1st time self cater/drive ski-ing - what should i think of?

[Sam100]

Hoping to benefit from the collective mumsnet wisdom. We are going to try a self catering/drive yourself there ski break in France next year. Not been ski-ing for a few years and the kids have never been. They are all school age so planning just to do lessons in the am and then spend the afternoons together.

What do I need to think of/ plan for?

I am planning to do a supermarket shop in a biggish town on the way there for certain stuff and then pop out to the store in resort for milk/bread etc.

What about the drive there? Is traffic horrendous on changeover days (seem to remember queues when stuck on a coach from the airport - dim and distant past!). Do the clever ones travel through the night to arrive before all the traffic? Not sure I am going to be up to that!

If you have done this before what did you wish you had known about before you went?

Have you already booked? If you haven't, think about what priorities you have for the journey and week rather than going for the first good deal.
Driving time and route: shortest kms is not necessarily shortest in time, toll fees and any alternative routes to lower cost, road conditions on last leg up the mountain, whether you need winter tyres or not eg we drive in April to a resort where mountain paths are clear by that time so don't need to change tyres.
Resort amenities : whether you want swimming pool, ice rink cinema etc, supermarkets within walking or driving distance.
Ski amenities : distance to ski school, ski garderie, ski lifts, ski hire shop even.
Prices : discounts for family groups on ski school, ski passes, ski equipment.
Ski area suitability : enough ski area for good skiers or beginners areas easily accessible.

We've never been stuck in traffic, can't help you there. We do 850ish kms and start 7am in the morning, drive 5 or 6 hours with just toilet stops and changing drivers, then we stop somewhere nice for a long lunch break, usually for us it is Bern in Switzerland, then 2 or 3 hours further into the Chamonix valley. We try to arrive by 6pm and always check the ski hire shop opening times so we can collect the skis the night before.

We can't unfortunately bring more than a days food in our car as we have the smallest 7 seater with 6 seats filled and 1 seat space for 2 large holdalls (now an expert at packing into that space enough for 6 people). So we also know exactly where the supermarkets are in resort so we can shop quickly if it is a Saturday arrival, as most shops are closed on Sunday.

We are going back to the same village for the 3rd time. We LOVE les Houches because everything is so close, it is very cheap for a family of 6, our friends are just a short train ride away.

France is a great place to self cater as most French ski this way and there is a good choice of accommodation from a multitude of French companies - ok some are less French, having booked Pierre et Vacances, the bill is actually marked Center Parcs.

Many of the places that we rent have a change over day on a Sunday which means that you are not stuck in traffic on the way in and out ...and also you have a really nice quiet last day on the slopes...and your ski hire shop is quiet...we just hammer it down 8 hrs from Calais would try and arrive in resort in relative day light. We take our own food as resort super markets are really expensive and it takes double the time to stop and shop en route in a strange super market although when we go in the summer we love the toodling around food shopping..........

We've always gone a day early - ie drive down on Friday, stay overnight at foot of mountain (eg.Chambery) and do some shopping Friday night, then up the mountain next morning. It means you can get an extra day's skiing on the Saturday if you want. Because we're generally in the resort by 10am the traffic has never been a problem.

I always take a lot of food with us - even non-resort supermarkets are pricey these days. You should take snowchains as well (and know how to fit them in advance); we generally go later in the season (March/April/Easter) when the roads are clearer, but have still had to use them on several occasions; the weather can change very quickly, even in spring. You can check toll costs on various websites to give you an indication - I seem to recall that a trip to the French Alps a few years back was around 70 Euros each way.

On the journey itself we do make stops, but generally short ones, with one longer stop for lunch. Kids sit in the back with portable DVD player and are used to the long journeys now. I much prefer doing the journey this way - find the whole thing more relaxing and part of the holiday.

Is it really only about 8 hours from Calais? DH is talking about driving this year and I thought it would be about 12 hours. Am dreading it and want to fly.

It really depends which resort. 8 hrs to Morzine/Le Gets but probably more like 12 to Val Thorens. Put different resorts into AA route finder to give you an idea.

I wouldn't recommend driving over night myself, it's a killer and it's easy to underestimate how tired you will get (the french motorways are largely not lit so it is hard work).

There are a number very cheep hotels (F1) which you book online and just need your CC to get into, very basic but all you need for a few hour break to sleep.

We have done this afew times and again this year, and echo what others have said re arriving in daylight - we also get to Chambery or Albertville the night before and go up tthe mountain in the daylight beore teh traffic builds up. Would never aim to drive the Saturday of the Parisian school holidays , tho' traffic jam mire bearable in your own car than in a coach. I have been temoted to drive overnight bu as a preiosu poster said, it is harde in France as the motoays are no so well lit, and I am afraid I might fall asleep...

If you don't already have one, get a DVD player for your dc to watch during the drive.

"Are we nearly there yet?" gets a bit tedious over 600 miles!