Let it snow, Let it snow in Isère
With one of the best November snowfalls on record, it’s the southern Alps that have seen the lion’s share of the snow – the weather in the Alps has now calmed down and will remain settled for most of the week. However, by the weekend new storms will be starting to push in from the Atlantic and next week promises to bring significant widespread snow likely across the Isère.
Alpe d’Huez opened on November 30, 2019 and is open until April 25, 2020 www.alpeduez.com The internationally renowned resort of Alpe d’Huez is excellent for families and ski enthusiasts. The ski area is one of the largest in Europe linking five resorts with 250kms of pistes. Situated on a plateau with a full south facing position at 1860m altitude, the summit is the Pic Blanc at 3330m which boasts the most magnificent panoramic view in the Alps towards the Parc National des Ecrins and the Mont Blanc.
Les 2 Alpes opened on November 30, 2019 and is open until April 25, 2020
www.les2alpes.com Another internationally renowned resort in Isere is Les 2 Alpes. It is one of the highest resorts in the world with an altitude from 1600 meters to 3600 meters. It boasts an excellent snow record, well above average sunshine conditions and an amazing 223km of snow-sure ski slopes.
OPENING SOON
Chamrousse is the next resort in the Isere to open from December 7, 2019 and is open until April 5, 2020 www.chamrousse.com For a low-key ski weekend or city and ski break head to, Chamrousse’s ski area of 90kms of pistes with excellent skiing and stunning scenery. It asserts itself as one of six resorts to have been awarded the Flocon Vert, a label that guarantees the sustainable commitment of mountain resorts. Just 35 minutes from Grenoble it’s the closest ski resort to the city.
Villard de Lans will open 21 December 2019 until 5 April 2020 www.villarddelans.com A joyful and lively village resort known as the little Canada of France with its wild topography. Villard de Lans is the most important ski resort in the Vercors massif. At the foot of the Grande Moucherolle, the village has preserved its architectural heritage and friendly atmosphere, born at the beginning of the century from the development of bourgeois tourism. The Villard-Corrençon www.corrençon.com combined ski area is the largest (125km of pistes, 19 lifts) and highest of all the Alpine areas of the Vercors (1050m–2050m). Basketball star Tony Parker from the American NBA league bought a controlling stake in the SEVLC company which runs the ski lifts, snowmaking and other infrastructure at the ski area above Villard-de-Lans and Corrençon-en-Vercors.
Authentic and modern, the village of Vaujany will open from December 7, 2019 until April 24, 2020 www.vaujany.com is located at 1,250m on a sunny plateau, facing the Grandes Rousses massif. In the heart of Oisans, connected to the Alpe d’Huez domain ski area is on the outskirts of the Ecrins National Park. Vaujany enjoys a very privileged location because it is connected to the Alpe d’Huez Large Ski Area. Family friendly is the key here.
Oz en Osisans will also open from December 14, 2019 until April 24, 2020 www.oz-en-oisans.com The skiing in Oz is spectacular, with fantastic views all round from glaciers and forests to villages nestling in the valleys below. The local Vaujany/Oz local ski area on the west side extends from Oz to Vaujany and Alpe d ‘Huez with 70 kms of slopes from 1,100m in altitude to 2,800m. It’s a particularly sunny part of the ski region. Thanks to the tree-lined slopes, the terrain above Oz is probably the best area for skiing when snow is actually falling.
Les 7 Laux opens from December 21, 2019 until April 13, 2020 www.les7laux.com All three pretty villages of Les 7 Laux at 1,350 meters are lift-linked for easy domain access. Perched in the Belledonne mountains, it offers treelined skiing below 2000m. The rest of the mountain is unsheltered by trees and reaches a top height of 2400m. The resort invested to have 90% of their ski lifts updated in the last 10 years. There is a pretty decent cross-country area and lots of off-piste to be found.
This winter sees three new ski routes introduced from the UK to Grenoble Alpes Isère airport. With weekly flights on a Saturday from East Midlands airport with Jet2, from 21st December to April 2020. A new route from Bristol with Ryanair from January to March 2020 whilst Easyjet adds a new frequency of flying from London Gatwick every Thursday thus offering guests a short break as an option to the department ofIsère.
For more information visit www.isere-tourism.com
