British Invasion

[xlr8r]

Can someone please explain why New England gets a lot of young Brits to some over to ski in early April. Aren't there far better places for them to ski in Europe. Or if they really want to ski in America why aren't they going out west. Seems really odd to me.

 

[LiquidFeet]

The drinking age here is 21. That makes chaperones happy.
And we speak English.

 

[deadheadskier]

I'd guess they pair up the trip with visits to Boston, NY or DC. That the trip is about more than just skiing.

 

[BenedictGomez]

Can someone please explain why New England gets a lot of young Brits to some over to ski in early April.

http://www.xe.com/currencycharts/?from=GBP&to=USD&view=2Y


As for east versus west, that's a conundrum. Though I will say most of them that I see each year tend not to be very good skiers.

 

[boston_e]

I'm sure travel time would have something to do with not going west.

 

[LiquidFeet]

Most British teens on these trips are beginners. They may have gone to an indoor ski hill and stood around in boots, practicing getting into a wedge, in order to prepare for this trip. Only the ones who have gone on skiing trips with their families actually know how to ski.

Snow conditions may present a challenge for them this year, but they will still have fun because they are teens away from home in a foreign country... playing around while falling on snow. And at night they are staying in a motel or inn with only a few chaperones in attendance. Fun!

 

[granite]

They just like the US and New England in particular. They like to see what they lost after the Revolutionary War. They are very welcome as far as I'm concerned and I have met a lot of them over the years. In general they are vey nice, friendly and polite. They like to go to Canada too.

 

[dlague]

We met some folks from England several times and they are of the mindset that skiing in NE is cheaper than going to the Alps. Considering the exchange rate our lift ticket costs and lodging costs are way lower and the flights to Boston are not that expensive. Sometimes they come in large groups.

 

[MG Skier]

I have seen those large groups at Jay Peak over the years. Pretty funny to watch sometimes. Then again, in the glades I can be pretty funny "lookin" too.

 

[RISkier]

We met some folks from England several times and they are of the mindset that skiing in NE is cheaper than going to the Alps. Considering the exchange rate our lift ticket costs and lodging costs are way lower and the flights to Boston are not that expensive. Sometimes they come in large groups.

They may be getting very good group prices on lodging, lift tickets, etc. But parts of Europe can be done quite inexpensively with the current exchange rates. Austria can certainly be very competitive price wise with going West. Flights tend to be more expensive but lift tickets are considerably less expensive. You can lovely half-board (breakfast and dinner) for rates that are very competitive. If you're talking about staying in Sandy or Midvale in Ut and trying to really budget, you probably can't match it in terms of price. Beer and local wine (pretty dang good) is generally around 3,50 Euro. I'll bet you could do a week in St. Anton for lower cost than many of the CO resorts with comparable housing. We've found Vienna to be quite inexpensive if you avoid peak season. The Swiss resorts are real pricey right now. And though I've not really priced them, the French resorts are reputed to be considerably more expensive as well.

 

[KustyTheKlown]

I admittedly don't know much about it, but it's always seemed to me that the "piste" system is pretty damn boring and that skiing most fun terrain in the alps is super dangerous. am i incorrect?

 

[mikestaple]

Ran into some Brits a few years back at Steamboat and asked them why the US over the Alps. The dad said Americans were polite and stood in lift lines. Everyone in Europe is rude and cuts you off.


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[yeggous]

Ran into some Brits a few years back at Steamboat and asked them why the US over the Alps. The dad said Americans were polite and stood in lift lines. Everyone in Europe is rude and cuts you off.


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Can't argue with that logic. I've heard the same. Lift lines in Europe are a full contact sport.

 

[ss20]

I admittedly don't know much about it, but it's always seemed to me that the "piste" system is pretty damn boring and that skiing most fun terrain in the alps is super dangerous. am i incorrect?

I have the same question. Only based on what I've seen online though. Is going off "trail" (the groomed swath of snow) illlegal? That kinda kills the fun. I've always thought the alps would be great for carving and carving only. Moguls look rare and mis-shaped, and trees are non-existent at most elevations.

 

[Tin]

 

[Breeze]

Can someone please explain why New England gets a lot of young Brits to some over to ski in early April. Aren't there far better places for them to ski in Europe. Or if they really want to ski in America why aren't they going out west. Seems really odd to me.

The tour packagers are adept at getting deeply discounted flights, accommodations with meal packages, discount packages with ski resorts ( full day lift/lesson/rental). The groups book early and pay early, for arrival at a time of year when the resorts know interest is waning from the NE population ( spring sports programs for lacrosse, baseball, soccer start in March in many places). Week long packages already paid allow ski resorts to keep ski patrol, instructors and base staff employed midweek, thus avoiding the end of season mass migration if hours are cut to weekends only. Same with motels/hotels, they have rooms and restaurant space occupied at a time when they would be sucking wind.

 

[VTKilarney]

I've always been impressed with the cost of travel originating from within the EU. I recall pricing a trip to Cancun, and it was no more expensive to for a trip originating in London than it was for a trip originating in New York City, despite the substantially longer flight.

I've seen many similar examples.

 

[fbrissette]

I admittedly don't know much about it, but it's always seemed to me that the "piste" system is pretty damn boring and that skiing most fun terrain in the alps is super dangerous. am i incorrect?

Pretty much everything about major ski resorts in Europe is better than what we have in the North-East. The boring stuff is less boring, the extreme stuff is more extreme, the food and beer tastes better. There is a lot of great stuff inbound that is no more dangerous than here. The size of some of those resorts is incredible. Les trois vallées has as many lifts as Whistler-Blackcomb has runs. We are talking about a few hundred thousand skiable acres compared to 8000 for the largest NA resort.

Most of the high Alps are covered with glaciers so going off piste adds another level of danger besides avalanches. In all of the resorts I have skied, they was no problems with anyone going out of bound. Backcountry entrances are often well identified with transceiver checkpoints. Off-piste insurance highly recommended as heli rescue is the only way out in many areas. It's not like here where yahoos go out of bound and fully expect to be saved in case of trouble. You are expected to be fully competent at rescuing yourself.

I never look for groomers, but I would nonetheless say that there is probably less grooming done in Europe than compared to similar resorts out West in the US and Canada. The one annoying thing about skiing in Europe is that lifts can be a bit of a zoo with often no roped areas and nobody to direct traffic, so it can be a bit of a stampede. Skier behaviour varies wildly depending on the citizenship.

 

[steamboat1]

I'd guess they pair up the trip with visits to Boston, NY or DC. That the trip is about more than just skiing.

^^^^
This

At least the ones I've spoken with always had a major metropolitan area visit as part of their trip. Shopping in the U.S (especially in NYC) seems to be a big reason why they come.

 

[VTKilarney]

Shopping in the U.S (especially in NYC) seems to be a big reason why they come.

Ah, very good point. I had forgotten about that benefit.