
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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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Forgot to say, Montgenevre and Puy St Vincent lift passes are free for kids under 6, some other resorts offer this too but most have 5 as the age limit. That saves a few quid!
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I have children nearly the same age and the resorts mentioned here are ones we've been to or are considering.
Chamrousse - friends have been and were not that impressed with the ski school - otherwise accommodation very cheap, easy to get to and good skiing so I've heard.
Puy st vincent - have been there with snowbizz. A great place for the children to learn to ski and lift pass very reasonably priced from what I remember.
Montgenevre -we are about to go there this year after careful research. The Intl ski school sounds very good and we liked the look of the appartments there. However lift passes are not that cheap for adults/over 5s (maybe slightly cheaper if you go through the tourist office but we booked through TO for convenience).
we have also been to la rosiere with children had a great holiday there. Ski collection have some nice self catering appts in Eucharts area. San Bernando lift pass not that cheap from what I remember. We went at new year which bumped up the price of our accommodation and ski school/creche.
If you are going somewhere like chamrousse check out the cost of going by train...there are cheap train fares to grenoble if you book when tickets come out and you could get bus to resort. We go by train every time now and it has worked well for us (live in SE though)
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shootingmike, You say you want to keep it cheap, then say you want to go self catering in France, why not broaden your choices a bit and consider Austria? Lots of resorts meet all your criteria, it's cheaper to get to as the extra fuel is more than compensated for by the lack of tolls, accomodation is (in my experience) better quality for the same money, and food and drink is much cheaper. Certainly some of the resorts I've been to in the Ski Amade area would suit you down to the ground. It is dead easy to get accomodation via tourist office websites, generally booking direct with the owner (so no middleman profits to pay for). Another consideration if you need to go in school holidays is that Austrians do not seem to charge as much of a premium for peak time accomodation
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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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Robin S - which resorts would you recommend in Austria? - I have only been to Zillertal area so would be glad for any advice on resorts to consider in Austria.
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snowymum, St Johann/Alpendorf in the Sportwelt Amadè region has an excellent infrastructure for beginners and 2nd weekers, as have most of the other resorts in the immediate area. The Skiwelt area of Tirol (Söll, Scheffau, Westerndorf, etc.) is also another good area for beginners. The Wildschonau is also small but perfectly formed for beginners. Many Austrian resorts have family tickets or even free lift tickets for little ones. The Sportwelt Amadè resorts are offering free 6-day lift passes for under 15 year olds (born in 1994 or younger) this Easter for example.
shootingmike, I took groups of beginners to Chamrousse and they all made excellent progress. Les Carroz/Grand Massif/Le Grand Bornand resorts also fit your description if you really want to be in France. You can I think can still buy passes for just the immediate areas which are cheaper.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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La Rosiere
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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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| shootingmike wrote: |
I have looked at the main tour operators Chamrousse deal which is tempting but would still like to drive if possible.
Any advice appreciated. |
Check out Snowtrex - all deals are self drive I believe. Used them 2 years ago to Chamrousse and were very happy. Going again with them next weekend to Superdevoluy. All (if not most) Snowtrex deals include lift pass.
HTH!
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We have recently booked with Peak Retreats and am off to Val Cenis. I don't know what it is like but £360 for a 1 bedroom apart for 5 people including the Eurotunnel flexiplus crossing. They have an offer for ski passes - buy 2 adults get 1 child free (and the 5 year old is free anyway).
The resort looks fine for beginners with plenty of greens and blues. It (apparently) is snow sure with North facing slopes.
We are there 27th March for a week and will be driving down on the Sat. There are other Snowheads there all March as far as I can see from another thread! (http://snowheads.com/ski-forum/viewtopic.php?p=1479480)
Mind you we haven't been yet so it might be terrible but hopes are high!
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You know it makes sense.
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snowymum, I was there without children, but to me Flachau/Wagrain was really nice, also Schladming seemed really child-friendly, though Bad Gastein less so. Radstadt was good but quite limited. We were in Zillertal as well this winter, and with kids I would much prefer Ski Amade. The impression I get is that there are loads of good child-friendly resorts in Austria.
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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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Valloire is another good-value French place, though I wouldn't be sure of the standard of tuition - might be a bit pot luck and not a huge amount of choice.
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Poster: A snowHead
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I'm not sure driving is actually going to be worth it - probably be a bit cheaper, but not neccessarily all that much, and it will cut into your holiday time. You can get a flight form Heathrow or Gatwick to Innsbruck (or Munich) for very little if you book att he right time and get a train/ hire a car. Lots of good resorts around there, the Ski Welt has good skiing for all levels, with Westendorf being the best base (apparently it's also been voted the prettiest village in the Alps, but I'm not quite so sure about that, even though it is lovely...), you could also look at the smaller (and cheaper) resorts around Innsbruck like Patscherkoffel and Neustift (Schlick 2000), which would also be perfect for you, although Patscherkoffel can be pretty shady in places on the lower slopes.
Last edited by Poster: A snowHead on Fri 12-03-10 19:46; edited 1 time in total
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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it will cut into your holiday time
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How  Drive=get there Sat start skiing Sunday
Fly=get there Sat, start skiing SUnday
Anyway lots of threads on flying v driving. Usually summarised as whatever suits.
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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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Well, it's pretty self evident that flying is quicker than driving... Fly out Sat morning, you can be skiing by 12 or 1 o'clock Saturday afternoon... You usually have to leave earlier if you drive too, although as you say, there are lots of threads on it.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Fly out Sat morning, you can be skiing by 12 or 1 o'clock Saturday afternoon.
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very unlikely, unless you leave at stupid-o-clock and have a very short transfer. And it's all on time. Fly at, say, 8 am British time. Away from the local airport in a hired car at 11.30 local time if the queues are not too long. 2 - 3 hour drive, find accommodation, change, get hold of a lift pass.... hire gear maybe.
One advantage of driving, if self catering, is that you can take stuff with you, and buy more at a local supermarket, to save a fair bit on the prices in resort shops. I drive all the time these days (I'm off tomorrow! ) but I'd be reluctant to drive just for a week, not least because it would often be cheaper to fly. Driving could be cheaper than flying at peak times - but then at peak times you can hit horrendous traffic jams, especially if the weather is bad. Driving almost all the way on Friday, stopping the night at a hotel near the resort, then getting on the slopes early Saturday is a good plan - and you can ski for the whole of the last Saturday too, if you want.
Key advice for a cheap family holiday is not to go on a peak-time Saturday, by any means of transport.
If you do a DIY holiday at peak times (e.g. new year, February half term) be prepared to book on the likes of easyjet within two minutes of the flights coming on sale, and aim to travel Sunday/Sunday. It's not too difficult to find an apartment which you can rent Sunday/Sunday, though most (in France at any rate) are Saturday/Saturday.
Take the kids out of school and travel in mid January or mid March.
Any package holiday, at peak school holiday times, is likely to be very expensive.
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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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Sounds like you're doing pretty much what I've been doing for 3 years now. I have 2 kids too, 5 and 9 we drive down and self cater (easier with kids - we find)
In all cases I've booked an apartment via a site such as "Owners Direct", "Holiday Lettings" or the resort Toursit office site, then sorted out the Channel crossing (Tesco Clubcard) and the rest (ski schhol, ski hire etc) myself.
We have been to Le Grand Bornand for the last 3 trips. An 8 hour drive - small resort with a lovely village, good ski school (In our experience - ESF) and few British voices.
Lift passes are under €150 and the terrain is certainly varied enough for a family trip.
We've also done Flachau and St Anton in Austria by the same process and the drive is not much different, as you say.
You'll probably be bound by school holidays so availability might be tricky - good luck.
Dave
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RobinS,
Believe it or not, I have been looking at Austria too and thanks for reminding me.
I skied at Schladming about 15 yrs ago as a teenager and loved every minute of it. Also had a day trip to Dachstein.
I have also been looking at St Wolfgang (skiing at Postalm) as my sister has just been there with young kids and really enjoyed it. But I'm put off Austria slightly for a few reasons - the slightly longer drive, the speed of the German roads,(have driven in France and found it easy) the fact I speak loads better French than German (in fact, I don't speak any German!) and also the fact it seems loads easier to find self catering chalets / apartments in France whereas Austria seems all about half board hotels.
If you have any Austrian tips (re: cheap self catering chalets / resorts) I'd love to have a look at them. I do realise that even if the accommodation is slightly more expensive in Austria, the lift passes and food are cheaper.
Thanks for the replies all, In essence I realise I'm probably asking for the impossible in a cheap, child friendly, beginner friendly, self drive, quick drive, snow sure, varied skiing resort!!!!
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Thanks MAzDave,
Will have a look at Le Grand Bornand too. Same family circumstances and dilemas by the sound of it!!!!
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hi took a 12 and 8 year old skiing for the 1st time to chamrousse (and complete novice hubby) and they had the best time in ski school. We stayed in l'arselle and esf had a meeting point 5 min walk from apartment. Try snowtrex or lagrange or the owners mvacances web. Also consider l ecrin des neiges in same location. This resort lacks nitelife but with achy legs and 2 kids in tow the most we managed was a vin chaud straight after skiing. We drove and stayed overnite in reims bt nxt time wld aim for troyes the drive was simple and chamrousse is a lovely drive out of grenoble. We are rebooking for next year as newish apartment with ski lift/school on doorstep (home for lunch everyday kept costs down). Stop in grenoble 2 pick up meat and dairy before heading to resort again slightly cheaper. Skiing was more than enough for us as only advanced begs. Ohh also try ski collection all r cheaper than crystal who go to these apts and charge a lot more. Snowtrex had a rep on site and seemed to have a club room and social ents arranged they r the cheapest ive found. Good luck
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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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Thanks lincondon. Some great tips there. Mrs shootingmike has already priced it up with snowtrex and woke me up to tell me how cheap it is!
We might be on to a winner!!!!
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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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sarah, yes, how did you guess?! I have read a few of your posts. They have been very useful to me thankyou. We are really looking forward to going. Now off to pack!!
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You know it makes sense.
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shootingmike, We have always found Austria really easy for getting self-catering accomodation. It is different to France in that very little is through agencies or large companies, the vast majority you book direct with the owner, who will typically just have one chalet with half dozen or so apartments. The tourist board websites of nearly all resorts have a comprehensive listing, usually with locations detailed on a village map. We just pick out a few likely looking ones and email the owners (using a web translation site for a basic translation). You normally have to pay a deposit on booking by bank transfer (we have never paid more than 200 euro up front, even on big 1800 euro apartment), and pay the balance at the end of your holiday. Maybe the fact that you haven't paid them yet helps ensure the very high standards we have always found.
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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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very unlikely, unless you leave at stupid-o-clock and have a very short transfer. And it's all on time. Fly at, say, 8 am British time. Away from the local airport in a hired car at 11.30 local time
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So leave the airport 11;30, under 1 hour drive to many many resorts around Innsbruck, including the ones I mentioned, possible to ski from 1 o'clock.
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Poster: A snowHead
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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sarah, yes we have booked them in kiddie club (@£30 for two for the week it would be foolish not to!) although I would imagine they would be very tired from the day. I read that the majority of the time the club is from 7-9pm (and the odd one at 5pm) - is this what you found?
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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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Would definitely recommend Le Grand Bornand as suggested above by Mastiff . Superb day and quiet slopes there today (apart from Gettiers where the Glisse en Coeur charity race is held).
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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kapow, I can't remember exactly, pretty sure at least 2 nights were 5pm though. You can always pick them up before 9pm if they're tired but if they are anything like mine they won't be impressed! We had such a great week last year. I have really missed it this year 
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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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as mentioned above, for low cost family hols, essential you can get back to the apartment for lunch - and for a warm up for kids, if it's cold. No use if you have to come all the way down a mountain and/or faff around with buses.
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Excellent, will have a look at Snowbizz too then!
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kapow,
Hi Kapow
In process of booking to go for March 2011 with snowbizz. How did your holiday go in the end?
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Joey, it was everything we thought it would be - I couldn't fault it. The ski school was great, the reps were very enthusiastic. Little resort, but that suited us fine as we could only ski for 3 hours at a time. (drop the kids at the hall for 1 hour play before their 2 hour ski lesson - then back to the apartment for lunch or the restaurant/bar for a crepe) It was all so convenient. The accommodation is basic (but fine and right on the slopes). And the kids loved it. Must have been good because we booked to go back as soon as we got back. My boys are still talking about skiing! I think for the money it's very hard to beat.
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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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We drove to Les Houches las year, stayed at Les Hauts de Chavants self catering apartments owned by Pierre et Vacances / MGM French chain, can book direct or with www.peakretreats.co.uk. This is right on the slopes just above la Prarion ski lift and meeting area for ESF ski school
We paid 500 euro for a week at Easter for a 6 person apartment
We paid 104 euro each for 6 half day lessons for the kids with ESF, book 60 days in advance to get that price
We paid 300 euro (not exact but near enough) for last minute 6 day passes for 5 people, down from 480 euro normal price (youngest free)
We paid 300 euro for ski hire for 6 at shop directly opposite la Prarion lift, negotiated the price downwards before trying equipment
So a complete week of accommodation, ski passes, ski hire for 6 people cost 1100 euro.
This year the plan in to ski either at Les Houches again or this time in Vallorcine, at L Ours Bleu aparments, similar pricing as Les Houches. Vallorcine is part of the Chamonix ski pass area,6 days ski passes are 580 for a family of 2+2 or even 2+4 at the same price. Ski school in Vallorcine for kids is roughly 110 euro (discount for staying a l Ours Bleu).
Concentrate of any of resorts near Chamonix or even further north, Samoens, Les Contamines, Avoriaz, St Gervais, Notre Dame de Bellecomber etc. Peak Retreats is a great website just for research purposes.
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I used these guys for our first family holiday http://www.hillwood-holidays.co.uk
I met one of their former employees on the slopes in Austria a couple of years before we took out !st family ski holiday, she was very positive.
I selected Zauchensee with hillwood, I considered:
Convenient skiing, ski-in Ski out.
Minimum amount of travelling (1.5 hour flight, 1 hr transfer)
Quiet village, no through traffic.
I wanted my kids to enjoy the snow, and atmospher, and for them to want to ski again.
Easy slopes for kids, and enough to keep me occupied between breakfast - Lunch, and Lunch - Apres.
Excellent Ski School, Run by the walchoffer family, infact Michael Walchoffers sister taught my kids to ski.
Good luck, and no matter where you go I hope that the whole family has a great time..
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FAQ
and I researched and researched where to go. I was trying to find somewhere which catered for a variety of age ranges (including 3 year old who might like a go at skiing). My kids are 8 and 5. I initially thought of Austria as I'd been there a few times before and love Austria but from what I could see the majority of ski schools are 2 hours in he morning and 2 hours in the afternoon. Soon ruled Austria out thinking that the kids just wouldn't be able to cope with that, and also would like the afternoons to spend with the family together.
Hope you have got the kids down for Kiddie Club, my son absolutely loved this, it meant he got to stay up a bit late on a couple of nights having fun with the Pink Ladies and we had a peaceful dinner 