 Poster: A snowHead
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Been in the 3V all week and have finally made it home after a horrendous journey. The flight was at 3pm from Geneva, we left Les Menuires at 10am, loads of time to get to the airport right.........NOT! It took us 1hr 30m to get to Moutiers! We could see all the traffic down in the valley and thought when we had merged we would be fine. We eventually got down and the driver decided to take the motorway route past Chambery then up to Geneva. At 1.30 we still hadn't cleared Champery due to hold ups, roadworks, accidents and a toll booth which broke, so only allowing 4 lanes of traffic through and not 10 lanes. At 2pm we had come to the conclusion that we would miss the 3pm flight, and the last check in at 2.20pm. We pulled into Geneva airport at 2.35pm. Legged it to the check in desk and thankfully they took our bags. Within 20 minutes we were stood at the gate and ready to board, then the flight got delayed but only for 25 minutes. So a nightmare journey all in all but thankfully back home after a great week. Anyone else get stuck in traffic today?
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Ricklovesthepowder, half-term for ya!
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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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Anyone else get stuck in traffic today?
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I'm sure the answer to that is going to be "Yes". But then, if you book a holiday where you will be on the roads on one of the busiest transfer days of the entire year......
Glad you had a great holiday though. And you did make your flight, so all's well that ends well. It's when you get stuck AND miss your flight AND have kids with you that you can reasonably call it a "nightmare"!
Remember there are two classes of travel; First Class and With Children!
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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the broken tolls are a pain, think of us who have to use the crappy system every day
great news you got home ok though.
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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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I've only been the Chambery route once, last year, and there was a broken toll booth then too. Didn't realise they were a common occurrence. Think I'll stick to the scenic route.
I often drive Marseille-Avignon: tolls down there seem pretty reliable.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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Spent just over 5 hours getting to Geneva from Tignes today. And most of that time was just getting to Bourg-Saint-Maurice, We were barely moving then the traffic just seemed to disappear.
Was expecting a 3 hour wait in the airport but ended up walking straight through and on to the plane
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Empty roads this morning as I head along the valley towards Champery. Can't remember when it was this cold at 300m !
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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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auto route outside Lyon was a nightmare
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well worth avoiding Lyon unless your destination makes any alternative completely ridiculous.
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auto route outside Lyon was a nightmare
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well worth avoiding Lyon unless your destination makes any alternative completely ridiculous.
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Empty roads this morning as I head along the valley towards Champery. Can't remember when it was this cold at 300m !
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Goodness only knows why there are not more Sun/Sun alternatives. Geneva airport is busy on Sundays but not as bad as Saturday, and the roads are hugely better. And you can ski the final transfer Saturday.
More and more French accommodation (though still a minority) offering a Sunday transfer alternative.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Weathercam, which exit do we take off the Rocade, I'm familiar with some of the route from a taxi ride from Grenoble hospital, but have never worked out which exit to take.
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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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Hells Bells, done a little map for you http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?msid=208663612751281113604.0004b8c3150a8c39e503b&msa=0&ll=45.126351,5.778809&spn=0.330885,0.727158&iwloc=0004b8c3267488f94c860
Basically if you sense or know the traffic is heavy once through the Grenoble peage go into Grenoble centre, over the river and just follow your nose looking for signs to Roacde / Chambery / Chamrousse - as you can see there are two routes you can take - and two routes to get to them - blue pins show the Route Napoleon way and the red pins the easier way, just follow signs off the main rocade to Chamberry / Chamrousse - once you've turned off take the Uriage Les Bains signs - really pleasant place - this road is where the time trial was last year in the TDF.
Both routes have you dropping down into Vizille, but the trick is not to join the main road in Vizille but follow that park along the long straight narrow road Av Aristide Briand and you come out right where the gendarmes often are in Peage Vizille, and then you have a nice big smile on your face as you work out a) where you've come out and b) it dawns on you how much time you've just saved 
Last year I was at my brothers (see North most pin in Chartreuse) and we went on the small roads all the way into and out of Grenoble as we'd heard the traffic was so bad.
Does help that I've been visiting him for the past 25 years or so and he's lived all around Grenoble (Meylan, Montbonnot, Bernin) which are all along the A41 so it was always a no brainer to go over the "hill" to get to and from his various places - think Davidof lives in that area as well.
Though should add that I still feck up a little, especially this year when I drove from Tignes to his place and took the N roads from Chambery - think the best method is to print out / have it on screen the Google map and use your GPS as well just to be sure as when entering place names on a GPS at the last minute I'm never 100% confident I have the right one 
When you heading back out ?
We're leaving March 9th (for four weeks) - stay with bro Friday night then go down to Serre arriving mid afternoon when they release the keys, usually stopping off at Chazalet (above La Grave) for lunch 
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The traffic was also backed-up heading into Grenoble on Saturday! Holiday traffic plus all the fallout from the work on the new tram line...
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You know it makes sense.
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Ricklovesthepowder, All the above sounds very familiar, these examples not at all dissimilar to the many and varied similar experiences I had over 15+ seasons getting into/ out of the Tarentaise............this is the reason I gave up bothering with French ski areas until they sort out the infrastructure (not likely IMO, its an unavoidable funnel-effect) and I now choose to ski in Austria and Switzerland - brilliant road/ rail and airport links, AND you dont get charged for using the toilets either, they actually do want your business IME and are so much more geared up to provide a quality service...........and by the way the toilets are clean!
But dont tell everyone
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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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Poster: A snowHead
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Yeah, seems to be cutting it tight at the best of times.
Last year our flight from Geneva was around noon and I'm sure we left VT around 5am on the transfer bus. Then spent about 3 hours in Geneva Airport, but better safe than sorry.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Well going out it took us 2hrs 35m to get there so allowing 5 hours should have been fine!
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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, subtract your 2hrs check-in time, plus however long it takes to hand back the hire car.
Seriously, I allow 5hrs from departure time to take-off time in the summer, when clear roads are pretty much certain. I'd add at least an extra 2 hours to that on a Saturday in winter if I was daft enough to do transfers!
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Assuming they aim to get you there for check in opening (2 hours prior to flight time usually), allowing three hours from anywhere in the three valleys to Geneva is highly ambitious, especially on UK half term saturday. Think the best we've had to Val Thorens (albeit about 25/30 mins up the valley from Les Menuires) is somewhere between 3 & 1/2 and 4 hours, with multiple drop offs/pick ups and the obligatory toilet stop at moutiers.
Last edited by You need to Login to know who's really who. on Mon 13-02-12 23:47; edited 1 time in total
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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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Well going out it took us 2hrs 35m to get there
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but that wasn't a big holiday transfer day. Makes a huge difference. Luck has a bit to do with it, too.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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| pam w wrote: |
well worth avoiding Lyon unless your destination makes any alternative completely ridiculous. |
well worth avoiding France unless your destination makes any alternative completely ridiculous. 
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Yes, nixmap, if you keep avoiding France, that'd be good. 
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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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Markymark29, Tarentaise has arguably the best rail links of any ski area in the world? It still baffles me that they don't make better use of this for airport transfers from Lyon/Grenoble/Chambery (even Geneva) though.
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stevomcd, maybe because a significant proportion of the Tarentaise population make a very good living from driving buses to and from ski resorts 
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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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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Sky to See, 4000m to 400m one of the bigger panoramas in Switzerland, sunshine, 40cm of powder - barely a soul in sight.
No queues , sunshine and fresh powder in half term week, been shredding all day.
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| stevomcd wrote: |
| Markymark29, Tarentaise has arguably the best rail links of any ski area in the world? |
Ever been to Switzerland?
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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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nixmap, it's so fecking expensive now in Switzerland no one can afford to go there - get real and admit that's the reason no one is there!
Heard that Swedish guides that were operating out of Verbier have moved elsewhere as their Scandi clients just are not even contemplating Switzerland due to the krona vs Franc which is worse than the GBP
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Poster: A snowHead
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...as I reported earlier in the season transfer days can be chaose... it took me 7 hours from Val d'Isere to Geneva on New Years Eve transfer day this year and then 5 hours coming back again.... to put that into perspective I have (yes pushing the speed limit a little) done the journey on clear roads etc in a little over 2 hours before!
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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The change over day traffic jam seems to be a French thing from my own experience. Never encounter it in Switzerland and Austria but only once in Italian Dolomites where the traffic was moving but not free flow. The road between Munich and Innsbruck is normally quite packed on Saturday evening but could be free flow if one hit it early or late.
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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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Drive out of the Maurienne Valley on Saturday was a good one. Only real queues we hit were the nightmare at the last Peage on the A26 at Calais. Left Val Cenis at 6.30 and took the scenic route against the traffic via Albertville, Ugine and then along Lake Annecy. Not motorway speeds but all flowing OK. Breakfast on the side of the lake at 8.00 and then onto the motorways from Annecy via Autoroute Blanche and Bourg en Bresse. Again moving OK albeit it was queuing coming the other way. Reckon the key is to avoid Chambery and Lyon if you can, and it is a far more scenic drive.
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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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saikee, you obviously did not have your eyes open! The A7 had over 60kms of jams in Bavaria alone last Saturday and that was just the going south direction! The resulting congestion caused problems over the Fern Pass also in both directions. Every Saturday there are problems of jams around Munich on the A99 and along the A8. Most Saturdays the Pfänder Tunnel (near Bregenz) has "Blockanfeertigung" in place, i.e. they use both lanes in one direction and alternate the traffic flow between north and south-bound. when you add bad weather to the mix the hold ups can be horrendous. I live just off the A8/A93 and I never use the motorways to get around on a Saturday in the ski or summer holiday seasons. If I am going skiing for the day I make sure I am on the road before 07.30 to be ahead of the traffic but still encounter jams on the A10 Tauernautobahn sometimes. If I am going away for a few days, then I usually travel to my resort/accommodation in the evening or make sure I am ready to leave at the crack of dawn if I want to ski that day.
On major changeover days (summer or winter), all HGV traffic is banned from the Austrian roads from the Friday night at 22.00 to the Monday morning at 06.00 (excluding HGVs delivering fresh food and essential supplies). This means all the transit HGVs are off the road and the slow lane can be used by normal traffic.
This winter though the length, duration and number of hold-ups seems to be way down on previous years. On the traffic announcements on the radio they refer to these as "Betten-Wechsel Tag".
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FAQ
, but then again half term we don't seem to have all the queues people go on about 