Cheap Ski Holidays
There was a report in the UK’s Observer newspaper last Sunday saying that typical price of a ski holiday quoted in the brochures of the major tour operators have increased by up to 20% over last year. Gulp!! How can they do that in a recession?? Well, as they explained, its all to do with currency exchange. The operators costs are in Euros and their brochures are quoted in pounds. Since the Euro has become more expensive against the pound, apparently, they have had no option but to increase their prices! Well, either that, or they were just simply too expensive in the first place??
Anyway, before we expend too much effort crying in sympathy of the plight of tour operator executives, here’s a selection of top tips on how to make a ski holiday cheaper:
Self- Cater: Self-catering ski holidays are always cheaper on a per person per night basis but it also means that you avoid being forced to pay restaurant prices every night or bar prices every time you want a drink. And not to forget that the general quality of self-catered ski chalet accommodation has increased hugely over recent years, which means that self-catered ski holidays no longer equals slumming it!!
Self-Drive: Save on air fares, save on hire cars. For example, the drive from Calais to the skiing mecca of Chamonix is a nice direct route served the whole way by motorway. Google maps quotes the whole journey from Central London to Chamonix as 10hrs33m and 661miles click here – and if you think about it, its not hugely longer then the journey to the airport, check-in, security, passport, flight and repeat again on arrival at the other end
Book Direct: 30 secs of searching on the web will bring you a huge choice of quality ski chalets. With a little more timeand perhaps a couple of emails, you’ll probably be able to find some choice bargains as well!
Cheap Dates: Ski in the low season – ski holiday accommodation prices in mid Jan are often 50% of the prices of the peak weeks of New Year … to prove the point click here
Stay Close, but not Too Close: the big name, headline ski resports usually have the top reputation (and prices) for ski holidays for well deserved reasons. But often the lesser known surrounding villages have all the access to the famous pistes, but are cheaper simply because they don’t have that headline tag of their illustrious neighbor. Take Chamonix, for example. A top resport renowned for some of the best skiing in Europe, but did you know that Chamonix has 5 ski areas, some with their own village – check out the village of Les Houches as a classic example.
Midweek Check-in: Typically ski holidays are Saturday to Saturday, which means you are tied to traveling at peak times. But you can easily save yourself a fortune by booking a midweek check in date simply because it allows you to take advantage of the bargain prices prices offered by the budget airlines. Not all chalet operators will do that, but if you look out for smaller indpendent ski chalet accommodation, you are more likely to find one that will.