Do I need a car for holiday in Samoens French Alps

[Tworoads]

Hi, we are landing in Geneva and have a holiday rental apartment in Samoens where we will be based for a week. Just been looking at the cost for hiring an SUV automatic and it's working out at £630 before I add in the extra insurance to cover the excess in case of accident or the cost of hiring a booster seat. I do like the flexibility of having a car but I'm wondering if we can get a minibus to Samoens and back cheaper and then use public transport in and around Samoens?
I've never been to Samoens before so absolutely don't know if there are buses or trains. I remember Switzerland (near Interlaken) had a very efficient train network and we didn't miss having a car.
Would love to hear from anyone who has been there!
£630 plus extras seems a big cost.

You can pay for airport transfers which will probably be cheaper than car rental although it depends how many people in your party. During ski season you may be able to arrange a shared transfer which would bring the cost down further.

I am pretty sure there are no public transport options from Geneva to Samoens

The need for a car in resort very much depends on the location of your accommodation. If you are going skiing you will need to use the Gondola every day so check out how close your accommodation is to the gondola and if it is on the route of the ski bus.

Summer or winter? Summer there is no airport shuttle and cost of taxi may be close to that of car hire. But once there there are plenty local buses and no need for car.

Should have said! Sorry! This is in three weeks time, so it's a summer holiday.

The return journey by private shuttle bus is 410 euros (includes booster seat) by 3Valley Transfers. It's just whether we need transport for getting around the area. Are there gondolas or buses or trains running regularly in the area in the summer, do you know?

I would call the tourist information and ask. There will probably be a bus in the village center. Or plan a day out and use Google maps to see what’s available

That's a great idea @Fluffycloudsblusky ! Will email them now!

We used to holiday in Samoens pretty much every summer when I was a kid. So many happy memories of the place.

It will depend what you plan to do. The town itself is small enough to get around on foot.

We used to drive there so had a car and I don’t remember seeing a ton of buses etc.

Also if you go with the hire car, check out Martin Lewis on Moneysavingexpert.com on taking out stand alone insurance to cover excess and collision damage waiver before you go. Much cheaper than getting it from the car hire company.

Do you really need an SUV? I think it would be a shame not to have the flexibility of your own transport - so many places to see and things to do around there such as swimming at Lake Annecy and the Mont Blanc cable-car at Charmonix.

@Cyclistmumgrandma that's a good point. We got caught out in Corsica by not covering the excess. We have made sure since then to get the extra insurance.
@Twizbe What did you use to do there? I have a 7 year old but also older son. Won't be able to do the high adrenaline stuff but would like to raft if possible. I believe there is a market once a week that is worth seeing?

Indeed in the past I have used car hire excess dot com

also don’t pay to hire a booster seat, costs nothing to take your own

@PinkPondQueen I like the sound of those places!

Hoping that the Cirque du Fer a Cheval is worth seeing near Samoens. Do the gondolas or shuttle service run in the summer?

There is a bus around the resorts in the summer holidays. It finishes before the end of August though so check availability.
Transfers are ridiculously expensive from the airports

We used to go in august and stay after the 15th as it got a lot cheaper then. Some of the big tourist stuff closed / went on low season after the 15th.

We weren’t a very outdoorsy family. We did trips to chamonix and la clusaz. We went to the Mer de Glacé a few times. There are quite a few caves you can visit near there which we enjoyed.

I remember playing mini golf a lot, the market, summer concerts in the market square or botanical gardens. One year there was a fun fair there.

You can get a shuttle straight from the airport to Samoëns or get the train to Cluses and get a taxi there.

Samoëns is easy to get around on foot but more difficult once you go further out. But you can hire bikes and go around the village from Samoëns to Morillon very easily. Very nice ride along the river. Riding to Sixt with children is more difficult.

The GME is open (gondola) and is close to the town centre.

Things to do:

• Rafting (so much fun, but check age restrictions, depends on the water level and current). the mini bus takes you to Sixt and you raft down to Samoëns
• Lake swimming, wibit and tree cimibing in Morillon, plus lunch at the restaurant there
• Do a hike from Samoëns 1600
• Petit train around the village is quite good
• Wander around the town, there are nice shops and botanical gardens
• Apéro at the BLS - terrace in the main square
• Hike around Sixt to see the waterfalls (car probably required, check with tourist info)
• Hike at the top of Joux Plane (I believe a car is required)
• Samoëns swimming pool - has a water slide
• Lac des Dames: activities and swimming in the lake

We always have a car when we am there but we do a lot of biking, we only really take the car for Sixt and hikes which are further out. I would day for a first visit, you can do a lot with just hiring bikes.

enjoy it, we love Samoëns!

@Lamontaine who runs this shuttle direct from the airport? It would be very handy for skiing, as a transfer costs a fortune.

@rookiemere i can’t remember the name, sorry, I just looked into booking it for my sister when she came to visit me there. However i don’t remember it being particularly cheap! So maybe we’re talking about the same thing?! 🤷‍♀️

I got a message straight back from the tourist office (for anyone else interested in knowing!). The buses run regularly to the surrounding area. Cost is 2 euros per person per day.

You would be missing out without a car. It's so beautiful

Does it have to be a SUV? Could you not hire a cheaper car?

Have you checked Auto Europe? I never use anyone else to book our hire cars. An automatic Peugeot 2008 SUV is coming up as only £382 atm.

https://www.autoeurope.co.uk/results/

Bus service in summer, goes to lots of places nearby and the big valley - also a ski lift runs.

@PinkPondQueen I'm going to take a look at that. No it doesn't have to be an SUV. We tried it with a Golf last year and the luggage didn't fit!! Thanks for researching that for me xx
I'm going to get the options together and put it to my 'committee' (me, husband and older son).
Thank you for giving up your time to help 😚