At
an altitude in excess of 3,500 m Les Alpes has a pretty good
snow record, not only on the glacier, but in the main resort
areas as well. The skiing terrain offers a bit of action for everybody,
and, as the resort is a purpose built one, the nearest uphill
transport is never too far away.
This
resort is ideal for families and groups with kids as there are
lots of baby sitters, a government run nursery, and a ski
kindergarten. A new cable car is planned to run from the village center
to the glacier, thus reducing the length of time it takes to reach high altitude skiing. Les 2 Alpes is a long, narrow, purpose – built village
high in the French Alps, about 50 very hard kms from Grenoble.
It
is a unique sort of purpose built resort. This is to say the place has more than a bit of
atmosphere, a little action in the form of night life, places to eat, and
extra activities such as ice skating, night skiing, etc. The skiing, on either side of the main road, is expansive
and varied. It is , for the most part, wide open and not too
difficult, but watch out, there are some very steep and very
tricky bits around.
Besides
having lots of skiing (160km of prepared slopes), Les 2 Alpes
has a unique way of paying to enjoy it. They feature a sort of a sliding scale system in which
you pay only for the runs you are capable of handling. A beginner then who would be using less of the pistes and
uphill transport than an expert, would, by definition, pay less. A better skier would pay more. Unique and a good idea. As well as some very impressive summer skiing the area
offers some tremendous guided off piste runs as well. Note the key word here is guided, you would be ill
advised to try them alone. These excursions seem to be well organized and plentiful. For details get yourself a copy of their brochure.
How
to get there
As
do many French resorts, 2 Alpes offers a lot of non conventional
ski courses, including competition classes, snow surfing,
artistic skiing, cross country and the like. Les 2 Alpes is in the Dauphine region of France,
reachable by road from Paris to Lyon and then on to Les 2 Alpes. From Geneva, which is also the closest international
airport, drive toward Chambery and from there to the resort. Les 2 Alpes offers skiing in both summer and winter, and
boasts 57 lifts serving 160 km of pistes skiable to an altitudes
of 3,600 m.
A
6 day pass or more allows the skier the opportunity to ski a day
at the neighboring resorts of Alpes D’Huez and Puy St.Vincent. A seven day ski pass costs FF 522 with a reduction to FF
768 for kis. It looks as if Turin is the best international airport,
but surely Geneva has to be seriously considered. Grenoble is the closest big city.
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