Skiing with the kids, Christmas 2009 - ideas??

Riffraff seem to be everywhere these days (even j2ski), thought I saw some in a mirror just last week but couldn't have been!

snowplough wrote:Riffraff seem to be everywhere these days (even j2ski), thought I saw some in a mirror just last week but couldn't have been!

I hope you glared at the riffraff and waved your fist screaming out riffraff :mrgreen:

Alpe d'Huez ?

Lots of easy greens in main bowl round town - ok it's short on Alpine charm but there is fantstic skiing and and things to do of piste.

My kids were gutted we didn't go there and did La Tania instead this year (loved the chalet in LT but found the village a bit quiet and limiting).

Dave

Any views on Les Arcs 1950? Newish one built by Intrawest.. and also anywhere in Italy that might suit? thinking of Selva Gardena....

Timeforabeer wrote:Any views on Les Arcs 1950?

absolutely yes!!! I skied over for lunch one day and we'll go back and stay there. Not quite as disneylandish as Mont Tremblant looks. JonG is the man in the know in this area.

:DHi ,

Arc 1950 is a great location to stay in the Les Arcs side of the Paradiski ski area, there is a 6 man chair at the edge of the resort which takes you into the middle of the pistes and lifts for the Arc 1950/2000 sction ,also from the resort you just have to take the chair up and over the ridge to access the !600/1800 and Peisey-Vallandry ection or the easy blue/green down into Pre-St-Esprit and then the chair at the bottom to access the afformentioned section.

Also just a short ski and telecabine ride away is the excellent Aiguille Rouge sector with its 7km descent down to Le Pre,although this run is mainly black on the top to middle section and red towards the bottom it ends with a meandering track down to the bar/restaurant Le Ferme, also this run just above Le Pre diverts off round the mountain and takes you back down into Pre-Saint-Esprit just below 1950...you can also miss out the black section by taking the chair up from 2000 and starting the run halfway down from the top....and confident intermediates with care should find this ok if a little knackering.

If you click on the link below you can see and use the interactive webcams for Arc 1950 and the wider Les Arcs area, just click on a picture then click on one of the camera symbols, the views can be panned round etc by using the scroll bars at the bottom and side of the picture..

http://www.lesarcs.com/Webcams-GB-Les-Arcs#b

The only thing i would have against 1950 is that if you wanted to go anywhere else (for an evening meal etc ,or to shop for groceries etc down in Bourg-Saint-Maurice if self catering) it is a good 25 - 30 minutes by car or bus, although there are good places to eat and drink, the better restaurants are down in Bourg in my opinion, and also a little cheaper.

If you would like me to send you some information on the Les Arcs/Bourg-Saint-Maurice area , lift pass prices ( these will only be this seasons prices , next seasons should not be much dearer if at all) etc just send me you're details on the pm facility and i will fire them off to you.

To be honest i think you will be hard pushed to beat anywhere in the Paradiski/Les Arcs area which has some of the best skiing available anyhere and is very underated in my opinion.

Hope some of this helps... :D

Jon.

:DHi again,

Sorry mis-read the ages of the nippers,sometimes the brain is not connected....doh!

The runs around 1950 ,including the afformentioned run down to Pre-St-esprit "Cascades" is a lovely gentle gentle wide blue idesl for beginners or novices, in fact the runs from the "Marmottes" & St Jacques are easy blues with slightly varying gradients.

The St Jacques chair is free on saturdays and sundays,this is accessed via the small bubble telecabine " Cabriolet" that links 1950 with 2000 from the top head to the right and its the first lift you come to on the left just down the easy track from the top.

Sorry about not putting this in the previous reply...

All the best

jonG.

JonG - really useful advice, thank you very much. OH has a phobia about purpose-built, I will have to simply lie about it til we get there.