Lift passes, ski hire, clothing

    • Lift passes, ski hire, clothing

      Hi all, I have few short questions you may be able to help me with;

      (Backround - Beginner Couple, first time skiing, moderately fit, booked into St. Gothard for new years 30th dec '13 - 6th jan'14)

      1. Lift passes for the week are €195 online, is this worthwhile as a beginner? Should we purchase this before we go or hang on until we arrive and take it day by day?

      2. Again, as above, is it better/cheaper to hire ski's, boots & helmet before we arrive? what would one expect to pay for the hire of these in the shops in Arinsal?

      3. Clothes... can one hire ski clothing in Arinsal?? if not.. how much should we budget for if intending on buying clothes in Arinsals stores?

      Any help would be greatly appreciated!!

    • Hi Paulftz

      Welcome to the forum - it's great to hear you're coming to learn to ski in Arinsal! :thumbsup:

      I'll answer your questions below...

      1) On day one you could buy a return trip on the gondola, then a "magic carpet" lift which will just cover the two conveyor belt lifts. This would cost €8.50 plus €15.50, so €24. If you pick it up quickly enough to want to progress onto the beginners' chairlift by the afternoon then this wouldn't let you on, you'd need a full lift pass for that.

      The dates you're coming are high season. It's €195 for six days, or €170 for five days, or €146 for four days. That means you'd save €1 by doing it this way (unless you have a car so you could drive up the mountain thus avoiding the gondola charge).

      (I hope that all makes sense! 8o )

      2) It's much better to rent in advance. Skis & boots in resort are pretty much the same price in all the shops at €82 for six days economy/access skis & boots. By pre-booking on our website you'll save 30% off, making it €57.40. Book before the end of September with discount code LOVEANDORRA and this comes down to €51.66, so a saving of €30.34 per person by pre-booking! With our voucher you collect your equipment from any of the three Sant Moritz rental shops (village centre/top of village/by the slopes).

      If you book lift pass and equipment together for a minimum of five days you also get an extra €5 off (so wiping out the earlier €1 saving on beginners lift passes) and if you book group lessons at the same time that increases to €10 extra discount!

      3) To the best of my knowledge there's nowhere in Arinsal renting ski clothing however it's really not possible to give you the costs of buying all the gear here as it really depends on how much you want to spend, the quality of what you want to buy, then the availability in the size that you need and if you like the colours etc. etc. My recommendation would be to buy your clothes before you travel so that way you don't have to stress about going clothes shopping the second you arrive and spending whatever is required. For cheap ski clothes try TK Maxx, Aldi, and new this year Sports Direct have started a ski range although I've not seen any of it yet.

      I hope this helps to answer your questions but just ask if you think of anything else, or if you don't understand any of the above! 8|

      Steve

    • Lift passes

      Hi,
      Me and my girlfriend are coming for the new year 29-5th in Arinsal,can you please be kind and let me know if i pay in there for a ski lesson for my girlfriend does she still have to pay for the lift pass?
      And also... Funny enough i bought tickets without even know if there are good conditions for skiing...:) in that period.
      With her being a first timer will we be able to see other attractions/day trips as we're in Andorra for the first time
      Thank you!

    • Hi Cezar

      When booking a ski holiday no one knows exactly how the conditions will be when they arrive unless they book last minute a few days before they turn up. I can tell you at the momment the conditions are great and skiing is super fun these days.

      Arinsal is a great choice for beginners so you have made a good start to introduce your girlfriend to skiing.
      The beginner slopes in Arinsal are up the mountain at the top of the village gondola. Yes she will need a lift pass because she needs to access the gondola to get to the slopes...unless you want to drive all the way to the top. She will also need a lift pass for the beginner magic carpet lifts. Depending how quickly she learns if she only has a beginner lift pass it will hold her back and limit her as she will not be able to use any on the other lifts just the one small magic carpet. You really need to decide what is the best for you guys. Depending how many days you are skiing for, alot of the time it works out best just to buy the full area lift pass for the whole duration than having to queue up to buy gondola passes and beginner passes every day.

      There's loads of activities you can do together too on and away from the slopes. There's Spa's, mushing, snow mobiles, sledging, ski bikes are just a few ideas for you.

      Hayley :thumbsup: