Milky Way....Ski Jump hotel, Pregalato

We are in the middle of organising a 6th Form trip to the Milky Way at easter 2014 and are trying to find out more info about the distances from the hotel to the gondala in Pregolata, time to get to Sestriere on it etc as well as time it takes to bus 40 plus to the ski school at Sestriere. We are being offered a "local" lift pass which is only for Sestriere..and being charged for a full MW upgrade. The brochure and agent say 4 kms but are unable to advise if that is to the gondala in Pregalato or to Sestrire. The distance to Sestriere looks like about 11 kms and I reckon this will add about 1 hour to the "ski day" with uploading transfers etc.

We are torn between this hotel and another that has not got such good reviews but is at Sansacario, on piste, and with a full MW lift pass.

Thoughts please bearing in mind that most will be competant skiers but 16-18 years old with the urge to party if given the opportunity!

Couple of questions for you:

1. Why consider pragelato when the sansicario hotel seems to be far better and more suitable?
2. Milky Way at Easter......big risk for snow isn't it?

I've read about the new club med in pragelato that's next to the gondola direct into sestriere but the hotel you're talking about sounds like it really isn't practical to me.

Have you considered other resorts?

Some thoughts on your school trip.
My lad has been on a couple of school trips - both to Paso Tonale.
Between these he came with the family to Courchevel (in perfect conditions!!).
In his view Paso Tonale was better because.....
It was small - he couldn't get lost!
He could always find his friends - so he and a mate could ski around and then come back to find the girls who were beginners.
There was a teenager friendly bar at the bottom where they could all hang out, spend very little, get served a beer, not be hassled.....
The hotel was near the ski slopes - so anyone could go back and get what had been forgotten, drop off/pick up different bits, go and have a sleep for an hour or two and then get back out (teenager = overdo the late nights).

So, I am wondering about the actual practicalities of a bus to and from? Is it reasonable that all your 6th formers will be ready on time and all back to the bus at the same time at the end of the day?
Youngsters do like to feel independent - when free skiing how likely is it that they will get back to the correct valley at the end of the day?
(anecdote - another schools trip to Tignes, real hassle for teachers in that getting stuck in Val was common, mainly due to the attraction of the Folie Douce admittedly).

My view - small, contained area. Allows more freedom without a nightmare of a time for those in charge rounding up teenagers from here there and everywhere.

Another anecdote - friend of mine in Morzine with family. Two teenage girls, both good skiers, broken binding or something while over above Champery = a very long drive for Dad to go and rescue them from Switzerland!

Easter Sunday 2014 20th April!!! :shock: Couldn't find a 'sharp intake of breath' smiley.

I would definitely agree with Old Andy about the importance of being able to round up teenagers!

I would say a hotel near the slopes is really important. And allowing them to ski all over the place into areas where they can't get back when the lifts shut is really NOT a good idea!

My daughter's uni group got locked out of Tignes last year (they were in Val and missed the last lift back and had to pay for the last bus back), and then this year they nearly got stuck in Meribel when they were staying in VT - luckily they made it back to Les Menuires and then had to pay for a bus to get back to Val Thorens.

Quite honestly I think a smallish self-contained resort would be a much better idea - somewhere like a cheaper version of Obergurl.

Guess all your thoughts are similar to mine. We are having 5hrs "tuition" per day so there is no free skiing as such. Instructors rule where, how, when they ski and we babysit the evenings having delivered our 6th form babes back into our arms at 1600 ish.
On piste location is a no brainer for me but the head man is not so sure as he wants TOTAL control it seems.
Lack of snow is covered in the "snow guarantee" part of the insurance and with Montgenevre and Serre Che near I am not too worried -)

Was in Sestriere a few weeks ago and visited Pregalato.

The run down to it is fairly slow and would be pretty tedious each day.
The gondola up is average.

I would look elsewhere in the MW.

We stayed in the Olympic Village in Sestriere and it was great. And not too expensive.

Is the head honcho a skier???
Mid to late April skiing is getting very iffy anywhere without some serious altitude.