Plan a ski trip group budget without the chalet math headache

The problem with planning a ski trip group budget

A ski trip has more moving cost pieces than most group trips: the chalet or Airbnb split by room size, lift passes that some people buy for the full week and others only need for three days, gear rental for the two people who didn't bring their own skis, and the après-ski dinner bill that always runs longer than planned. None of these split evenly, but group chats default to "let's just split it evenly" because doing the actual math is annoying — which quietly annoys the people paying more than their share. On top of that, deciding who wants a rest day versus another day on the slopes usually gets settled by whoever complains loudest.

How Vacationist handles it

Vote on rest days and après-ski plans as a group

Suggest a rest day, a different resort, or the après-ski spot, and let the group vote with a five-tier system — from "must do" to "group blocker" — so the plan reflects what people actually want, not just who spoke up first. See how activity voting works.

Split the chalet, lift passes, and gear rental fairly

Log the chalet cost, lift passes, and gear rental separately, and split each one with custom amounts — because the person who rented skis and bought a 6-day pass shouldn't owe the same as the one who brought their own gear and skied two days. Balances update live. See how expense splitting works.

A shared packing list for gear

One shared list for goggles, gloves, base layers, and who's bringing the first-aid kit — updated in real time so nothing gets left off because it was mentioned once in a group chat three weeks ago.

Real-time balances so nobody's chasing chalet-mates after the trip

Every cost updates the group's balances immediately, so settling up happens naturally throughout the week instead of becoming an awkward post-trip conversation about who still owes for the gear rental.

What it costs

Free, with no ads. Voting, expense splitting, shared lists, and guest access are free for the whole group. A Pro tier exists for organizers running multiple trips a year, but it isn't required for a single ski week.

Frequently asked questions

Can we split the chalet cost unevenly if rooms are different sizes?

Yes. Every expense supports custom splits, so the chalet cost can be divided by room size or however the group agrees, not just evenly across everyone.

Can we track gear rental costs separately from meals and lift passes?

Yes — log each cost as its own expense (chalet, lift passes, gear rental, meals) so the group can see exactly what each category costs, not just one lump total.

Can the group vote on which days to ski versus rest?

Yes, using the same five-tier activity voting used for any trip decision — it works just as well for "who wants a rest day" as it does for choosing a restaurant.

Does it work if some of the group is on iPhone?

The native app is available for Android today, with iOS in development. iPhone users can join and fully participate through the web app via the invite link — no app-store detour needed.