 Poster: A snowHead
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| Dr John wrote: |
| rob@rar, indeed sir. But I might suggest (indeed have done) that if the intention is to go skiing for a month you base yourself in a ski resort and visit a town as an occasional alternative |
Sure, and that was also my recommendation. I'm simply pointing out that skiing every day of a one-month trip is probably not going to happen for the vast majority of people. Therefore it's worth factoring in what you might want to do on your down time.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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rob@rar, we are furiously agreeing with each other. I can't think of a large ski area that doesn't have a decent sized town within easy drive; 3V/Brides, EK/Borg etc. My point being choosing the ski area you want to base yourself in should be your priorities 1, 2 & 3, the rest will sort itself out.
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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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| Dr John wrote: |
| rob@rar, we are furiously agreeing with each other. |
I think so.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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| Quote: |
If you buy day passes, or afternoon passes when you ski, you will save money compared to a monthly pass. Also you will tend to only ski on blue sky days, when the snow is best.
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I'd strongly disagree with this advice, though I do agree that most people won't ski every day for a month.
A season pass in many places, bought on the pre-season deals, only costs about the same as 2 - 3 weeks pass. It means you can pop out for an hour or so, or if the weather looks dodgy, or if the sun comes out suddenly an hour before the lifts shut, without having to bother about the cost of the pass - and stopping to buy one. And the snow isn't best on blue sky days - IME it's often best when the weather is actually rather dreary and you might well do a few rather tiring runs, then decide to blast home for a hot choc before your legs collapse.
People vary such a lot. I'd never want to spend any time wandering round shopping centres, in France or the UK, but am perfectly happy to spend time exploring and re-exploring a moderate size ski area. A run is never the same twice! Someone who finds a resort such as Val d'Isere "mind-numbingly tedious" for a month must just have a very low boredom threshold. Only boring people get bored so easily. 
I hate the idea of living for a month in a series of cheap F1 type hotels (though I have zero objection to them as an overnight stop over at 11 pm). I would want a comfortable living area (doesn't have to be big or very smart) where I could enjoy the time not spent skiing and fix myself a drink or snack when I felt like it. For that matter, I'd not want to spend a month in an expensive hotel, either.
Personally I would like to be able to ski on foot for much of the time, but be able to do short drives to other destinations sometimes, for a change. Especially when the weather is very snowy the thought of having to fight my way somewhere in a car would probably make me decide to stay at home with a good book!
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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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DB, would need to be Europe in case of having to make an emergency return (elderly parents).
grey, Yes that's the idea because we would like to progress, take indiviual lessons and try to ski most days but also have some rest days too.
Am tending to agree more now with PamW about having to drive every day.
Never been to the 3 Valleys either - no-one has mentioned it yet - is there a reason for this?
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Yes, the 3V would be a great place to spend a month skiing but, IMV, the problem is finding somewhere to stay. Brides is the obvious choice in the valley but, frankly, 4 weeks there and you'd go mad - unless you particularly like gambling or spa treatments! The place is very small and with few diversions.
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ruthie, 3V would be perfect for a month. Forget about Brides, have a look at Le Praz. Nice village & quick lift link to 1850 & beyond. Check the 3V thread, offpisteskiing and others live there (I think), drop a message onto that thread for leads on accommodation and general advice.
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I'd do 2 weeks in Tignes and 2 weeks in Val T. Wish I could! 
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| Quote: |
4 weeks there and you'd go mad
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It's worth thinking about exactly what you'd want to do. We spend a lot more than a month at a time in a tiny hamlet. It is a small fraction of the size of Brides les Bains and has zero "diversions". Personally, I have no need of "diversions" if I'm living in a stunningly beautiful location surrounded by snowy mountain, with skiing (and walking, snowshoeing etc occasionally) on the doorstep and a well stocked larder and cave aux vins. But we do have friends and neighbours with whom we exchange hospitality, which makes a big difference. We also have satellite TV and a HUMAX PVR with some good stuff recorded on it and plenty of books and music. Also two restaurants, to which we go rather rarely, as it's too expensive to eat out much when you spend a lot of time here. We don't eat out much, if at all, at home either. We live here for part of the year - it's not a "holiday" in the sense that people go away for a week or so and spend loads of money.
Plenty of people live in the UK in very small places with few "diversions" without going mad. But others need "entertainment" of various kinds, outside the house, which is obviously more difficult in a strange place, where you don't properly understand the language, even if you are living in a sizeable town.
It's also worth taking the time to learn more French (or German, if you were in Austria, obviously). One good way is to join some of the locally-arranged walking or snowshoeing outings. And ski groups, obviously. The problem in some parts of the French and Austrian Alps is likely to be that your interlocutors speak good English - and then it's just tedious for them if you insist on speaking in rubbish French! Another argument for going to an area with only a small minority of Anglophone visitors - it feels more like going "abroad" and locals are likely to be very welcoming, rather than fed up to the back teeth with British visitors.
In the 3V Le Praz sounds like it would be a good base.
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kat.ryb, out of interest, why not Le Praz & Val d'Isere? I ask because you've chosen the two most ugly, boring and windswept resort in the entire Alps, whereas in the same lift linked areas you've got relatively pleasant towns to stay in. Yes, they're both high up, but neither are in any way nice places to stay.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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I don't think I'd enjoy spending much time living in either Val T or Tignes. I like a few trees to look at, out of the window, and more human scale immediate surroundings.
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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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I'm with johnE and andyman on this one. A base in Bourg St Maurice has advantages. Not least is that snow cover and conditions nearby are often the best in the alps, even in a poor season. On days when driving's not easy, just jump on the funicular up to Arcs 1600, giving access to Paradiski area. It's a 40 minute drive up to Tignes Les Brevieres, for access to the massive Espace Killy. St Foy is only about 25 minutes drive away, great for treeline skiing and off piste. For a change, La Rosiere and La Thuile, on the Italian border, is about 45 minutes drive. It would even be feasible to get to the Trois Vallees. Over 1000 kms of piste, adding those areas together, with massive off piste options. Bourg St Maurice is a small town, touristy, but has most of what's likely to be needed for a one month stay. Plenty of apartment accommodation within walking distance of the funicular and town centre. Also has coach shuttles up the mountains and a good mainline rail connection. I'd agree that Austria may offer a more authentic alpine experience all round. That wouldn't console me if the snow was poor for a winter sports trip of a lifetime.
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| pam w wrote: |
| I don't think I'd enjoy spending much time living in either Val T or Tignes. I like a few trees to look at, out of the window, and more human scale immediate surroundings. |
I suppose that rules out Milton Keynes too then.
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You know it makes sense.
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If I had the option (and money and no work commitments) of going to the Alps for a month then I would do the following:
Week 1: Base myself in Flachau or Wagrain and then I have the entire Ski Amade area to choose from. Most of the immediate area accessible with lifts. Other areas easily reached by car
Week 2: Base myself in Kirchberg and then I have the Kitzbuehl area and the Ski Welt area not far away
Week 3: Base myself in Mayrhofen and then I have the Mayrhofen slopes, all the slopes in the Zillertal valley, Hintertux glacier and even the Gerlos/Konigsleiten slopes available. All these areas easily reached by public transport or car
Week 4: I would then drive across the border and base myself in the Dolomites in the Alta Badia region somewhere like Corvara or Colfosco. Would then be able to access the Sella Ronda, Hidden valley, Cortina and even the Kronplatz area
Four weeks and four different regions. No chance of any repetitive skiing this way and you get to see different parts of the Alps
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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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| Quote: |
I suppose that rules out Milton Keynes too then
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too true!
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Poster: A snowHead
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My advice was primarily based on staying as flexible as possible.
The reason for this flexibility, is the ability to change your mind at the drop of a glove, and blast off in the car to Austria where the snow has been falling. Rather than sit in one resort for a month, with an annual lift pass, with no snow.
However, I accept that if you were to do that, you would be best served in Tignes or some other very high altitude resort. You can also join the Balneo for the season in Tignes which is very cheap too! (I did that, and I definately used it very often)
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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How about Aosta (NW Italy).
Sizeable town, over 2000 years old, with lots of historical buildings, lots of good restaurants.
And in the middle of a region, with a quite a number of beautiful skiing areas, such as: Breiul-Cervinia (common area with Zermatt - CH); Monterosa-Ski (Gressoney, Alagna, Champoluc), Pila, Courmayeur, La Thuile.
There's a common pass available for all of these resorts.
Aosta valley skipass
http://www.skivallee.it/interna.asp?CodPage=tariffe2
Plus some non-ski pictures below. Finding skiing pictures is easy enouh.
http://www.italianvisits.com/images/valdaosta-im/aosta-im/aosta-piazzachanoux.jpg
http://www.vakantienoord-italie.eu/img/aosta2.jpg
http://www.naturaosta.it/images/Bard-corpi.jpg
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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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^^ Aosta is a damn cool place. Food/wine/beer is ace too.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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| mugen wrote: |
| Fifespud wrote: |
Funnily enough I'm 50 next year and have just this week been considering doing a month as my 'present' to myself.
St Gervais is a good option but having the leaseback in Nendaz kind of ties me there. A month in the 4V, couple of trips to Chamomix, maybe Zermatt and Crans, I reckon it would be bearable.
Switzerland is getting slightly cheaper again - almost 1.5 - with lots of sales and discounts on the go it wasn't as bad as I was imagining at New Year. |
fifers aren't known for their spending ability. you lot have a cheap night where ever you go and still think you've been done |
I'm actually from Dundee originally before crossing to 'The Kingdom' so I usually just steal stuff.
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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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Opening the debate up when would you go for your month? I'm thinking either the month before half term or the month immediately after but have no idea about French/Swiss/Austrian school holidays.
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| Arno wrote: |
| Another vote for briançon |
And another one.
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Well I've been skiing now for well over a month, I based myself in Niederau in Austria and got myself a Tirol Snowcard season pass for just over €600. Reason for Niederau was it's fairly central, cheap to stay (€43 per night half board in a single room). But a car (with winter tyres) is vital.
During the last month I've skied the Ski Welt (many times), most of Kitzbuhl/Kirchberg, Zillertal, Kuhtai, varies resorts around Innsbruck. Also have had (working) weeks further afield in Ski Amade & Bormio (unfortunately requiring separate passes), and will ski quite a few more of the tirol resorts next week before going home. Also seeing if I can squeeze in a few days up the Oetztal.
Snow conditions in Tirol have been fantastic (Italy less so), and the cost of beer/food in Austria is cheap. Lifts are modern and fast- almost all new chairlifts have heated seats and bubbles - great when it's cold (France and Italy really need to wake up to modern lift technology).
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Aha , so everyone (well alroght, not quite) is coming back to Bourg St M
Which to me, brings my rec of St Foy a good call if you want to not be in a bog town, but in something a little bit more local - find an apartment in a local village, you have teh local bar, butcher, boulanger etc. and you are only 10 mins from BSM and all teh resorts around.
Nice being right ...........
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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 can't work out the reply to thingy...
Pan W and Dr John I'd pick Tignes and Val T purely on the ease of skiing and access to great areas. Although you're right it would be nice to be in a more pretty town. However I'm reasonably sure I'd spend most of my time out on the mountains during the day and be knackered at night, you can't see prettiness when it's dark anyway
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kat.ryb, fair point, but I'd hazard a guess that you haven't spent an evening in either. Take it from us, you want to invest your time and hard earned money in somewhere nice.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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ruthie, I presume from your sig that you're based on a large French (ish) island? Would you be driving to the alps?
I am surprised no-one has suggested somewhere like Morzine? Proper town, at least in Winter, oodles of skiing around the PDS, near enough to Chamonix, Grand Massif, Aravis, etc. For day trips.
I am also surprised to hear suggestions that you might not ski every day. From observation, anyone I know who's made such a commitment has perhaps not skied every day but that's only because they were learning to snowboard, ice climb, et al.
I'm with Pam on basing yourself in one place and I'm definitely of the opinion that driving to ski every day would get old very, very quickly.
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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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kat.ryb, click on the persons name on the left hand side, it puts there name in "bold" text in the reply bar at the bottom.
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I would choose 4 different regions with spectacular scenery and different ski cultures in 4 different countries with large ski areas on one pass that I could access with a car:
Switzerland: Jungfrau region staying in Lauterbrunnen valley, spectacular scenery wherever you look, great skiing at Murren, Wengen & Grindelwald.
Austria: Any of the 3 options mentioned already: the resorts of the Zillertal, Arlberg or SkiWelt/Kitzbuhel would be great to experience the awesome apres or even scenic Zell am See and the surrounding areas on the Salzburg Super Ski Card.
Italy: Somewhere in the Dolomites as jimmybog recommended, the resorts of the Alta Badia region offer access to the unique scenery of the Sella Ronda, Cortina, Hidden Valley & Kronplatz, so Corvara would be a good base, but La Villa or Pedraces would be cheaper.
France: Mont Blanc area, lots of great areas with awesome scenery, Chamonix, Argentiere, Megeve, Les Contamines. St Gervais would be a good base or somewhere cheaper near Sallanches. (Aagh, just checked these resorts aren't all on the same pass, so you'd have to do 3+3)
The biggest question would be how much to spend on accommodation, to be in a resort next to the lifts would be a lot more expensive, so a lot of saving could be made by staying away and commuting a few miles every day to different areas, but I agree that it could get tedious, perhaps two of the weeks you could opt for more convenient accommodation.
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You know it makes sense.
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| Quote: |
to be in a resort next to the lifts would be a lot more expensive
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some linked areas have minor satellites which can be a lot cheaper. e.g Le Bettex near St Gervais. Though St Gervais isn't too bad - snowhead called Annie spent a season there and could advise.
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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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i am soooooo tempted now to work out whether i can do this next year
I am not sooooooooooo tempted to work out how i can persuade mrs sev112 to let me
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Poster: A snowHead
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Brides Les Bains : cheaper accom & 3 Valleys pass.....sorted
Is what I would do as a novice.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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| harrisontherabbit wrote: |
| Bigtipper wrote: |
| I spent a lot of time wandering around ...... supermarkets, out of town shopping centres... |
On a skiing holiday?  |
^
this
I'd say 20 days minimum. Most likely 25 days, albeit some are half days. That's why it's more advantageous to have a season pass. You can ski the morning and go shopping in the afternoon without feeling like you've wasted the day pass.
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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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Ricklovesthepowder,
Ahh, thanks!
Dr John, yhes you are right; Val T is on the plan for March so I reserve the right to change my mind. 
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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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| RobW wrote: |
| and will ski quite a few more of the tirol resorts next week before going home. Also seeing if I can squeeze in a few days up the Oetztal. |
So you're planning to stay on a for a bit longer than you told us then?
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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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Very interesting to hear everyone's views and wish lists. Have looked at that Ski Welt area - its huge and could base ourselves somewhere near lifts but also could drive to different starting points within it. Same for PDS. Think it would be important to be somewhere that is accessible to higher resorts as Bigtipper, says you wouldn't want to be committed to a month somewhere with no snow!
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There's a lot fo great advice for Ruthie here, but I thougth I'd add my two penneth;
1) Availability of accommodation - Often in the "ab fab" resorts most owners will want to charge 4x1week rates so can be costly. Also with the weekly earning potential a lot of owner won't want to take the comparative cut needed for a long term booking. Therefore "long stay" accommodation in some of the resorts can be severely limited.
2) Cost - I assume you've not got bottomless pockets so it might really be worth you investigating some of the "back door" resorts such as Brides for Meribel, Bourg for Les Arc, Araches/St Sigimond for Grand Massif etc etc. Typically the cost of similar properties are less than half what they are in the main tourist resort (related to point 1) also shopping is cheaper (20/30%) so can have a massive impact on total cost of your month.
3) Season Passes - if bought at the right time (and every resort is different) often if you use your pass 15/16 times during the season the it works out as cost effective when compared with daily tickets. But as I think Pam says, when you've got a Season pass you might look up, see the conditions and just pop out for a couple of hours.
4) Skiing every day - living in a resort for a long period is very different from going on a weeks holiday so you might not ski every day... in fact I'd go so far as to say you definitely won't ski every day!! Unless you are very fit then your body is unlikely to take the exercise. To the point that a lot of "residents" will acknowledge that they are far fitter (ski wise) in April/May than they were in December/January and this is after they've spent a lot of the Autumn trying to get fitter in readiness for the skiing. So, the chances of someone being able to take a month work break and be fit enough to ski every day is very unlikely. Besides, do you really need to ski in a white out?? Which would you rather do, ski in a white out or sit in a nice warm apartment with a good book/DVD/CD on?
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| abc wrote: |
| harrisontherabbit wrote: |
| Bigtipper wrote: |
| I spent a lot of time wandering around ...... supermarkets, out of town shopping centres... |
On a skiing holiday? |
^
this
I'd say 20 days minimum. Most likely 25 days, albeit some are half days. That's why it's more advantageous to have a season pass. You can ski the morning and go shopping in the afternoon without feeling like you've wasted the day pass. |
I have to say you have got me completely wrong here. Whilst I went shopping, I also went to St Tropez, Nice, and all along the French Riviera all the way down to Barcelona. Then I went up to Andorra skiing when the snow was good.
I did not restrict myself to one resort by buying a season pass because I was there for more than one month. More like 2 or three months of the season.
However, I did spend most of my time early season in Tignes and Val d'Isere. Verbier, Zermatt, and Solden. Where the snow and weather was best!
I did not really get very bored of skiing, more that the weather was not perfect, and I wanted to try some other resorts (to tick them off my list more than anything)
I would say it is probably cheaper in terms of lift pass to get a season pass and stay in one place, but in terms of accommodation costs that may not be the best way.
In the out of town supermarkets and Hypermarkets, I stocked up on food, drink and sports equipment, and also examined the insulation and heating materials available from campervan shops and the building material outlets in those areas. This was more a research and development opportunity, and something to do other than skiing.
The weather in the French coastline at that time of year was 10-20 C mostly, but usually with good sunshine. Not really sunbathing weather, but close to a Scottish good summers day!
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If you want to do it all on a single season pass, then what about the Dolomiti Superski with 1,000km?
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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 may have missed this ruthie, but when is this "month" likely to be? The time of year could well have a bearing on where would be best.
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FAQ
