J2Ski Forum Posts and Replies by chaletinthemountains

Would love to help you out with accommodation at our places, but unfortunately we are booked out for those dates.

For what its worth, we know the www.chaletb.com guys and can confirm bandits comments that they've been in the business for a while and have a good reputation! They have quite a unique place thats built into the hillside and organised as several indpendent apartments. As well as chaletb, www.azzure.com have a decent selection of chalets and apartments in an around Chamonix and are definately worth checking out. Also www.huski.com is another company run by people we know, who have a good reputation and have been in the business for a while.

Good luck with your search.

French schools are organised into 3 zones and the half term weeks are staggered according to the zone. So for last week and this coming week, most of the South of France and the Alpine regions are on holidays last week and this week. Basically, half term is pretty much over by 3 March.

Out of all the ski areas in Chamonix, Les Houches is the lowest with the highest lifts going up to about 1900m. So its the most susceptible in case the weather gets warm. However end March/beginning has generally been ok, and the prospects of decent snow coverage have been increased as the resort has invested quite heavily in snow cannons in the last couple of years.

In the worst case scenario and we have an early heat wave, Les Houches is close to (and covered by the same lift ticket as) the other ski areas in the Chamonix valley, which generally start around the 1900m mark and go upto above 3000m. So you are pretty much sure of good skiing late into the season.

Incidentally, Les Houches has undergone somewhat of a renaissance in the last couple of years, with substantial investments not only in the snow cannons but the lift system too. Last season a new 8 person cabin lift up the Prarion (photo below) was put into operation which has practically eliminated queues to get up the mountain, even in peak weeks like new year and school holidays. This season two new 4 person seat lifts were put into operation on the top sections of the mountain and there is a now snow park with jumps, rails, time gates and so on.



You can find the latest piste map here
http://www.chaletinthemountains.com/piste%20map%20-%20les%20houches.htm

And more info on the new lifts etc can be found here
http://www.ski-leshouches.com/
This info is only in french, but if you click on Actualités then you'll see some recent photos of the resort.

And, of course, if you need accommodation in Les Houches, please give us a shout!! http://www.chaletinthemountains.com

No guarantees of course, but Chamonix has been fine in April the last few of years.

Last season I kept a "blog style" snow report. Have just looked back over it and we had nearly 4m snow depth on the upper slopes at the beginning of april!!! here's a link to the snow report:
http://www.chaletinthemountains.com/snowreport06-07season.htm

For the 05/06 season before that, there was a discussion on this board about the snow depths late in the season ... might be interesting for you:
http://www.j2ski.com/ski-chat-forum/posts/list/951.page

Hope this helps!!

First the showing off. Conditions here in Les Houches/Chamonix are fantastic. After some fresh snow during last week, the clouds cleared for the weekend and the sun came out. The weather has stayed cold and clear, which meant the snow was in great condition backed by wonderful views of the mountains looking at their best. The local forecast is for more of the same over the coming days, so all is set up for a good week.

Here are a couple of photos taken this weekend that describe the conditions way better than I ever could!



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There are quite a few beginner slopes in and around Chamonix. Each of the main ski areas has a beginner slope near it. None of them are free, but they are relatively inexpensive and you can either buy a day pass/half day pass, and some offer a book of 5 rides. I cant remember exactly how much they are, but I think its something like Euros 10-15 per day.

In case it helps, below is a description of the beginner slopes. Info taken from http://www.chaletinthemountains.com/ski%20areas.htm

La Vormaine
Located just next to the gondola lift at Domaine de Balm, there are three drag lifts that take you up three pistes of differing length and level. At a altitude of 1462m, it normally has good snow late into the season. There are also a couple of bars and restaurants close by.

Chosalets
Three pistes, each accessible by drag lift. Situated behind the Grandes Montets cable car and overlooked by a bar/restaurant with a terrace. There is also a panda club for very young kids.

Les Bossons
The largest of the lower ski areas. Just 3mins drive from the chalets and has beginners slopes and green, blue as well as intermediate slopes: 1 red and 1 black. Skiing is accessible by drag and chair lifts. Les Bossons also has a system of flood lights for night skiing.

Les Tourchets
In the centre of Les Houches, just next to the ice rinc. There are three pistes, one for sledging and two for skiing. There are also 2 drag lifts which operate on two speeds, so it absolutely ideal for small kids and complete beginners.

Le Savoy
Several pistes, fairly close to the the centre of Chamonix, not far from the Brévent ski lift, with snow cannons and drag lifts, as well as a Jardin d'enfant (Kids' garden)

Les Planards
Close to Chamonix town centre (5 mins drive from the chalet), Les Pananrds has several ski runs adapted to every level : 2 green runs, 1 blue run et 1 red run. It includes a chair lift as well as drag lifs. It also has snow cannons, to ensure that there is snow later into the season. Theres also a good bar/restaurant which over looks the skiing area.

For convenience to bars and apres ski, then central Chamonix is best. As for accommodation, you'll find it hard to rent a chalet in central Chamonix as most are in the outskirts. You are more likely to find a hotel or apartments, of which there are many!

For convenience to ski lifts, then the nearest ski area to Chamonix is Le Brévent, which is about 10mins walk from the tourist office/center and is also served by a free bus service (as are all the ski areas).

However, the thing about the Chamonix Valley is that its quite different from most of the high altitude French Skiing resorts. There are no rolling open areas of uniform interconnecting ski resorts, but instead there are several individual and very different ski areas, each one with its own individuality and its own attractions. So to experience the variety, then its well worth the effort to get a pass for the whole valley and try out the different areas.

Here are some links for more info on skiing in valley:
http://www.chaletinthemountains.com/ski%20areas.htm
http://www.compagniedumontblanc.fr/presentation_domaines.php

what's the difference between a snowboard beginner and a snowboard instructor?

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