Trips

Bytown Ski Weeks 2025

Dolomites Italy and Portes du Soleil France

Don Singer is putting the final touches on two fantastic European ski week opportunities for Bytown Ski Club next winter. The final details will be populated onto the Touringhouse web site in the near future, well before the opening of trip registrations at 9:00 am on Tuesday August 13, 2024. With the limited number of hotel rooms and well priced all inclusive packages, as in recent years we expect that these trips will be likely be sold out shortly after registration opens, so if you are seriously interested, please do not hesitate too long to register.

We will have a trip information meeting on Wednesday September 11 at 6:30 – 7:30 pm at the Nepean Sailing Club.

The two Bytown 2025 winter ski vacations are:

  • The Dolomites area of Italy Friday January 31 to Sunday February 9, 2025, staying at the Hotel Dolomiti Madonna in Ortisei Italy.
  • The Portes du Soleil area of France, Friday March 7 to Saturday March 15, 2025, staying at the Club Hotel Le Cret in Morzine France.

Once the final information, prices, application forms and optional insurance is posted onto the Touringhouse web site “www.touringhoiuse.com”, we will make an update reference on the Bytown Ski Club web site So look for this in mid-July.

We have had to reconstruct the week-long offerings due to airline flight cancellations after having been proactive and reserved limited group space at best price, on the first morning flight booking was available. In addition, compared to earlier years, there is a growing trend for hotels to decline groups in favour of their regular returning guests each winter. Nevertheless, I believe I have been able to secure two well located hotels in beautiful ski villages that will give Bytown members nearby access to two world class ski-snowboard regions in the European Alps. While we await finalization of package details, pricing of each all-inclusive ski vacation packages will be in the neighbourhood of $4200 each for double accommodation, and approximately $300 more for the limited number of single rooms. Once again, despite increasing cost of all vacation travel, Bytown will be offering the best value, all-inclusive quality vacation ski packages to its members in their visits to world class resorts. And our Bytown ski club membership is a bargain at only $10!

Dolomites Italy Package

  • Friday January 31 – Sunday February 9, 2025
  • Lodging at the Schieder family-owned Hotel Dolomiti Madonna, Ortisei, Italy
  • Air Canada return flights Ottawa- Munich, via Toronto
  • Ski and boot bag, counts as 2nd bag together, at no extra charge on Air Canada flights
  • Private coach transfers from Munich Airport to Ortisei, and return on Saturday from Ortisei to a Munich hotel, & then to the airport on Sunday morning.
  • One night hotel accommodation in Munich
  • Buffet breakfast and multi course dinner daily at the Hotel Dolomiti Madonna
  • 6-day Dolomiti Super ski pass (option to have package without ski pass with savings to accommodate use of IKON or IKON Basic pass. The cost of RFID is included.
  • Free entrance to the Ortisei public swimming pool, 200m from the hotel
  • Free Val Gardena mobile card.
  • Accompanied by a Bytown Ski Club trip leader.
  • All taxes including town guest tax, service charges and coach driver tips.
  • The liability insurance requirement is NOT included, nor is the ETIAS security, if it will be an approved requirement for 2025 European travel.

 Italian Dolomites Overview

On our Italian ski week, the Bytown Ski Club will travel by Air Canada from Ottawa to Munich Germany via Toronto.

We again use a private coach for our Bytown group between Munich Airport and the Dolomite regional town of Ortisei. As it is approximately a four+ hour coach ride, we’ll stop en-route for a lunch break before arrival at our hotel in mid-afternoon.

Your Hotel Dolomiti Madonna is located a short walking distance from the town centre, bus station and gondola into the massive Dolomite ski region. A short distance from the hotel is our complementary included pass into the swimming pool complex. While one can use the gondola to enter the ski -snow board area, some winter visitors sometimes elect to use the free ski bus to connect quickly to neighbouring towns in the immediate area for skiing or other activities. As with past Bytown ski vacations, your tour leader will arrange a standard dinner time for our group at the hotel restaurant so our members can always unite at the end of each day to share stories of their mountain day with other Bytown folks. Unlike Austria, we do not yet have any après ski recommendations to offer but will advise everyone as soon as we obtain any information.

Whether you have the IKON pass or have your included package ski pass, you will have the Dolomiti Superski pass that entitles you to use any of the 488 lifts in the region that interconnects twelve ski communities. A must for skiing or boarding here is to follow the circular Sella Ronda route over two of your vacation days; one day in each direction. The routes are exceptionally well marked by colour coded signs at the top of each lift.

Contrary to many weeklong ski trips where it is a necessary evil to rise early (or very early!) to board the coach back to a gateway airport for an early day flight departure back to Canada, on this trip we have elected for a more civilized departure after breakfast on our Saturday check out day, and travel back to a Munich hotel where we will overnight until a late Sunday morning departure on our return to Canada. This itinerary will provide an opportunity for people wishing to taste a touch of Europe beyond the mountains, experience Munich late Saturday afternoon and have dinner (beer hall!) in a cosmopolitan German city. We would suggest booking any attractions before the trip to ensure that you will not be disappointed.

Dolomite Ski Region Dolomiti Superski Pass Statistics

  • 1200 kilometers of slopes
  • 12 interconnect ski resorts
  • 488 lifts
  • Ortisei elevation 1236M
  • Vertical 2518M
  • 10-year average snowfall 301cms and 22 days of winter snowfall

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 Portes du Soleil, France Package

  • Friday March 7 – Saturday March 15, 2025
  • Family-owned Club Hotel Le Cret, Morzine, France
  • Air Canada direct return nonstop flight Montreal- Geneva Switzerland
  • Ski and boot bag, counts as 2nd bag together, at no extra cost on Air Canada flights
  • Private return coach transfers between Ottawa train station – Montreal Dorval Airport
  • Private return coach transfers between Geneva Airport and Morzine
  • Buffet breakfast, and multi course buffet dinner daily with wine
  • Entertainment daily at the hotel
  • 6-day Portes du Soleil all-area ski pass. The cost of the RFID is included.
  • Group accompanied by a Bytown Ski Club trip leader.
  • All taxes including town guest tax, service charges and coach driver tips.
  • The ETIAS security is not included, if it will be approved as requirement for 2025 European travel.

 Portes du Soleil Overview

On our Morzine France ski week to take advantage of well timed and direct flights between the Morzine resort gateway airport and Canada, we will fly directly from Montreal to and from Geneva Switzerland. Geneva is located on the border of France and a short distance from the resort of Morzine which makes the travel time in each direction only 1.5 to 2 hours. This allows a leisurely departure day at the ski week conclusion, to Geneva. As we do in Europe, our Bytown group will have a private coach between Ottawa train station and Montreal’s Dorval airport.

Your Club Hotel Le Crêt is located a short walking distance from the quaint town centre and the two gondola stations into the huge Portes du Soleil ski region. If you choose not to walk to the lifts, there is also a free ski bus that stops in front of the hotel for a few minutes’ bus ride to the Morzine lifts or a third gondola lift station that takes one directly from Morzine to the mountain resort of Avoriaz. To rent winter sports equipment, Club Hotel Le Crêt offers the services ot Sport 2000 ski-snow board store in the heart of the hotel. Skis, boots, snowboards, accessories, not to mention new winter sports equipment, the Sport 2000 shop offers a wide range of quality equipment that is regularly maintained.

The Club Hotel Le Crêt is much more than a place to sleep! It is a mini club med style complex that offers guests an array of activities and entertainment, a super buffet restaurant with food stations. There is also a great indoor swimming pool, steam room, jacuzzi and gym. Their team also offers massages and relaxation sessions, on request. While not Las Vegas, the Club Hotel Le Crêt organizes, at no extra cost, a range of evening concerts, cabaret shows, sketches, trivia nights, karaoke and dance parties, throughout ones stay. The hotel rooms are all equipped with private washrooms, WIFI, telephone, TV with digital channels, hairdryer, and a safety deposit box.

The Portes du Soleil ski area is 13 alpine resorts linked between France and Switzerland and all accessible thanks to a single pass. Your all-inclusive region 6-day ski pass provides you access to over 650 kilometres of slopes and 250 lifts to an elevation of 2466 metres. The recent ten-year average snowfall has been over 400cms of snow.

While trips to airports on ski trips from most mountain resorts often require extraordinary early getaway departures, the proximity of Morzine to Geneva airport, together with our noon departure on our direct flight home, we would only have to leave for Geneva from our hotel at approximately 7:15 am on Saturday March 15.

Ensure if you are age 65 or over, you may reduce your Portes du Soleil package by $75.

 

Portes du Soleil Ski Region Statistics

  • 650 kilometers of slopes
  • 13 interconnect ski resorts (8 in France & 5 in Switzerland)
  • 250 lifts
  • Morzine elevation 1000M
  • Vertical peak 2466M
  • 10-year average snowfall 413cms and 29 days of winter snowfall

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 General : Portes du Soleil and Dolomite Ski Packages

  • In both the Italian and French vacations, the hotels are great locations of the respective small ski towns of Ortisei and Morzine, short walking distances to the central town squares and main lift stations.
  • Due to both hotel and air limitations, we have a hard maximum of 44 persons for the Italian ski week package and 35 for the Morzine package.
  • Air return deviations are permitted for up to 20% of the group booking air spaces. See the application on the Touringhouse web site for more details.
  • One can purchase a package that excludes either the ski pass and/or air. If excluding air from your package selection, you are entitled to taking the Bytown group ground transfers in both Canada and Europe.
  • Commencing In 2025 it is scheduled that many nationalities, including all Canadians, visiting most European countries, including Italy, Germany, Switzerland and France, will be required to complete online and obtain approval, in advance of arriving in Europe, an application for an ETIAS certificate, that includes a E7 fee, paid by credit card. If the implementation date is confirmed to be before your trip returns to Canada, you will have to complete this application and have it approved. This is your responsibility and is not included in the package. https://etias.com/etias-application#updates
  • Both hotels offer free Wi-Fi.
  • Skiing or boarding in Italy (not required in France) requires third party liability insurance which one must obtain online less than 60 days before applicable ski period (February 2 to 7,2025) or at the resort, (26 euros/person in 2024). Some travellers may have third party liability insurance through their home insurance policy that would cover you. Otherwise, it is mandatory to purchase and carry with you proof of liability insurance or be subject to hefty fines!
  • According to the IKON web site for 2024-25, the IKON pass is valid in the Dolomite superski region for 7 days and the Basic pass is valid for 5 days. If opting to use an IKON pass, there is a reduction in your package cost that would include the six-day ski pass.
  • Both the Portes du Soleil and Dolomites offer a senior discount; For registrants 65 years and over, you will see the reduction in package cost on the web site.

Useful links Portes du Soleil, Dolomites & General

Sunday March 17th, 2024 Tremblant Bus Trip is a GO

Our day trip up to Tremblant on Sunday March 17th is on. Registration is still open.

There will be three stops this year, the usual Bells Corners and Isabella stops, and a new stop at the RA Centre. Riders must identify which stop they plan to get picked up at when registering.

An email will be sent to all participants no later than the Thursday before the trip.

Schedule

6:00am – Bus arrives at Bells Corners Loblaws (2065A Robertson Rd at the corner of Moodie)

  • Parking available at this spot.

6:30am – Bus leaves Bells Corners

7:00am – Bus arrives at RA Centre (2451 Riverside Drive)

  • Pickup in the large RA Centre parking lot on the western side of the RA Centre. The parking lot is closest to Bronson, and entrance is via Riverside. For those who know the RA Centre, it’s the parking lot with the canoe club shed.
  • Parking available at this location.
  • Riders should wait in their car, and begin to load their equipment when the bus parks in the parking lot.
  • There are bathrooms inside the RA Centre (if the doors are open at that time).

7:15-7:20am – Bus arrives at downtown Loblaws on Isabella (64 Isabella St)

  • No parking at this location.
  • Bus pulls up directly in front of the Loblaws entrance.
  • Note: this will be the first year with a third pickup spot, so if the bus is running 5-10 minutes late no need to worry.

9:30am – Bus arrive at Tremblant South Side

  • When the bus arrives the trip lead will need to go in and pickup the lift passes. This take 5-10 minutes.
  • If riders don’t need a lift pass (i.e. they have their own), you can go for your day.
  • Everyone who needs a lift pass can either wait on the bus, or go outside and unpack your equipment and start getting ready (your preference).

9:45am – Day passes given out. 

4:00pm – Bus arrives at same spot at Tremblant South Side

4:30pm – Bus Departs at 4:30 sharp to return back to Ottawa

5:00pm – Bus stops at a depanneur along the way

  • Riders can purchase beer or snacks and consume them on the bus. Preferably no glass bottles.

7:00pm – Bus drop of at Isabella location

7:15pm – Bus dropoff at RA Centre

7:40pm – Bus dropoff at Bells Corners

Cancellation and Refund Policy

  • There are no refunds within the last week before a trip. 
  • However, if you can’t make the bus please let the club know by emailing info@bytownskiclub.ca so that we are not waiting for you in the morning.
  • If you cannot attend but would like to transfer your bus trip/ticket to another club member, email the club before Thursday at 10am and we can transfer the ticket

Sunday April 7th, 2024 Tremblant Bus Trip is Cancelled

Unfortunately we didn’t get many signups for our April trip, and it’s looking like an early spring this year, so we have cancelled our last April bus trip. Those who have purchased tickets for the April trip can switch their tickets to the March trip, or get a full refund.

2023 Tremblant Day Bus Trips

The Bytown ski club organizes a series of bus trips from Ottawa to Mont Tremblant and back. We rent a coach bus with washrooms and shuttle participants to and from the hill.

We leave early with a first pickup in Bell’s Corners at 6:30am, a second pickup at the RA Centre at 7am, a third pickup at the Loblaws on Isabella at 7:15am.  There is parking available at Bell’s Corners and the RA Centre. We arrive at the base of Tremblant village around 9:30am. Skiers enjoy the day and we pick everyone up at the base of the village at 4:30pm. We make one stop at a depanneur on the way back – drinking is permitted on the bus – and arrive back in Ottawa around 7pm for the first stop and 8pm for the last stop. All timings are dependent on weather and traffic.

In 2024 we will run 4 trips, one each month January – April.  To purchase tickets login to our powerup page: https://bytownskiclub.powerupsports.com/. Tremblant has increased the price to ski this year by a bit. This year the exec made a decision to subsidize our bus trips by offering big discounts to those who register early. Discounts are available on a first come first serve basis and buses may sell out.

  • Anyone who registers for at least one bus trip over the season will receive a free Bytown ski club membership (value $10).
  • All bus trips will be discounted by $15 for those who register by November 30th.
  • All bus trips will be discounted by $5 for those who register between December 1st and December 31st.

Regular Pricing

Bus trip Date Adult Senior Youth/Student Bus Only
Friday January 19th $138 $133 $116 $55
Friday February 16th $138 $133 $116 $55
Sunday March 17th $138 $133 $116 $55
Sunday April 7th $126 $117 $105 $55

Prices above are all-in (i.e. after all tax). Discounts above are applied to the prices in the table. Purchase price in powerup will reflect the discounts available at the time of purchase.

Self-drive trips/Meet and Ski events

We are planning these right now. Details to be announced in November/December.

We typically hold 3-4 meet and ski events where we meet at a local ski hill, and buy nachos at the pub at 4pm for any ski club members who care to join. They are a social and informal activity.

Austria Weeklong Group Ski Trip January 26- February 3, 2024

Saalbach Austria Bytown Ski Trip Memories 2024

Our happy group of fifty-three skiers and snow boarders have all returned safely from our marvelous week in the Saalbach Austria region. Our group grew from the Ottawa airport departure in Toronto via Air Canada to Munich where we hit a blip upon arrival when two pieces of luggage were delayed a day until they were delivered to our hotel. One positive though was that it provided an opportunity for Bill to go on a ten-minute power shopping spree in Hinterglemm upon arrival to get some necessary clothing items to be action ready the next morning to hit the slopes. Before dinner at the Altachhof Hotel on arrival day we were treated to a welcome presentation by the amazing Johnny Walker, an instructor from the Saalbach Ski School who described the elements of the vast ski terrain and special things for folks to do during their stay. Johnny the led a group of twelve on a magical mystery tour of the ski are the next day. His pre-dinner discourse was complemented by our hosts for the week, Dani and Mia, who provided us with marching orders pertaining to the accommodation, meal plan and inclusive taxi arrangements to and from the mountain lifts.

After a jet-lagged sleep, we arose the next morning at our buffet breakfast to blue-bird skies, no wind, and warm temperatures akin to spring skiing but with high altitude winter snow. Ski groups formed over breakfast, and we dispersed to the three entry point lifts via private taxis to explore the massive region of 120 lifts and 408 kilometers of pistes. For our first three days we toured on boards and skies under blue bird skies without a cloud or any wind whatsoever and enjoying the snow-capped panoramic mountain vistas.

On Wednesday some whispy clouds moved in to give some relief to the sunshine and heat, followed by precipitation late Thursday morning and some high-altitude fog on Friday.

The perfect conditions motivated several of our more experienced skiers and boarders to take up and successfully complete the arduous Saalbach- Hinterglemm Ski Circus Circuit Challenge. The one-day challenge is 65 kilometers over 12,400 meters vertical and 52 lifts. The youthful Phil and Arron, on a snowboard and skis respectively, were the first of our group to conquer the challenge and receive their recognition awards. They were quickly followed on successive days by Kirsten, her Don and Behn, and finally by Jim and his daughter Anne, who had scoped out the area when they were participants on the inaugural Bytown ski week to Saalbach in 2018.

Many of the group partook in daily après ski activities at Saalbach before returning to the hotel. Austria is renown for the best après-skiing in the world and many of the mountain restaurants offer entertainment to its guests. The Soul House at the bottom of the Berngogelbahn gondola was a favourite early in the week but many of our group quickly learned and frequented the awesome Hinterhogalm with its band and patrons from all over Europe, and of course Canada, over beers belting out tunes daily together such as the Ice Bear and Country Roads. John T even made his stage premier with two Danes dressed in a bear outfit supporting the singer with his Ice Bear rendition!

Wednesday evening was a special treat for 36 members of our group who experienced a pistenbully (groomer) ride together up the mountain under the darkness of the early evening, to a beautiful mountain restaurant-hotel that treated us to a rib gastronomic experience. After dinner most of us descended the mountain trail crazily on individual sleds, while three of our saner group members opted for an arranged ski -doo trailer ride down the mountain. Either way, fun was had by all!

Several were asking me about plans for next winter Bytown ski week. Nothing is firm at this early time as I want to savour the aftermath of this year’s trip and then quickly pivot to planning next year’s Bytown ski vacation. While the quality of Austria has always been a winner for all our participants, my early thoughts are to look to the Italian Dolomites and possibly Morzine France as possibilities for 2025. I welcome any of your ideas so please drop me an email with your thoughts. Rest assured; I will keep you informed as my planning progresses. Keep the last week of January 24- February 1, 2025 available if you might be interested, as that is my preferred European ski week time frame for several reasons.

Check out this YOUTUBE video link for some further memories. Thanks, Clive for this contribution to our memory bank. https://youtu.be/yaO7gTh_8SE

Thanks to everyone who participated in living and sharing together the dream of an active healthy social vacation experience. We all have fond memories of an awesome week together in the Alps of Austria. Until the next time, Wiedersehn.

Don Singer

Bytown Ski Cub

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