ski/boarding - cheap passes and equipment hire

jillybee

Hi,

When booking a skiing package holiday is it cheaper to just include ski pass and ski/boot hire or buy when on holiday/at the resort?

I dont think you can buy ski passes etc in advance on line, or at least I cannot find any?!

Thank you money savers.

(ps - sorry i did not realise the other thread was 3 years old :eek: )

alibongo42

You can almost always buy lift passes in advance. This is one such site.
http://www.skiextras.com/

Always check the web site of the resort itself, as often they often have advance discounts (Google the name of the resort)

tuggy

One tip i've read is that if you book your holiday thru a big tour operator like Thomsons etc and include ski hire then all the skis you get are 100 years old, scratched etc etc. Thomson "own brand" skis that arent really looked after.

Apparantly you should just wait until you arrive at the resort and go to a "proper" hire place and get good stuff.

Not sure on cost differences.

But i have been warned against tour operator skis thats all i'm saying!

HomeJames_3

Depends where you go, we go to winterpark colorado and buy a season pass in the spring before we go, we get discounted ski/board hire with the passes its often worth going onto the sites for the resorts your going to and see what offers they have i find the tour operators quite expensive for their passes and hire etc. where are you going?

moneysavingmatthew

As HomeJames said it completely depends when and where you are going - let us know and we'll see if we can help!

It is rarely cheapest to buy direct with your tour operator but can be worthwhile in a resort like Meribel where your rep will go and get you the ski pass before the first morning which gets you on the slopes more quickly.

If anyone is going to the Colarado for a couple of weeks this year the Epic Pass is stunning value - $579 for a complete season including Vail and Beaver Creek (both will be $80 or more a day this season). Only available until 15th November. I'd already bought ours earlier in the year but when booking accommodation on Expedia noticed it was available as an added extra (and therefore cashbackable!!)

jillybee

Thanks for your replies guys!

We are thinking of Soll or Neiderau in Austria, in Jan or Feb. Cheapest 1/2 board deal I have found so far is £444 each without the passes and equipment hire etc. This skiing is an expensive business...

Lucie_2

you can buy lift passes etc on ifyouski.com, and the ones I've looked at for this season are nearly all cheaper than either the tour operator price or resort price.
For USA resorts we have used the ski independence website, as you do not have to book the entire holiday with them to buy lift passes.

One big consideration for me is when will you receive said passes? Will they be delivered to your accommodation or will you have to trail round the resort on the first morning trying to find out where to pick them up from, and thus losing precious time on the slopes? This year we have booked our lift passes direct with the tour operator as they have confirmed that we will receive them on the transfer coach from the airport.

stephb34

If its neilson you are going with they have a price promise that if you buy in this country from them, they guarantee that if its cheaper in resort you get a refund of the difference and also i think it may save you time as well if you've done it before you go.

BernadetteN

Check with the resort website to see what offers are available from the local lift company, online or in resort. We are going to Val Cenis and are getting a discount for one child by buying 6 days skiing lessons and lift pass together, getting another child's lift pass for free by buying 2 adult passes at the same time and we are also getting 5% off lift passes because we have 3+ children. I've also found equipment prices at all the hire places to reasonably similar so we're waiting until we arrive to choose either the nearest place or any shop that can undercut another on the same level of equipment. Finally, if you really want to make a cheap holiday, chose a resort like Val Cenis that isn't yetflooded with Brits and is mainly French so prices are far lower eg 120km pistes for €140 a week.