Who's going skiing and where - 2021 #postcrisis

[The_Doc]

Lost my family trip in 9 days to the French Alps. I really do feel for the resort staff and all the associated jobs in the vicinity.
This is going to be such a hit for a tourist area, and a country at large.

Sooooooooo,

Easyjet released 2021 Jan and Feb flights yesterday, and capped costs at £29.99 per flight per person.

Half term 2021, Portes du Soleil, all booked !!

Only 11 months to go !! Got to support the mountain businesses. Oh and Easyjet sold out the half term flights in about 30 minutes from NCL

[The_Doc]

Yes I did think that the easyjet early release deal looked like a cash generating exercise.

But I still believe in supporting the ill fated tourism industry, so I'm in for a few hundred pounds for 2021.

[The_Doc]

I think Easyjet play the "who blinks first" tactic on cancellations, to save them handing back cash.

timeline:
say 4 days to go, you change to another flight, they keep the cash and plan their business on post crisis flights
2 days to go, you blink and cancel yourself - they keep your cash minus the taxes
1 day to go, they blink and cancel the flight - cash back to you.

I have to credit the business acumen in it, its how I'd do it, morals excepted.

Edited by The_Doc on Wednesday 25th March 16:10

[The_Doc]

Ok, what is the correct method for getting a refund for an Easyjet flight that they cancelled ?

I'm filling out the EU261 form on https://www.easyjet.com/en/claim/EU261, but the final disclaimer says

" By checking this box, you acknowledge that submitting this claims form will not refund your unused ticket. If you are entitled to a refund, please visit Manage Bookings."

And on Manage Bookings there is no refund button

??

I would like a report from a successful refundee, please

[The_Doc]

The_Doc said:

Ok, what is the correct method for getting a refund for an Easyjet flight that they cancelled ?

I'm filling out the EU261 form on https://www.easyjet.com/en/claim/EU261, but the final disclaimer says

" By checking this box, you acknowledge that submitting this claims form will not refund your unused ticket. If you are entitled to a refund, please visit Manage Bookings."

And on Manage Bookings there is no refund button

OK, for information I think I've cracked it.

Didn't fill in form EU261 online which I believe is for compensation rather than refund.
Rang 0330 365 5000 at 08:00 a few seconds after the Contact Centre opened.
Sat in a queue on hold for 10 mins
Obtained a full refund (initial ticket purchase and secondary hold bag purchase) after talking to a human.

Have yet to see the money come back onto my credit card, but the booking no longer exists on my account, so something has been changed. I can no longer move it to another flight, it is gone.

The spiel on the phone says they are processesing refunds only if your flight departs <48 hrs away and it has been cancelled by them.

[The_Doc]

GT72 said:

We have flights booked to Geneva for Feb half term. We’ll be going to Morzine, as we have done for the last 5 years with a large family group. Flights were £200 instead of the £2,000 they would have cost this year.

Still sorting out the chalet, but have used the same chalet company every year and know the owner very well. Fingers crossed it comes off next year.

Ditto everything including the price, but I own accom out there. I've been going there every year for 20yrs!

And we're going there on Aug 8th.

I've even bought some Easyjet reduced luggage at 99p each way for a ski bag, I need to bring back some of the redundant skis and boards in our lockers.

Bring on 2021!

[The_Doc]

JQ said:

The chalet company we use in Morzine are currently recruiting for next season, which is a positive sign.

Which company, please? One of my friends kids fancies a season.
VIP?

[The_Doc]

Our accom in Morzine is taking a fair few bookings for 20/21 season, on Airbnb

[The_Doc]

Easyjet have just deleted their Newcastle to Geneva route entirely.

EG winter season 20/21 and every other time of the year.

These NCL-GVA flights were 6 days a week and quite busy before CV19

Easyjet website said:

Sorry, we don't fly directly from Newcastle to Geneva
Available with a connection (Worldwide by easyjet)
Newcastle to Geneva (with 1 stop) Worldwide

Alternative easyjet routes
Edinburgh to Geneva

the global proliferation of flights from anywhere to anywhere is over for a while.

[The_Doc]

CAPP0 said:

Wonder how that would work if you are planning to ski in France but fly into GVA? Will there be a "no stopping from the airport to the border" type arrangement, similar to the current provision where you can drive back through France to the UK without having to quarantine? I would hope so, but the Swiss are sticklers for their rules. Otherwise it's the lonnnnng schlep from Lyon or the hellhole that is Chambery even without Covid to take into account!

You can exit Geneva Airport into France directly and never set foot in Switzerland.
There is a bizarre road going parallel to the runway that is France with "Switzerland" on either side of the road (fenced)
That said it's a big detour to get to the A40 and the road to Mount Blanc.

We usually duck under the runway into the city and go that way via the lake. This is NoMansLand-France-Switzerland-France in the space of 25 mins

[The_Doc]

I've done it in the summer lots of times too.
When my wife and I started dating we drove down for a 3 week hol in July.
I insured her on my 330d and she said she'd do half the driving.
I drove Leeds to Dover and I did about 50km out of Calais and we swapped. I went to sleep in the passenger seat.
I woke to find us making us very, very good progress on cruise control.
Doing 130mph.

She looked a little jaded but said she'd managed an hour at 130.

The signs said 130 was the limit. How we laughed

[The_Doc]

DoubleSix said:

Yeah, the social side is important imo. I remember having a riot in ski school, cutting up the french kids..

And it’s time away from us which they’ll appreciate.

I put my kids into ESF classes aged I think 4 and 6. 9am-12pm for 6 days.
They were in separate classes, nobody in their class spoke English
They leaned lots, but we do small group classes now, usually with British ski-schools who employ nice French instructors with perfect English.
It costs a bomb, but I reckon 2 more weeks of lessons and then I can teach them myself.

[begin lecture of how I can't teach my kids to ski here]

[The_Doc]

//j17 said:

Yep, up early, first lift, ski through lunch, give up mid-afternoon, dump kit and enjoy a late lunch somewhere, sat outside in t-shirt and shorts ejoying the sun.

17°C at lunchtime March 2018
O'Padcha Restaurant
2200m

DJ playing.
Boarding home - very poor



Here's the EU "border" marked in red on the floor. Sunbathing and €7 pints

[The_Doc]

I'm genetically related to him

[The_Doc]

Sorry work-mode.
That man in the centre is my brother, but he is not Vetel.
He usually get mistaken for Ben Affleck, but perhaps at altitude he morphs into Seb
Anyhow, we are drifting off topic here

[The_Doc]

In my inbox March 2019

My parents ski 6-8 weeks of the year and got one each.

This season they were going for the same, until they realised that at age 75+ the season pass is now FREE

[The_Doc]

S100HP said:

S100HP said:

https://planetski.eu/2020/11/10/four-uk-tour-opera...

FOUR UK TOUR OPERATORS CANCEL ALL SKI HOLIDAYS IN DECEMBER

No comment at all on this?!

Its a shame, but what else is there to say?
Morzine and the rest of the PDS announced yesterday they would open on Dec 19th.

Edited by The_Doc on Friday 13th November 07:16

[The_Doc]

Welshbeef said:

Anyone a fan of Gstaad?

££££

I think Rupert and Arabella go there

[The_Doc]

Damn they're everywhere!

[The_Doc]

I'll bet VIP were leveraged to hell, they seemed to grow at a crazy rate, like a BTL empire.
Anyhow sad, we often let our accom to their seasonnaires
The whole domino setup is coming down