Kit Purchase: UK Vs The Alps

Having gone away last year I have really gotten back into my skiing after a
bit of a break, and can easily see myself getting away twice a year for the
next few years. I have therefore decided that as well as having my own boots
(which I've had for years) I'm going to go the whole hog and get some skis
too.

I looked at ski prices in Val D'Isere and guessed that there was a pretty
healthy premium to be paid for buying the stuff on top of a mountain, but
when I got back to the UK, I was suprised to find that the prices in the
shops in London and at Milton Keynes Snowdome were much the same as those in
Val.

It therefore seems to me that buying kit up in the mountains is therefore
the better option, on account of there being more choice, a better
opportunity to test before you buy and hopefully better advice in the shops
too(although one of them employed my brother 2 years ago, so maybe not!).

Are people inclined to agree that buying in the resorts is better? Is there
a third way that I've missed?

Is there an FAQ somewhere that I should have read before starting off on
this one?!

On Mon, 18 Aug 2003 11:43:53 +0100, "Jon"
wrote:

Are people inclined to agree that buying in the resorts is better? Is there
a third way that I've missed?

Buying in the valleys before you get to resort will usually be cheaper
still, but the main advantage with buying in resort is that you'll get
to demo stuff for free (for at least three days, in the case of skis,
as long as you buy at the same shop) to help you make your choice.

blatant spam
There's _always_ discounts available to Ski Club members - see the
website (in my sig) for details. It may even be worth your while
joining just for that, plus discounts off your holiday in the first
place, if you normally pay brochure price.
/bs

Don['t forget, though, that the pound has lost about 15% against the
euro in the last 18 months, which may swing hings in the favour of
buying at home, at least in the short term.

Is there an FAQ somewhere that I should have read before starting off on
this one?!

There is an FAQ, hosted by greg, I think checks favorites[sic]. Here
we a http://www.gregh.co.uk/html/rsrefaq.htm. Doesn't really give
much detail on your question, though.

--
Ace in Alsace - bruce dot rogers at roche dot com
Ski Club of Great Britain http://www.skiclub.co.uk
All opinions expressed are personal and in no way represent those of the Ski Club.

On Mon, 18 Aug 2003 11:43:53 +0100, "Jon"
wrote:


Are people inclined to agree that buying in the resorts is better? Is there
a third way that I've missed?

Not as such, only a variation on the theme, end of season or in the
off-season on glaciers, for example Stubai, can be cheaper again.
Being lucky enough to live close enough when I needed new boots last
year I took three days in the Stubai to try some out and made enough
of saving to cover much of the hotel but got to get something I'm
pleased with. In fact a boot recommended by the local shop I'd not
have considered otherwise.

I'd buy now if I was buying clothes in the UK. I think boots and skis are
best bought in resort, unless you know what you want from the previous
years tests, then you pick up the good deals in the summer sales!

Greg

Greg Hilton wrote:
I'd buy now if I was buying clothes in the UK. I think boots and skis are
best bought in resort, unless you know what you want from the previous
years tests, then you pick up the good deals in the summer sales!

Greg


Buying in European supermarkets in the big cities (Geneva/Lyon)
can be fairly cheap, but they have a very short season and by
Feb there isn't much left, let alone Easter. If you're driving
over around Christmas/New Year you might try that.

In the UK you can get good deals at this time of year. There
are some sales on during September/October time

http://www.snowlife.org.uk/events.as...ober&year=2003

-Sarah

Sarah Eggleston wrote:


Greg Hilton wrote:

I'd buy now if I was buying clothes in the UK. I think boots and skis
are best bought in resort, unless you know what you want from the
previous years tests, then you pick up the good deals in the summer
sales!

Greg


Buying in European supermarkets in the big cities (Geneva/Lyon)
can be fairly cheap,

Just a quick point, are you talking about sports supermarkets like
Decathlon or Go Sport or real supermarkets like Auchan? Auchan stocks
ski gear but the models don't seem to be the same as those sold through
ski shops and I wonder if manufacturers do special runs of cheaper gear
for the supermarket. Did you get an idea when you looked? This was
just my impression.

Otherwise we've done this subject to death. The original poster can go
to www.Google.com, type in advanced search, search only in
rec.skiing.resorts.europe, and get more opinions one way or the other
than they would know what to do with. Ace made a very good point that
exchange rates have moved a lot, although the pound is gaining ground
again it seems.

Personally I would tend to buy i) from the most knowlegable people then
ii) locally... which for me means either Grenoble or Paris, even if it
costs a bit more at least I can go back and complain if I have a
problem. I liked the guy in the Vieux Campeur in Toulouse, who, after
spending an hour with their guy told him he wasn't going to buy as it
was cheaper in Andorra.

If you are in Chambery, Grenoble or Lyon check out Montaz sports and
SportStock, both have good deals on last year's gear. A web search
should turn up some more information.

If you are in Aix in the Pyrenees then Telemark Pyrenees is a good
choice and they do mail order if you are looking for more serious gear

http://www.telemark-pyrenees.com/

Phone ahead if you visit as they are always out skiing.

Manor has *very* good stuff in Chur, as does the Coop.

Also the Intersport shops have sales in October, mainly it's the locals who
snap up the bargains.
--
Simon Brown, Postfach 159, CH-7031 Laax
www.hb9drv.ch

"Sarah Eggleston" wrote in message

I was thinking of Placette and Migros (should have said department
stores) in Switzerland. Migros is sort of like the UK Coop, and
in case it helps, they used to sell Adidas stuff as their cheapest
sportswear line. I got my Salomen boots in Placette. You don't get
the same fitting service, but if you've done your research elsewhere
it can be a reasonable place to source specific items. Things like
goggles run fairly cheap if you're not brand-fussy.

"Simon Brown" wrote in
:

Manor has *very* good stuff in Chur, as does the Coop.

Also the Intersport shops have sales in October, mainly it's the
locals who snap up the bargains.

Whenever I've compared prices (most recently around the middle of last
season) Manor in Geneva has been a little more expensive than the going
price in Val d'Isere. And, as has previously been pointed out, you can
often talk your way into a discount in the ski stations. Of course, since
the Euro has gained a bit in the last few months the price difference may
be less.

Jeremy

"Jeremy Mortimer" wrote in message

Whenever I've compared prices (most recently around the middle of last
season) Manor in Geneva has been a little more expensive than the going
price in Val d'Isere. And, as has previously been pointed out, you can
often talk your way into a discount in the ski stations. Of course, since
the Euro has gained a bit in the last few months the price difference may
be less.

Jeremy

Hi,

20% in Intersport is doable - I know this :-)

A mate of mine who has been an instructor since the beginning of the last
ice age swears by the quality of Manor's stuff and I have to agree with him.
Top quality and about 1/2 the price of the named brands.

I agree with someone else about buying boots and skis in the resort as they
will often need adjusting by a professional.

I only have Chur, don't go anywhere exotic like Geneva but will be in Zurich
on Friday!
---
Simon Brown, Postfach 159, CH-7031 Laax
www.hb9drv.ch

In news
I'd agree with a lot of the comments in this thread about buying in
the resort, especialy for boots which may need tweaking and skis which
you can demo beforehand.

There is a bit of a downside to this though, if you buy in resort X
you're only going to be able to take stuff back or get it fixed
if/when you visit resort X again. If you like to travel around you'll
not have this fall back.

In fact, for this reason I've taken to buying boots in the UK now, and
although others will think this is strange, I've had excellent service
and good prices from Snow and Rock. This turned out to be a good move
because I had work done on the boots 2 or 3 times after purchase.

Steve

As I have said before, buying boots here in the uk does have the advantage
that you can get them modified as much as necesary, as I ski all year on
plastic this may be more of an advantage to me than to most of you.


--
Chris *:-)

Downhill Good, Uphill BAD!

www.suffolkvikings.org.uk