Plane Versus Train To The Alps: The Movie

Interesting how this changes individually for us all depending on where we are, both time and cost wise.
For instance:

Plane
Home to Heathrow: 2 hours
Check in: 2 hours
Flight: 1.5 hours
Baggage reclaim etc: 1 hour
Transfer: 1.5 hours
Total time: 8 hours

Cost approx £150 return flight, £50 parking, £40 fuel = £240
arriving slightly fatigued but ready for dinner and a few beers and fresh for skiing the next morning

Train
Home to station: 30 mins
Station to Kings X: 1 hour
Transfer to St Pancras: 10 mins
Check in etc: 1.5 hour
Eurostar to France: 10 hours
Waiting etc: 1 hour
Transfer: 1.5 hours
Total time: 15 hours 40 mins


Cost approx £279 return train, £50 to London, £40 taxis = £369
and arriving knackered, without sleep, hungover, and probably not being let into your propertty until after lunch so bang goes your extra days skiing

:wink: 8) :!:

My train journey to Tignes should take 18 hours door to door.
A flight on the Sunday about 12 hours.

Similar for the return......

12 hours "extra" travel for 2 days extra skiing!

Worth the time and possible discomfort!

Tony's costings only work on a package trip and you don't get them from Heathrow. Any self organised trip you have to add in £60 transfer and £40 for a taxi? and what's wrong with the tube.. I managed a day and half extra this year in La plagne

daved wrote:Tony's costings only work on a package trip and you don't get them from Heathrow. Any self organised trip you have to add in £60 transfer and £40 for a taxi? and what's wrong with the tube.. I managed a day and half extra this year in La plagne

Incorrect. I specifically priced that on a BA flight from Heathrow. How do you cost a package flight at £150?
Why do you need the tube when driving to Heathrow?
The taxi was £20 from home to the station each way.

Big saving, personally, by flying and frankly I don't care about an extra days skiing for that extra cost and inconvenience.

It's all subjective though 8)

It's personal choice (like the great helmet debate), we all like to do things differently, it'd be boring if we were all the same.

I've had hideous flight experiences every time, never (touch wood) had a problem with the train, I enjoy the feeling of actually being on the move and going somewhere. I like being able to wander around, have a little drink or two, cat nap, get excited and look forward to my first ski in the morning.

I'm knackered either way, sleepless night on the train or sleepless night in bed waiting to get up and hang around at an airport for hours.

Whenever I fly I ALWAYS say to Mr Nelly'if we'd gone by train we'd be skiing now'.

Excited much!

I was stuck in the Chunnel once on Eurostar for six hours when it snowed a bit in southern England and everything stopped. Got very hot in there and they ran out of water (and worse, G&Ts) but worst bit was when they turned the power (and thus lights) off -something about re-setting the power they said, although you wonder if it was a wind up. But despite that I'd still take the train given the choice, just enjoy it more than the stop/start flying process, although I end up flying 95% of the time. Agree with Nelly and others - personal taste, and I don't sleep whether early flight or train anyway.

I have just traveled 18 hours and after arriving at Gatwick I was fit for nothing let alone skiing, with flying I do get frustrated with all the hanging around at airports and I always keep thinking if I drove where could I be by now ...... security at Britains airports is totally at ridiculous levels.
And by the way if you gave me a free train ticket for the alps tomorrow, I'd give it away maybe to a student !!!!!

Ian Wickham wrote:I have just traveled 18 hours and after arriving at Gatwick I was fit for nothing let alone skiing, with flying I do get frustrated with all the hanging around at airports and I always keep thinking if I drove where could I be by now ...... security at Britains airports is totally at ridiculous levels.
And by the way if you gave me a free train ticket for the alps tomorrow, I'd give it away maybe to a student !!!!!

Ian, come on, you just got back from S Africa. Its not like thats relevant in this debate seeing as you cant take the train down. If you fly into Geneva, around where you tend to ski, its about 1.5 hour flight.