What will a trip cost?
Each trip is unique and the pricing will reflect that. The variables that affect the price include: location, lodging and food, transportation, complexity, my level of involvement, number of people and duration.
I will start by stating that I truly want to make my service as accessible as possible. Starting in 2024 I am going to experiment with pricing structures intended to minimize costs and maximize value. Furthermore, I am happy to have initial conversations about potential trips without any “sales” pressure. If after some exchanges you decide that this isn’t right for you, that’s okay. Lastly, there will never be any hidden costs. You will know the price of the trip before you commit to it.
In regards to COACHING AND INSTRUCTION…
These trips should be logistically simple—meaning not too much travel due to changing destinations during a trip. For example, for more entry-level trips, staying in the area of volcán Casablanca for an entire week is an ideal scenario; for more advanced trips, Nevados de Chillan is perfect; and for expert / professional trips, more complex, remote terrain will be necessary. Staying in one hotel, keeping the meals simple and not driving all over the country can save money. Furthermore… I am going to offer an option to charge my guide / instruction wage on the only the days we actually ski together. The reality of skiing in Chile is that the weather can prevent us from skiing. Traditionally, my prices reflected my time commitment, not necessarily the amount of work I did. In the case of a week with particularly bad weather, I would earn a guide’s wage every day, even if we only skied a couple days. I hate this scenario. I want to be more flexible. I also want to be more flexible with lodging and food. Personally, while working, I want decent food, a hot shower at the end of the day and a clean, quiet room to sleep in. I don’t need luxury. I am also not willing to sleep in a vehicle and eat uncooked, pre-packaged ramen noodles. But maybe you do need more luxury, or maybe you are planning on renting a camper van for an extended trip and don’t need room and board. For this reason, I am changing my pricing to allow for different off-mountain experiences.
I can’t tell you exactly what your costs will be until I know more specifics about your trip. (Of course, I am more than happy to help you plan the logistics.) I’d say the average couple probably spends about $300 (USD) per day to travel with an all-wheel-drive rental vehicle, stay in mid-level lodging and eat at a good restaurant each evening. I can imagine getting this down to $200 per day with a simple vehicle, more basic lodging and meals. Not renting a vehicle, and relying on me for transportation will save quite a bit of money. Again, there are lots of different options and I am happy to help you figure out what is best for you.
I can tell you what I will charge in 2024 (for a group of one to four people):
$250 for every day that I am away from home because of your trip. (This covers my transportation, lodging and food.)
$500 (additional) for every day we ski together.
In regards to ADVENTURE LEADERSHIP…
There is a HUGE range of possibilities with this. On one end of the spectrum would be an expedition to the far south with a base camp established ahead of time and a team of people to attend to everyone’s comfort. On the other end of the spectrum would be a situation where I am joining a small team of competent mountain travelers for a self-supported trip in the mountains closer to where I live. The price range is literally from hundreds of dollars to tens of thousands of dollars.
I will start by stating that I truly want to make my service as accessible as possible. Starting in 2024 I am going to experiment with pricing structures intended to minimize costs and maximize value. Furthermore, I am happy to have initial conversations about potential trips without any “sales” pressure. If after some exchanges you decide that this isn’t right for you, that’s okay. Lastly, there will never be any hidden costs. You will know the price of the trip before you commit to it.
In regards to COACHING AND INSTRUCTION…
These trips should be logistically simple—meaning not too much travel due to changing destinations during a trip. For example, for more entry-level trips, staying in the area of volcán Casablanca for an entire week is an ideal scenario; for more advanced trips, Nevados de Chillan is perfect; and for expert / professional trips, more complex, remote terrain will be necessary. Staying in one hotel, keeping the meals simple and not driving all over the country can save money. Furthermore… I am going to offer an option to charge my guide / instruction wage on the only the days we actually ski together. The reality of skiing in Chile is that the weather can prevent us from skiing. Traditionally, my prices reflected my time commitment, not necessarily the amount of work I did. In the case of a week with particularly bad weather, I would earn a guide’s wage every day, even if we only skied a couple days. I hate this scenario. I want to be more flexible. I also want to be more flexible with lodging and food. Personally, while working, I want decent food, a hot shower at the end of the day and a clean, quiet room to sleep in. I don’t need luxury. I am also not willing to sleep in a vehicle and eat uncooked, pre-packaged ramen noodles. But maybe you do need more luxury, or maybe you are planning on renting a camper van for an extended trip and don’t need room and board. For this reason, I am changing my pricing to allow for different off-mountain experiences.
I can’t tell you exactly what your costs will be until I know more specifics about your trip. (Of course, I am more than happy to help you plan the logistics.) I’d say the average couple probably spends about $300 (USD) per day to travel with an all-wheel-drive rental vehicle, stay in mid-level lodging and eat at a good restaurant each evening. I can imagine getting this down to $200 per day with a simple vehicle, more basic lodging and meals. Not renting a vehicle, and relying on me for transportation will save quite a bit of money. Again, there are lots of different options and I am happy to help you figure out what is best for you.
I can tell you what I will charge in 2024 (for a group of one to four people):
$250 for every day that I am away from home because of your trip. (This covers my transportation, lodging and food.)
$500 (additional) for every day we ski together.
In regards to ADVENTURE LEADERSHIP…
There is a HUGE range of possibilities with this. On one end of the spectrum would be an expedition to the far south with a base camp established ahead of time and a team of people to attend to everyone’s comfort. On the other end of the spectrum would be a situation where I am joining a small team of competent mountain travelers for a self-supported trip in the mountains closer to where I live. The price range is literally from hundreds of dollars to tens of thousands of dollars.
Discounts?
I used to offer a 10% discount for committing to trips more than eight-months in advance. I have replaced this by creating a pricing structure that is more flexible and actually LOWERING my wage to the minimum I can justify. That said, I can imagine scholarship and partnership opportunities for particular groups and organizations. I am open to being creative and have some room to be generous, but I can’t be foolish.
How does the payment process work?
After we have established a goal, a rough itinerary, a basic plan and a price, a deposit will be paid. This deposit will be enough to allow me to reserve things like lodging and also serves as a commitment to each other. My business is still based in the U.S., so making payments through services like Venmo, Zelle and Wise work best. 30-days prior to your trip, a second payment will be due. In most cases this will be the final payment. In the case of a trip where we have decided that my instruction / guide wage will be a la carte, then we will settle up at the end of the trip.
Cancellation Policy
We live in complicated times. I understand this. I also don’t like taking money for services not rendered. If it is decided that we have to cancel a trip—for any reason and at any time—I will only keep the portion of the payment that has been spent on non-refundable items and for work that has already been done. You will have the option of using the remainder of the deposit for a future trip or having it returned. It’s that simple.