ASK JOAN:All your travel questions answered
Pre-Christmas ski trip
I was wondering if you would have any advice regarding ski holidays before Christmas. Unfortunately due to work commitments I won’t be able to go after Christmas or in January.
Having spoken to travel agents and looking online, a lot of the bigger operators don't start their seasons until December 29th/30th or fly out right before Christmas. Ideally I was looking at travelling the week of December 17th and returning before, or on, Christmas Eve. I would be looking for accommodation and ski passes for two people. We don't mind where we go. – HR, Dublin
The charter market for the ski season only begins for Christmas from Ireland but there are a few places you can get to quite easily. Some of the ski resorts will do discounts on lift passes and in some cases accommodation on that weekend before Christmas. It is also a nice time to go as the slopes tend to be less crowded and nicely groomed in advance of the holiday season.
You will also have to consider altitude as some resorts may not have a good snow coverage before Christmas and smaller resorts will not open before the holiday season. Access will have to be considered and you may have to fly via another airport to get close to where you choose. Salzburg is great for access to the Tyrol but Ryanair flights don’t begin until December 22nd.
Places to consider, based on altitude and opening times, are the Skiwelt in Austria where the season will kick off with a concert and fun events that week. If you look on skiwelt.comyou may find a good package that includes a lift pass and accommodation. Some of the accommodation does not open until Christmas week.
Nearby, the sister resorts of Ischgl also in the Wilder Kaiser mountains is Austria's Ibiza and it kicks off the season in mid- December with some fun events, and great skiing, Ischgl.com. I skied the Skiwelt in December 2010 and it was excellent but very cold.
In France, the lofty resort of Tignes and its neighbour Val d'Isere are early openers and have the huge Espace Killy to enjoy. There are some special offers on tignes.netand valdisere.com.
Further north where you can be guaranteed some great snow in December is the Lillehammer ski region in Norway. Ski season begins early here and flights to Norway are reasonable from Ireland. Topflight.iecan put together packages for skiers to this former winter Olympics venue.
Graduating to London
We are heading to London for our son's graduation. We are a party of five or six looking for accommodation in London city centre on November 29th for three nights. – NMC, Dublin
London has lot of new hotels these days and there is a great selection to choose from. Prices however, are not as low as I would have expected at the end of November, which makes me think that there must be a lot of events on that weekend. It is also the beginning of the Christmas shopping period.
The chain hotels are marketing quite fiercely lately. Have a look at premierinn.comwith rates from €150 per night and travelodge.co.ukis cheaper with rates from €86 per night. If you are looking for something a bit upmarket the Marylebone Hotel is in a great location behind Oxford Street, doylecollection.com.
I have also come across Studios2Let.comin London and these are in a few locations around the city. Bloomsbury is one where a room with a kitchenette will cost from around €125 per night.
A family trip to Frankfurt
I'm looking for hotel accommodation for eight sisters aged between 45 and 60. We are heading to Frankfurt in the beginning of November. We are looking for a four or five star hotel or a reasonably priced bed and breakfast for two nights in the city centre. – GD, Carlow
Frankfurt has a lot of very decent four and five star hotels and the prices drop considerably at the weekends. So if you are staying on a Friday, Saturday or Sunday night you will get good value. If you are staying during the week then you may have to drop down a category to get better value.
Top class hotels that are well located and better value at the weekend include the Steigenberger Frankfurter Hof; the Westin Grand; Flemings De Luxe; the Maritim, and the Hilton Frankfurt and rates are under €200 per night. These are all four and five star hotels and generally do not include breakfast in the rate.
However, some of them do, and the easiest way to find out is to use booking.com. This website gives the option of booking a breakfast-inclusive rate. For example two nights in the Flemings DeLuxe with breakfast will cost from €336 per room and Hotel Victoria from €198 per room. If breakfast is not included then I suggest you take breakfast elsewhere, as it is usually very expensive in four and five star hotels.
Send your questions with name and address to jscales@irishtimes.com