Scotland budget

A snowHead

trying to cobble together a cheeky extra trip for next season, but must keep costs down.

What would a reasonable per person budget be for a week at Scottish resorts in, say, March? Or is it too unreliable (usually - obv not this year) to commit a precious week's holiday? Are there any "in resort" accommodation, or would one have to sleep off-mountain? Is there any childcare available, and what would that approx cost?

Cheers

A snowHead

oh, and what is the best mountain? Cairngorm?

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boardiac, book last minute dependent on weather, March can be fantastic, not the cheapest option but the Hilton has a good indoor pool and massive kiddie play area and will give you an idea of high end cost, lower cost would be B&Bs of which there are plenty in the area.

http://www.hilton.co.uk/coylumbridge

'Best' mountain depends on what you want from it, what kind of skiing do you want, for what levels etc etc

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thanks kitenski. at £70-80/pppn before lessons/guides, lift passes etc I think it's a bit too high end.

Any ideas of what people who go to Scotland on oi- let's just say Cairngorm - usually budget "all in" (or back-calculate...)

Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.

couple of hostels, budget b&b in the aviemore/cairngorm area, or you could camp at good serviced sites etc

google aviemore bunkhoue, glenmore hostel, glenmore lodge, some of the hotels some cheap deals, Macdonalds, hirghrange.co.uk (motel). Newtonmore/Kingussie 15-odd miles south of aviemore, you will get cheaper accom and puts you in striking range of Nevis Range (1 hour-ish) so you could hedge on the best conditions, or simply get the variety of a 2 centre ski. The drive from there over to Nevis is fab too, passing by Glenbogle castle, Loch Laggan & Laggan Dam etc.

Would a campervan be outta the question? good serviced sites all over the place and ultimate flexibility

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boardiac,
we have stayed in various types of accommodation in aviemore and at glenshee. we have had a log cabin for @£250 for a long weekend, a 4 bedroomed house for @£1000 for a full week and many things inbetween. as mentioned before there are many options and obviously prices vary dependant on the dates etc. last year we stayed very close to glenshee, in the village of spittal of glenshee to be exact for a long weekend and paid @£12-15 per night per person for a room in a type of bunkhouse.
in my opinion, if conditions were perfect, i would go for glenshee. however we all know what british weather is like and i think cairngorm is a better bet as there are more things to do (at a cost of course) when the hill is closed down and you are not too far from the hill to take advantage of quick changes in conditions.
the biggest bugbear for me with the scottish resorts is the cost of lift passes etc, i always come away thinking i could have gone to the alps for not much more money. Confused

After all it is free

boardiac, I will no doubt get flamed, but with you living in london and having a 2 year old you could probably get a good deal and get a more snow/weather sure holiday in Europe if you go just after the Europeans go back to work/school early March. I know last season Mark Warner were doing all sorts of offers....

http://www.markwarner.co.uk/special-offers/ski

Or look at the various family setups for March deals ie here http://www.familyfriendlyskiing.com/price.html (have used this company since my kids were 3 hence recommended) or http://www.skifamille.co.uk/NewsOffers.php (not used these people myself)

Do 2 days in Nevis Range. One in Glencoe.

March or H1 April. Better weather.

Stay in Fort William.

Laterooms.com.

Chase the snow. Book ultra-lastminute.

Surprisingly good skiing if snow is good.

Mega scenery.

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Hi boardiac. At the risk of getting flamed alongside kitenski it would be worth doing a budget cost comparison between Scotland and a cheap deal in the Alps especially as you live in London.
Scotland can be fantastic but the weather and snow can't in any way be guaranteed. When its good its great but when its bad its not much of a holiday.
A week's s/c in Aviemore outside of mid-term will cost about £400-£500.
http://www.scandinavian-village.co.uk/
http://www.pinebankchalets.co.uk/price-list

We've been going to La Tania in the 3 Valleys recently where you will pay around £600 for a 1 bed apartment for a week in March outside school holidays.
http://www.latania.co.uk/resort/accomm.htm
It works for us as a low cost (for the Alps) family friendly location with great skiing at the door. You might find that a cheap flight from London to Chambery may be less than getting up north to Aviemore. If you can be flexible when you go base it on where and when you can fly cheaply as the accommodation costs won't be as variable as the flights.

The other consideration is your 2 year old. In Scotland you will generally have to drive a number of miles from your accomodation to the slopes. Cairngorm is about 7 miles away from Aviemore. Nowhere has slopeside accommodation. If you are reliant on a creche or taking turns to babysit your actual slope time out of precious time on your own could be limited.

I really don't want to put you off coming to Scotland but to get the best out of it you really need to be able to just go when the conditions are good rather than hope they will be good when you go. It may be better to see if you can get to the Alps for an acceptable cost whilst your child flys free and then come to Scotland when your child is skiing with you.

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boardiac, I agree with Kitenski and Snowdog. While skiing in Scotland is fine for those of us who live here, when I lived in the soft south I would never dream of booking a trip up here, even though I could have stayed with family up here. Europe was cheaper, just as quick to get to, and a better chance of good snow.

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Give the folk at the Crianlarich hotel a call. http://www.crianlarich-hotel.co.uk/ I think the chap is called Nigel.

Last year they were doing ski specials for £20/night and they run a bus to Glencoe. No childcare mind you as far as I know. And a further 30mins to Nevis.

Cheeers
bob

You know it makes sense.

Haggis_Trap, & who looks after their 2 year old??

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

A snowHead

^ yup, train prices in the UK are too high. Especially at short notice.
However 2 or 3 people in a car driving to Scotland will always be cheaper than flight / ski carriage / transfer to the alps.

For sure skiing in Scotland isn't for everyone.
But the whole alps is cheaper / easier / quicker justification isn't true (especially for short breaks, and more so if you live in north of manchester-ish). If I lived in London then I would be probably go to the alps for holidays too - its pretty much that same distance!

A snowHead

Using Laterooms.com we did five or six Scottish last minute (ie booked a night or two before once we'd seen the weather was ok) ski trips between March and June this year.

Best bargain we got was The Laggan Hotel, at Laggan (equidistant between Nevis range and Cairngorm - both 45 mins drive) at £30 for a double room. We usually paid £40-£50 (per room not person) for hotels in Newtonmore (30 mins to Cairngorm) - namely The Highlander and The Balavil. All of the hotels we booked through Laterooms were basic but clean and comfortable. Excellent breakfast included at the Newtonmore hotels but extra at Laggan.

Alternatives:
There are loads of bed and breakfasts in AViemore for £25 or £30 per person per night.
Or, although we never stayed here - in Aviemore - we know people who have and who have recommended it. £50 or £60 a room in winter:
http://www.highrange.co.uk/lodge_hotel.htm

Also, rooms in the Travelodge winter sale are going from £9 and can usually be had for £19 if you book far enough in advance. You could spend night one in Scotland at:

Perth Travelodge - 90 mins drive from Cairngorm but 90 mins less to drive on your journey north.
Dumbarton Travelodge - An hour and a bit from Glencoe.

Or go to Fort William (for Nevis Range) and stay at the Premier Inn, which advertises rooms from £29.

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Realistically you are looking at an hour and a half from Dumbarton but finding your way wouldn't be difficult as you don't even have to leave the A82 for your hotel.

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Just watch out for the top end of Loch Lomond. Some corners can be a bit slippy eh scotia, Happy

Just as well we are locals and know when to stick to the middle for the road.

PS Dumbarton to Glencoe is less than 90 mins. Just Happy

Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.

sign up for the Macdonald Hotels newsletter... they send out quite a lot of late offers throughout winter to stay very cheap at the Macdonald Highland Resort. We had a couple of weekends there last winter paying £20 per night B&B. As has been said, wait until nearer the time and see what conditions are like!

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so to sum it up:

- for a family week, go to the Alps (we would have driven to Scotland (kiddie stuff = bulky), so if driving to French alps is +/- the same time, might just do that instead).
- for a cheeky short break at last minute (with mates rather than family), Scotland may be a good option (I would probably fly to Glasgow or Edinburgh and rent a car).

cheers all.

Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...

I'm with Snow Dog (and I'm in Edinburgh) way more reliable snow in Europe and it's quite probably cheaper if you are avoiding the school holidays. I only managed 3 days skiing in Scotland this season, 17 in Europe.

But no doubt some of my compatriots will be back to sing the praises of the glens (or the bits that form them) wink

After all it is free

fair point. cheers, tiffin!

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Be warned that Scottish resorts are tiny compared with most alpine ones and conditions are very chancy if you have to book ahead. It is somewhere to go at fairly short notice when you hear there is snow and then it can be great. Last time I stayed in Fort William in a B&B (see my Nevis report http://snowheads.com/ski-forum/viewpost.php?p=926485) I think it was £25 per night with one person in a twin room, and a bit less per person when my friend arrived.

You know it makes sense.

snowball, ok ok OK we get it Wink

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

A snowHead

ooh. very useful, Winterhighland. that really coulkd be a bargain then. details duly noted down.

A snowHead

Agreed, was a shame. Hard to get away tho, when I take a week off I'm always going to head abroad tho, better food, better apres and just the whole being away thing. Finding time when kids have rugby/riding/tennis/swimming is difficult.

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Only 3 days in Scotland????? I did the lecht, Cairngorm (AKA Sauchihall St) nevis and umpteen trips to Glencoe. Last years was amazing Happy

Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.

Gosh, I did 4 days in scotland last year and my skiing season didn't start until April 30th!

Help!!

Scotland budget

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