Need help again to find a shortlist

Oh what a minefield, there are so many skiing holidays out there.

Well I started off with one area and ended up with another, I have been half way round the world looking for a ski holiday and just when i thought my work was done, hubby decides to change his mind and also the date.

I had decided to go to les saisies, we were going to do diy from newcastle to geneva, hire a car, stay in apartments with a swimming pool self catering and including lift pass and ski hire going on 29th January came to a price of £2500 for the 4 of us (2 adults and 2 kids (10&12)). In between times I have been looking at other areas like sauze doulx, sestriere, morzine, les gets, bardonecchia.

WE went to Valmorel last year and really liked it and the year before that we went to Niederau. The last skiing holidays were more or less left to me to chose and decide where to go. We usually go in March but due to the French school holidays takeing up nearly of all of Feb and the first week of March I dont know where will be good for snow. Will the 2nd week of March be ok? Valmorel last year had never snowed for 2 weeks before we got there and didnt snow until about 2 weeks later and it did start to get icy, even though they had snow cannons. Hubby doesnt really want to go to France, but I think he would go as long as the slopes werent too busy. So where can we go that will avoid France? and avoid school holidays but still be good for snow? We were really spoilt with our apartment in Niederau compared to the apartment we had in Valmorel. looking back the valmorel apartmetn wasnt that nice and hubby would lke something a bit more upmarket that doesnt make too much of a strain on the pocket. I was even thinking of hiring the apartment we had in Niederau (The Alpenhof) and getting a lift pass for the ski welt and just driving to the slopes every day (not sure which area of ski welt is closest or how long it would take in the car or what the snow would be like at that time of year)

I would like somewhere that has a large skiing area, mainly for crusing, I dont really like anything that is too taxing ie getting to the bottom of the slopes and thinking "thank god I made it with all my limbs in tact" bearing in mind we will only be on our 3rd week of skiing. we would like somewhere that has nice apartments. before when being almost at the foot of the slopes was a priorty has not become much of a priortiy if we can get the other things right.

So to reiterate our wish list is:
1. large cruisy skiing area
2. not in france
3. somewhere that has nice self catering apartments
4. not too expensive to eat out on slopes for lunch
5. our budget is approx £2500-3000 (including lift pass and ski hire)
6. somewhere good for snow 2nd week in march
7. a winning lottery ticket

I have researched till I am blue, but what I didnt do was write down why I ruled places out. stupid school girl error I suppose, but I now have pen and paper in hand ready for the task in hand.

Thanks in advance

Karen

Hi Karen,

How about the Alta Badia area of the Dolomites (Corvara etc.)? We have booked to go to the next village along (Arabba) the week before, also self catering. We are going with Colletts and although we haven't been with them before they seem to get a lot of positive reviews. They were also extremely helpful with the booking.

The skiing in that area is lovely and cruisey with lots of blues and reds and by the sounds of things would suit you perfectly (Arabba is great too but the skiing is more taxing). With the Dolomiti Superski pass you've got over 1000 km to go at so will not get bored. The area is to my knowledge pretty well covered for snowmaking so should hopefully be Ok for snow (someone with more experience of the resort later season may be able to give you a better idea).

Flights wise, we are also North East based and if you can get to Venice, Colletts do free transfers to the resort. Sadly you cannot do it from Newcastle (we tried every possible combination) but East Midlands is not too bad to get to and we got some decent prices on flights (BMI, with free ski carriage). The other option is Innsbruck, however the transfers from there are £35pp.

The accommodation was £340pp, though I believe it is cheaper if there are more of you (£295 rings a bell). If they still have availability this could be a good option for you and be within budget. The ski pass for the area is ~£200 pp, though should be cheaper for the children. Lunches are tasty and inexpensive and there are loads of places to choose from.

You also mentioned Sauze, which I've also been to and love. If you get the snow (which we did) it's a fantastic place to ski and would suit you perfectly (though Arabba has replaced it for us as a favourite resort due to shear mileage and a being a bit more of a challenge). It may be too much of a risk for you later season snow wise as it can be a bit unpredictable, though for the last two or three years this hasn't been a problem. Sestriere seems to have a better snow record, however in my opinion Sauze is a nicer place to stay. The skiing in Sestriere is also more taxing than that it in Sauze. There are self catering options in Sauze and although I've looked into them briefly ruled them out as too expensive for 2 of us. For a family it would be more feasible. If you are still thinking about this as an option you could try contacting James at sauzeonline who was very helpful when I e-mailed him.

Hope this is some help - any other questions just ask.

Good luck :D

Lynn

Hi Karen,

Ok, so its France, which I am not a big fan of, but have a look at Serre Chevalier. Flights to Turin or Grenoble, not a long transfer 1.5 hours, high altitude skiing, 250km to go at and some lovely cruises amongst them. Lots of cheap accommodation, I would recommend Villeneuve or Monetier, Chantmerle is not so nice, Briancon is a large town and you could be a walk from the lifts but theres lots of accommodation near to them if you look.
I have been early March twice and the snow was fantastic.

Other alternatives to consider where I have been are Mayrhofen as the skiing is good until mid April and the accommodation is superb compared to France generally. And its cheap. Flights to Munich 2.5 hrs drive or Innsbruck 1.25 hrs drive.

I would also suggest you consider Saalbach as an option, although the lower altitude can be a problem that time of year. Maybe look at Bad Gastein or Schladming as well.

I would suggest Sauze too - I wouldn't worry greatly over the snow record. It's linked to Sestriere and it's an easy ski to get between the two if you want something more challenging - like the world cup runs. (covered on the same pass).

If you get the right pass you'll also get a day in Montegenevre. (get there by car or bus)

Thanks for the replies. I have spoke with hubby and with a bit of gentle persuasion, i have convinced him that my first choice of les saisies should be the one! which I personally feel fits all the criteria that we want as a family for this year (even if it is France). There are other places that I really do fancy for next year. Lynne I had a look at Alta Badia, La Villa and Corvara and they will definitley be contenders for next year. I really like the look of the ski area itself (is it Val Gardena or something?)
Tony, I have looked at Sauze a few times and still really fancy it, but because we were thinking of going in March, I felt it might not be snow sure enough for us, but that is also going on my shortlist. The other thing I found when looking at Sauze was the places I was looking at staying, cant remember the hotel, maybe was the hotel sauze? a lot of people complained of it being on cardiac hill. Also we want self catering.
I had looked at Saalbach and Montgenevre too. I think I have looked at every single ski resort going lol. They all just emalgamate into one in the end. I had shortlisted Les Saisies along with Valmorel for last years holiday and we chose Valmorel and really enjoyed it and Les Saisies, I think, offers more or less the same amount of skiing area (espace diamant) and with doing it DIY we can hopefully get a bit better accomodation with a swimming pool.

So we have decided to change it back to January 29th, 1 week self catering, apartment with swimming pool, gym and spa, les saisies, full lift pass and ski hire, car hire and flights for £2500. I am hoping this is a good price.

We were going to sit it out and wait for a last minute booking, even if it meant paying for 2 rooms - adult and child in each but to be honest, we have been that fussy ruling out skiing areas because of one thing or another, I dont think we would find a "bargain", we would probably end up paying near to £2500 for something we dont really want.

So, all going well and easyjet prices havent gone up, I will be booking the flights this weekend. Has anyone skiied espace diamant?

Les saisies is a resort I have always looked at over the years and as of yet have never been, so I will be interested in your report. Bon ski

Hi - not posted on here for a while but saw your message.
Can help you out with some info about this place. I wrote a report a couple of seasons ago. Nice place.

http://www.j2ski.com/ski-chat-forum/posts/list/5978.page#44602

My report is more about Bisanne which is about 5 miles out Les Saisies, but the ski area is the same and will give some idea.

Hope you enjoy it.

karen72 wrote:
Tony, I have looked at Sauze a few times and still really fancy it, but because we were thinking of going in March, I felt it might not be snow sure enough for us, but that is also going on my shortlist. The other thing I found when looking at Sauze was the places I was looking at staying, cant remember the hotel, maybe was the hotel sauze? a lot of people complained of it being on cardiac hill.

You're right, the snow is erratic to say the least, but as I have said before, you will always be able to ski higher up.
Hotel Sauze is dreadful. Its HB and the food is ok, but the hotel itself is not good at all. It is however in a good post at the bottom of the run into town.
Cardiac Hill????

If you do go to Sauze, pay more and go to better accommodation as much of it is poor. I've stopped at the Sauze and the Sportinia and would never ever return to either of them again, but had a good time in the village.

Did you look at Serre Che? It ticks all the boxes you are looking for, but probably won't be as limited or antiquated as Les Saisies.