 Poster: A snowHead
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A friend and I are heading away at half term, both of us are teachers so have no choice over dates and we are both also going at Easter too on school trips etc so it has to be that week.
Because of budget, where we've both been before and the fact we're UCPA fans etc we've narrowed it down to the UCPA at either La Plagne or Les Deux Alpes but are now struggling to decide between the two. UCPA at La Plagne includes the local La Plagne pass so the extra mileage of Les Arcs doesn't really make a difference...
Which would you go for?! Thanks in advance for any replies as we literally can't decide between the two and are going round in circles trying!!
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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VWLP, Hmm. I can see that's a hard choice. Is there any difference in the tuition packages being offered? If the LDA one offers some off piste they might take you to La Grave?
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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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I'd go to La Plagne, that's only because I've never been there before and went to L2A at Christmas  (nothing wrong with L2A, would just like to try other resorts before I go back).
Can you upgrade the La Plagne ski pass to get the Discovery so you get 1 day over at Les Arcs included?
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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VWLP, La plagne Le France is quite nice, the building is a former hotel, so they have better facilities. Also, La plagne really has enough skiing on its own, no need for the connection with Les Arcs
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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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Not a huge amount to chose between the resorts. I would say that skiing wise La Plagne has more to offer all round. I tend to think of Deux Alpes as a place to go for beginners or tough blacks. La Plagne has plenty of cruising for intermediates. What sort of skiing are you looking for? You might, also, find it easier to get away from the half-term crowds at La Plagne. Deux Alpes seems to collect people together more.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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Half term is horrendous in La Plagne huge traffic queues to get there, huge lift queues when you are there, they even widen the pistes in some areas to cope with the sheer numbers of skiers. (It's mainly skiers because the boarders don't like all the flat places) Queue again to get over priced spag bol in the mountain restaurants (quite a few are self service canteens) charging up market restaurant prices.
I'm sure L2A won't be as busy and there is a really nice lady in the lift pass office there who speaks passable Scottish 
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If you are a teacher then half-term is all there is (apart from Christmas and Easter of course!) so you just have to put up with it. La Plagne is very popular and pretty busy all the time.
I think the issue is what sort of level of skiing the OP is looking for.
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says he smugly, not having to worry anymore 
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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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Colin B, I am trying to be objective, but yes, it is great to have opportunities to go at other times. I know you are a 2 Alpes enthusiast. Do you think I am being fair to the resort?
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Chris Bish, I haven't been at half term but have heard it is busy too. I think everywhere in France is.
I don't actually think LDA is that good for beginners, it certainly has plenty of tougher stuff. It's also not fantastic for those who want to do mega-miles on piste although 150km keeps me busy. I like it there. I haven't been to La Plagne so can't compare the two.
Your opportunity to avoid school holidays is well earned I'm sure.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Colin B, My thinking was in relation to absolute beginners. I would imagine starting off on the magnificent glacier (at Deux Alpes) would be a great introduction to the magic of skiing. I would say that La Plagne is better for intermediates as there are plenty of cruisy blues.
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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Chris Bish, They start on the runs around the town then move onto Les Cretes I think. The Glacier runs are actually a little steeper (for a beginner that is).
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If I'd have gone up there as a beginner the first time I did I'd have been terrified. Couldn't see a thing, it was extremely windy, and I kept hitting small mounds of snow (which I couldn't see). Took about 10-15 mins to ski just over a km (the run next to the t-bars). Couple of days later, wind had dropped, perfect blue skies and it took about 2 mins to ski.
I think it's a bit cold for beginner lessons up there if you are standing around for longer, plus I'd be pretty annoyed if I spent the first 30 mins of my lesson on the Jandri and had to download that way too.
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You know it makes sense.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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Poster: A snowHead
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VWLP, There are some blacks at LDA which are never pisted and some are not pisted every day.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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VWLP, If it is blacks you want then 2 Alpes is your choice. Pisted or not, there is plenty to scare even an experienced skier. (Well, me anyway!)
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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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The big complaint we get in La Plagne is that the blacks don't get pisted. Occasionally a few of them are knocked down but most are never touched. If it snows they also usually leave the reds like Hari-Kiri and Kamikaze for a day or two as well. Indeed the lack of pisteing in general is what many of us love about La Plagne and others hate. On top of that apart from the area around Salla virtually all off-piste is skiable.
La Plagne has two wooded areas for low visibility/snowy days and now has a new black back from the Bellecote glacier called Derochoir
http://www.perso-laplagne.fr/News.htm (see news 20th December 2010)
If you're the type who might like La Grave then come to La Plagne, hire a guide and try the North Face of the Bellecote 
http://pistehors.com/backcountry/wiki/Savoie/La-Plagne-Bellecote
N.B. Rochu and Bellecôte blacks have gone now and are considered to be off-piste
Last edited by Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see? on Tue 11-01-11 22:46; edited 1 time in total
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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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But if you're in LDA you can ski the La Grave.
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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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There are 20 green pistes in LDA. I'm sure greens exist in La Plagne but apart from the one that goes under the UCPA building I'd defy you to find the others 
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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Go to L2A because I'm going there too 
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We skiid Le Plagne last Easter right at the end of the season and people left over from the previous week did say it had been really busy.
We normally ski in the 3 valleys and we did find the skiing there softer and not as demanding in comparison but did enjoy the full length & width of the resort with utilising the Vanois express to gain access to Les Arc many times.
The one real benifit is that with the Paradiski pass you are allowed 1 free day skiing in either Tignes or the 3 valleys. We took the option of a day out in Tignes, which allowed us to sample a great resort without any additional ski pass costs - although we did have use of a hire car so this may not be an option for you.
We've not skiid les deux Alps so can;t really comment but friends who have enjoyed it.
Noisey
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noisey, if you skied on La, that's La Plagne last Easter my guess is that the snow was pretty wet and slushy and most if the blacks were closed. Don't get me wrong I think 3 Valleys is a great ski area Saulire, Mont Vallon and the 4th Valley being particular favourites but there there is plenty of tough skiing in La Plagne if you want it but as always it depends on weather and conditions. I guess you realised that when standing on the Grand Rochette you are actually looking down on Courchevel and across the 3 valleys.
The big advantage of La Plagne/ Les Arcs/Paradiski over 3 Valleys is the vast distances you can cover without feeling you are either going out to VT or back to Courchevel with Meribel stuck in between.
Next time you come across try the blacks down the front of the Auguille Rouge in Les Arcs or Comborciere.
It's great for anyone coming for two weeks or a season to be able to go to Tignes or 3 Valleys on you pass but with so much to ski across Paradiski how would you have time to fit it in?
LDA has La Grave. If that is your bag then a chance to do that is a must not to be missed but IMHO without that LDA is a bit "lets go up and then come down again". In La Plagne with four mounatains, two wooded areas, a glacier, unlimited off-piste and the bonuses of Champagny which most people only discover by accident because the little square at the top of the map can never do this area justice and the sublime Chalet Forperet in Montalbert after skiing the woods for me there is no contest.
Actually La Plagne is rubbish. Please don't come.
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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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Actually La Plagne is rubbish. Please don't come.
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Well said
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the sublime Chalet Forperet in Montalbert
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Yeah, that's really rubbish, especially as the last stop on the way home as the sun begins to set, out on the decking and you tuck into a really bad crepe enjoying the last rays of sun and then watching the sun set and colouring the mountain tops for miles.
Last edited by You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net. on Wed 12-01-11 13:37; edited 1 time in total
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Boredsurfing, I'm warming to you. 
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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gravystuffing, You've been to that Au bon Vieux temps restaurant and sat by the warming log fire as well then?
(Which being in La Plagne is overpriced and has lousy service of course)
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Half term is horrendous in La Plagne huge traffic queues to get there, huge lift queues when you are there
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I would have said the same about La Plagne, went there half term in 2007 and the queues were just huge, they do have good fast lifts but it wasn't unusual to queue for 20 minutes, especially mid afternoon. But I have never been to L2A and i suspect it is fair to say all French "mega-resorts" are the same at half term.
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You know it makes sense.
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sanman, yeah and I would bet that there are no ways to avoid those queues by using other piste / lift routes, it's not as if the resort would produce a leaflet detailing them either
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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Poster: A snowHead
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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| sanman wrote: |
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Half term is horrendous in La Plagne huge traffic queues to get there, huge lift queues when you are there
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I would have said the same about La Plagne, went there half term in 2007 and the queues were just huge, they do have good fast lifts but it wasn't unusual to queue for 20 minutes, especially mid afternoon. But I have never been to L2A and i suspect it is fair to say all French "mega-resorts" are the same at half term. |
On a serious note which lifts did you queue at for 20 minutes and at what time of the day? Methinks you need a guide or some local knowledge to get the best from Paradiski. I'm sure there are plenty of s who are willing to share "the knowledge" if asked.
On a general note the best time to ski in France is between 12 and 2pm.
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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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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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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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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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Crikey; thanks for the info regarding Cornegidouille. I knew nothing about that. How come it wasn't covered on Perso LaPlagne?
I'm not out until next week guiding for a Danish company Trierski (wife is Danish). Watch out for me in a red jacket with a big snowflake on the back Our new chalet won't be ready until Summer 2011.
I guess you saw the update on Perso about the Montalbert gondola (Thursday, August 12, 2010 | Erratum : Montalbert's gondola lift) which said it was basically about "climate change" and getting beginners up and down the mountain. The Plan Bois lift made a huge difference to us in Les Coches but if I lived in Montchavin I think I'd be thinking replacement gondola to the top of the Dos Rond.
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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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Wow! Thanks for all the info! La Plagne is sounding right up my street; especially the lack of piste bashing. Sounds like there is loads of accessible off piste for lessons etc. The North face of the the Bellecote may just have to wait a few years though!! Both places are on my list of places to go so I suppose it's mainly a decision of where to go first, I'm not sure at the moment I would do justice to La Grave, probably just more of a "get down one of the less gnarly routes" situation rather than actually doing it justice. I WILL make a decision tonight!!
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gravystuffing,
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Crikey; thanks for the info regarding Cornegidouille. I knew nothing about that. How come it wasn't covered on Perso LaPlagne?
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I happened to see the earthmovers at work because I had to pull over to let a forestry winch go past (it's a road in the summer), Had that not happened I would have been none the wiser as the are they were working on isn't visible from anywhere else. I mentioned it on Perso at the time but didn't have time to take a photo, next time we passed there was no sign of the earth movers.
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FAQ
Who would want a resort with no boarders? 
