Your guide skiing Val d’Isère in the French Alps
How to get to Val d’Isère?
Where to stay in Val d’Isère?
Skiing in Val d’Isère?
Après-ski in Val d’Isère?
Where to eat in Val d’Isère?
There are so many ski areas in France that it is difficult to pick one that suits your needs. Of course, there are a few names that most skiers would heard of like Les Trois Vallées which includes 8 interlinked ski areas like Courchevel and Meribel. It is the largest integrated ski area in the world.
Then there is Val d’Isère. A name that I have heard of ever since I started skiing at a young age. When I had this opportunity to visit the Alps during the winter for a ski holiday, Val d’Isère was the first on my list among Zermatt being the other. Val d’Isère together with Tignes make up the Espace Killy ski area with 300km of runs/pistes. Although, incomparable to the 600km of run/pistes at Les Trois Vallées, I never have to ski the same piste twice when I spent 3 winter days in Val d’Isère. It is a skier’s paradise. I did ski down the famous “La Face” piste more than once!
Val d’Isère is deep in the Tarentaise Valley in the Savoie department in southeastern France. The village is surrounded by towering peaks of the valley. It is also the venue of the men’s downhill during the Albertville 1992 Winter Olympics.
HOW TO GET TO VAL D’ISÈRE
I found it a bit difficult to get to Val d’Isère especially if you are not taking the train. If you are taking the train then it is quite easy. The closest train station is Bourg St Maurice and it is served by the TGV and Eurostar. The direct Eurostar train from London only operates during the winter months. During the winter season, there are numerous buses to Val d’Isère, Tignes and Les Trois Vallées. It is only about an hour bus ride.
I flew into Geneva, Switzerland and took a bus direct from the airport to Val d’Isère. The bus company I used is called Alti Bus. It wasn’t very clear as to where to take the bus at the airport terminal but after asking around we managed to figure out where to wait outside the terminal and which bus it is. There were not much signage but enough people with skis waiting around to ask. It took more than 3 hours with traffic to get from Geneva to Val d’Isère. It is a long bus ride. On the way back we took the same bus but there were construction on the road which slowed down the traffic. It took 4 hours and we almost missed our flight out of Geneva.
Once you get close into Val d’Isère and Tignes, the scenery is absolutely amazing. The bus stops at Tignes first which goes by the Tignes dam. Tignes is a purpose built ski resort with lots of grey concrete apartment blocks. It is not very appealing if you want the traditional alpine alps village atmosphere which Val d’Isère gives.
WHERE TO STAY IN VAL D’ISÈRE
I love the town of Val d’Isère. There is a main road along the main part of town and then it spreads out a bit along the road. There is a lovely church in town center.
I’ve stayed at the Avenue Lodge Hotel. It is on the main road but a bit far from the ski lifts. You need to walk for about 10 minutes and a bit uphill to the ski lifts. If there is enough snow, you can almost ski back to the hotel using a bit of the pedestrian sidewalk which hopefully is covered in snow.
Despite the distance from the ski lifts, the rooms are big and modern. There is a separate bath and shower which is very important for a ski trip to enjoy a warm bath in the tub to sooth your muscles.
If budget permits, I might choose to stay at Le Yule hotel in my next visit. It is very close to the ski lifts and a beautiful hotel with a great restaurant.
WHAT TO DO IN VAL D’ISÈRE
Val d’Isère is a skier’s paradise. I am not sure if there is much to do if you are not a skier. There is not much of an après-ski scene in the village (there is a famous one on the mountain!) and the only thing on people mind’s here is to ski. I love it.
Val d’Isère is part of the Espace Killy ski area with 300km of pistes. There are 4 main bases which is interconnected by chairlifts and also free shuttle buses. These 4 bases are Le Fornet, Val d’Isère, La Daille, and Tignes. Tignes also have 3 separate bases with the main Tignes 1800 and the lower Tignes 1550 and Les Boisses further up.
Val d’Isère is all about the traditional alps village charm with a lovely church in the center of town built in 1664.
There are only 2 main gondolas that takes you up the mountain. The Olympique gondola takes you up to Rocher de Bellevarde at 2827m. At this point, the runs spreads out to the direction of Tignes which connects you the the vast network of ski lifts and piste of Espace Killy. The view up here is jaw dropping and it feels like you are in the center of the alps. It is one of the best view in ski that I have seen anywhere in the alps.
The Olympique Gondola also have a great view of the infamous Le Face black piste. The gondola follows the piste up the mountain. The piste was made famous at the 1992 Winter Olympic where the run hosted the Men’s downhill. All top three places of the race were just separated by 0.1 seconds. It was also thought that the slope was too steep to host a downhill event. It was a fun run as I’ve skied it a few time during my three days there. It is best done in the morning as it gets quite icy in the afternoon. It gets busy too in the afternoon when everyone is tired trying to ski back down to the village. Therefore, beware if you want to ski back down later afternoon.
The other gondola from Val d’Isère base is the Solaise. It takes you up to Solaise at 2560m. This side of the Espace Killy area is a bit isolated from the rest but it is just a good or maybe the best if you want to get away from the crowd.
The piste over at the Solaise side are a bit less busy but the main activity to do is to ski over to the Le Fornet side. In order to do so, you have to take the Leissieres chairlift. Leissieres is one of the most dramatic chairlift that I’ve ever taken. It is a traditional quad chairlift with a simple safety bar and no bubble. It connects the Le Fornet Glacier of Col De I’seran area to the Solaise area. The chairlift is like a roller-coaster where it goes up over the mountain ridge and then back down on either side.
CNN named it one of the top 10 most extreme ski lifts in the world.
My favorite run over my 3 days of skiing in the Espace Killy area is also located at the Solaise area. The red run is called Arcelle. The run is served by its own chairlift, Manchet Express. It is a run for groomers where you can cruise down or blast down in full speed. It is a long run and your legs will feel it at the bottom. The view is jaw dropping. You are skiing down the Le Manchet valley and there is a cross country track at the bottom. As you ski down the valley, the towering peaks gets higher and higher as you drop down. You can then look right down the valley with towering peaks surrounding you.
This is why we ski the alps with these mesmerizing view.
The other highlight of the Espace Killy ski area is going up the Grande Motte aerial tramway. At the top of the tramway is the highest station in the ski area at 3456m. At the top you get another jaw dropping view. You can see Mt. Blanc on a clear day. You feel like you are on top of the alps. It is not difficult to ski back down from the glacier with a well groomed red piste.
You should also ski down to La Daille and take the Funicular back up the mountain. It is an interesting experience for me as the last time I took a Funicular was in Zermatt.
By now, you can understand why I didn’t visit the same place twice during my 3 days skiing here. I actually haven’t skied down to the lower Tignes 1550 village as I ran out of time.
Après-ski in VAL D’ISÈRE
Yes, I did mention there is not much of an après-ski scene in the village but there is La Folie Douche on the mountain. The name is synonymous with partying in the alps. It is located at the top of La Daille gondola. You can ski there from any part of the Espace Killy ski area or use the La Daille gondola to get up from La Daille.
Otherwise, there is not much going on in the village if Val d’Isère. There used to be a Grand Marnier crêperie at the village which have great crêpes but now they seem to have changed owners and no longer associated with Grand Marnier which is unfortunate. Other institution around the village for nightlife are: Dick’s Tea Bar, Bananas, Cocorico and The Fall Line.
WHERE TO EAT IN VAL D’ISÈRE
Le Solstice – Great restaurant with outdoor seating at Le Yule Hotel facing the slopes.
Ski Gallery & Fondue Factory – Great place for fondue with a gallery of skis and boots over the ages. I found my first boots and skis I’ve had 20 years ago on display.
Flash Pizza – Wherever we ski, we need some quick comfort food like Pizza and Flash Pizza is a great place. It is a small place with great decorations showing photos of the owners’ travels around the world. They do deliveries as well if you want to stay at your villa or hotel room.
Les Sonnailles– A place for souvenirs and cheese and wine to bring back to your hotel or villa.
