15 Smart Ways to Save Money on Your Portes du Soleil Ski Holiday.
The Portes du Soleil area comprises 12 interconnected resorts spanning two countries; its convenient location to Geneva airport is a significant advantage. It’s just over an hour’s drive to get to Les Gets, Morzine, or Avoriaz, making the ski resorts incredibly accessible for weekend getaways or families where long transfer times can be an issue.
Here’s Our Insightful Money-Saving Top Tips.
- Consider Midweek Travel. You’ll likely find cheaper flights and lower rates for ski transfers.
- Sign up for Transfer Company Newsletters to get access to exclusive discounts.
- Choose January for Your Ski Trip. By heading to the slopes once the festive crowds have disappeared, the prices as well as the temperatures are lower, fewer people on the slopes, lift queues are shorter, and favourable snow conditions, perfect for nervous skiers and novices, you’ll have more space to practise your turns and perfect your technique!
- Avoid the Peak School Holidays if You Don’t Have Children. Dodging peak weeks, you can dramatically cut your costs and enjoy a more peaceful skiing experience. However, if you have kids and are bound by school holidays, surprising savings are often available during Christmas in Morzine and Easter compared to the February half-term.
- Booking early or taking advantage of last-minute deals for both Christmas and Easter weeks can yield significant savings on a family ski trip. You can pick up an unsold chalet package at a bargain price.
People are often surprised by the cost of Christmas skiing in the Portes du Soleil and by how the pistes are relatively calm, certainly not as busy or as expensive as New Year’s and the February half-term.
- Ski Avoriaz in April, the season is not over yet. Avoriaz, the highest ski resort in the Portes du Soleil, still has plenty to offer, longer days and low prices. At high altitude, Avoriaz remains snow-sure, offering fantastic conditions. Compared to busy February, an Easter break can be 30-40 per cent cheaper.
- Beware data roaming and inflated call charges – Rely on free Wi-Fi. Your phone can be more useful while skiing, whether navigating a new ski area in the Portes du Soleil or staying in touch with friends by sharing photos and videos on social media. Before you travel, familiarise yourself with MoneySavingExpert’s data roaming and e-SIM tips to keep roaming costs down. Remember, Switzerland is not a member of the European Union, so be cautious when arriving at Geneva Airport. If you are skiing in the Portes du Soleil and planning to cross the border to explore the Swiss slopes, look out for Wi-Fi hotspots’ logos in strategic spots around the mountain, expect to share an email address/phone number, or switch off from the digital world for a bit: turn off roaming, and take some time to enjoy the breathtaking views.
- Self-Drive for Savings – Consider self-driving to save on flights, airport parking, transfers, ski carriage fees and avoid luggage overweight limit charges. By choosing to self-drive, with a full car, you can make good savings. The Portes du Soleil is around 8 hrs from Calais (breaks not included). Charming towns like Beaune offer delightful dining and secure parking accommodation options. By driving, you can bring home essentials, saving on your grocery shopping costs in the resort and the bonus of flexible travel, setting off whenever you like, stopping when and where you like, and for however long you want.
- Stay further down the valley. By self-driving or renting a car in Geneva, you can stay in the thriving village of St Jean d’Aulps, where there are cheaper accommodation options available; it’s here that much of the resort staff live. It’s about 15 minutes from the free Adent car park, with easy access to the Lindarets area of Avoriaz via telecabine. You get the bonus of driving past the very scenic view of Montiond Lake each morning and saving money, without sacrificing après-ski! Happy Hours Bar in the Ardent car park has one of the best après-ski scenes in the Portes du Soleil. You will need to consider, however, that you are required to have winter tyres and chains (which can be rented) for your time in the mountains.
- Book ski hire online and use ski hire discount codes to save money. You still get the latest equipment and personalised fitting advice (ask them nicely, and they may offer chalet delivery to!). The Vermont ski shop in Les Gets offers Ski With Ease ski school students a 20% discount on rentals of 3 days or more, as well as a 10% discount on rentals of 1 to 3 days. Promo codes from them and other ski hire partners in Morzine & Avoriaz are sent out with lesson booking forms.
- Choosing a self-catering apartment over a catered chalet can make a ski holiday more affordable, leaving you a healthy catering budget. Picking the right spot, you could ski back to your accommodation and cook your own lunch or make sandwiches and have a picnic in the communal picnic areas across the mountain:
Avoriaz, picnic in the Salle hors-sac in Lindarets (above). Morzine has two picnic areas: one is located to the side of the Plenay Restaurant, and the other is at the Point du Nyon at Eagle Park. Les Gets, picnic in the teepees at the Grand-Cry Indian Village or the viewing platform overlooking the Les Gets bowl: Chatel, picnic in the Salle hors-sac in Plaine-Dranse.
- Buy or recharge your ski pass online and save. Book in advance and you will save between 5% and 10%. Not only do you save money, but you also save time at the ticket office’s desk. If you have an old pass, you can recharge it online or via the Avoriaz Up&Down App.
- Do you really need the whole Portes du Soleil lift pass? Buying just the local area is noticeably cheaper and still offers plenty of skiing.
- Money is spent on buying a ski pass suited to your ability. If you are a beginner, you can save money on the first day or so with beginner passes that are valid just for the designated learning zones and lifts, as seen with the Petite Glisse Pass in Les Gets, for example. More little-known lift pass discounts (*Terms Apply), get a free child pass with every adult ski pass from 28th March, under 5s ski for free, 5-hour passes, and get 10% off with a Family Ski Pass.
- Save money on ski lessons. Ski With Ease Ski School offers 10% off savings on ski lessons on the opening and closing weeks of the season in Avoriaz.
Ski Lesson Deals: Add a friend to your private 1-2-1 ski lesson for just £5ph
Booking Ski Lessons with Ski With Ease Ski School is as easy as 1-2-Ski.
Find out more about Ski With Ease
We’ll meet you there!
*Portes du Soleil Lift Opening Dates 12th December, closing 19th April
