UKC

So, i'm planning to spend around a month in the Chamonix area this summer but i'm slowly realising that i don't quite have as much money to play with as i hoped i might. In light of this, any tips for cutting costs would be appreciated. Thanks in advance

In reply to phildawson:

Yes avoid Chamonix.

Despite the smiley I'm not joking.

Al

In reply to phildawson:

Camp in the forest like the old school did, use campsite showers...

In reply to phildawson:

Walk to the top instead of using the lifts. Failing that, take GridNorth's advice.

In reply to phildawson:
Don't use uplift.
Do not eat out.
Avoid alcohol.

But eat decently so you have the energy to get stuff done.

In reply to

Hide in back of a lorry to get there.

In reply to phildawson:

Avoid alcohol is a ridiculous suggestion. Just make sure it is wine from the supermarket.

In reply to phildawson: Apparently, the old school way was to hitch hike out there and camp for free at Snells. Many climbers were sponsored by the local supermarket until the arrangement broke down and the police were called. Things then would get tricky, so I am told, but the mountains were a great place to hang out and hide. Some of the classic hard routes were done in this style in the 1980's, so I am lead to believe.

In reply to NeilBoyd:


So old school, in fact, you would now need to go back in time to do this.

You could always try BlaBlaCar for a modern alternative to hitchhiking, though.

In reply to phildawson:

Go to Italy.
Walk not cable car.
Use bivi hut (loads in Italy), which are free

In reply to phildawson:

Avoid Cham
I did a month out there summer of 2013. Cost me a bomb

In reply to phildawson:

We spent our summers out in Chamonix when we were teenagers, on a shoestring budget

top money saving tips

Cycle it's only about a 4 day ride (even for the epicly unfit) from Le Havre to Chamonix even loaded with climbing gear and you will have access to a load of good areas without having to walk, or pay for busses

walk up don't take cable cars (you will be fit)

eat load of pasta and bread (i still can't face pasta 20 year later!)

find a good campsite, there are a few small cheap campsites scattered about, most are not on the internet (check in to one you find online for a few days have a wander around town near the hospital and south towards servois to see what you can find)

If you have a trade and speak schoolboy level french you can pick up casual work on chalet renovations, (knocking on doors and asking has worked for me)

In reply to phildawson:

Maybe consider whether Cham is the best choice because so much of the activity is really only time effective with the use of lifts (or at least seems that way when everyone else is using them)

Somewhere like the Ecrins is much less dependent on using uplift; Sass Fee _can_ also be cheap(ish) because the uplift is free if you're (officially) camping

Pete