| Skiing holiday advice. 10:45 - Jan 7 with 4149 views | calders |
My daughter and a couple of friends are looking at doing a ski trip at the end of next month,
My daughter has skied a fair bit when she was younger but only in the states, the rest of her friends are beginners.
they are looking at somewhere in Europe that's not going to cost a fortune. There not that fussed about nightlife just somewhere with decent facilities that's not silly money to have a few drinks and a meal in the evening.
Any advice on countries/resorts and holiday companies would be very much appreciated. Thanks!! |  | | |  |
| Skiing holiday advice. on 11:24 - Jan 7 with 4120 views | boobishabang |
I would recommend La Plagne in the French Alps as a good place to ski, the resort is made up of several villages which are all pretty much ski inout and there is a vast array of slopes available for both beginners and more experienced skiers, and plenty of choice on accommodation to suit all prices, there's also The Vanoise Express which is a cable car across the valley linking Les Arcs ski resort so even more on offer there, i've used this company in the past and found their service really good - http://www.lastminuteskideals.co.uk/ [Post edited 7 Jan 2014 11:27]
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| Skiing holiday advice. on 12:15 - Jan 7 with 4090 views | SuffolkHoop |
If you're on a budget avoid Switzerland full stop. France and Italy are also very expensive. Some of the food and drink in Austria can be a little less expensive than in the French resorts.
I'd recommend Mayrhofen in Austria. Excellent ski area at fairly high altitude so quite snow-sure, and the bars and clubs in town have plenty of competition for the younger crowd which holds prices at a reasonable level. |  | | |
| Skiing holiday advice. on 12:32 - Jan 7 with 4072 views | R_from_afar |
I have had some good snowboarding holidays in Soldeu, In Andorra. There was a decent choice of runs, it was pretty cheap and the scenery and facilities were good. There are quite a lot of resorts strung out in a line in that area.
RFA |  |
| "Things had started becoming increasingly desperate at Loftus Road but QPR have been handed a massive lifeline and the place has absolutely erupted. it's carnage. It's bedlam. It's 1-1." |
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| Skiing holiday advice. on 12:51 - Jan 7 with 4061 views | Juzzie |
In 1998 I went snowboarding in Borovets in Bulgaria. It was very much 'no-frills' and didn't have as many runs as the more established places but as we were all on a budget it done the trick and we had a great week there. No idea what it is like now though but worth considering maybe? |  | | |
| Skiing holiday advice. on 12:57 - Jan 7 with 4047 views | TW_R |
| Skiing holiday advice. on 12:32 - Jan 7 by R_from_afar |
I have had some good snowboarding holidays in Soldeu, In Andorra. There was a decent choice of runs, it was pretty cheap and the scenery and facilities were good. There are quite a lot of resorts strung out in a line in that area.
RFA |
I'd go for Andorra too. Reasonably priced and the slopes are really good for beginners. Arinsal is also a decent resort, which links to Pal and Arcalis with the same lift pass. |  | | |
| Skiing holiday advice. on 13:20 - Jan 7 with 4017 views | boobishabang |
| Skiing holiday advice. on 12:57 - Jan 7 by TW_R |
I'd go for Andorra too. Reasonably priced and the slopes are really good for beginners. Arinsal is also a decent resort, which links to Pal and Arcalis with the same lift pass. |
Me and the missus went to Arinsal 3 years ago for our honeymoon, for her who'd not skied before it was a good place to start, I thought it was pretty limited and the snow was really poor as its not that high a resort, Pal was better, but found after the 2nd day most runs had been done across the valley | | | |
| Skiing holiday advice. on 13:56 - Jan 7 with 3968 views | bob566 |
I only skied once in my life in Germany in reitimwinkl. Ryanair into Munich (if they're still flying there) and a one to two hour car drive down.
It was cheap as chips when I went. That's the cheapest I can think of in Europe unless you can get a cheap Andorran package.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reit_im_Winkl | | | |
| Skiing holiday advice. on 14:32 - Jan 7 with 3949 views | Tonto |
Bulgaria and Andorra are cheap, but only good for beginners. My wife and I just booked our holiday this weekend for 25th Jan (which I assume is the week you are going) and there were plenty of deals to these locations (although we are going to Madonna Di Campiglio in Italy)
However, if your daughter would like to expand her skiing a bit, then there are also some good deals to some Austrian resorts that are good for beginneers AND intermediates (Rauris, St Johann).
I would recommend looking at the Crystal website. I've been with them a few times, and IMO they are one of the better companies to ski with and also have a good website. I'm linking to their January deals section. It rates each location for beginners/inters/adbvanced on the main page, which makes it easier.
http://www.crystalski.co.uk/ski-deals/january-2014-ski-deals/?cid=ppcgoosea024si
After Crystal, I would say try Inghams... |  |
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| Skiing holiday advice. on 15:12 - Jan 7 with 3918 views | BrianMcCarthy |
Haven't been to Andorra, but I hear it's improving.
Would agree with those who recommended Austria. I do a good bit of ski travel writing and I've always found it excellent. It's cheaper than France, Switzerland or Italy, people are cool and friendly, food is only okish, but the main thing is the snow and it's quality. Altitude, climate, excellent snowmaking and pistebashing, excellent lifts with hardly any queues, great connections bewteen resorts. The Skiwelt has 279km of slopes accessible from nine villages, the best of which is Soll.
Coach transfer of ninety minutes from Munich, Salzburg or Innsbruck, great restaurants, some good pubs, two ok clubs, average age is late 20's to early 40's with plenty of returnees so the buzz is good.
The only slight drawback is that it isn't ideal for beginners in my humble opinion. Great ski instructors and good runs for beginners, but the runs aren't the easiest to get to. Your daughter's friends may want to think about it. If they are adventurous at all then it won't be a problem and they will improve more in Soll than in most places because of the quality, width and variety of the slopes suitable for beginners. If they are cautious or a bit apprehensive then they may need to read up a bit more to put their minds at ease either way.
If they choose Soll, PM me. I can put them in touch with lots of people out there. |  |
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| Skiing holiday advice. on 16:00 - Jan 7 with 3887 views | swisscottage |
I'd have to agree with others in this thread in that if you're looking at Europe then Austria ticks all the boxes. Generally speaking its cheaper than Switzerland and France, many of the places are a little less commercialised with a more relaxed feel, and I have to say the Austrians are a far friendlier bunch than the French, and a bit friendlier than the Swiss.
However of all my favorite skiing holidays my two favorites were Heavenly(Lake Tahoe) in the States) and Mont Tremblant(Montreal) in Canada, and when the tally at the end of the holiday comes up they also tend to work out about the same as Europe due to overall lower costs when you're there ( unless of course you blow a load in the casinos in Tahoe). | | | |
| Skiing holiday advice. on 17:03 - Jan 7 with 3847 views | RamseyR |
Choices...choices.....Would echo much of what has been said. Lots of good resorts to choose from but France does tend to be expensive and can be VERY expensive.
I'd plump for Austria...Mayrhofen or Soll both excellent choices for skiing and the towns are nice, particularly Mayrhofen. Soll has buses to the main lift but don't let this put you off, as they work really well. My son has worked a season in both of these resorts and we have skied both for a holiday.
If you choose France, Morzine or La Plagne good choices and not too expensive.
If you want really cheap go to Bulgaria. Food in the hotels is adequate, but not the best even in the good hotels. I never had a problem but many complained. The skiing is Ok but there are not as many pistes as larger resorts. The ski schools are a bit crap though, the instructors more concerned with taking you to a restaurant so they can get their free meal.
As you have mainly beginners you might get better value going to France or Austria for their first time as the tuition is excellent. No point in saving a couple of hundred if you can't tackle a blue by the end of the week.
That said, I'm off to Morzine in France later this month.
Cant comment on Andorra or Italy as have not been to either. [Post edited 7 Jan 2014 17:05]
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| Skiing holiday advice. on 19:11 - Jan 7 with 3791 views | BrazilNutR |
Went to Bulgaria about 8 years ago, snowboarding, was Brilliant, really cheap and good snow. It was my first time and seemed like a fair range of slopes.. but dont have much to compare it with. Best holiday I ever had...absolute carnage! On the piste and on the piss  |  | | |
| Skiing holiday advice. on 09:29 - Jan 8 with 3675 views | smegma |
If you're on a budget as you say, Andorra and Bulgaria are your best bets. Andorra has better runs though. | | | |
| Skiing holiday advice. on 09:41 - Jan 8 with 3670 views | SuffolkHoop |
I'd be tempted to organise it myself. When I've been skiing in Austria I've tended to use Easyjet from Gatwick to Innsbruck. Mayrhofen is one of the closest resorts to here and is less than an hours drive from the airport. Looking now you can fly Thursday 20th Feb - Thurs 27th Feb for £87pp before bags and extras. You can book the transfer through many providers online and I'd recommend homeaway.co.uk and rent suitable accomodation direct from an owner. | | | |
| Skiing holiday advice. on 12:41 - Jan 8 with 3624 views | Juzzie |
| Skiing holiday advice. on 19:11 - Jan 7 by BrazilNutR |
Went to Bulgaria about 8 years ago, snowboarding, was Brilliant, really cheap and good snow. It was my first time and seemed like a fair range of slopes.. but dont have much to compare it with. Best holiday I ever had...absolute carnage! On the piste and on the piss |
Was that also Borovets?
When I went we (well me, the others were lightweights) got absoulutely w...kered on the 2nd night there! All the drinks came with a free shot and my two mates didn't drink theirs so I had them.... three shots for every drink, and I had a lot to drink!
Had the mother of all hangovers the next day and up at 8am but after an hour on the slopes, all that work/excercise had pumped it out of my system (plus a vew visits behind the pine trees!), best hangover cure ever!
The last night I got mullered too and met up with a nanny from Liverpool. Got 'messy' but didn't get my leg over in the end as I think I passed out in her dorm!
Great week  | | | |
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