In Defence of the Plane…

First off I do love travelling by train and have spent 28, 36 and 39 hour journeys across Australia, India & China in the past. But these were where the journey was part of the trip – getting to The Alps the trip should be about the skiing or snowboarding in my opinion.

But that’s all it is, an opinion and in getting to La Tania the plane in general is much, much quicker and cheaper. Of course there is the environmental impact (the big bad airline industry contributing a massive 2% of CO2 emissions) but if you’re really “green” you should be travelling 5 up in a modern economical car via the tunnel – better even than the train when it comes to carbon footprints and getting to The Alps. But is the plane going anyway whether you’re on it or not? 🙂

Comparisons are all over the Internet of course but rarely like for like. Charter hell from Gatwick at midday on a Saturday seems to be used rather than a scheduled service from a regional airport or even travelling the night before (and arriving the night before and getting extra days skiing that way). They also don’t compare overnight journeys either and what about flying in to Chambéry cutting the transfer time in half or hey, Courchevel has an Altiport – but no train station….

Surely in comparisons both type of transport should leave at the same time – in fact Eurostar Trains say that the check-in requirement for the Alps Trains are 1 hour before departure while easyJet is 40 minutes. Unless you live nearby in the city, I’d argue that airports in general are easier to get to too and remember trains got delayed by the recent snow in the UK and Northern Europe recently (as well as the flights) but with easyJet alone having 60 flights in to Geneva on a Saturday there are often alternatives available.

Direct Eurostar Services from St Pancras to Moûtiers depart on a Friday evening at 7:31pm arriving Saturday morning at 05:51am with a 20 to 30 minute journey up to resort. But no bed to sleep on and what’s the point of arriving at 06:30am in the morning when the lifts don’t open until 9am and you’re unlikely to be able to get in top your accommodation? Note there are showers, changing rooms and lockers now available in La Tania this season from 08:30 on a Saturday). Options via Paris exist with a taxi or trip on the underground between stations (carting skis around an airport doesn’t seem to be a big deal compared to that really) and overnight sleeper trains are available but in reality are you not going to stand in the bar all night?

Fly British Airways at 7:25pm from the excellent Terminal 5 – direct motorway access, meet & greet car parking, 40 minute check-in, practically zero queues, excellent food & drink, 75 minutes in the air (with a decent glass of red wine or a refreshing Gin & Tonic) and late night in to Geneva airport you’ll be in your hire car or private transfer in 30 minutes and in resort in under 2 hours easily making the Ski Lodge for 12:30 / 1am and time for a good hour relaxation and drinking time before bed.

Then 7 hours proper bed and proper sleep and still out skiing for 9ish in the morning….

The same can be done using easyJet too, meet & greet car parking is available at all airports now, again there’s only a 40 minute check-in, priority check-in is available with no queues, even fast track security for £3 is available at Luton. Granted the choice of food & drink may not be as plentiful as Heathrow but there are some decent places plus Pret and M&S for some quality sandwiches to take on board if you can’t last 75 minutes without eating.

Both easyJet and BA have flights back to London on a Sunday night at 21:45 – plenty of time to ski all day and get back to Geneva.

And as for the costs – get in quick, avoiding holidays and especially if avoiding Saturdays we got plenty of return Luton – Geneva flights for under £70 (including ALL fees, taxes and a bag in the hold). Note that easyJet flights went on sale on 22 March 2012 for Winter 2012/2013 – no sign of them yet for Winter 2013/2014 but they must be imminent.

You’d never think about the train for a cheeky weekend skiing now would you? (ok, I do remember the Eurostar Promotion with a “day trip” to Les Arcs a few years ago – I quite fancied that actually).

Anyway, it’s about when your here that counts – it’s about the skiing this season…..

PS. I actually did the BA trip above in November – got to the Drop Inn in Le Praz for 4 minutes past midnight (La Tania wasn’t open until the week after). Meanwhile a week or so later Auntie Mary travelling by train was delayed at the tunnel, missed her connection in Paris and got stuck near Chambéry for a couple of hours due to Cows on the line!

PPS. There always driving (or even cheaper hopefully, the coach services!) – a 7 hour (illegal) blast from Calais? All the driving details, laws, routes etc you need here – including Speed Camera Information: http://www.latania.co.uk/resort/driving.htm