 Poster: A snowHead
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We just got back from a week (23/12-30/12 in Valloire, France. It was pretty last-minute, but the early snow persuaded me to give it a go. Friends from Annecy had recommended Valloire as a solidmid-level station that's good for families.
Transport: We drove from Paris. Without traffic or stopping it's a 7 hour drive, quite easy as you're on autoroute until the last 15 km, up to the Telegraphe and over into the village, at 1450 m. But with bouchons/stops/leaving Paris at 10, more like 10 hours. On the way back it took 3 hours to get down in a blizzard. C'est la vie! Next time we might try the train/bus combo.
Accommodation: I found an Airbnb rental, which turned out to be an apartment on the ground floor in the house of the director of grooming! That was a huge stroke of luck. Two br, 2 ba, fireplace, right in front of a skibus stop but also walking distance to the Verneys lift on the route du Galibier. in the interests of full disclosure the rate was 1100 euros for the week for 4 of us, plus linens and 60 euros for all the firewood we could burn. At that price, we burned the equivalent of a small forest. It was extremely comfortable and well equipped. 8/10
Town: Valloire is a real Alpine town, with a stunning baroque church from the early 17th century, lots of ski shops, cafes and restaurants. Two telecabines leave from the center. You don't need a car but the ski buses end at 8 p.m. I recommend Le Fournil des Bergers as the best bakery, for bread/pastries/desserts/chocolates...in the Verneys area, good bakery across from the lift and a traiteur that will set you up with all the fixing for fondue (49 euros including a ton of charcuterie). 8/10 (only because the ski bus hours were limited in the evenings and there could have been a few more of them)
Food: We ate at home except for one exceptional meal at Le Beau Sejour, an unassuming bar in Verneys that serves what I would call refined rustic food. We asked our landlord for recommendations and he suggested Au Resto for fresh pastas and grilled meats but we didn't make it. However, we scoped it out and it looked very cozy. There's a Carrefour and a Sherpa in town. Because of lessons schedule we brought our own sandwiches and ate at a salle hors sac on the mountain. The onslope restos looked pretty average. I'd say...7/10.
Skiiing: The station is basically three ridges south of the autoroute in the Maurienne, if you include linked Valmenier. We loved the Thimel area, served by the Setaz cabine from town, with two lifts off to the right going down the Verneys area and two others serving the middle and high areas. Excellent variety of runs, lots of tree cover, including some blacks and reds right into town (Olympique/JB Grange). There are some hard blacks from the top (Cascade and some unpisted ones down into the other valley) For beginners there are a few long blues and greens of the cat track type but they're good fun). Lots of sidecountry too. The larger, more exposed Crey du Quart ridge was a bit of a letdown -- it's absolutely treeless and quite windy, which as has been noted before, means that snow gets scoured away, and in flat light its kind of hard the see the terrain features. The 14k long Selles trail is a fun blue. I suspect on a warmish, bluebird day it would have been great. But we had a lot of flat light, flurries and low temperatures. I didn't get over to Valmenier. It was perfect for my wife, who is a beginner. She took private ESF lessons (250 euros for 6 hours, up to 2 people) and was very happy with her instructor. Our kids (9 and 11) also did private lessons after 5 years of cours collectifs. After 6 hours they gained another level (bronze for daughter, gold for son) -- so 500 euros for lessons for 3 people ==> good deal.
Lifts: One not insignificant issue is that the two telecabines in town aren't linked. The piste map indicates that they are but I could not find a liaison between the two. There's a way to get from the Setaz side to the Cret de la Brive telecabine but it involves a 50 m hike along a side street. However, the weather was a overcast and snowy so, again, possible that I missed some signage. As others have also mentioned the trail markers are by lift (logical once you figure it out). Lift passes for family of 4 = 713 euros for the week. Not bad.
Offpiste/sidecountry: Lots of it, very fun, but the Crey du Quart area was hardpack, even the morning after after a 20 cm dump. My kids and I had a lot of fun bumping alongside the trails in the soft stuff.
Overall skiing: 6-7/10. I think if we'd had more sun and less wind we could have taken better advantage of the whole station.
Overall, I'll say 7.5/10, which is a pretty good ranking. I'd definitely go back, maybe even in summer to tackle the Galibier on my bike. I think Valloire is more oriented toward beginners up to strong intermediates, though an expert could find plenty of off piste to keep them busy for a week. The village is a real gem, and everyone we met was quite friendly. Also notable was a very diverse group of skiers, including Chinese, Indians, Russians, Germans, Italians and even a few Muslims.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Nice comprehensive review and I concur on all points.
One thing worth mentioning here is if anyone is booking ahead for anything over a week then the early season pass is a bargain at <€300 before September.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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@BoardieK, Did you happen to find a link between the two bubble lifts in town? I could not find one. That would have significantly improved the ski experience.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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No I didn't but for me it was only a 2 minute walk. I think the "half link" you mentioned was closed when we were there.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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Nice review, we stayed in Valmenier a few years back but much preferred the skiing on the Valloire side. We did the Selles run a few times in bluebird March conditions and it was a great run, easy and great views.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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Ha, I did Selles on ice with 50 mph wind coming down the valley. It was so bad that my board was weathercocking every time I went toeside.
Never did it again!
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