J2Ski Holiday 30th January 2016 - Alpe d'Huez

In January 2013 17 people went to Tignes!
In February 2014 22 people went to Folgarida.
In January 2015 28 people went to Sauze D'Oulx

18 of these are confirmed J2Skiers and then their partners/spouses/children/friends have all joined in. Ages from a couple of teenagers to – let's just say "older" !! A few couples (no divorces yet), a few Fathers and Sons/Daughters and a lot of single skiers and boarders.
Some total beginners, many with a good few weeks under their belts.
-)

And now for the next one..........
The most noticeable difference for next season is that AllyG is not taking the lead in organising the group. After the amazing work she did getting the first group going in 2013 and then organising two more – she is stepping back this year and bravely letting me have a go!
So – contact me for all the details and questions etc for 2016!

After a considerable amount of searching and talking to Hotel owners and Tour Operators etc we have chosen the Hotel Christina in Alpes D'Huez for Saturday January 30th 2016.
I know that to many this will feel like a long way away but to get a group in we need to be ahead of the curve – one or two places were already booked for next season.
At the moment we have a number of rooms on hold for a while and can flex this as things change. Presently about 20 ready to book and a few more hoping to be able to confirm later (similar numbers to last year at this stage).

The plan is to formally book and pay deposits in the next couple of weeks.
The hope is that there will still be spaces available later on through the summer for people to join us but this is dependent on room availability. Those joining later will have to work out the price independently but should still be able to link in with the main group for transfers etc. It is possible that later booking may get a similar price to early bookers but this cannot be guaranteed.

The basic deal is Half Board for the week – no travel.
So independent travel by flight, train, self-drive etc.
We will have shared transfers arranged wherever possible as long as we can agree on flights (Grenoble mainly) or train times.
Single rooms are forever the nightmare. We have sourced a small number which are already booked. Sorry, but if you would really like to join us and a single is vital them PM me and I will see what can be done. (supplement + 30%/40%)

We are booking this through Zenith Holidays (ABTA);
http://www.zenithholidays.co.uk/
and the hotel......
http://www.zenithholidays.co.uk/france/alpe-d-huez/hotel-christina-winter/

Costs – these are guidelines only
Hotel, HB, sharing = £440
Transfer to resort (return) = £45
Lift pass (full) = £195
Flight, return Grenoble = £120
Initial guesstimate = £800
Flights very approximate and based on Gatwick with Monarch or BA – lots of regional departures etc
The cost can only be an "about" at the moment because of flexibility in transport costs and lift pass based on this years prices. The final room rate may come down a bit with options.
Deposit = 20%, on Hotel so under £100 – this will be payable now!
Equipment hire on top and Ski carriage on flights not included above.

Alpes D'Huez is a pretty decent and varied resort and scores well across all skiing/boarding abilities
So .....
Drop me a message if you are interested!

Thanks definitely interested.
exciting!

Hi everyone
You'll be relieved to hear I won't be making this trip. However, I stayed here in March 2014, at the Christina through Ski France.
It is a very nice hotel, lovely sunny balconies in the afternoon. Food was good, drinks at the bar reasonably priced, a particularly good pint of Stella as well. Rooms are good sized (a lot bigger than the hotel Sauze) and comfortable. There is a ski room downstairs, but don't put all your gear on before you enter the dreaded boot room as its like a sauna!!!
The restaurant has massive windows overlooking the resort.
But mainly the property is in a fantastic position right at the top of the town near the main DMC lift. You literally walk up a small incline and you are on the flat area with a number of cafes and restaurants where the Yogurt Pot lifts unload, and you can pole or walk across to the DMC.
Coming back in the evening, you can ski literally to the door of the hotel, provided you are either in the main ADH area coming from Montfrais, Oz or Vaujany, or Villard Reculas down from Signal. If you are over at Auris, I strongly suggest you head back across to the Bergers area in ADH before last lift and take either of the fast chairs up to first station and ski back down the greens into the top of town where the DMC starts - otherwise you have to either walk right through town, try the unreliable bus service, or worse still ride the dreaded Yogurt Pots back up!

For chefs night off on the Wednesday, I can thoroughly recommend Edelweiss, a 15 minute but worthwhile walk down into the old town, its situated just behind (uphill) the Chalet Hotel Mariandre which is run by Ski Total/Esprit in the old town. Theres a cracking little bar called Pacific the other side of the hotel, or a really nice rustic old place a few doors down from Edelweiss, its nice down the bottom part of the old town.

I have to say I think you have chosen well here, Old Andy. Good hotel, great position, sensibly priced resort, massive ski area, reasonable to get to from Grenoble/Chambery (90 mins on a good day, 4 hours in snow!)

Great runs to try: Les Rousses from DMC 2nd stage to Alpette, Foret black down to Vaujany under Alpette, the gorgeous blues at Montfrais early in the morning when its cold, Poutran and L'Olmet down to Oz (need to be done in the morning before they cut up badly and ice up), and obviously La Sarenne which again I would recommend not leaving until late in the afternoon as it can be carved to pieces by the sheer number of skiers that use it. Lovely sunny cafe just before you jump back on the Alpe Auris Scarte Chair back up from the bottom here.

Don't forget the best pizza in France at La Grange, right by the Vaujany mid station cable car at Alpette, nice sunny spot plus deckchairs for chilling after lunch, and the tiny cafe opposite it is a great stop for the mornings with a fantastic view across the whole valley.

Its a great place for beginners with so many easy cruises from 1st stage back down to town as well. The more difficult skiing tends to be higher up as the mountain steepens. Beware the altitude at Pic Blanc before La Sarenne, it catches some people by surprise, and the wind at the glacier as you ski off there can be nasty. The top section of La Sarenne down past the open ferried bowl is not for timid skiers, but theres always a way down for anyone who isn't supremely confident.

Have a good time!!!!

What a lovely load of info Tony - thank you.
But note: new operator now.
7 nights food (so no night off).
A few upgrades on accommodation floating around but nothing major.

Excellent. Enjoy

Fantastic chunk of info there Tony. Thanks for posting.

I make it 339 sleeps to skiing in Alpe D'Huez
:mrgreen:
Three new people since I put the first post up yesterday!

I am really looking forward to the next trip guys, Alpes D'Huez is one of my favourite resorts and our hotel is right on the piste.