first time in Bulgaria/Czech republic

Hey All,
Hope your all enjoying the ski season. As a student I am finding it very hard to try and get a weeks skiing in due to lift/ski hire costs. A friend suggested that I try Bulgaria or the Czech republic instead. I am an intermediate skier, and basically want somewhere that is snow sure-don't want to waste my money (!) that has fairly good night life, but most importantly is cheap!
Thanks,
Katie

Katie,
I don't know about the Czech Republic (because I haven't skied there) but Bulgaria isn't a lot cheaper than other countries in Europe now. The prices have gone up a lot in the last few years.

I had a look just now to compare lift passes and package holidays. Crystal has a last minute half board package holiday to Pila in Italy on the 9th January for £280, whereas equivalent last minute holidys to Borovets in Bulgaria are around £220. And a 6 day Pila local lift pass (70 Km of piste) costs £152 with Crystal, whereas a 6 day lift pass for Borovets costs £115 also with Crystal. Good quality ski and boot hire in Pila costs about £100 whereas poorer quality hire in Borovets costs about £50. So the total difference in price for the holiday, lift pass, and ski and boot hire is about £150 for the week.

Total price for the holiday in Pila = £532
Total price for the holiday in Borovets = £385

If it was me I'd rather save the £150 some other way, than go to Bulgaria again. And, of course, a regular holiday booked ahead of time would cost a lot more than this, to Bulgaria or anywhere else.

I think the best thing you can do is pick a week during your holidays which is not a school holiday week, and wait for a last minute deal to come up for that week so that you can go at short notice (just make sure wherever it has snow and is good for intermediates). You can save several hundred pounds that way.

Ally

Thanks Ally,
This has been very helpful. I can see that what you say is absolutely true, and am going to keep an eye out for last minute deals.
Enjoy the season,
katie

Katie,
It's definitely worth shopping around for the best bargains.

I had a look on teletextholidays.co.uk (whom I've used in the past) and they have what looks like exactly the same holiday to Pila for £231 on the 9th January with 'Hello Sunshine' holidays. I don't know, of course, if there are any hidden charges because I haven't gone as far as phoning them, but it does look like a real bargain.

And I've never been to Pila, it was just a cheap holiday and it looked an okay sort of place. The ski area is a bit small but Crystal do an away day excursion to neighbouring La Thuile or Courmayeur for an additional £31 plus I assume whatever the upgrade costs on the Pila local lift pass.

Ally