 Poster: A snowHead
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Hi All,
I'm new here and just looking for info on Catered Chalet packages.
We're fancying a change from France for 2014 but I'm struggling to come up with many options elsewhere. I can find a few in St Anton but not much else and these are pretty expensive, also not really the best resort for a mixed ability group. Would like Austria but would also consider Switzerland or Italy (Quite fancy The Dolomite region). I have seen some options there with Ski Total but the chalets look very basic compared to similar priced alternatives in French resorts.
Can anyone point me towards any other operators?
Thanks,
Chris
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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ChrisP3, welcome to SHs.  Mountainsun have a place in the Dolomites - well worth a look. Not luxurious, but very good value. But mostly, if you want to do Italy and Austria, and don't want to cook for yourselves, the answer seems to be a hotel - there are plenty of good ones, and lots of local advice here on SHs. You are absolutely NOT limited to the ones used by the British tour operators - indeed they might be best avoided.
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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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Hi Pam, thanks for the quick reply. We really like chalets as we have young children so can make ourselves at home and have a few drinks in the evening without worry. We'd also prefer a package with flights. Have done the putting it together ourselves including this year to St Foy but have found it a bit of a pain booking everything seperately. I'm just getting lazy in my old age and want to be able to get on the plane and not think about anything else other than what piste to take or if I should drink beer or wine!
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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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ChrisP3, I fully agree with the benefits of chalets - we nearly always used them for family holidays. But choice outside France is very limited. One you might like to look at, in Austria, is Austrian Adventures - http://www.austrian-adventures.com/ which is run by a Snowhead, flangesax. I've not visited but people who have have been very positive. There are a lot of independent chalets in France, too, often of high quality, in a wide range of resorts. In any of these places the people running them can help you with flights, transfers, etc.
Which resorts have you visited? And which aspects do you want a change from? Plenty of advice available here, whatever you're after.
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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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Hate repetition, but Esprit have chalets in Austria and Italy.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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Can certainly 2nd the Austrian Adventures recommendation (and I know for a fact that many other sH would too).
Would have also suggested the mountainsun one in the Dolomites, but I've never been there. Other sH have though.
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Hello ChrisP3,
Try Colletts Mountain holidays. They have catered chalets in Corvara and Pedraces in the dolomites.
You have to arrange your own travel, but the holidays sound tempting
Cheers, Geoff
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ChrisP3, Have you looked at Crystal? They have chalets in Austria, Italy and Switzerland as well as France. Or you could try searching e.g. 'catered chalet Verbier' (there used, at least, to be lots there).
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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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Wow! Thanks for all the replies 
The most attractive French option at present is Les Gets with Total Ski. Any opinions on this? Would like a change as we have done France for the last few trips and like the ambience of the Austrian resorts but they're much more restricted in terms of chalets.
Priorities are - varied skiing / boarding for mixed ability group, nice town / village, fairly near lifts and a nice catered chalet. Currently unsure of size but I do like to get a group together and book a a whole chalet.
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I'm a fan of Ski Total. Been to St Anton with them as well as France; I know what you mean, their Austrian/Italian chalets don't feel as 'luxurious' somehow, but I think that's largely because they don't use huge quantities of unpainted pine!
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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ChrisP3, Ski Total served us proud last week - all very efficient, nice chalet, good food, etc. We all agreed we'd happily go with them again. Look up their strict rules about children under 13 not being allowed at adult dinner, though, as they could well affect your group.
Les Gets is a very nice resort, with a good mixture of runs. Our children learned there (good ski schools with British instructors) and we still like to go back. Do you know where the chalets are within it? Some parts are obviously much closer to the lifts than others, but there are regular buses. Other people on here are locals there and I'm sure would be happy to fill you in on location details.
But it isn't 'not France' 
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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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ChrisP3, your choice of country might be affected by dates. Unless you like lift queues get accurate advice about local (and Belgian, Dutch, British and German) holidays. More than one poster recently (and one of my local friends, who ought to know better  ) have been upset to find they've booked holidays which coincide with the Paris school holidays in March. The Colletts places in Italy sound terrific - that would be my choice, if I didn't have my own apartment in France! The scenery in the Dolomites is in a class of its own.
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Very impressed with The Collettes offerings. Reasonable prices and the include transfers. Anyone know if they allow kids in their chalets without booking the whole Chalet?
Sorry for the confusion - Les Gets is in the mix in case we can't find anything outside France.
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You know it makes sense.
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ChrisP3,
I went with Colletts twice last year. V V Good. Not luxury but proper home from home.
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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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We went to Arabba for Christmas and stayed in a caterd chalet run by Inghams. We had a good time and would definitely recommend it.
Last year we went to Kitzbuhel and chose a hotel, but it was a close toss up between that and a catered chalet which was practically ski in ski out (on Hahnenkammstrasse). And our next trip is to Flangesax's place.
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