Hi,
I was fully committed to a holiday in the alps for the first week in July- Ive wanted to do it for a while now, but since I got right into biking and my kids have got a bit bigger it has got even more appealing. I put together a package with one of the tour operators that seemed to offer good value, but I just didnt feel I was getting the best deal they could have given me, espescially as flights seem to have gone through the roof a bit recently, so I cancelled it and got a refund. I still really want to go, though. How do you guys go about your Alps trips- do you have any favourite places to stay or any ways of cutting costs to make it more viable?
Itd be me, my wife, and two strong and brave trail-savvy kids aged 13 and 11. We wouldnt be taking our own bikes, we would almost defo want to fly (if i lived in the South of England I`d drive, but I live in the North West of Scotland, and I aint driving from there ha ha), and we wouldnt be expecting 5 star accomodation.
Does anybody have any tips/ thoughts that might help us avoid pitfalls?

Norway instead?

drive to somewhere like morzine (8hrs from Calais) and hire a chalet, you should ge tone for about 600.

plenty of routes, maps, people to help you on rides, plenty of stuff for the wife etc,.. to do..

nasher, youre assuming my wife isnt up to it? ha ha! just as well she didnt hear you mate!! As i said, Id love to drive and take all the stuff (and bikes) with me, but it would take me 12 hours to drive to dover from here! b r…norway? im listening…. i bet the weather at that time of year would suit a pale-skinned Scot like me. Do they have dedicated centres like they do in the Alps, or would it be a case of taking your own bikes and exploring? I have to say I do like the sound of it.

Norway, for better value? Cost of living is higher there than just about anywhere i can think of.

Hiring some self catered accomodation is your cheapest option.

Personally i won’t be going back to Morzine etc without either some local knowledge or a guide. All the waymarked stuff is pretty pants.

self catering accomodation is what ive always done in the past for summer holidays, so im going to check that out. anybody got any good leads? if youre flying, how much do you usually get charged to take your own bike, i.e. would it be cheaper to hire (considering i`ll probably only use it 3 or 4 days)?

I only suggested Norway as you could get a ferry over from near(ish) with cars/bikes etc. Its not cheap, I know I worked out there.

But tbh anywhere you go is a distance for you – what about Canada/US, probably not much difference in total travel time as the Alps and should be cheaper?

We drove to the Alps, but live a couple of hours from Dover.

We got some flights one August to Basel for a couple of hundred squids, for a family of four, total not each. That was with easyjet though and I think they stopped doing them now. I do remember only being able to book a few weeks before. Last year drove to within spitting distance, it’s all motorways, Did Amsterdam to the Black Forest in a day easy.

the best cost effective way is to leave the family behind and go by yourself

Simples

Would highly recommend Chalet Chataigne in Chatel. Predominantly a ski chalet but now open in summer to cater for bikers and walkers. Part of the Port du Soleil system with direct links to Morzine, Les Gets etc.

http://www.skialot.com/

You can get a boat from Newcastle to Amsterdam. Worked out to be slightly cheaper for us last year. Certainly saves driving a lot of miles.

ha ha, saladdodger, yup, thatd be the way forward for sure. thanks for the link coleman, nice one :-). im going to have to have a good think about this, with the cost of flights escalating theres no doubt the travel is the stumbling block here. maybe i`ll send the wife and one boy on easyjet while i leave a day earlier and roadtrip it with my other boy.

newcastle to amsterdam is a great idea. genius.

Does the rosyth to zeebrugge ferry still run?

£18.50 per bike per leg on Easyjet. Read the t+cs carefully. They have rewritten them recently so it is easier to understand. A lot of the advice seen on here re bikes/luggage on planes is wrong. Hire in Morzine is ruinously expensive and the brakes are on the wrong way round sometimes. I’d take my own bike. Driving from NW scotland would be horrible.

Getting a friend who was french to book the chalet saved a bit.

Fly to geneva – hire a car and go to Les Gets (1 hour drive!) Loads of great accommadation, superb riding and nice shops and restaurants for the Misses! …And it’s a nice looking place!

We drove Aberdeen to Morzine, by far the worst part of the journey was the UK bit. I thought the drive from Folkstone to Morzine was a doddle.

Tesco clubcard points for the tunnel cheap as chips.

flying was cheaper than ferrys/ trains last summer, haven’t looked this year. the cheap options of the winter just don’t seem to translate for the bike season 🙁

hey westcoast drop me a line my email is in my profile.

I can sort you out an apartment for about 350 quid for the week in the middle of the ligurian and maritime alps… I should be able to sort out something for you in terms of bike hire, guides and shuttles..

Its your own fault for living in Scotland. 🙂

Ebookers…23/07/11, Air France, Aberdeen to Zurich…£186 each rtn.
Hotel + bike hire + meals out…£3k

2-day drive, £450 fuel rtn, £250 tolls, £100 ferry/tunnel, £120 camping, own bikes/kit/self cater…£1.5k

I’ve been toying with the idea but kids too young, & wife hopefully starts a degree next year, so its a few years off. Mate I ride with takes his camper van to the Alps 3-4 times a year. (Inc Jan). Reckons its the best way by far.