Montgenevre / Claviere report

A snowHead

Having just returned from a week in staying in Montgenevre, France, I thought it may be useful for some if I posted a quick report/resort review.

I was there from 16th to the 23rd of January 2011 and I guess as everybody knows the alps don't have an abundance of powder at the moment. That said I thought the pistes had been fairly well maintained.

The start of the week saw temperatures of about 10 degrees centigrade at 1800 metres (village height) and obviously the south facing slopes got very slushy... more like March than January. The other slopes however held up fairly well and just softened in the afternoon. Of course all the freeze/thaw did mean the inevitable spot of ice here or there but nothing that caused too much trouble.

Later in the week saw the temperatures drop and the snow cannons could finally be put to good use. In addition an inch of snow on the Thursday night went some way to freshen things up but strong winds on the Friday, unfortunately seemed to blow this off of exposed spots. Luckily I had opted for an away day in Serre Chevalier on the Friday and enjoyed a much warmer, nicer day by all accounts.

In total we had a whole week of sunshine and despite the obvious disadvantages of no snowfall, I've got no complaints!

Anyway, on to the accommodation. We stayed in a catered chalet, La Petite Clautre run by Neilson. The chalet, situated with two others, is at the far end of town, towards Briancon. It was pretty much ski in/ski out with the Chalmettes telemix lift about twenty metres away and as such I thought the location was excellent. The 3 star chalet was rustic in appearance and simply furnished but warm, cosy and welcoming. Of course it is often the service of the chalet hosts that can really make or break a holiday and I am pleased to report that all the Neilson team we encountered were excellent, in particular our host that made us feel at home.

On the subject of booking a Montgenevre holiday with Neilson, just one word of warning.... The brochure, website and booking operatives state that the lift pass is the whole Milky Way (400km). It is, in fact, only the 100km of Montgenevre and Claviere but includes a single day in the Milky Way plus an away day at another unlinked resort (a trip to Serre Che was arranged at an additional cost of €20 for the transport). As it happens, this was not an issue for us as we found plenty to keep us entertained.

On the whole the ski area of Montgenevre and Claviere was impressive considering it is only 100km. Advertised as a beginners/intermediate resort, there are an abundance of green, blue and red runs but adventurous intermediates should also find plenty to do.

The Chalvet ski area to the north of Montgenevre is accessed by a couple of lifts, one in the middle of town and one at the far end. The Serre Thibaud lift at the far end was the one we used as it linked in nicely with the run down from the top of the Chalmettes lift. This quick telemix lift takes you up to a high windy ridge where a blue run heads down into the valley. Here there are options both left and right to drop down reds and blacks but all but one black was closed due to snow issues Sad

Being south facing, this area had suffered the most from the warm conditions but there was still plenty of blues, a few reds and a black open. In addition this area has a good boarder cross and natural gully to play in.

On the other side on Montgenevre the north facing slopes had faired a lot better. A few runs that were permanently in the shade did get quite icy but most were ok. The area right in front of the village is home to the nursery slopes which looked ideal for the job. One good thing for beginners is the green run that starts right at the top of the mountain and runs right down to village level, a rare thing in most resorts.

The rest of the area is home to a mix of tree lined reds and blues and although quite short in length, they were fun to bomb about on. To be honest we really just used these to get somewhere else.....

The Gondrans area is, in my opinion, one of the resorts best areas. It's a high open bowl with a few trees near the lift base. Although it has no black runs there are a few good reds and an interesting free ride area. Snow permitting there are loads of different lines to take and if there is such a thing, it's relatively safe off/between piste. There is also another boarder cross track here, flatter than the other but with a good set of whoops at the end. Just one word of warning, there is a bit of a flat lower section where the runs converge (ok with a bit of speed) and the lifts, as with much of the area, are fairly slow.

Lastly there is the Claviere area. The flat route from village to village, although quicker, should really be avoided. Instead take the long lift up the Rocher de l'aigle. The scenery is stunning and the runs off either side are great, the only real issue being the long, long flat spot as you head towards Claviere and the Refuge eatery at the bottom of the Gimont lift. Boarders beware.

The tree lined runs in and around Claviere are good fun and the easy reds are a real confidence booster and great to race on. There are plenty so just pick one and have fun. Just make sure you carry your speed for the frequent little flat spots.

A must see, when over the Clavier side, is the area of chalets above Sagna Longa, it's beautiful and a mellow blue runs down through the village. there are a couple of reds too that use the same lift so a few laps are worth doing.

Finally a quick word on what little apres/mountain eating we did (being in a catered chalet with plenty of wine didn't make us go out too often!). The flatbread paninis (speck ham and brie) at the Refuge by the Gimont lift were excellent for lunch, as are the burgers at the outside burger bar (next to the Rois Mages hotel/bar). The burger bar always has a queue of locals... that's got to be a good sign. La Coche above Claviere was also busy and the ragu pasta was nice enough, though not that special.

Our only evening meal was at Caesars on the main street. They do a great pizza, reasonably priced and very tasty. They also do the usual French fayre and reports on this were also good. The reps eat there quite often so that's a good sign.

As for bars, we tried a few. The Rois Mages is very, very british. Ok for a lunchtime beer in the sun but not my cup of tea for a night out. La Graal, up the road, was nicer and was fairly popular. It also has free wifi which is quite handy. The bar in La Grange (the Skitopia Hotel) was basic but cosy and had a nice atmosphere when we were there. There was also a great little bar on the backstreets that does tapas but is only open from about 8 o'clock in the evening (sorry, I can't remember the name but it's up past the church somewhere). The atmosphere was great and the place has real character.

Beer prices were also much cheaper than the likes of Les Arcs (where we went last year)... €4 ish for a pint compared to about €7. Happy days Very Happy

Anyway, that's quite enough of my ramblings! I hope someone may find this a useful... If anyone is going out soon and has any questions feel free to give me a shout. Roll on the next holiday!

Oh by the way, to sum up, I thought the ski area was excellent. Maybe not up there with some of the 'mega resorts' but well worth a visit. Enjoy!

A snowHead

sounds like a good trip wish i was back there, we loved doing about 4 trips up and down Gontrans, and then taking the run back to the village, did the very long Baisses blue round the back to Claviere, it was deserted, and a bit hard to follow at the end, but as it meant a walk to the village we went back up the old 2 seat Montiquitaine lift and then back down suffin to Montgenevre.

Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?

Going in a week and a half. How easy was it to get to the other areas of the Milky way? Can't wait now, just wanting some fresh snow, I keep keeping an eye on the weather forecasts and whenever Montgenevre looks like getting some, it changes (wind direction?) Come on snow!!

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We were going to head across to the rest of the Milky Way but never made it... At the far end of Monti Della Luna area (Montgenevre/Claviere/Sagna Longa) there is a very long flat blue run that winds down the mountain towards Cesana. Unfortunately you then need to jump on a chairlift and download before getting in a bubble and heading up the other side.... Sad I know but to be honest, we just couldn't be bothered as there was still plenty for us to do in the local area.

A few others from our chalet did make the trip on a different day and had a good time. One thing of note that they did mention was that the links were a bit disjointed and that they ended up with a five minute road walk in Sestriere to get to the next lift... Maybe they took a wrong turn?

Anyway, I'm sure so will have a great time and if you have the chance, a day trip to Serre Che is well worth the effort too. Have fun.

Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.

One thing you never mentioned, i bet you never saw a lift queue (well Montgenevre side, maybe Claviere) even during eater hols we never queued more than 2 minutes on the Gontrans bowl lifts
if you look at the village webcams the place always looks deserted!!!!

You'll need to Register first of course.

True... The place was very quiet, especially in the week when all the locals are at work. It does get a bit busier at the weekend though due to the proximity to Turin but I never waited more than a minute for a lift. January in France always seems quiet. Shhh, don't tell anyone!

Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...

Great review!! We are heading to claviere on 6th feb so nice to hear your views/tips!! Looking forward to cruising around the slopes just could do with a sprinkle of snow !!asap

After all it is free

Great report. Very helpful as we are off to Montgenevre with Neilson at the end of the month and are staying at the same chalet. We're due to land at Turin at 9ish on the Sunday morning and I was wondering whether you had the opportunity to ski at all the Sunday afternoon of arrival as it looks like the 6 day lift pass gives you 4 hours of free skiing on your arrival day? I appreciate it may be problematic with board hire. We've not prebooked lift passes yet - were they bookable on the coach transfer? Thanks in anticipation.

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Powseeker, i did smae week as you last year at Mont, we did not ski on arrival day, as although keen, would have been we thought to risky as tired after 3am get up!!!!!!! why ruin your week?
but the transfer was very smooth we were set off by 11 no probs, and were in resort about 12 ish, Chalets were first drop.
the ski hire Neilson use is opposite end of resort near Hameau, we booked our skis online with the shop Twinner and got a better deal plus upgrade, we spoke to them about 1ish after dumping cases in Apt, they said come and get your skis now to save being in the Neilson rush later, so hence we could have ventured out! Cant remember how the Neilson guy got the lift pass to us, may have been on bus? but we booked at travel agent about a month beofre and it was a lot cheaper than direct with lift company, guess Neilson got the euro exchange wrong when brochure was printed, but the honoured the price and actually had a deal on the adult pass that meant it was only £5 more than a childs one.
Coming from the opposite end of resort we would use Tremplin lift and then the easy green to Chalmettes lift as our warm up run, you will be only metres away from Chlemettes lift. To get from your Chalest to town is a slightly uphill walk at first.
hope you enjoy i know we did Going green

snowHeads are a friendly bunch.

If you are an off-piste lover, the whole area is unbeatable - and untracked - my favourite.

Claviere has a great hotel - Bes Hotel for simply amazing food. Also Kilt restaurant - just off the main drag (a short climb in ski boots up to the main drag) for amazing Antipasti and homemade pasta.

Help!!

Montgenevre / Claviere report

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