J2Ski Forum Posts and Replies by AllyG

No, I haven't heard what happened to Sami and his OH.

I checked on what I thought were both his flights, his original and his secondary one. As far as I could see, his original Ryanair one was cancelled, so he should get his money back, and then the new flight said it was delayed by an hour and a half, and when I looked again it must have taken off and landed because it wasn't on the list of flights waiting to go or still in the air.

But I have no idea what happened after he landed, and whether he got transfers or not. I expect he will let us know, at some point. I hope he's not snowed in on the road somewhere in a bus, or stuck in a hotel in Geneva or somewhere.

Edit - Ise, you wear lycra underpants? really? Me, I always stick to cotton :D

Ally

I expect they go down to the main towns/cities to do their shopping, since stuff is so much cheaper there.

Well,
Let's hope they have shops in Alpe d'Huez that sell underwear then :D

I don't remember any shops like that in Val Thorens. They were all selling touristy souvenir stuff like clocks and plates or else ski gear.

Ally

I hope they hire some skis while they are waiting for their own to turn up, unlike whoever it was who kept waiting for their missing baggage and lost several days of ski-ing.

If they hire the top quality skis they should be okay, and it will be interesting to hear what Tony thinks of them, compared with his own. I really hope the missing skis do turn up though, it would be awful if they were permanently lost.

I don't know what they can do about the rest of their clothes though, other than buy more. I don't suppose they hire out ski jackets and salopettes (let alone underwear and shirts etc.!), and I shouldn't think Tony was wearing his ski jacket on the journey because he doesn't approve of doing that.

Ally

You can also try booking an apartment direct with the La Plagne tourist board through their website, although you will have to find your own flights and transfers. I have booked direct with the tourist board in other resorts and so far it has worked out fine.

I had a look for you, and they had apartments suitable for 2 people in Belle Plagne from 340 euros, although you might have to have 2 single beds.

I don't know if this link will work but I'll try it.

http://laplagne.for-system.com/index_uk.aspx

Ally

Thanks Snowbandit for the update!

What an amazing journey, just to get out there :shock: Poor Claire!

I can just imagine what Tony is saying about them losing his luggage and missing a day's ski-ing! Maybe it's not just Britain that's having trouble with this snowy weather.

That's why I was saying that I hoped they'd postpone your interviews, because I was a bit worried you might not get back in time.

There has been quite a bit of talk on the news about my particular snow worry - that the AS exams start on Monday and I might not be able to get my daughter in to town for them because of the snow. I have fixed that problem by getting my neighbour to take her in now, in their 4x4 (because our road is too snowy and icy for my car), and she's staying with a friend who lives right next to the school. The school says they will go ahead with the exams, whatever the weather.

It's snowing here now, and the weather forecast says light snow today, tomorrow, and then heavy snow and blizzards for Tuesday.

Have fun :D

Ally

I expect they're all too busy having fun and ski-ing now to let us know. Maybe they will this evening, if they can find a computer somewhere :D

Ally

I have never tried boarding, but if the board hire and lessons cost anything like the same as those for ski-ing, I would say that was a pretty tight budget.

Lift passes are usually around £150, group lessons for 6 days at least £100, and ski and boot hire/board hire around £80. Which adds up to around £330. The only way I can think of reducing this cost is to go with one of the major tour operators who offer learn to ski/board packages which you might get for around £250 each.

So you'd only be left with around £250 for the accommodation, flights and transfers, which is possible but I think only if you went self-catering or got a last minute deal in a hotel or chalet.

I have booked a last minute deal in the past, and what I did was to get all the major tour operators' brochures so that I could see what I was getting for the price, in case the special deal was miles from the lifts or something.

Anyway, best of luck with picking a resort and finding a good deal. There are plenty around if you can find one. The 20th Feb is the week after half-term so it shouldn't be too crowded, but you might run the risk of not being able to book lessons if you go last minute and don't book them through a tour operator. I have seen this happen to other people, but only at half-term.

Ally