How to avoid being a jerk on your ski vacation.

[MaineSkiLady]

@elemmac -
Units in the rental pool were quite different 20+ years ago, in terms of numbers. Many units were for sale at any given point in time. Page 2 of the weekly Sunday River newspaper had dozens of listings.

Associations were often vague about disclosing the rental pool numbers, stating that some units were “partially” in the pool, for certain weekends or vacation weeks. Or they did not know at all, due to high rate of turnover. Units were often purchased solely with the intent of their being in the rental pool.

Times were different.

It was just an altogether dismaying experience : (

I’m glad things have improved.

 

[Amie H]

RE: snow chains on cars

I do not know if this applies to ALL rental car companies but in the recent past, when planning a ski trip, I contacted to my rental car co (Budget) to ask about using chains and was told it was a violation of the rental agreement, voids any insurance you purchase for the vehicle, and user is liable for any damages that may occur.

Interestingly, Enterprise DOES allow use of snow chains in Colorado if chain advisory is in effect.

Rental Car Snow Chains

Enterprise does not offer snow chains as additional equipment since our vehicles are equipped with all weather tires.

www.enterprise.com

SIXT only offers/allows snow chains in Europe:

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www.sixt.com

So...for those non-locals coming to visit a snowy area, it's a real dilemma, not just a matter of laziness.

That said, when planning a ski trip I consult local weather forecasts, Google maps, and then try to find out if chains could possibly be required for a specific trip, and if so, I go somewhere else!
On my recent Santa Fe trip, I called ahead to the mountain because I was concerned about possible ice on the mountain road after it has snowed that week. I was told, "If you have a rental vehicle with AWD you will be fine." So I booked the trip rented a mid-sized AWD SUV and that was that.

 

[Jenny]

Good to know about Enterprise, thank you. We've used Budget a lot, so I knew they wouldn't let you use chains.

I should ask my insurance agent about the chains thing. We don’t have to purchase the rental car insurance because our own insurance would cover us (even for the “loss of services) but I don’t know about chains.

 

[Christy]

So...for those non-locals coming to visit a snowy area, it's a real dilemma, not just a matter of laziness.

The right thing to do--the legal thing to do, when tire or chain requirements are in effect--is delay travel until the vehicle meets that road's legal requirements.

I don't see this as a dilemma. Winter travel can be rough, and it's important to be flexible. That might mean foregoing the first night's lodging because it's too dicey to get to that mountain town. Or planning a trip to a place where you don't need to drive.

 

[MissySki]

@elemmac -
Units in the rental pool were quite different 20+ years ago, in terms of numbers. Many units were for sale at any given point in time. Page 2 of the weekly Sunday River newspaper had dozens of listings.

Associations were often vague about disclosing the rental pool numbers, stating that some units were “partially” in the pool, for certain weekends or vacation weeks. Or they did not know at all, due to high rate of turnover. Units were often purchased solely with the intent of their being in the rental pool.

Times were different.

It was just an altogether dismaying experience : (

I’m glad things have improved.

I wish I bought at that time now! The real estate market is still going crazy there. I bought this month last year and it was very difficult, every unit had 5+ bidders and I went in on quite a few before I got mine. I thought I must have gotten in at the height of things and the prices would surely go down and correct, but no big deal for my purposes and what I was spending yearly for seasonal rentals. Fast forward to this year and while there doesn't always appear to be multi bidder situations like last year, units in my building are going for almost 100K higher than I paid and what has come available in every building this season has gone under contract within a few weeks at most. Some are within a few days and some are still going over asking which drives the next ones even higher. It's not sustainable certainly, but I don't feel as stupid for the price I paid anymore at least. I do kick myself for not buying sooner and do remember the years around the 2008 crash all the way until just a few years ago where prices stayed plateaued and there was a ton on the market to choose from at any given time. In the end it all worked out and I at least got into the building I originally wanted to.

 

[Amie H]

The right thing to do--the legal thing to do, when tire or chain requirements are in effect--is delay travel until the vehicle meets that road's legal requirements.

I don't see this as a dilemma. Winter travel can be rough, and it's important to be flexible. That might mean foregoing the first night's lodging because it's too dicey to get to that mountain town. Or planning a trip to a place where you don't need to drive.

Yes, as I noted, I personally don't go anywhere that might require chains due to weather forecasts & local regulations. I cannot afford the time to change /delay an itinerary(due to little time off w my job), so I call ahead and obsessively check weather reports and Google maps ahead of time.
I thought it was interesting that Enterprise makes no specific mention of WA , only CO (and,Quebec for snow tires) in their chain policy.

 

[MaineSkiLady]

I wish I bought at that time now! The real estate market is still going crazy there. I bought this month last year and it was very difficult, every unit had 5+ bidders and I went in on quite a few before I got mine. I thought I must have gotten in at the height of things and the prices would surely go down and correct, but no big deal for my purposes and what I was spending yearly for seasonal rentals. Fast forward to this year and while there doesn't always appear to be multi bidder situations like last year, units in my building are going for almost 100K higher than I paid and what has come available in every building this season has gone under contract within a few weeks at most. Some are within a few days and some are still going over asking which drives the next ones even higher. It's not sustainable certainly, but I don't feel as stupid for the price I paid anymore at least. I do kick myself for not buying sooner and do remember the years around the 2008 crash all the way until just a few years ago where prices stayed plateaued and there was a ton on the market to choose from at any given time. In the end it all worked out and I at least got into the building I originally wanted to.

The units were so plentiful - and turned over so frequently - that most buyers paid cash. Wrote a check. Then on to the rental program they went. The rest is/was history - then? Don't forget, this was 20+ years ago.