Happy Skiing Thread Part 2!!

[lovetoskimum]

Just what is say's :)

Booked euro tunnel this weekend for March 2016, apartment booked and hotels either side booked, so excited already, any one else want to join in :)

Avoid anything cotton - if they get sweaty that will get wet which will then make them cold.

We usually wear a thermal top and bottom underneath our salopettes and jackets and add an extra fleece top if it's chilly. Fleecy neck buffs and good gloves are a must (take 2 pairs each) and if it's very cold, a thin hat for under our helmets. Socks with some wool content are great (try to dry your boots each night to prevent cold toes) and snow boots and woolly hats for your non skiing time.

Not too much for evenings but it'll depend on where you're staying. We usually go to catered chalets and by time we've finished skiing and had a hot tub and shower the boys usually just put their pj's on! Will be different if you're heading to a hotel restaurant or out for dinner.

Just back from a fortnight in the PdS. Hit the jackpot in relation to the snow and weather but it was mild and raining on Friday morning as we left so they need more snow and cold.

Update coming, new ski trousers purchased :) had to go to snow and rock in the end as no where had any plain black, if I say so myself really love them :)

Getting close to our still under 4 weeks to go but I love this thread, even watched The jump and it got me super excited :)

HOW SAD !!

Any more want to join in :)

Can I join in? Was not intending to ski this year because of the dire snow, and because DC are doing GCSE and A levels.
But.... on Sunday DS2 said he would like to go if I would ( DA1 adamant he wants to stay at home and play computer games revise. (DH does not ski - knees knackered).
So an hour later I had booked a hotel in Mottaret we have been to before on the basis that it is ski-in ski-out with ski hire in hotel for DS, parking and a swimming pool.
Just hoping now that

• the snow holds up
• DS does not break a wrist or worse anyone in the vicinity please post minute-by-minute daily snow reports

Can I join too?
Whistler here - week on Friday, gawd bless the inset day

Not been, has anyone? And I can't find my ski jacket ANYWHERE!!

We leave a week on Friday for the Dolomites and I am WAY TOO EXCITED FOR MY OWN GOOD. I will be unbearable next week. Haven't been for 16 years.....

Yay, more people joining in, welcome to MrsGuy, Rather and Islets :)

Popped into mountain warehouse this morning and got daughter some new base layers, £17.99 reduced to £3.99 love a bargain !!

Oh yes snow reports would be good :) lets hope the snow holds up :)

Any more joining xx

gawd bless the inset day
lucky, lucky, lucky you!
I eventually threw away one of DS2's old ski gloves last week as was never going to find the other one.
Guess what turned up when I searched his room today for thermals... grrrrrrrrr!

oooh - will be in Mountain Warehouse tomorrow!

so excited. Tignes for half term. want to pack now.

Whistler will be amazing rather I've not been for 10 years, but just booked for Xmas and I'm getting over excited already.

It's the best place I've ever skied, the scale, service, atmosphere and best of all the snow were all excellent. The scale of the place is amazing.

Where are you staying

Loving everybody joining in, i am addicted to this thread, been on web cams today and cant stop looking :)

Should be working but on here instead !! Would love to do skiing at xmas, especially Whistler, never been, my parents went over 10 years ago and loved it, need a second mortgage for that :)

Dont if you dont mind me asking rough costing for that, want to consider it one year :)

Ooh well, now you're talking

I have booked flights with Air Transact (awful times, god awful!), but West jet is still to release. For the 4 of us it cost £2619. In the school hols, that's a bargain IMO (although the slide in oil prices could improve the picture, but I will never know!).

We will then book somewhere to stay when booking.com and all those sites start showing, but 2.5k should easily cover it. Ski passes are not cheap but the exchange rate is in our favour. The cost compared to something like crystal ski is about half.

I will book a car to take us up the hill, but buses run regularly. The cost is approx C$300 total for private limo so much better on a bus.

For 13 nights, frankly per day, per head it stacks up in my opinion but I would massage the figures until it did

I will stay in a budget place and eat pasta every night if it works, 'tis all about the snow! In fact I would even take a suitcase of budget pasta and sauces with me from Aldi .

We don't tend to do anything other than homemade sarnie for lunch most days so spending is limited to what we want to spend.

Planning ski trips is my favourite thing. Ever.

We've been back for 10 days now after the most amazing week in Verbier - the best conditions I've ever skied in. Wonderful powder, blue skies, empty pistes - heaven! I miss it already and think I've just about talked DH into a second trip this year to St Anton at the beginning of March. Hurrah!

sweary that sounds great. I take it school hols are not an issue for you (I can't wait until mine can be left unsupervised!).

I worked for a Swiss company for quite a long time, but I've never skied there. How does it compare to the rest of Europe?

No DC here so we're not bound by school holidays thank the Lord

I was really impressed with Verbier. It was, in my opinion, more comparable to Austria than to France (I haven't skied Italy, aside from La Thuile when we were in La Rosiere). It lacked the joined-up-ness of the French mega resorts, and the lift infrastructure was a bit older than most of the stuff in France, so a bit slower, but really it wasn't an issue. I suspect it may have been had we been queuing for 20 minutes to get on the slow lifts. There were lots of drag lifts which most of the rest of our group were a little timid of (our chalet company did guiding for three days so these weren't people I knew) but having learned to ski in South Germany in the early/mid 1980s they don't phase me.

The food on the mountain was pretty good - more traditional than the X-and-chips you tend to get in France, though less traditional than in Austria. It also wasn't nearly as expensive as people would have you believe - the most expensive lunch we had was around CHF70 for three of us including hot chocolates and a cheeky beer. That said some of the bars in town made London prices look cheap!

I think I'm slightly biased because the conditions were beyond superb, which does give rose-tinted spectacles, but I thought it really splendid. The pistes were well looked after, the itineraries great fun, and the classification of pistes pretty bang on. It's hard work to find exceptionally challenging pistes, but the itineraries do provide that. If you're a cruisy blues/reds skier you'll be in your element. There was one amazing little black into Nendaz which I could ski all day - though it was a pig & a half to get to.

Sorry, this has turned into a bit of an essay. To summarise it's better than France - more authentic, quieter, smaller; but just pipped by Austria - slightly cheaper (€ better value than CHF), better food, more challenging skiing - hence we're off to St Anton later this month.

I'm certainly a convert of skiing anywhere but France - next year I think we'll try Zermatt (I was promised a honeymoon there, but moved the wedding to a less snowsure month) and Italy.

I would love another trip this year but it's not going to happen.

I'm also not sure what to do next year as DH may need an operation which will mean that he won't be able to ski for a good while. I'm thinking to go ahead and book for the rest of us and add him on if he is able to come. Is that a bit harsh?!

I will get the abacus and work Whistler out, but we did get to use Dh's airmiles to Vancouver, then we fly via Dallas to use them home again, so that bit is essentially cut out. Last trip was to Winter Park and we did the same to Denver. Makes it possible. Will dig out accommodation stuff. Our last European trip was to Kitzbuel, which we loved.

Good news is I've found my ski jacket. Better news is that it still fits

I'd lost this thread- but reading it getting all excited- we leave in 10 days yay!
I'm so keen that I have already packed for the kiss, and going to PCI for me in the next few days. (Busy w/e ahead and like to get sorted!)

Les gets. Lots of familiar runs as we went there last year. And hoping that DD (5) enjoys it..

Muchtoo that seems eminently reasonable. Why not book somewhere where there's stuff for the non-skier too and include him anyway? That way he can have some semblance of holiday whilst you're out on the slopes. Or would that be torture for him? A friend went to Megeve and was unable to ski due to a back injury but said he had a great time as it wasn't just a ski resort so he was entertained whilst his wife and children were out.

Pistey - good news re the jacket. I now have ski kit in 3 sizes kicking around so something will always fit. Were you a witness at a MN wedding some years back? If so hi, so was I!

I'm now playing booking chicken. DH has booked the time off work and I'm holding out for the chalet I want to do a last minute deal. There are 3/5 rooms still available so I won't panic and book before at least one of those has been filled.

Jealous of all of you heading out this week!

OMG, loving all the posts,

dont, thanks for the costing, does not seem to bad, great info many thanks.

Rather, glad you found jacket and even better that still fits :)

Sweary, lucky you getting another one in this year :) sound like your week was fab, just love it when great conditions, great snow and blue skies, perfect :)

hey Crappy welcome back, 10 days exciting, I still have 4 weeks but starting to sort things, as we are self catering, starting boxes of food drinks etc, love it !!

Been on web cams again :)

Love everybody joining in :)

I've just done my 'regular' weather forecast check and snow is finally forecast all next week for where we are going (after a very dry month). The pistes were always going to be fine due to good snowmaking facilities, but fingers crossed we may be able to go tobogganing next to our hotel too!!

Sweary!!!

yes i was!!

Wasn't it so romantic?!

Hello again!

Yes to outer ski kit in different sizes, but I always have to make do with the thermals that we have so sometimes they are snugger than is ideal. Then I realise they are age 11 - 12 years!

Whistler accommodation - someone asked, we are saying at Whistler Village Inn and Suites, 8 nights, tis just me and my 16 year old son on this trip, and we have a suite, so one space but not sharing as such, and it is according to conversion today is £1104 for both of us.

My DD is at Edinburgh uni, she's not coming with us as is an elite rower and it is not the time to be risking injuries or be away from training, but they do sometimes just drive up to Aviemore, Glenshee too i think, has anyone been there? She was talking about taking her kit up next year.

looking pretty snowy on the Tignes webcams...