Renting vs Bringing skis on vacation

[crgildart]

I posted a thread about Silvercar in Denver which rents Audi Q5s with ski racks. Personally, I think it would be less hassle to bring skis, rent the car with the rack, and not have to deal with rentals on a daily basis. Definitely bring your own boots.

If I were renting I'd be looking at the ski shop rental options where you pick the gear up the night before ski day one and return it after your last ski day.. No way I'd deal with filling out forms and waiting in lines every day twice a day.

If the kids are little, rent the gear for them. Enough to juggle getting little kids through airport logistics without dealing with their ski gear too.

This is why I always prefer to drive, time permitting. I'd happily give up one full day of skiing to have my own vehicle with all our own gear for the other days.. than fly and rent everything to get one more day on the slopes, maybe even two more days when talking about an entire week plus..

 

[Nathanvg]

If you fly Delta a lot, get a delta amex and the first bag is free for you and each person you travel with. Seems like many people above pack too much, I check the skis and pack boots with all my gear in a single rolling bag. Helmet is tied to bag handle and goes under the seat when on plane.

I often travel with 4 people and we just put skis inside the car. Usually the car is a cheap standard or fullsize. Kid skis fit in trunk and sometimes my wife's do to. Mine usually end up in middle of the car. You'd be surprised what you can fit in there. A lot of times, you end up getting a bigger can anyway.

Renting is much more of a pain that the cramped car. Lots of times you get in to late to get skis until the next day or you have to quit early on your last day to return. Sometimes the skis have an issue and you lose half a day swapping them, etc.

 

[David]

I almost always drive so I can take as many skis and as much gear as I want. If I fly I won't get to my room until Saturday night. If I leave MI after work on Friday I'm in my room by Saturday afternoon - super so there's really no time savings unless I'm driving more than 26 hours. So no lost time to ski either.

 

[Decreed_It]

DO bring your own boots, unless you don't have any at all (and if not, why are you planning a ski vacation? ).
DO bring skis if it makes sense both fiscally and logistically, you like your current skis, are not planning to buy again in the near future, and they fit the anticipated conditions.
DO rent by the week from known, highly rated shops if you don't have the right skis and/or want to test-drive potential purchases.

DON'T rent by the day from the area rental shop; these "skis" will be crappy, untuned beginner/intermediate p.o.s.
DON'T overload a ski bag and DO weigh it carefully beforehand; as martyg says, extra poundage fees will completely wipe out any savings you may get vis-a-vis renting.

All of that ^^

There is something very appealing about renting or demoing on a trip. But I have to say, every single time I've done it, I've been disappointed with the tune, if not the actual model of the ski.

+1. I have tried multiple times and usually end up disappointed and wishing I had my skis. I schlepped my own to Austria last year and even with flight snafus - they made it! God Bless the Germans! With a rolling hard case it wasn't that bad, and was somehow covered as checked baggage.

But in Banff, "demo" skis were included in the Big 3 package for a deal that looked like it would be worth it to not schlep. Wrong! Crap "demo" gear, didn't have what I wanted, had to compromise and that was in the back of my head as I somersaulted down a chute in Lake Louise. OK that wasn't the skis but still.

If you fly Delta a lot, get a delta amex and the first bag is free

AA and Delta cards, Mrs. has status on AA, and we fly almost exclusively those two - enabling the schlep.

Your mileage may vary of course. I know plenty of great skiers in my group that always rent Demos. For me, I like my sticks. Due to airline cards and status, it's usually free or $100 round trip if I go el cheapo flights. Less than 3-4 days of "demo" quality rentals, certainly less than a week, and always less if they count as a free checked bag.

 

[focker]

We'll definitely be bringing our own boots as 3 of the 4 of us have custom fit boots we know and love.

My wife and I have all mountain skis that we like. My wife's have some rocker but at 80mm under foot I would rent for her if we get a dump. I'd likely rent for myself as well at that point as my skis are 86 underfoot. We brought these skis to Whitefish and they were fine except when they got 7" inches two days. Mine were fine I should say, wife should have had wider skis.

My kids basically have carving/racing skis only. Leaning towards a 3 day rental for them out there. Ski only rentals aren't that expensive. I'd likely bring my iron and some wax/scrapper and could wax the skis quick if need be.

I have a nice padded roller bag that fits two pairs of skis and would fit all our poles also. When I used this for our whitefish trip the weight was under 50 lbs. My wife's skis are pretty light as there is no metal in them.

I like the recommendation on the van. Would give us plenty of room for everything and no need for a ski rack then also... We're staying in Silverthorne and skiing Loveland, A-basin and maybe Copper so we'll need a car for sure.

 

[BLspruce2]

I have been bringing my own ski as my gear is really dialed in and tuned as I like it. Though the thought of not schlepping a big ski box is appealing. Anyway I use Sportubes which are USA made and great. One thing I have learned is not to pack gloves socks etc in the Sportubes to cushion the skis. Just your skis and poles. Last year going to Aspen, when I opened my Sportube ski bag I found I had lost one brand new glove, socks, spare lens, tools etc. I don't think it was theft. I think they did a sloppy contraband check as it had a TSA sticker on it and just did not stuff everything back in. I think they get slammed with luggage and just rush through it so if you pack too tight you lose. Lesson learned....

 

[BLspruce2]

 

[Decreed_It]

+1 to SportTube, I use a double box, still comes in under weight fine with 2 pairs of skis in it (usually Enforcer 100's in 185 w/ Marker Griffons and a pair of Santa Anna 93's in, 165ish for the Mrs, don't recall the bindings, and 2 sets of poles).

 

[sparty]

I have been bringing my own ski as my gear is really dialed in and tuned as I like it. Though the thought of not schlepping a big ski box is appealing. Anyway I use Sportubes which are USA made and great. One thing I have learned is not to pack gloves socks etc in the Sportubes to cushion the skis. Just your skis and poles. Last year going to Aspen, when I opened my Sportube ski bag I found I had lost one brand new glove, socks, spare lens, tools etc. I don't think it was theft. I think they did a sloppy contraband check as it had a TSA sticker on it and just did not stuff everything back in. I think they get slammed with luggage and just rush through it so if you pack too tight you lose. Lesson learned....

...and ski bags, by virtue of being oversized, get searched every time.

When my wife and I traveled to South America this summer, we had a heck of a time with the luggage weight limits. Between summer temps in Peru (and in Santiago) and having winter gear in case it got cold (it didn't), we were right at the limits on both a double ski bag and a wheeled duffel, plus we both had well-stuffed carry-on bags (hers had her boots in it; mine were over the top of a 35L backpack). Having a scale at home was critical, as availability at airports is limited (and to say she was annoyed that I was yanking stuff out of the duffel to get it legal at the counter would be an understatement; the question of who put it in the bag after I had weighed it at home was not considered relevant).

It's very, very easy to overload a double ski bag; with two pairs of skis and poles in a Douchebag, I think I had enough left for my first-aid kit, a pair of skins, two pairs of gloves, and a turtleneck. There was a lot more air in the bag than I'd have liked, but it was at 49.5 pounds on the airport scale.

With that said, I've done trips both renting and carting gear. At this point, with a relatively full quiver of gear that's better-maintained than most shop gear, I'd pick the appropriate skis and bring them. Having skis that I'm comfortable with inbounds and touring helps, too, as touring gear is harder to rent (let alone tele gear).

 

[KingGrump]

(and to say she was annoyed that I was yanking stuff out of the duffel to get it legal at the counter would be an understatement; the question of who put it in the bag after I had weighed it at home was not considered relevant).

Sounds like you've been married for a while, eh.

 

[Seldomski]

Is there a scale particularly good for weighing a ski bag at home? The bag is pretty awkward.

 

[raytseng]

Is there a scale particularly good for weighing a ski bag at home? The bag is pretty awkward.

No particular scale is needed.
Just use a decent bathroom scale.
Weigh yourself.
Then weigh yourself holding bag.
subtract

 

[Wade]

Is there a scale particularly good for weighing a ski bag at home? The bag is pretty awkward.

I use one of these at home and take it with me on trips if I’m going to come close to weight limits.

https://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/st...VEonICh01uA_NEAQYDCABEgL2r_D_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

 

[Henry]

Car rental tips:
--If you're a Costco member, look at their costco.com travel site. Good rates.
--As long as there is no penalty for cancelling a reservation, reserve the car you want. A day or two before your trip check again at all the companies. If one of the companies has a surplus of cars the price may have dropped significantly. Cancel the old reservation and make a new one.
--Some of the rental companies are getting pretty scammy. Be SURE you know what size car they will offer you. Phone to be sure, just in case. One time I reserved a compact and was told I get a Chevy Spark, clearly a sub-compact, a car about the size of my shoe. I discussed the situation, firm clear voice at the counter (never angry but never shy) and got a true compact. Some of the companies are really scammy about filling the gas tank. Refill at a station very close to the airport and keep the receipt handy when you check the car in.

 

[KingGrump]

Is there a scale particularly good for weighing a ski bag at home? The bag is pretty awkward.

Search Amazon - luggage scale.

I always had one in my bag when I flied to ski.

 

[David]

No particular scale is needed.
Just use a decent bathroom scale.
Weigh yourself.
Then weigh yourself holding bag.
subtract

Math?

 

[KingGrump]

Math?

Just be thankful it's simple math with a few numbers. Rather than Andrew Yang's version of MATH. Which will require most to work without the proper tool.

 

[raytseng]

Car rental tips:
--If you're a Costco member, look at their costco.com travel site. Good rates.
--As long as there is no penalty for cancelling a reservation, reserve the car you want. A day or two before your trip check again at all the companies. If one of the companies has a surplus of cars the price may have dropped significantly. Cancel the old reservation and make a new one.
--Some of the rental companies are getting pretty scammy. Be SURE you know what size car they will offer you. Phone to be sure, just in case. One time I reserved a compact and was told I get a Chevy Spark, clearly a sub-compact, a car about the size of my shoe. I discussed the situation, firm clear voice at the counter (never angry but never shy) and got a true compact. Some of the companies are really scammy about filling the gas tank. Refill at a station very close to the airport and keep the receipt handy when you check the car in.

In my opinion, the additional technique is to sign up for whatever loyalty program they have; and give away all your personal info to get the express checkout in exchange to not get scammed.
This signals to the rental company you are potentially a frequent traveler that they need to please and not screw over. You can still lookup the costco codes and utilize them checking out directly with the agency. If you go only via costco, this is effectively checking out as "guest" which signals you are a lowest price bargain shopper that they don't need to make an effort to retain.

 

[David Chaus]

I’ve used Autoslash.com; they have a form to fill with what kinds of memberships, credit cards, mileage plans, etc that you might have, then search for applicable discounts for your situation. It takes them about 20-30 minutes to email you back. They have always found me a lower rate than I would have found otherwise.

 

[pete]

Math?

some home scales tare .. zero while on ... reweigh easy peasy ...