J2Ski Forum Posts and Replies by Far Queue

Personally I would do the catered chalet bit and drive there.

If you are happy to drive, it opens up a whole raft of chalets who are doing the chalet part only, and there are a lot who do this and leave all the travel to yourself.

tonypants wrote:

My daughter has just said, " Dad on the way back from Skiing can we go to disneyland"

:shock: :shock: :shock:

Dang, it's a long drive to Florida :twisted:

Hi Jo.

A bit more info may be helpful. What sort of trip are you looking to arrange? Hotel, Chalet SC etc.? Do you have a preference for partners, male/female, age range etc.? Preferences for travel?

Welcome to the forum btw :D

Hi Tonypants, a lot of that will depend on how many of you are in the vehicle and(I know this sounds obvious) where you are going.

I have driven to Europe for the past 6 or 7 seasons, but I do it primarily because of the freedom it allows with my luggage etc. FYI, a Eurostar Le Shuttle crossing is usually around £120 -£150 return if you go out on one of the earlier times. I think a ferry can be cheaper, but I prefer the train as it is a much quicker crossing and not as liable to bad weather giving you issues. The drive is then between 600 and 800 miles (each way), so you can work out the fuel your car would use.

If you travel through France and use the motorways, you then have to factor in the Peage Tolls, which are about £80 each way to the Alps (if my memory is correct), or you could bypass the Peage and go round through Belguim, Switzerland etc. although that is a longer drive and would incur the cost of a Vignette in Switzerland (about £30 last time I had one), but it usually works out cheaper than the Peage.

Austria is a fairly straight forward trip across Belguim, Germany and into Austria.

Italy can be done either through France, or Switzerland or even Austria.

Finally, you have to factor in the cost of parking the car and suitable winter essentials. Chains are compulsory in many places (to carry) and I would strongly advise having winter tyres on the car. Ensure you drain the windscreen washer and fill with high strength cleaner and make sure the anti-freeze is up to scratch in the engine.

FYI I am driving to Tignes and estimate the car will cost me a total of £500 return. That is Crossing, fuel and tolls. So even 3 people in the car makes it as cheap if not cheaper than flying as you do not have to pay for transfers. If that was a trip to Austria, I would bring that price down to the £400 mark as I would save on the tolls but use a bit more fuel. Equally, I could save a chunk going to Tignes, but I prefer to get there quicker.

The Viamichelin site is quite good, as it will give you a guide to toll and fuel charges for your journey. http://www.viamichelin.com/

Hope that info helps :lol:

brooksy wrote:

Are you supplying the bedding or do I bring my own. :wink:

TBH, if my brother drives, I usually just wear a thick woolly hat which can be pulled down over my ears and eyes. This shuts out the light and a lot of the noise, plus makes it comfy to rest your head against things. I find it quite comfortable to recline the seat and just rest my head against the side of the car. But if you really want, I'm sure I could find a pillow.

Ally, the only thing which has always put me off the non direct train is the change of station in Paris. It does mean having to hump all your gear across on the metro, or paying an extra charge for a taxi.

Which way are you going to transfer? Do you have a price for a taxi.

brooksy wrote:

Well you HAVE NOW I just hope your car has a bunk bed in it :( :(

No need for a bunk bed, I intend to drive not sleep :)

Should be plenty of room for you to get a good kip before we arrive. Mainly motorway driving anyway so fairly smooth.

Iceman wrote:

Off to Iceland :)

Just realised they used to advertise "Mums go to Iceland!" :shock:

You're not trying to tell us something here Icy are you? :twisted: