 Poster: A snowHead
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Myself and a couple of friends are wanting to do some skiing in late January 06. I was thinking of Pas de la Casa in Andorra. I think this is a good resort as it seems to have the ski area, good nightlife and reasonable accomadation we would be looking for. We were thinking of staying in the Magic Pas. This is because it comes as half-board so sving us some money on food. I am thinking of avoidling the lower end of the hotel market as there is little point in going half board as the food will be indedible. I don't want to risk another round of food poisoning either which I was the Victim of in Niederau and Livigno A few years back. I have been thoroughly impressed with the french alps but the accomodation seems to be very pricey. Apartments aare cheap enough but are really only suited to groups of more than 6. Plus we dont really like the idea of all of us sleeping in the same room. Might get a bit close for comfort.
So my question is this, Is it impossible to go anywhere apart from andorra for less than £600 all-in. (Lift-pass,accomadation,flights).
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Edmundh009, I've just organised for £300 food, accommodation and full liftpass in Alpe d'Huez, there were 44 of them so I did get a good deal. Even between a few buddies I think you can certainly do ADH for under your £600, you do know that Easyjet and Ryanair now fly into Grenoble.
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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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Edmundh009, All of Andorra, is trying to go upmarket. Prices are rising as more hotels get uprated to help pay for the megabucks they have spent on their lift systems.
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Edmundh009,
On the basis that a lift price would cost upto £150, I would think it would be quite easy to get flights and accom for £450 in Jan. But is has been a long time since I have used a TO
so I might be a bit out of date...!!
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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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Having looked on sites such as igluski.com and directline-skiing.co.uk I seem to find andorra is over £120 cheaper than France for the same standard of acccomadation. On the cheap flight front, I live in Belfast but go to uni in Stirling so would be prepared to fly from Scotland or N.Ireland even then the only flight I can find is easyjet to Geneva for £100 return.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
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Edmundh009,
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even then the only flight I can find is easyjet to Geneva for £100 return.
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Many of the cheap airlines, have not yet released their timetables/prices. Expect them in sept/oct
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Edmundh009, you can book apartments in France at a hugely reduced price compared to what's in the brochures by going direct to the companies that run the residences. You then pay for the apartment (as little as £260 per week) and not per person. Assuming £120 for lift pass and £80 for flights and £25 for bus transfers per person that's about £311 + food on top.
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Do you know where I can get some numbers or web addresses Please.
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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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You can also try PG here - he rents out an apartment in Bourg St Maurice (look in the snowShops on the front page under snowescape) and Flying Squirrel here rents out apartments in the Les Arcs area. I think sarah@alpedhuez rents apartments in Alpe d'Huez. Sorry for any snowHeads I've missed out - these are just ones I can think of off the top of my head 
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Thanks for the replies especially the links. I think Il get right on it and do some research, afterall January is only.......................oh dear its a while away, ah well never hurts to start looking early.
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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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Pas de la Casa is a good laugh if theres group of you. We stayed in the Manzano apartments and the Gala Apts. The Gala apartments start at studios for 2, which were pretty huge to be fair. Theres quite a few restaurants, so eating out isnt a problem.
The best hotel we've stayed in, in Andorra, was the Princesa Parc in Arinsal. Booked through First Choice, can easily get in at under £600 if you're quick/shop around. It was a fabulous hotel next to the gondola, food was good/ varied/ edible! And the resort itself was lovely, been there twice now and I think its ace. Not massively challenging skiing in Arinsal itselfl but the link to Pal makes a huge difference!
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Last year we went to ADH close to that time for £235 each.... 4 person room tho.
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You know it makes sense.
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I've managed to book for just over £600 in El Tarter for a week in March, that's flight, transfer, catered chalet, ski pass, ski and boot hire, tuition, the lot basically. Could probably have done it cheaper but just wanted all the hassle taken out of it. Not been to Andorra before but in separate thread been given some great feedback.
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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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Going to arinsal in march....flights £50, accomodation £100 each. Can be done cheaply, just a bit of effort involved! Of course uo then have everything on top, but I reckon £300 all in per person
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Poster: A snowHead
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If you're going in late January, wait and book a last minute deal. Decent accomodation, food, flights and transfers should come in around £250 to £300. Lift pass is on top, as is beer money.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Edmundh009, I run accommodation in Les Arcs/La Plagne, (I think someone mentioned The Flying Squirrel further up).
For a specific example of the type of holiday I can offer you :
- 3star apartment with 2 double rooms, and one large room (with 4 single beds), kitchen & lounge, 2 bathrooms, 250m from slopes and 400m from bars/shops. £600 weekly rental for the whole apartment (saturday to saturday).
We're in Peisey-Vallandry, which is right in the middle of Paradiski, (Les Arcs/La Plagne) so you've got loads of skiing terrain and a nice atmosphere in the village for bars and restaurants (although The Flying Squirrel Bar is obviously the best in the area!!)
Other costs :
ski pass - approx £130
flights - up to you!
airport transfer - approx £60 (I can arrange)
If this is of interest to you, either PM me, email me, or call me on 07704 203427 (UK number until October).
cheers
F_S
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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.
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edmund, if you spent less on skis, you;d have plenty left for skiing! 
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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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Ed,
Have you looked at Bansko in Bulgaria ? Loads of quality accomodation coming on line + very good value for food/drink.
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| Edmundh009 wrote: |
| Do you know where I can get some numbers or web addresses Please. |
Have you looked in our own snowBase ???? Bottom right on the Alpine piccy above - links to hundreds of official resort web sites and Tourist Office email addresses. World wide.
Would second FS and Masque in recommending the Peisey end of Les Arcs. I used Flybe Southampton - Chambery last year. Mid week £83 return incl taxes. Trains Chambery - BSM are about Euros 15 each way. Can't get there cheaper than that. Then I used a 2* hotel HB - excellent. Ski-in / Ski-Out. See report in Resorts Alphabetical section if you're interested. Les Arcs lift pass aint cheap but worth it if the weather and snow allow you to use the whole resort.
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Edmundh009, have you considered doing it independantly. This site gives you the budget airlines that fly from various parts of the country http://www.whichbudget.com/
I would think that there are lots of options for that price.
http://www.ernalow.co.uk/ are good for self catering apartments in Europe
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I wouldn't use ernalow for French apartments! 
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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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Edmundh009, www.skyscanner.net will do a good search of the lowest cost flights out of edinburgh/glasgow/belfast/dublin - as noted above, some of the airlines don't release flights and fares until sept-ish for next season
... good cheap option is milan/turin and train/bus up to milky way / val d'aosta in Italy - accom there is cheaper and better than france imho - and january is low season so you should get a good deal - worth waiting a little while on booking the resort/accom but get the flights sorted a lot sooner
.... dublin-milan is a good deal on aer lingus if you can get yourselves down south from b'fast (there is a bus link to the airport direct from b'fast for about €15 i think) .... enjoy
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slikedges, having used Erna Low in the past and found them very efficient, I have to ask - Why Not?
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Alastair, not exactly cheap.
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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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slikedges, rather than criticise and roll your eyes at suggestions by others, it would be more helpful to actually put something positive. If you have found someone better, name them.
Personally, I used them and the deal I got through Erna Low was better than going direct.
Can I quote you from another thread.
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If you disagree with good reason, you could try saying "I'm not sure you're right. I have lived/done whatever and my experience is x so I'd recommend y, despite what numerous books, articles etc say as they may have a vested interest." from the start instead of "Yeah? Is that what you think? Shows what you know!"
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You'll find you said that here http://snowheads.com/ski-forum/viewtopic.php?p=136096#136096
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You know it makes sense.
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slikedges, I've found them pretty good value in the past, when ferries were probably more expensive than they are now. I think they had done some pretty good deals with the ferry operators. I haven't compared their prices in the past year or so.
I did find that their accomodation tends to get booked up well in advance, so I doubt they would be particularly good for last minute offers.
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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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Alastair, I'd expect they probably were better value when ferry prices were higher, and a generalisation of course, but it's seems always to be cheaper to book direct, as long as you watch exchange rates. There probably aren't worthwhile savings to be had for a small, cheap and cheerful apartment low season but an example is ecrin des neiges tignes val claret
14/1/06 low season
3 room 5/6 persons without ferry on ernalow £900 and direct from mgm 1260 euros
5 room 9/10 persons without ferry on ernalow £1300 and direct from mgm 1820 euros
11/2/06 high season
3 room 5/6 persons without ferry on ernalow £1943 and direct from mgm 2590 euros
5 room 9/10 persons without ferry on ernalow £2809 and direct from mgm 3745 euros
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Poster: A snowHead
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Edmundh009, If you were thinking of LDA, check my website for "Easiski Specials" where there are several S/C apartments and one catered apartment that's very good value for a group of friends. Flights to Grenoble or Chambery should be going pretty cheap if you book early (Flybe, Easyjet and Ryanair), liftpass around €120 at that time of year. From airport to resort you could hire a little car and the cost would be shared. If you want more detailed info about LDA you can PM me with specific questions.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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slikedges, now suppose you wanted to add a fully flexible 'Club' Eurotunnel ticket to that. Eurotunnel price - £398. Erna Low (booked before end Oct) - £130. An extreme example, I admit, but I would suggest that there will be circumstances when the 'package' option via Erna Low is cheaper.
BTW, I would have done a ferry price comparison - but the rubbish P&O site isn't working as usual. I suspect the ferry may indeed be cheaper booked direct but P&O won't quote!
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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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Alastair,
The channel operator website's have up-times of 97% plus. I am surprised you can't get a quote.
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Alastair, just like paying a full economy airfare! Does anyone ever actually do that? Anyways, anyone canny enough to book direct won't then lose the lead on another part of the deal. Erna Low have always been quite good and certainly much better than most but for a French apartment at least (I've not looked at other countries recently) I'd still go direct and expect to save a couple or a few hundred pounds. Having said that, especially given current exchange rates, I agree there may indeed be circumstances eg the cheaper and smaller apartments with highish season ferry/Eurotunnel booked late, when Erna Low early might match or even beat the best direct booking price then available.
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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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slikedges, with a current exchange rate of about €1.4 to the £1, €1260 = £900 and €1820 = £1300 (your first examples). How do you get a couple or a few hundred pounds saving? 
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You'll need to Register first of course.
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Ray Zorro, that was just an example I had to hand meant to illustrate how the amount saved can vary. In any case you'd rarely lose by going direct and if you look in the right place for the right time, you can make the saving. By my calculations, this year I think I'll save more than a few hundred pounds on 2 weeks by direct booking, if I go for a particular nice residence I have in mind.
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Thanks for all the replies. Eurotunnel  I shall be coming eitehr from Belfast or Glasgow/Edinburgh. A bit expensive to drive me thinks. Its good to hear there are bargains out there. Was going to go the hotel route but seeing the price of apartments its hard to resist. There shall be 4 of us going I think so that kind of eliminates a lot of apartments. Don't fancy staying in a chalet. Not that I have social phobia but just I Like my own space. Winter can't come soon enough. Went and bought myself some Diablo flame boots yesterday as they were in the sale, can't resist a bargain. I have developed an ebay addiction in recent days trying to hunt down a cheap second pair of powder/all-mountain skis. Thanks for the help guys.
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Edmundh009, sorry - I think we went off at a bit of a tangent there. However, I think we came to the conclusion that the Erna Low brochure might be worth looking at; it'll certainly give you some ideas although you may or may not  , depending on circumstances, save money by booking direct.
A word of warning - it is frequently the case that French apartments are a bit pokey and unless you know each other very well you would be well advised to avoid filling them to capacity.
Another good website for cheapish low end French accomodation is www.interhome.com
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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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Edmundh009. We have a lodge in Bansko Bulgaria. We take bookings on a B&B basis but also offer evening meals. WIth a low cost airline coming into Sofia for the 1st time this winter. With flights from as little as £65 it makes Bulgaria an even better choice of low cost destinations. www.wizzair.com
If you would like to contact me I would be more than happy to give you a quote
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Edmundh009, I still haven't seen anything here that beats my prices for value. PM me if you're interested as the apartments in question go pretty quickly!
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FAQ
