J2Ski Forum Posts and Replies by Salski

Ian Wickham wrote:
That is the report Ally

:mrgreen: :mrgreen:

B- Must try harder!!!

Glad you enjoyed your hols! I'm going to have a quick look at my Flaine photos from a couple of years ago to see if I can spot a snow canon.

Having lost a week of my life editing a video of our Christmas & New Year trip to St. Gervais I couldn't find the energy to then write a report on it, so well done for making the effort. Be prepared for Little W outskiing you very soon! :roll:

Hi, I wash my jacket & ski trousers with Nikwax Tech Wash, which is designed for waterproof & breathable fabric. Every so often, I follow this up with the Nikwax TX Direct Wash In to re-proof the fabric. The Nikwax website has all the necessary information for the different types of outdoor gear you are likely to have.

These products aren't cheap, but I don't use them very often, so think it's worth it to prolong the usefulness of my ski gear.

Hi Brianandlucy - I've never used Snowcoach, but have been to St.Gervais a few times, including this Christmas & New Year. The Hotel Terminus is in le Fayet, which is a few miles from St.Gervais. The coach brings you to St.Gervais & collects you at the end of the day - we ocassionally saw the coach in the car park. I'm not sure if it will also take you to Les Contamines - it's covered on the same pass & is well worth a visit, particularly if conditions aren't so good in St.Gervais/Megeve.

We had excellent conditions, but I know there has been little fresh snow since. Eggman is there now & plans to be skiing tomorrow, so watch this space for an update on conditions.

I'd like an app & a new boiler please. If you could work on the provision of the new boiler first, that would be most appreciated? :D

There's no need to get lift passes in advance - it takes no longer than buying say a train ticket or cinema ticket. I've not been to Les Gets for a few years, but I always used to go to the tourist information office when I arrived in resort (if it was before closing time)& buy one there ready for the following day. They were also available near the gondola so you could buy one immediately before skiing - get there early to avoid any possible queues. There is a small charge for the hands free passes - usually about 3 euros, but they can be kept & reused on subsequent visits.

I went to Les Gets in January of the no-snow year in 2007. They officially closed the resort the day after we arrived,& we had to go to Avoriaz every day to ski. Had I pre-ordered a Les Gets/Morzine pass it would have been useless & I would have had the hassle of trying to get my money back.

Have a great time!

I've used BASS in Les Gets quite a few times in the past - have always gone back to them because of the excellent service. I wouldn't hesitate to recommed them :D

Different booking agents ie. Skiset, Snowbrainer, Snow-rental etc. may use different shops, but equally you may find that you can book skis from one particular shop through different agents. I've skied in St. Gervais 3 times, & each time have hired my skis from a shop called Skiloc at Le Bettex.

We've always had excellent equipment & service from them so have been happy to go back there. On my first visit, I booked directly with the shop, the secomd time through Skiset (using the J2Ski discount code) & this year through Snowbrainer. The choice & quality of the equipment was exactly the same - only the price was different. I was hiring 3 pairs of skis for 9 days & 1 pair junior boots, so the price difference between the different agents was significant.

Just as an example, if you were to hire top of the range skis & boots for 6 days the online prices are:-

Direct with Skiloc £150.00
Skiset (inc dicount) £135.00
Snowrental £117.21
Snowbrainer £91.22

Snowrental offer a price match option - if you find a lower price they will try to match it. Skiset did send me an additional discount code as I've used them before, but the Snowbrainer price still came out best.

Like most of these things, you've got to do a bit of homework to find the best price for your needs. Some shops have heated locker rooms & you can rent a locker to save lugging skis & boots around. On my first visit to Skiloc I negotiated a free locker as we had paid the more expensive shop price. They weren't so generous on subsequent visits, stating that I had already got a good deal through the booking agent. Some shops will offer this service for free - it's always worth asking.

Good look with your research!

rossyhead wrote:

2. Alpine Elements do packages to Morzine and I think maybe Avoriaz but you could try Igluski-I used them a few years back they were ok.

Enjoy!

As I've said before in a previous post, you may wish to type 'Tripadvisor Alpine Elements' into Google before proceeding any further with them! :evil:

If you can't find a suitable package, if you can fly into Geneva, there a numerous trasnfer options to the PDS. Google 'transfers Geneva to Portes du Soleil' & lots of options come up. In the past I've often used Alp-Line & they've been excellent.

Ski hire (if needed) can be pre-booked online or easily done in resort once you get there. You will pay a bit more but it will at least give you time to check out a shop that is in a convenient location for you. Equally, lift passes can be bought on your first day of skiing. I always do this & have never had any problems or queues.

Personally, I like to get to know an area by exploring it & using a piste map. Chatel is a good base for the PDS & you just have to make sure you are back in the right sector by mid - late afternoon. There is plenty of information around the ski areas telling you what time you need to be back on a certain lift to prevent you from becoming stranded on the wrong side of the mountain.

Good luck with your planning - I get the impression that you aren't a beginner, so with a bit of time & patience on Google, you should be able to sort something out. Once you've organised flights & accommodation, the rest should be straightforward.

BTW, when are you planning to come to Europe?