do it yourself ski hol next season......help please

I did re watch the vid, and it didn't really make me laugh !!!!!

saffer wrote:We, as 2 families, numbering 8 in total, have just come back from Niederau. We stayed at Pension Margit, excellent value for money(Hi Steve, Diane and Heather), and we flew to Innsbruck with Easyjet. We used Four Seasons Travel for the return transfer, which worked out at about 265 euros return in an 8 seater minibus. Holiday total for a family of 4, including carparking at Bristol airport, flights, half board accommodation(did I mention it is great value for money), ski hire, lift pass, transfers and a lot of booze in Bobo's at the end of every day worked out at just under £3000. £750 a head is as cheap as I can get a good ski holiday. :lol:

That is certainly not cheap. I've done St Anton for under £600 fully catered with booze and lift pass as well, and Serre Che for a similar amount. I've also done St Moritz 4 star all inclusive for only £180pp more than that. Bearing in mind you went to Niederau and slummed it with the budget airlines, I think my trips seem to be particularly good value, so thanks for that reassurance!!!

Are you going to leave it at that, Tony?:D Aren't you going to tell all of us how you managed to arrange such cheap trips, AND not use budget airlines? Seems like a piece of genius!

Maybe you haven't counted in the cost of booze as Saffer did, or perhaps ski hire etc didn't feature in your calculations

Ah the delights of budget airlines.
Just flown with B*I brat - booked flight, case & ski bag.
E Mids to Geneva - tap in reference number - prints boarding pass & check in case at regular desk & ski's at oversize desk. Simples.

Geneva to E mids. "You haven't booked luggage of ski carriage" When challenged they backed down on the luggage but not the skis.
Sent me to the Swissport service dest where unhelpful member of staff keeps dissapearing into the back room & returning to say I haven't got ski carriage booked. And unless I can show them a ticket I'll have to pay. Naturally no paper ticket just a booking reference as on-line. However I have may laptop in the back pack & logged into my booking - "there it is!"

But no "It says 1 ski bag"
Oh dear I've got he village idiot. Not persuadable with example that 1 ski/sports equipment carriage is literally that and not just carriage on the outbound flight.
I even demonstrated making a booking showing that the ski carriage price doubled if you booked a return journey for that 1 bag compared to a 1 way journey to the amount I had paid!

Still wouldn't have it & I had no choice but to pay & argue the toss with customer services back in the UK! Then charged me 9 Euros for paying by credit card!

It would have been so much cheaper & less hassle to have booked a package. (Not an option as meeting up with a friend doing the season in Montriond (Morzine))

Back to the thread.
Are you really sure you don't want to get a package deal. I know half term is expensive but the flights tend to be expensive too. Our half term tends not to always coincide with the Austrian half term so hotel costs don't shift that much (not the same in France however).
If you have 2 drivers you might be better off driving down.

Tony, tell us how you do it!!!!!!!!!!!

My costs include EVERYTHING! Spending money, some lessons, beers on the plane, breakfast at Bristol Airport, everything. I have just looked in my wallet, and there is still a 5 euro note. 2995 euros.....

Seriously though, Huwcyn, we booked our flights and accommodation in July.

saffer wrote:Tony, tell us how you do it!!!!!!!!!!!

I would like to know as well :)
We spent around 2500 for a holiday in Austria, February midterm, 2 adults, 2 children (daughter is 5yo which means she gets many things for free there), no lessons, driving from Bristol ) Didnt enjoy the driving part ... :(

I think Tony manages to do it cheap because he never goes Feb half-term, and I should think some of his ultra cheap holidays were last minute bargains.

Like some others on here, for the last few years we have had to go ski-ing at Feb half-term - the most expensive week of the whole ski season.

But I have still found that going DIY I save money on a package, and I get to tailor the holiday to suit ourselves. I find the packages quite limiting.

For example, we get to go on the train and go out on the day train and back on the night train so that we get an extra day to ski. I haven't found any packages that allow this combination. And we get to pick the most suitable (and cheap!) accommodation in the resort, close to a good grocery shop. I always pick somewhere right next to the piste or the lift up which is 'ski in and lift/piste out'. And we pick a ski hire shop which is close to our accommodation.

Our last holiday, for example, we ended up spending a phenomonal amount on train fares (because we bought the luxury seat tickets back at an extra £100 per person), but still saved £100 per person on the equivalent flight package (with Thomson's).

Thomson's price for a week self-catering at Feb half-term in Les Brigues apartments in Courchevel 1550 (not as nice or as well located as ours) with flights and transfers was £780.

Our costs per person
Day Eurostar out, luxury night return = £430
Apartment cost per person = £223
Return taxi from Moutiers to 1550 (1/2 hour) = £25
Sub-total = £678 (£100 cheaper than flight package with Thomson).

Ski lessons, total 12 hours = £167
Ski and boot hire = £90
Groceries (lots of chocolate and luxuries as well as 'real' food) = £42
Meals out (one very expensive meal out on the slopes in 1650 and two much cheaper ones in 1550) = £40
7 day lift passes for Courchevel only (including carre neige insurance) = £210

Total holiday costs = £1227 per person

There were a few other things I had to pay out for - like return train tickets from here to London (about £35 with Advance tickets), lunch on the Eurostar, snacks in Moutiers station whilst waiting for the train back, etc. etc.

Not a cheap holiday by any means, but we all had a really great time! :D

Ally

Here is my costing for my most recent ski:
Flight ~ £69
Transfer ~ 77Eu = £66
Accomodation ~ 20Eu/ngt, inc tax, 420Eu, = £362
Total cost, 3 weeks, £497
Cost per week ~ £166

For one of us, it was cheaper, cos we had one airmile return flight.
Lift pass, £78/week, (prorata usage of my season pass)

Don't count food and drink, since, being Austria, this is cheaper than at home.