Train V Plane To The Alps Cost Comparison Published
Train V Plane To The Alps Cost Comparison Published
Published : 17-Sep-2015 08:13
(image credit: SNCF)
The team behind an independent website promoting rail travel to ski resorts has put together figures showing, they say, that it can be significantly cheaper to go on a skiing holiday by rail, rather than flying.
"While train travel might be more comfortable, relaxing and environmentally friendly, it is often assumed to be far more expensive than flying," said Daniel Elkan of SnowCarbon.co.uk , "However our research has revealed that in many cases the opposite is true – with train travel giving significant savings over flying."
The research compares return fares from London to six ski resorts in different ski areas of the French Alps for each week between 19th December 2015 and 2nd April 2016.
Three journey options were compared, for adults and for children (aged 4-11), with or without skis, starting at either Gatwick Airport or St Pancras International rail station, and ending at the Alpine accommodation door.
The three options considered were first an EasyJet flight + shared taxi transfer, second daytime travel on the direct Eurostar Ski Train + private taxi and third daytime travel on the new direct Eurostar service to Lyon + local train + private taxi.
A first example of the research results found that a family of four with two children (aged between 4 and 11), but travelling without skis, would pay a total of £1,956 for return air travel to La Plagne at Easter. Travelling on the direct Eurostar Ski Train instead, they would pay £1,132 – a saving of £824. Travelling via Lyon, meanwhile, would cost them only £756 in total.
In a second example a group of four friends travelling to Meribel on 9th January, two with skis and two without, would pay £972 in total to fly. Travelling on the direct Eurostar Ski Train would cost them £788, while travelling via Lyon instead would cost £644.
A third example was travelling to the resort of Les Gets at Feb half term, a family of four with kids aged between four and 11, travelling without skis would pay £2,882, in total to fly. By contrast, travelling on the new train route via Lyon would cost them only £1,252 – less than half the price.
Air travel for a Christmas escape did show air travel slightly cheaper for an adult couple, both bringing skis who'd pay £630 against £674 if they opted for the direct Ski Train, but travelling via Lyon would cost them only £466.
Calculated over the whole season, the average weekly cost for an adult travelling by plane to Alpe d'Huez, without skis, is £240. This compares to an average cost of £202 for adults travelling by train, via Lyon.
The full research, with prices for every date for all six resorts, can be seen here: www.snowcarbon.co.uk/train-guides/insider-tips/plane-versus-train-price-comparison
Additional resorts will be added to the research in due course, to add to the data resource.
"This research provides a useful snapshot-comparison of the costs and is quite an eye-opener," added Daniel, "Unfortunately, the myth that it's always cheaper to fly, combined with an over-complicated rail-ticket system, results in thousands of skiers flying in the mistakenly belief that they are saving money. The reality is that skiers frequently end up unwittingly paying extra for a big dose of airport tedium – when in fact they could be pocketing savings and sitting in comfort on the train."
Snowcarbon, in partnership with rail-booking site Loco2.com, has created a web page that shows daily updated prices for every week of the ski season, at a glance.
http://www.snowcarbon.co.uk/train-guides/insider-tips/live-direct-train-prices
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