 Poster: A snowHead
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| maggi wrote: |
| palumbex wrote: |
| I went to Sestriere Club Med last January and I liked it so much I am going back. |
That's good because we've booked it for next January too!  How was the swimming pool? |
I didn't use it. Those that did said that it was tiny. The pool is in the red tower as is the boot room and the specialty restaurant. Everything else (bar, night club, main restaurant, boutique, ski school registration,entertainment etc) is in the white tower. I would recommend staying in the white tower. It means a lot less walking too and fro after a days skiing.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Me & Mrs Saintstephen, mid Jan, flights Dublin to Memmingen €160 (inc ski carriage), train to Oberstdorf €28, accom + ski pass for the week €510, train to Memmingen €28 = €626 or €313 each !
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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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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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palumbex, thanks again for the good advice. Off to bed now but if you've got a minute some time, can you describe the first morning ski-off where you are put into groups and a bit about the instruction/guiding etc. Cheers!
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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| maggi wrote: |
| palumbex, thanks again for the good advice. Off to bed now but if you've got a minute some time, can you describe the first morning ski-off where you are put into groups and a bit about the instruction/guiding etc. Cheers! |
After you have settled in on Sunday go to the White Tower reception where you register for ski school. There are six skill groups from Group 1 for beginners to Group 6 for expert,off piste etc. I signed up for group four. Unfortunately the first morning outside the ski school was a bit hectic and I found myself in Group 5 (my mistake). I had an exhilarating but terrifying first day skiing way above my ability and although the instructor said he would like to have me stay I busted myself down to group 4 on the second day. The point is due to my mixing up ski groups on the first day I missed any ski off but I believe what is supposed to happen is that you pick your skill level on Sunday and then on Monday they divide each group into classes based on how confident you are. I think there were four groups within the Group 4 skill level. The instructors were very friendly and mindful of the group safety. Our instructor did not have great English and I felt that if he had better English he would have done more teaching and less guiding. Our group was a mixture of English, Irish, Russian and Israeli and we got on very well.
Okay, so you ski from 8.30 to 12.00 then break for lunch at the Hotel. Ski again from 2.00 until 4.30. No queues at the lifts except for Saturday. I will take a break from ski school next year for a day or two in order to explore more of the mountain on my own when it is quiet as it does get crowded with locals on Saturday. The instructors like to take their groups across the mountains for a full day out (perhaps a trip to Mt. Genivre). We didn't go as some in our group had family commitments at lunchtime and I also thing that others were loath to pay for a big lunch elsewhere when it was free at Club Med.
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Just about to book our day trip to Tignes. Prices work out at £1000 for the trip, all meals, lift passes, flights and transfers.
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| Quote: |
Just about to book our day trip to Tignes. Prices work out at £1000 for the trip
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Quite an expensive day - pretty good lunch, I guess?
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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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Hold off and look at Le Ski in La Tania in early January. When we went last (this) year - 17 Jan - (had booked the summer before and paid full price), the chalet was full of more "mature" skiers (oldest was 72 who skied black runs and off piste) who had waited until last minute and paid around £350 each (maybe even less) for the week - lovely, modern, en suite chalets with good sized rooms and you are in the heart of the 3 Valleys. Up until around 2 weeks before we went, all the rooms (bar 2) in our chalet were still available.
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€1,600 Half board for 2 in Lech, Austria, first week of March. Includes Lift passes. If things work out right, our flts fm the states will be just the cost of the BA fuel surcharge, estimate to be €200 pp. (Just waiting for some miles to post, so we can pull the trigger.) Most likely will not book the 2nd week of March, and just follow the snow. Hopefully will be able to just contact tourist office, and find a bed for 5-7 nts? And if there's no snow (heaven forbid!) we'll just head to Venice, or Paris, or Amsterdam, or.... 
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Currently sizing up a 3 night trip to Obertauern in January. Flights, transfers, lift pass, B&B and hire for about £450 pp which seems pretty good to me! Anyone got/seen any better Austrian short break offers?
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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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2 Weeks - 18.12.2010 - 02.01.2011
Les Arc 1800
2 bed self catering apart ski in out - £2000
Lift passes - £1000
Fuel (as we are driving) - £450
Tolls - £220
Food/expenses - £1000
Total around 5k
poo-poo id better get saving!
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Toadman, there will be lots of snow in first week of March. 
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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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cheapest by far is zakopane, poland. flight, transfer , b&b, and pass ...£250 ! Great beer at very reasonable price.
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Poster: A snowHead
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| palumbex wrote: |
| I went to Sestriere Club Med last January and I liked it so much I am going back. |
Oh, dear, I don't think you are  . They have just cancelled my January booking and Sestriere doesn't appear on their website anymore.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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maggi, doesn't sound good.
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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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14 nights in Whistler for late Jan/early Feb 2011:
3 * accommodation in the village with economy Thomas Cook flights = £1250pp
12 day lift pass = £470pp
Plus food, beer......
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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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November-April St. Anton for free! I'm even getting paid. Cannot wait!
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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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10 weeks in Chamonix for two- £4500 incl lift passes. Plus food and beer.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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Hells Bells, no, I am disappointed. Our group is going to Sestriere and we (the 4 who booked Club Med) can't seem to find any other hotel there that we fancy. Must look harder and extend search to chalets, I guess. It's a bit of a bugger as the holiday was all sorted with lessons and ski pass all in and now we have to start from scratch. And we got it cheap by booking early. Grrrrr!
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| maggi wrote: |
| palumbex wrote: |
| I went to Sestriere Club Med last January and I liked it so much I am going back. |
Oh, dear, I don't think you are . They have just cancelled my January booking and Sestriere doesn't appear on their website anymore. |
Holy Carp. You can't be serious. I still haven't recd. any cancellation. That would be terrible. Brutal. Whats going on?
OK. Gotta check stuff out. Slightly freaking at the moment.
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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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I have never stayed at Club Med but I have sneaked on the coach a few times in Chamonix and managed to scavenge a couple of really nice free meals, incl. drinks and in one case a show. We were once joined at the table by the magicians assistant and I thought the game was up, but......
PS hope your holiday works out.
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Garmish Feb half term for family of 5, flights Stansted to Munchin EasyJet with 2 ski bags £500, estate care hire £240, 8 person apartment in Garmisch £280 = £204 each. We have own kit so only have to purchase a family classic ski area pass, food and beer. Qulaity as great area to ski.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Yes Maggi looks like they've canceled mine also. No email but my phone was off all day and I have just noticed a voice mail on there asking me to make contact with Club Med with some urgency.
I am very disappointed especially as you will remember there was forum member on here last Jan. who warned that it would be happening. Therefore they knew and still sold the holidays.
I am not as badly inconvenienced as you are as our group of three were booked with Club Med therefore we can all relocate. I wish you the best of luck with your dilemma.
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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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palumbex, I have just found this press release.
| Quote: |
Paris, 15 September, 2010 – Club Méditerranée today announced the sale of its 3-Tridents resort in
Sestriere. The disposal is part of the Group’s strategy of moving its Italian resorts upmarket, initiated
yesterday with the launch of the 5-Tridents project for the Cefalu resort in Sicily.
Located on the internationally famous Via Lattea ski area, the 267-room, two-building resorts in
Sestriere was sold to Italian hotel and tour operator Aurum. Owned by the Naples-based Orofino
family, Aurum Hotels operates 13 seaside hotel complexes, mainly in Sardinia and Campania.
Built in 1931 and acquired by Club Med in 1975, the historic Sestriere resort no longer met 3-Tridents
resort standards and, given its architectural features, could not be cost-effectively upgraded.
Club Méditerranée has confirmed the strategic importance of Italy as a destination, which it feels has
considerable upmarket and luxury potential. Its redevelopment will begin with the opening, in July
2012, of the new 5-Tridents village in Cefalu.
In line with this strategy, a number of other sites are being considered for future projects. |
Thanks for your sympathy . Yes, it's a bit of a rum do that they knew they were selling and still took our money!!!!! 
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| Timmaah wrote: |
| November-April St. Anton for free! I'm even getting paid. Cannot wait! |
You'll need to save up for a liver transplant when you get back though! 
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You know it makes sense.
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maggi, So frustrating! Bastwerds.
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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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Anyway back to my original question !
Ive booked up a week in ADH 1st week feb Chalet, flights transfers £695 def a bit cheaper than St Anton last year
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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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You know maggi I promised myself when I was younger that I would never return to a holiday destination no matter how much I enjoyed it. I have broken that rule a few times I must admit but at least now I can look forward to discovering somewhere new to me.
The press release is interesting in as much as they state that their facility no longer met with their own standards. If this is so then their other resorts must be as good if not better than Sestriere. So onward and upwards.
By the way, did they offer you anything as a sweetener to book with them elsewhere? This would be handy info. for me to have if I am to try bargaining with them tomorrow. Or was it just cancel, refund and goodbye?
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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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palumbex, we booked through Iglu, not direct. They offered us Club Med Serre Chevalier at the same price we paid for Sestriere or our money back. But I don't know whether it was more or less expensive  . Anyway, it's no use to us as our friends will be in Sestriere. Good luck, anyway!
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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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Yes Maggi I thought this would be the case as they are both served by the airport in Turin so they would not have to incur the expense of re-booking flights with Thompson Fly. I am hoping they might offer all of their three trident resorts at no extra cost but I doubt that they will. Serre is currently on Iglu at over £100 more than I paid so it's not a bad offer really.
I've stopped fretting now anyway. I will drop a message on here when I have things sorted. Good luck to you too.
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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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palumbex, it's not only us! See the Can we trust Ski Holiday companies? thread. I was going to join in but an admin/mod has locked it! (I think we're OK slagging off Club Med though as I'm pretty sure snowHeads won't be taking adverts from/booking "bashes" with them  )
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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God forbid if anyone ever criticises Iglu, who seem to have some kind of link affiliation spam thing going on here.
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7 nights in Hochsolden 4* HB incl Ski pass with flights £128 per day.
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Ok. So I was in touch with Club Med today. They offered a full refund or a switch to Serre Chevalier. I had a look at Serre on the internet and I must say it looks really nice. The ski area seems to be very highly rated and the Club Med facility looks really nice too. Serre would have been more expensive initially but as there was no extra charge I took the offer gladly. I really enjoyed the whole Club Med thing last year so it was an easy decision for me. They also said I could book any of their resorts as an alternative and I would only have to pay the difference between the Serre holiday price and the one of my choice..... not the difference between the Sestriere price and the one I chose.
All in all pretty shady selling practice in the first place but I can't say I am unhappy with the deal.
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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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| Mr Technique wrote: |
| God forbid if anyone ever criticises Iglu, who seem to have some kind of link affiliation spam thing going on here. |
I booked with Iglu last year. I was not overly impressed with any of the two agents I dealt with. One of the ladies was downright belligerent. It makes me smile to look back on it now but at the time I would have canceled if I could have done so without loosing so much money.
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| maggi wrote: |
| palumbex, it's not only us! See the Can we trust Ski Holiday companies? thread. I was going to join in but an admin/mod has locked it! (I think we're OK slagging off Club Med though as I'm pretty sure snowHeads won't be taking adverts from/booking "bashes" with them ) |
Their situation makes mine seem like only a slight blip. I actually can't wait to go to Serre now. I hope it is not too long before you are in a position to look forward to your holiday too.
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