@johnE, maybe they can now, but the passes Ski Beat provided when we last travelled with them were only valid on departure day. I checked very carefully and they explained that was the deal some tour ops had. The Les Arcs ski pass sales website is now pretty clear that the half day is from 12:30 on arrival day. Do you have information to contradict this and confirm the pass can alternatively be used on departure day?

@karin, it used to be that at least with some tour operators (e.g. Ski Beat) that the half day extra was tagged on after the 6 days, whereas for directly purchased passes it was tagged on the beginning. Last season the passes we bought through Sunweb had the extra half day on the beginning, so things may have changed.

@Owlette, I think I must be one of the few skiers* who hates the tunnel run. It's just too flat. The other routes down are so much nicer. *All the snowboarders I know hate it, as it's ridiculously flat, and you almost invariable have to stomp.

@Macker13, was the £400 just for the lounge and priority boarding? If not, do you know how much they were?Personally, I'd be cautious about initiating a chargeback when I still wanted some of the services (presumably the majority of them).

@holidayloverxx, they're the operation that restarted the ski train from London, by chartering a Eurostar. They're a big operation, based in France I think.

@Biscuit4321, I don't think VT would be a great choice for you. There are big wide greens but they're also the main routes though the centre of the resort, so everyone has to use them. That means they get busy and you'll find some very fast skiers on them. The latter isn't helped by there being some very flat bits that you need to pole or skate over if you don't have plenty of speed. I'd stick to VDI, especially as it sounds like you've got a booking with a suitable instructor.

I believe some people get a pre-booked taxi between the 2 stations That sounds like a lot more faff - and cost. I've not been on long distance French trains for many years but getting round Paris with a Navigo card is a breeze. I don't disagree but it is a suggested option on the snowcarbon site: https://www.snowcarbon.co.uk/guides/change-in-paris/paris-gare-de-lyon-to-paris-nord I won't pretend the RER can't be a bit busy at times. We've ended up with our group being split up as some fitted on a train when others don't, so I'd advise that everyone knows where they're going and carries their own passport and Navigo Easy card (which is surely what adults do anyway) and that parents keep hold of kids.

@mishmash83, there's no need to validate tickets on the RER, at least not that I've encountered in the last few years. The "tickets" are now either plastic Navigo Easy cards that you load with trips or you can use an app on your phone. Much for reliable than the old paper ones. We've learned to always use Google maps to check the route between the 2 Paris stations as we're approaching Paris from either direction. Generally, it's either 2 stops on RER D or a stop each on RER A and B. No point looking for staff in the stations - they seem to be rather scarce :D I believe some people get a pre-booked taxi between the 2 stations, but I can only imagine than takes longer than the couple of stops on the RER.

@mishmash83, you might have already found it, but, if not, worth having a look at this thread: https://snowheads.com/ski-forum/viewtopic.php?t=166241

While personally I'd observe the Japanese etiquette, as [b]@Ski Shagger[/] says, the tourist information websites suggest ladies might wish to wear swimming costumes: https://www.visit-hokkaido.jp/en/spa/spot/detail_10635.html so understandable. No excuse for them then criticizing those who are observing the normal etiquette.

The group I skedi with in January use Maprika. It's free and seemed to work pretty well. As with any of these apps it's only accurate when you've got data.

@bornio, we stayed in the Terra Nova a couple of years ago. I think the was it's first year as a Belambra, so reviews of the service offering before then probably aren't relevant. It's in a great location. While Bergerie can get busy, you've got the alternative option of dropping down into 1800 and up from there. Our room was good, with a beautiful view across the valley and the mountains. The buffet breakfast was fine, but more plagued that other HB hotels I've stayed in by people taking large amounts of baguette to make their lunches, so often leaving none for people having their breakfast. (Why do people think it's acceptable to take food out of a buffet for another meal?!) Of the Belambras I've stayed in, it was probably my least favourite in terms of the dinners. Possibly due to the layout, the main course wasn't buffet service and you had to order from a server. As others have mentioned, the choices were quite samey and repeated more than once during a week's stay. There was still a salad bar and cold meats etc as in other Belambras. And, as usual in Belambras, there was red and white wine on tap, although getting that could be a challenge as they seemed to be very short of carafes. Overall, for the price and location I thought it was good value but would choose the (considerably cheaper) Aguie Rouge in Arc 2000 over it if given the choice (possibly even if they came in at the same price).

@brianatab, there are groups of people who are technically British citizens through no fault or actionoif their own, who have no interest in having the "protections of being a UK citizen when traveling around the world." An example group is children born overseas to British migrant parents, who are then British citizens by descent. I believe there are for e.g. a significant number of people in this category in Australia. Such individuals have in many cases never had a British passport as they've never needed one in but are not now going to be permitted to travel to the UK on an ETA with their Australian passport. Can they renounce their British nationality to avoid that complication? From what I can see, it's only possible to renounce British citizenship once someone is 18 and it costs £482 (which is cheap compared to renouncing US citizenship). At a quick glance, this appears to be about 3 times as much as applying for a passport (but I might have misunderstood). A current problem is that there is a backlog in the passport application system, as many people who didn't previously need a British passport are now applying.

@brianatab, there are groups of people who are technically British citizens through no fault or actionoif their own, who have no interest in having the "protections of being a UK citizen when traveling around the world." An example group is children born overseas to British migrant parents, who are then British citizens by descent. I believe there are for e.g. a significant number of people in this category in Australia. Such individuals have in many cases never had a British passport as they've never needed one in but are not now going to be permitted to travel to the UK on an ETA with their Australian passport.

@Gufo, have you done a forum search? There's a couple of recent trip reports on skiing in St Sorlin, albeit not staying in St Sorlin.

@icedgemma, you'll probably get a better service and choice by booking direct with the shop. My understanding is that the shops get a pretty poor deal from Skiset, alpy, etc.

@icedgemma, there are different skis but if you book through an aggregator like Skiset you'll probably just get whatever they have to hand :D

Level 4 in livigno now, also Ortler alps and some other central italian alps. I saw a video of an avalanche today in courmayeur that came down off mont blanc and onto the piste (i think it is the chairlift that links up with the track from col de vesses/ val veny) :shock: :shock: :shock: https://youtu.be/UYW1wzbmGQs I was wondering what it would have been like to be in that lift queue and then I saw this: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/videos/cre0qz7v23go?at_link_id=27587DAA-0CD6-11F1-894D-D7C9B366BDA2&at_ptr_name=facebook_page&at_format=link&at_medium=social&at_campaign=Social_Flow&at_link_type=web_link&at_link_origin=BBC_Essex&at_campaign_type=owned&at_bbc_team=editorial&fbclid=Iwb21leAQDJI9jbGNrBAMkimV4dG4DYWVtAjExAHNydGMGYXBwX2lkDDM1MDY4NTUzMTcyOAABHpxk6jwOdCCjBJIh_M16kuGe3rzoU0LDx5cBl2hKppUe5qJsX9htp33EXY14_aem_fDdoJAA84tCNw3_DPrRegQ

@ecureuil, unfortunately, @Imalittlelost, doesn't appear to be going to put their board in a bag that will fit in the overhead racks (or luggage space at the end of the carriages) :D

@sugarmoma666, travel First? Otherwise make friends with the cyclists. There's still no space for a coffin bag there.

@Imalittlelost, Have you found a way of making them fit in the luggage space? Bungy strapped vertically to the luggage rack - out the way and fits well enough. Didnt try the overhead shelving - too much of a pain in the backside to get it up there. The trick is to pack differently ;-) Put you board in a simple bag without other stuff and the rest in a holdall. That way the snowboard (or skis) fit in the overhead rack.

@Imalittlelost, until you said you'd done it before, I was going to say whatever you do don't try and take a wheeled "coffin" bag on the TGVs, as they really fit and are a pain to other passengers for that reason, as they seem to get left in aisles and next to luggage racks. Have you found a way of making them fit in the luggage space?

My recommendation would also be Izzy but@Gämsbock got there first.

If you know enough to have a bag surely you must know not to be on steep terrain on a day like that. I don't think that's how the psychology on this works. Buying an airbag is quick and easy. Anyone with the money can do it and look the part. Learning about snow safety and how to assess risks takes time and effort (and an awareness that it needs to be done).

Let me fix that for you ;-) @CardoGlisshop will claim they can set your bindings for you if you supply Height, weight, age, boot length and mondo size. In reality, you need the boot there to set the forward pressure correctly. (I skied for several years with skis that Glisshop claimed to set the bindings on. It was only when I learned how to set up my own bindings that I found the forward pressure had been wrong all along, which wasn't that surprising since they hadn't had my boot.)

@Cardo, don't forget you'll need to pay to get somewhere to set up the bindings if you buy them online (unless you're comfortable doing that yourself).

One of the biggest dangers, especially on powder frenzy days, is even if you think you know what you are doing and can pick a safe line down, you can’t control skiers and exposure from above. But it's not a 'safe line' if you are exposed to lots of steep terrain above you on a day of generalised High risk... This is absolutely key. The (admittedly limited) training I've done made it quite clear that a "safe line" includes assessing what's above your and considering whether that could cause you an issue. You can't control what other people do, so the sensible thing is surely to assume they do the wrong thing. If a line is safe "so long as no-one else does something dumb" it's not safe.

@hang11, I interpreted what @gixxerniknik, said slightly differently to you. My understanding is that in European resorts, ski patrol will ensure that the marked runs served by a lift are adequately safe, including from the possibility of avalanches from off piste running into them, before opening. A lift opening shows that ski patrol consider the marked runs served by the lift are adequately safe. I thought what @gixxerniknik was getting at is that a resort may open a lift even though it can also be used to access off piste areas that they know not to be safe.

@Arctic Roll, did you take the SNCF TGV or the Trenitalia Frecciarossa from Paris to Turin? When we caught the Frecciarossa to Saint Jean de Maurienne it was heading on to Turin and then Milan ... or at least it was meant to be. We were probably about an hour out of Paris when they announced that it would be terminating at Modane due to an Italian strike and there would be buses from there :shock:

@HeadLikeAFknOrange, all the information about what is included is in the first post of the EoSB thread. There's an equipment rental shop in the Oxalys that normally offers a good deal to Snowheads.

Also, is there somewhere I can chat to other EOSB first timers? The bus from Geneva airport? ;-) Seriously, though. If you've got any questions pop them on the EoSB thread. There's usually plenty of folk happy to give helpful (or amusing :-D ) answers. The EoSB is great. This will be my 5th.

@davidar, I believe the reason you can't DM will be that you're down a crevasse. If you follow the linked instructions you should hopefully be able to climb out of there or call for rescue if not :D

If anyone is traveling on the Eurostar Ski Train via Lille in the next few weeks, could you help out @hannahlucy89 with her information request [url=https://www.snowheads.com/ski-forum/viewtopic.php?t=175976#5537348]here?

@hannahlucy89, when travelling by train, including Eurostar, we pack our skis in simple ski bags so that they then fit in the overhead racks.

@hannahlucy89, when are you going? I know a few folk have booked the train via Lille who might be happy to take a look for you.

@Skigaillimh, did it mean you had to keep getting your phone out?

Roc des Blanchets also has a very nice snack bar round the back with lots of sun loungers. It's my preferred lunch spot in La Plagne in good weather, as there are beautiful views across the valley to Courchevel.

Not a fluent french speaker but it seems to suggest what we already know that during periods of poor weather and particularly on weekends it will be necessary to have EITHER (soit in french) winter tyres, chains or approved snow socks. I can't see mention for legally mandating multiples of the above as suggested I've now translated it and it explicitly allows the gendarme to prohibit vehicles progressing with snow socks if they don't consider they're suitable for the heavy snow conditions.

@Rob_Quads, I've linked to the actual decree in my post a few above yours.

I can't read French very well, but my understanding from other sites is that this decree from the Belleville Valley requires vehicles to be equipped with 4 winter tyres (in good condition) and chains (not socks): https://www.lesbelleville.fr/document/arrete-obligation-equipements-vehicules-periode-hivernale/ Perhaps someone who can read French could confirm?