Clueless skier needing April ski options !!

Dear All

The thing I cherish most about J2ski is the range of informed information, that we all have.

I have a real conundrum, and I'm certain someone may have info to point us in the right direction for a very rare family get together, to make it a trip of a lifetime.

Basically, we're looking for a resort to cater for an family trip around April 9th to cater for active skiers from aged 6-55 but will also cater for great grand parents who are non skiers (who will definately not start trying it) that will be able to join us for lunch or have other interests, and who will have to baby sit for the toddlers at some point.
It has to be with in striking distance of Geneva, and we're on on tight budget, so we'd want to rent a self-catering apartment/chalet.

It is much later in the the season that I'd normally like to go, as I prefer the cold, so would need to very high I imagine

Am I asking the impossible?

T M

Hi TM,
There's a list of ski resorts near Geneva here:

http://www.j2ski.com/ski_resorts/Airports/Geneva.html

I don't know about the other resorts, but Chamonix is open until early May, although it may not fulfill your other criteria.

Best of luck with finding somewhere - going with several generations of the family sounds like a great idea :D

Ally

The Meercat wrote:Am I asking the impossible?

No, just be prepared to be flexible. 8)

We did exactly this a couple of years ago and, although not really a full-on ski holiday, it worked quite well. You probably don't want to go too high with a mixed age group TBH so just go expecting to enjoy Spring conditions.

We were in La Clusaz which you could consider - La Balme is high enough to retain good snow well into April, scenery's great and village pleasant. The seniors can ride up to restaurants on a couple of different mountains and hop on the bus to the other Aravis stations, go snow-shoeing, visit Annecy for the day, etc.

Chamonix might suit but you'd need to be careful about exact location in the valley to ensure you can all get around ok.

I know you want striking distance of geneva but really with driving to the airport, waiting at the airport and sitting on the plane. What's another hour in the transfer compared to the whole week in resort? Just something to think about )

Hi,

In April ( mind you I'm not entirely when Half term or Easter falls next year, and if it's a problem or not for school holidays etc ) but as a lot of resorts are not so busy you could look at La Plagne , La Rosiere , Les Arcs etc which offer an abundance of self catering and are around 2 - 1/2 hours from Geneva , Lyon etc.

Further afield if you do not mind a bit longer on the transfer side Serre Chevaliere , Alpe D'Huez are another two very good resorts with good snow records.

Jon.

There is lots of self catering accommodation in Chamonix and lots to do there for non skiers in the town and surroundings, trains to Vallorcine & St Gervais and beyond, Cable car up to the Aiguille de Midi, railway up to the Mer de Glace, but for skiers the lifts and ski areas are spread out.

I was quite impressed with Les Deux Alpes in the summer - lots of nice bars, shops and restaurants and the town is flat. There are a couple of villages down in the valleys that can be visited by lifts too, a swimming pool and ice rink. The skiing is extensive and there is a glacier however access back to the resort in winter is served by only one beginners run I believe.

Alpe d'Huex by contrast is very spread out over the mountain and personally would not think it would be suitable for non skiers.

Easter is late this year with the Easter weekend falling at the end of most school holiday fortnight.

Many of the Austrian resorts seem well set up for non skiers but I only have experience of one which was quite small.

I know it's a longer transfer but I go to Val d'isere every April and it's absolutely great for all standards & ages. High, so good snow. Non skiers can go up on the lifts to meet for lunch, with the snow bus they can get to La Daille and La fornet so not restricted to one area. Plenty for non skiers to do in the village - even if it's only a good coffee and amazing cakes in the patisserie!
La Rosiere is good too but a bit small for people who don't ski - not a lot to do.

I'd definitely recommend Val d'Isere but it's not easy to do on a budget. Alpe d'Huez and Les 2 Alpes might present more of a bargain but they're a fair way from Geneva - better off flying to Chambery or Grenoble...