 Poster: A snowHead
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Hi all, whilst researching a new year ski holiday for 11 of us, Les Allues, Meribel comes up with a few chalets in our rough price range. I have never skied in Meribel so I’ve no idea what the area is like. I have heard that Meribel Center is the better place to be. I would love to hear opinions on Les Allues. Is it ski in /out? Or at least easy for slope & lift access? Is there anything going on in the village? Or would we need to travel for meals / drinks out?
Other areas we are looking at are: courchevel, Les arcs, tignes.
Thank you!
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Les Allues is a good place to stay provided you don't mind travelling a little to access the skiing. It's a village below Meribel where many of the people who work in the resort live. So, there are shops, bars etc but it's not got the apres scene of Meribel itself. There may be years where you can ski down to les Allues but that can't be predicted in advance. There is a bus up from les Allues to the Chaudanne (central meeting point) in Meribel and also the Olympic gondola, which takes you to the same place. The trade off is that it's cheaper and quiet but you are some way from the action. If you are mid 20s then I'd probably want to be further up the hill.
From a skiing perspective, you are in the middle of the three valleys, which is enormous and offers very varied skiing.
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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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@breeze11, all the things @gorilla has said are correct. It's mainly a locals and seasonaires' village rather than tourists so a much more laid back vibe. it's a walk to and from the gondola or ski bus every day. Last gondola back is 5pm I think so if you apres in the centre, it's the bus home. Almost no chance of being able to ski back at New Year, the piste only opens with significant snow cover and you need the freezing level to be consistently around 1000m or lower. It hasn't opened yet for this season.
You might get similar priced chalets in Courchevel 1650 and La Tania which would both be better than Les Allues. The Courchevel end of the 3Vs frequently has the best early season conditions overall. Any of the higher Tignes areas would be suitable, Val Claret or Le Lac in particular. I'm not so familiar with Les Arcs villages other than Arc 1950 which would definitely be ok, but I'd be surprised if it was anywhere near Les Allues prices.
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@breeze11, have you looked at la tania, will probably be cheaper than courcheval 1650/1850, though may be a bit more than les allues, good choice of resto's and bars.
it has good access to the slopes via the gondola, and will be able to ski back to resort fairly easily, unless the conditions are truly awful.
as gorilla mentions, it can be very patchy skiing back to Les Allues, and you would have to get the gondola/bus up to meribel centre in the morning at all times as it is not a ski in/out village.
le tserreta is a great bar, with live bands on some nights, and had a lovely restaurant upstairs, though i have not been there for around 20 years so it may have gone downhill.
when i first worked out there, the bar was the only place in town, but after a few years it started to get its own ski hire shop and small supermarket. we had a chalet there, and it certainly attracted an older clientele as they were not that fussed about a lively apres scene.
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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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Thank you all for your replies. I think that rules it out for us. We don’t want to be reliant on buses for anything and we want to be able to ski back.
I think courchevel 1650 is top of the list at the moment. La Tania is just a bit further out for the non skiers in our group. It would be good if we were based somewhere with a bit of life / shops / bars…
Thank you for the recommendations on other resorts. Most of my skiing has been in courchevel so I am not familiar with the best spots in the other resorts. I will start researching them now.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
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@breeze11 Anything in Meribel Village? Ski in /out, great bar for apres at Le Lodge, small superette and a ski hire shop.
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^^^^^
Meribel village is a great choice.
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I like Les Allues, buses are regular, and there is the bubble up to the Chaudanne. We have also driven out previously and parked under the Chaudanne, you can also drive to Le Praz, though I think you now have to pay to park. The Tsaretta is a great bar and restaurant. Ski back on the Raffort run is fun, but even if there is sufficient snow it is often roped off. Biggest benefit is that it is cheaper to stay because of a slight inconvenience.
Also stayed at Meribel Village, and has similar benefits as Les Allues. The Lodge de Village is good, and does good food. There is also a decent bakery, supermarket and ski shop. However the accommodation can be a bit more swanky and therefore pricey, if you like this then great. Although the Lapin Piste and lift come into the Village it can be a shlep to your accommodation. Also it is out on a limb to Meribel and the Chaudanne if you have to meet for ski school or are trying to get to the St Martin/VT valley, though the Loze chair into Courchevel is quite accessible.
Either village would be my preferred option compared with anywhere else in the 3Vs with the possible exception of St Martin
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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None underestimate how good the Meribel bus service linking the Chaudanne, Meribel Village and Les Allues is, if you get your head past this mindset you get some good options. The 3Vs has more than its fair share of knobs, Les Allues imo is the antidote
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just back from Les Allues, Ski Hame have a lovely chalet there, free minibus to and from Meribel slopes, in addition to bus and Gondola. Definitely quieter than Meribel , but that's what I like about it.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Les Allues is fine - lovely if you live out here - but for a weeks skiing holiday, in terms of location and choice of bars/food etc - can't beat Meribel centre.
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