Who is going skiing and where 2015?
Discussion
bp1 said:
Thanks for the info on Belle Plagne guys. I'll re-adjust the mindset for easy cruising 
. No doubt have the odd trip to Les Arcs, always enjoy the last gondola adrenaline
You'll have a great time in LP it's great for intermediates, vast and very underrated for it's off piste and therefore doesn't get tracked out like Tignes, Chamonix etc. . No doubt have the odd trip to Les Arcs, always enjoy the last gondola adrenaline The resorts not without it's issues, it's various satellite villages have sprang up over the years without a whole lot of planning, so in certain areas it can feel very disjointed and experience bottle necks with lift queues. Riding the vanoise express is worth it in itself but there's more than enough in LP to try and ski in a week. In bad conditions the pistes down to the gondola can get a little sketchy.
Christ, some of these webcams do look depressing! On the positive side anyone headed out limited skiing is better than no skiing at all but if there hasn't been a decent dump for Christmas week it will be carnage! Same thing happened last year but there more of snow left from early falls then nothing right up until Xmas.
As ive left it stupidly last minute to book any shared transport, im tempted to rent a car for the week to get from Geneva to VT, would i need snow chains though?
As im just considering the costs as a private taxi (no shared available) will cost around £300 one way, a hire car is around £200 for the week plus £50 for the parking plus petrol but id save alot of time on the return journey and costs.
Or has anyone tried the train system?
As im just considering the costs as a private taxi (no shared available) will cost around £300 one way, a hire car is around £200 for the week plus £50 for the parking plus petrol but id save alot of time on the return journey and costs.
Or has anyone tried the train system?
Mr E said:
Is there not a bus/coach?
Yep, have a look here...http://www.bensbus.co.uk/ski-transfer/geneva-airpo...
will be doing Bens bus on the return thoughLooking at webcams from most of the ski areas and following the weather forecast I fear that many resorts will be struggling to open for Christmas week. It's looking very bare across much of the Alps. I'm due to head out to Samoens on Friday and although there looks like reasonable cover from 1600m I'm not sure that it is enough for them to open.
Chamonix is also struggling for cover. Not a good start to the season, in fact probably the worst for a few years. Luckily I have another 4 weeks booked so bound to have decent cove at some point.
Chamonix is also struggling for cover. Not a good start to the season, in fact probably the worst for a few years. Luckily I have another 4 weeks booked so bound to have decent cove at some point.
Edited by taaffy on Saturday 13th December 11:47
Marcellus said:
Is there much skiing below 1600 in samoens anyway?
GME up, then traverse to go higher iirc?
Just basic green at 1600 so yes need to head up to about 2200 then over to Flaine. Even the higher parts of the Massif have bare patches though. can't believe how little snow there is in most of the regions.GME up, then traverse to go higher iirc?
There is a chance of reasonable snowfall this week in the Chamonix area so fingers crossed that the weather plays ball.
Edited by taaffy on Sunday 14th December 18:25
downthepub said:
Booked flights to Sweden yesterday for some late season skiing at Åre in April. Can hardly wait!
Snow report for Tignes this week is improving, not great though. Still, will be good to get out on the slopes. Roll on Wednesday!
What's the skiing like in Sweden whenever we've looked at options the Nordics has always been described as hills not mountains (I'm guessing this is wrong though?)Snow report for Tignes this week is improving, not great though. Still, will be good to get out on the slopes. Roll on Wednesday!
Welshbeef said:
downthepub said:
Booked flights to Sweden yesterday for some late season skiing at Åre in April. Can hardly wait!
Snow report for Tignes this week is improving, not great though. Still, will be good to get out on the slopes. Roll on Wednesday!
What's the skiing like in Sweden whenever we've looked at options the Nordics has always been described as hills not mountains (I'm guessing this is wrong though?)Snow report for Tignes this week is improving, not great though. Still, will be good to get out on the slopes. Roll on Wednesday!
I've only skied two days. It's strung out along a valley into 3/4 distinct areas next to a lake, you need to use the ski bus to access the full area. Size wise it doesn't compare to the medium to large alpine resorts with 100KM of pisted runs it's ideally suited for beginners to intermediates, there's little in the way of on piste challenges for more advanced skiers. The slopes are pretty much all south facing but the sun doesn't get high enough or warm enough to cause any issues. Speaking to my Swedish colleagues at the time April is probably the best time to go, it can be bitterly cold still but longer days and warmer than in the winter. Prone to high winds and lift closures that go with it.
Drinking spirits is expensive but beer is comparable to France in price I found-as is eating out generally speaking. Self-catering wouldn't be a bad shout. The Swedes are lovely folk and I found pretty much all of them speak fluent English.
I was in the area on business at the time so thought I'd check it out. It's popular with families looking for a refreshing change from the main alpine destinations.
Guess it depends what you're used to, if you want a large area to explore then it's not for you although 100KM's of runs would satisfy most intermediates for a weeks skiing.
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