France Ski Bargains - Skiing Holidays in France » Ski business

Ski prices down by as much as a third below 2010

Alan — Mon, 07 Nov 2011 08:44:15 +0000

Going skiing this season is going to be cheaper, a study has recently shown, as the prices are around a third cheaper than they were last year. This is because the holidays for school children in the UK are not clashing with those of Paris so there is less demand for places. However, according to a recent report by PlanetSKI not all ski operators have lowered their prices.

Cathy Rankin is the marketing director for PlanetSKI in the UK and she has commented, “The fact that the holidays in France and Britain are not clashing this year means that prices should be significantly lower.” An apartment with four bedrooms located in Les Terrasses d’Azur will cost just under £730 this winter which is significantly cheaper than the price in 2010.

Of course, with less people around the slopes are going to be less crowded which is a major advantage for skiers. They will not be empty though as some regions of France do have the same holiday but it’s by no means a majority. Normally, half term is one of the most expensive weeks in the season because demand is high and ski operators are not offering any discounts.

Various ski operators have been saying that demand has been high and so they are reluctant to offer discounts, however, there are no current figures available so potential customers are just having to take them at their word. France remains the most popular location for snowboarders and skiers from Britain and has a share of the market at over 30%.

Lisa Tyrrell is the spokesperson for Inghams which is one of the best-known tour operators for skiing in the UK. She has commented, “During the February half term next year skiing is going to be very enjoyable as prices should be lower and the slopes should be less busy. There will be fewer queues for the lifts and the slopes will be quieter.” PlanetSKI has a partnership with Inghams and together they are offering some good deals on their winter skiing holidays.

One location that is particularly popular with British skiers is Val d’Isere. Jane Jaquemond, is a representative from the tourist office in the region and she is commented, “It is understandable why this skiing location is so popular with the British, it offers great service, a beautiful resort as well as fantastic skiing in the Alps. We are sure that the relationship between this area and the British skier is going to continue for a long time.”

Chalet Almach is a three star resort in Val d’Isere and for skiing with seven nights accommodation the price is set at just over £1000 per person. Chalet Les Danaides is also a three star resort and for £1100 skiers can have one week on the slopes with food and flights included. Resort transfers are also included in the price.

Rising prices do not put off French ski fans In spite of rising prices and a tight budget, France...

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MGM invests in Grand Massif area of France

Alan — Tue, 17 May 2011 21:06:11 +0000

Plans to construct new homes in the Grand Massif area of France have been brought forward by MGM the French property developer. The builder claims that Brits want to purchase French homes in areas where they can mingle with the locals therefore it is only logical in the Grand Massif area that is loaded with beautiful and scenic villages.

Grand Massif is located in the French Alps and is the fourth largest ski area and has many year round attractions as well. The London sales consultant for MGM, Richard Deans says that work will commence soon on the sixth development for MGM in the village of Samoens an archetypal village in France of which the focus is on its church, fountain, central square and old market building.

There are nine chalets traditionally-styled which contain 70 apartments that range from 43 sq metre-one bedroom to 110 sq metre-four bed two bath duplexes. The homes all come with underground car park and extra storage space.

Prices start at £209,000. There are a good number of British families that are buying these types of properties giving them the chance to pursue a lifestyle that mixes with the locals and has a huge amount of outdoor activities throughout the year.

11 new ski resorts opening in France A record 11 new ski resorts are being constructed in...

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French Alps to see boom in chalet development

Alan — Sat, 13 Nov 2010 05:57:03 +0000

MGM group has plans for 11 new ski property developments for the French Alps. The construction of these developments will result in more than 1000 new rental units. The announcement comes at a time when demand for properties in the ski developments are at an all time high. Part of the reason for the large number of development properties to be constructed is that final approval on a number of plans previously submitted has been granted.

Upon receiving such approval, MGM thought it was time to expand some of the projects from its land bank and grow it all at once.

Representatives see no problem in selling apartment units to savvy investors who want to earn some rental money on their investments while granting themselves some holiday time in the Alps. GM says that it expects most of the apartment units can be built and sold within a two-year window.

This is perfect timing for the development of these properties, since demand has regenerated the market prices back up to pre-recession earmarks. The only worry is that fluctuating exchange rates might impact the increased market, another good reason to develop and sell as quickly as possible.

There is no secret here that MGM is trying to cash in on an opportunity before it goes away. One expert said that July and August sales were better than he could ever remember. Facilities usually include all of the amenities like spas, saunas, indoor pools, gyms, steam rooms, and beauty centres. Owners are also offered MGM Hotel Management services to help run and lease their properties.

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Easyjet banking on ski flights to get back on track

Alan — Fri, 08 Oct 2010 02:41:45 +0000

Easyjet, which is an airline used by a number of independently travelling snowboarders and skiers is reporting a better financial outlook this year. That’s probably not so difficult, considering that Easyjet lost 43 million pounds last year, as it watched its profits fall sixty-five per cent.

Easyjet blames last year’s lost profits on higher taxation, increased fuel costs, and the bad economy. Other airlines suffered the same fate for many of the same reasons as Easyjet.

The airline flew eight per cent more people in September 2010 than it did in September 2009 and also saw revenue rise six per cent per seat. Easyjet predicts a 150 million pound profit this year. They say that this outstanding performance in a harsh economic climate is a testament to Easyjet’s combination of convenient airport destinations and low cost.

The airline has also taken on new ski routes to Alps destinations like Basel, Lyon, and Grenobel.

Still there are complaints of disruption in Spain, France, and Greece, where air traffic control problems persist. Representatives of Easyjet say the European Commission and Europe’s governments must address problems with outdated traffic control systems and striking air traffic controllers. Until then, millions of commuter flights will suffer disruption.

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From the Isle of Man to Samoens ski resort

Alan — Sun, 03 Oct 2010 12:08:22 +0000

Two French ski resort owners are hoping to greet customers this winter from the Isle of Man. Brothers James and Jonathan Ingram are both former residents of the island. They now operate two chalets in a village called Samoens where guests come to ski the Rhone Alps of France.

The brothers say that the chalets are in a perfect location near three lift stations, none more than one minute away by minibus service. The chalets are called Marmotte and Marvel and will hold as many as fourteen skiers comfortably.

The Ingram’s are accomplished winter athletes; James being a certified snowboard instructor and Jonathan a ski technician.

They attended King William’s College and grew up on the Isle of Man. For most of the last decade they have been working and ski resorts all over Europe.

They would love to see visitors from their old home come and stay with them for skiing and reminiscing at their new location.

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French snowsports in decline

Alan — Fri, 16 Jul 2010 20:54:09 +0000

Along with the Ski Club’s Snowsports Analysis that is produced every autumn, the Crystal Ski Industry Report that also is produced every year is an indicator of snowsports within the UK.

Published on July 13^th, the 2010 report showed an 11% decrease in the snowsports market in the UK during the 2009/10 season with the number of skiers diving to less than a million compared to the reported 1.06m that hit the slopes the winter before.

The factors that are blamed for the decrease in numbers are the weak pound and the harsh financial climate. The ash cloud crisis and the airline strikes as well as UK weather conditions also contributed.

However, alongside this fact, there were also capacity reductions within the tour operator sector which dropped by ten percent compared to the 13% decrease in the independent sector.

France was hurt the most by the 2009/2010 capacity cuts which saw the amount of UK holiday goers drop by 3.8% even though it is still the most popular ski location for Brits followed closely behind by Austria which saw its share of visitors increase by about 25.6%.

The Crystal report also showed that capacity cuts have caused supply to become more in line with demand which in turn should help to strengthen tours in the future. The report predicts that the tour operator packages will start to offer better value to customers that are very sensitive about prices during the coming winter.

The Sterling gaining strength should also help make ski holidays more affordable this winter with the economy turning up slightly and a new budget to help boost the ski industry.

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Two new French ski areas under construction

Alan — Sat, 08 May 2010 03:04:05 +0000

This month in France expansion efforts on the Avoriaz ski resort will start in order to create two new districts of resorts, each complete with accommodation complexes.

While this may be enticing, the more exciting part of the expansion may be the fact that Avoriaz is planning to add in a new water park and replace their cable car link between the Morzine valley and the resort with a state of the art lift. A great deal of the development will be complete in time for the winter of 2011.

The new ski resort districts will be named Amara and Crozats and will add a total of nine new residences that offer holiday goers 40 new apartments to choose from when searching for accommodation.

Amara will have two opening stages, one in December of 2011 and another a year later in December of 2012 and will offer a spa centre complete with a swimming pool, a day nursery, Turkish bath and Jacuzzi, and the usual mix of shops, bars, and restaurants.

In September of this year work is also expected to begin on the water park facility, which will be named the ‘Aquariaz’ and have a mountain water park theme with plenty of natural vegetation from the tropics, allowing skiers a chance to experience two drastically different climates in one holiday.

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Top 10 French ski resorts

Alan — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 04:39:42 +0000

Most Brits love a ski holiday and of course the best nearby location is France. For this reason every year around 200,000 Britons travel down to the French Alps via air, car, or rail to experience the light-hearted fun of sun.

For those who are thinking about a trip down to France this year, it may be helpful to know the top ten resorts as of 2010. They are in no specific order: Chamonix, Val d’Isere, Tignes, Courchevel, Val Thorens, Les Deux Alpes, La Plagne, Alpe d’Heuz, Meribel, and Les Arcs.

Outside of these top ten, there are plenty of ski resorts scattered across France for snowboarders and skiers of all ages and levels. In fact, most ski resort areas are able to accommodate all levels of skiing quite comfortably. Those, the choice may simply become the habitat that you would like your resort to embody from village to traditional to ski-in ski-out resorts.

Of course, in order to get the most out of your ski holiday, while booking your accommodations you may also want to concentrate on the total ski area that you choose, given the fact that there are many interlinked ski domains throughout the country.

Thus, you could head to areas such as Three Valleys that offers easy access to three different resorts in one holiday. Another great choice is the Paradiski Area which links Les Arcs, La Plagne, and Espace San Bernard together offered triple as many trails within one location.

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New Teletext ski packages

Alan — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 08:06:39 +0000

It will be easier to keep track of last minute ski bargains this winter due to the new Teletext Holidays ski price index that has just been released. The index will be updated every week and is designed to help people who want help planning a budget for their winter holiday.

It can be found online at www.teletextholidays.co.uk/skipriceindex and is the first ski company that is capable of not only tracking the cost of an upcoming ski holiday but also the other items that will need to be added into a budget such as lift passes and boot hire.

In order to keep the index complete, the team at Teletext Holidays will track multiple last minute holiday packages from multiple companies every week.

According to the company Andorra, France and Bulgaria topped the index for the best ski package prices which will matter this year as Alison Steed the editor of mymoneydiva.com stated that the ski market will suffer this year from the recession. Steed added that if a person is not an avid skier the idea of a ski holiday this year may appear to be an unaffordable luxury.

The good news is that Steed added that the prices will decrease the ski season continues forward which makes the middle of the season the best time to get a bargain ski holiday.

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French Ski resorts booming

Alan — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 07:09:36 +0000

The ski season last year from 2008-2009 has been great for France due to excellent ski conditions combined with cold weather that kept the snow falling.

As a result, France ski resorts saw their visits increase by about 6.6%, which partially may be due to the fact that the season set of record of 58.6m sky days. Overall the total revenue for operators of French increased over 8.9%.

However, not all ski areas saw the benefits of the increase in skiers over the season, since the ski resorts that benefited the most from the great season were locations such as Plancher Les Mines found in Franche Cornte, Metbeif in Jura, and Le Lioran in Massif Central.

Areas such as Massif Central, which only contributes to about two percent of the skiing activity in France, saw an increase of visitors by over 63% over the last season, while areas that usually attract the most skiers from Britain such as the Alps only saw an increase of about 6.6%.

There are three possible explanations for this occurrence, the recession which caused skiers and holiday goers in general to stay closer to home, the second because there was better snow in the less popular ski areas, and the third because many international resorts suffered from the foreign markets contracting.

The SNTF report showed British skiers are of major importance to resorts in France with about 21% of all skiers in visiting the country of British origin beating out all other nationalities

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