France V Italy and Austria are they really cheaper

A snowHead

Hi

Have been reading the posts here for a while and a common theme is that France is more expensive than say Italy or Austria

My question is in what way and generally by how much are you saving £100, £50.

I understand this has alot to do with individual resorts and DIY/ T/O

But is the ski hire, or lift passes, ski schools generally cheaper in Austria compared to France

Is the self catering of France more expensive than the hotels with half board in Italy

All these countries have the euro which is still a mugs game for the pound.

I've costed up various types of holidays (DIY and T/O) to various countries and can't see any real difference

Am yet to be convinced about this

A snowHead

Biggest difference is that in most of major ski resorts in France lunches on the mountain, beer, restaurant meals etc. are much more expensive than in Austria. In my experience Italy lies between the two price wise. A beer in france will typically cost €6 in France, more in the biggest resorts, it is commonly around €3 in Austria, and almost never more than €4. In Austria a mountain restaurant will sell you a Goulash Soup and a large beer for about €7 - in France this barely covers the beer! If you don't eat or drink out this won't make any difference - but it does to us!

IMV lift passes tend to be a bit cheaper in Austria and some of Italy than France - Ski Amade or Dolomiti Superski is cheaper than Paradiski.
I understand that ski hire can be expensive in some Austrian resorts, but since we take our own this doesn't matter to us.

As an example - costing up a self catering trip for two of us last January we compared Serre Chevalier and Ski Amade, and worked out that the accomodation in Serre Che would need to be £250 cheaper for the total costs to be the same - it was cheaper there, but only by a max of £100 or so.

Having said all of that there are expensive resorts in Austria (St Anton and Ischgl are not cheap) and I am sure there are good value smaller resorts in France

Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?

I've not skied much in Austria but the impression I got was that lift passes were a similar price if you compare large resorts in one country with large resorts in others countries. Obviously there will be exceptions to this, but it was my general impression. Similarly with the cost of accommodation and flight packages if you book with a TO. Where Austria was cheaper than France was the cost of mountain restaurants and apres-ski prices, and I thought I was paying as much as 20-25% less in Solden than I was in Les Arcs last season. How much difference this makes to overall cost of your holiday depends on how important mountain eating and drinking is to your overall experience (for me it's a very small part as it's all about the skiing, so the price difference isn't a big deal).

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I think the main difference is in spending money. Beer, coffee, lunch etc. And pound for pound I think you get better accommodation in Austria.

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RobinS, unless you ski St Anton, Lech etc......

I found the biggest difference for me when skiing Austria last year vs France was that my youngest lift pass was something like 10 Euros in Austria vs 100 in France !!

However ski hire was alot more than France.

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My most expensive (and least enjoyable) ski holiday was actually in solden, Austria. This was before I had my own skis and there was a marked difference in the ski hire price compared to resorts I'd visitied in France (double the price for the same quality). The lift pass was similar for resorts of a similar size in France. The wine in restauarants was hugely more expensive although the food was cheaper. Supermarket shopping was more expensive. Taxis were cheaper. Our (self catering) accomodation was lots more expensive and further from the slopes although much nicer than the French rabbit huts.

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matt23,
Maybe it’s more to do with perception rather actual amount.

If you look around you’ll normally find a holiday that you feel is within your budget, anything over this amount will be perceived to be expensive. The same goes for slope side cafes, resort shops, etc.

You can find relatively cheap accommodation in each resort but of course the actual amount you pay will depend on the national rates and what is cocidered to be the norm. French DIY accomm tends to be (not always) smaller for the same cost as larger Austrian accomm. Italian slope side café are definitely cheaper than French – for the same items, as any who ski in Claviere / Montgenèvre will know.

The cost of lift passes tends to be linked to the old adage “charge what the market will stand”. This came be paraphrased as “charge as much as you can get away with” and, again, this depends on the perceptions of what is reasonable to the largest % of customers for that lift company and also the running cost of the lift company. So you will get stupid costs (per mile of piste) in Scotland when compared to Bulgaria

Oh and ski hire costs in France are crazy when compared with virtually anywhere else - why ? coz they have been used to this and think they can continue. Only time will tell

After all it is free · Last edited by After all it is free on Wed 8-09-10 8:58; edited 1 time in total

In France you also pay adult lift pass prices from 13, but may get some family deals. That is not the case in Austria, Switzerland and Italy where there are discounts perhaps up to 18 years.

don't discount Switzerland, i've been there the last 2 years and not paid too much.

having said all that I spread it around. This winter it will be France in October, December and Easter and Austria at half term

matt23, Sweeping generalisations often mislead. It is a while since I have holidayed in Italy however I go to France and Austira quite a lot and often in the same year and have done for the last five years. I usually DIY so cannot compare tour operator prices.
I have consistently found the major Tarentaise resorts significantly more expensive than anywhere else including elsewhere in France. The price differeences are often in eating and drinking both on and off the mountain in terms of buying food for slef catering and eating on the mountain. I usually self cater to get equivalent quality and space in a French appartment in the large resorts is hugely more expensive. In hotels likewise you will get a much better quality room at anyone price point in Austria than in France. My memory is also that thte discounts for children tend to work better at most age groups for buying lift passes in Austria than France particularly after age about 7.
Having said that I have had outstanding value from many of the smaller French resorts. My memories of Italy is that it was pretty reasonably priced but it has been about four or five years since I last stayed there.

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Food , restaurants, beer etc are much cheaper and better value. Ski passes etc might be similar or only slightly cheaper. As others mentioned the accommodations are much much bigger and nicer for the price.

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matt23

For the first time in six years I'm looking to spend some time in the Alps, and have looked for pretty much the same answers as you. You've obviously done your research as the "generalisations" you make are similar to the ones I've reached, and not far wrong for what they are.

The packages/accom etc are much of a muchness (when comparing like with like) but the single most significant cost factor is what you will be expected to pay once there, particularly the level of expectation in certain French areas.

But basically if you just need maybe a week or two, no hassle, on the snow somewhere, Austria followed by Italy, trying to find a good/late TO deal are maybe your best bets, judging by your criteria. If you need something more specific (terrain, duration etc) then as the Alps is so close, DIY is probably your best route, as you can more closely tailor the deal.

Budget for me this season coming by the very nature of plans I've got needs to stretch a long way, and although I'm not suggesting it is the case for you, it is probably better to choose something you think you will enjoy, and then find the best way to cost it, than start from a pure cost viewpoint and risk effectively "losing" a trip. John Ruskin had it about pat.

Good luck with your search.

You know it makes sense.

matt23, yes. Next question.

Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:

A snowHead

I think it all depends on how you travel, the make up of your group and what type of accommodation.

For self drive or train travel and self catering I'd imagine france is cheaper as it is nearer and has more self catering accommodation to choose from. However lift passes and meals out seem more expensive than Italy. As the accommodation and travel are the highest cost for a family of four I'm fairly sure France is the cheapest and easiest option for us which is why we keep going back. I do find the french lift passes very expensive though. We like staying in the more luxurious MGM appartments in France and I haven't really found equivalent appartments when looking at Austria or Italy.

If I were looking for a package holiday by air I would probably look at Italy in particular the dolomite area mentioned by Pam above. I skied there once (Andalo) and really enjoyed it.

A snowHead

Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?

Thanks for the posts. Really good to know.

It makes sense what if being said here as what I haven't allowed for is the hidden costs of eating and drinking out.

This it seems from what has been said is where the real difference is.

What also is interesting is the type of place you stay in. Hotel or self catering, Austrian (From what is being said here) is better value in terms of space

and comfort.

Thanks guys for the info

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For me the biggest difference is the type of accommodation. In France, self-catering apartments and chalets are far more common and relatively good value for money at the lower end of the scale. However, single rooms are very rare in this type of accommodation. There are plenty of hotels in French resorts too but they tend to be large hotels and more luxurious/expensive than their Italian and Austrian counterparts. For this reason I haven't been skiing in France for ten years, my money buys me exactly what I want in Austria or Italy in terms of accommodation, in France I can't find anything within budget.

Lift pass prices are much of a muchness, but food and drink seems to be a bit cheaper in Italy and Austria. I think on average a like for like TO holiday would be 25%+ cheaper in Italy or Austria. Obviously it varies a bit from resort to resort, Italy and Austria do have some very pricy resorts that I can only dream of such as St Anton, Ischgl, Obertauern, Cortina.

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But surely (I know, stop calling you Shirley) it all comes down to beer. We (the boys, not en famille) can't afford to ski in France. It has to be Austria (or Slovenia and other places East), and not only is France dear for beer, their beer is rubbish. (A generalisation, but most French beer is p*ss, most Austrian beer is not).

And Austrian apres is legendary, who doesn't feel a irresistable need to be in Austria whenever they hear the stirring sounds of Hey! Wir wollen die Eisbären sehen?

Denn unser Leben wär so leer ohne Bär'n Smile

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Ghost Dog, Agree completely. Austria all the way. And one can always find bars with better music if needed.

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France V Italy and Austria are they really cheaper

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