 Poster: A snowHead
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Hi folks
Looking at Les Contamines for next season... I am used to going to PDS, 3 Val etc, so the question I want to know is... will Les Contamines satisfy me for terrain? I have heard that it has great snow, however I am a little concerned over the small number of runs... Any advice on the amount of off piste there...
My gut feeling is that this place is poss too small... Also I see the lifts are all the down one end of the resort. Is the bus system quite good?
Any advice would be most welcome.
Many thx folks
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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not sure it's the ideal choice if piste mileage is very important to you. i have skied there for probably about 8 days spread over a couple of weekends and daytrips from other resorts and think it's a great little place. ski area isn't huge but is good fun. lots of very easily accessible off piste which doesn't get tracked out too quickly
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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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mmm really depends on the make up of your party and what you like doing......... the topography (sp?) isn't really how it looks on the piste map.
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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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Bus system is good, but not really needed. It does not compare to PDS or 3V, but for a week, there is plenty to do IMV.
It does retain snow well and you could always take a day in St Gervais /Megeve or Chamonix if you were feeling so inclined.
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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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A few miles at the entrance to that valley is St Gervais which one must pass in order to go to Les Contamines which has 120km piste.
St Gervais is linked with Megeve and Rochebrune forming the 300km piste Domain Evaison.
Les Contamines scores because not many skiers know the place so it tends to have less crowd and the snow condition is therefore correspondingly better for being at the dead end of the valley with a sparse population.
For high mileage go to the Domain Evasion or the Grand Massif (Flaine/La Carroz/Morilon/Sameon with 265km piste). The latter is almost next door to French side of the PDS. Also Chamonix is next door to Les Contamines.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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AlpineAddict, if you're the kind of skier who gets grumpy if you have to ski the same run more than twice, and like mainly pisted runs, then no, Les Contamines won't satisfy you for a week.
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AlpineAddict, we enjoyed a week in LC a few years ago. It's a pretty spot with a good snow record and not usually crowded. The terrain is quite varied but not extensive, steep wooded runs down to the mid-station, a flatter open area along the Col du Joly ridge with runs dropping off on 3 sides, then the large bowl below the Aiguille Croche with lots of off-piste possibilities.
There's not really the sense of travelling you get in PDS or 3V. St Gervais is only 10 mins down the valley with gondola access into the larger Megeve area for a bit more variety, this is included if you buy the Domaine Evasion liftpass.
The old village centre is about 1km from the gondola station but there is a lot of newer accommodation near the lift.
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If you want high milage, go down the same piste more than once, - backwards, sideways, round and round, fast slow, lot of turns, none at all, Having got the I dont understand the desperation in not going down the same piste twice off my chest, it is a great little place. Stay at the top end, - Le Chemenez is good, near the lift, and walk down to town if you want, - but there are a few bars nearby. Get the right pass and the whole of Chamonix is a short drive away. I have a very good off piste sort of mate who goes from Chamoix to Les Contaminehwen Chamonix is all tracked out, - plenty to go at apparently. For my part plenty of very nice reds, and a few nice easy blacks
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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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I know everywhere will be busy, but how does it compare during French Feb holidays?
Skied there once some years ago & liked it, but that was with "the lads". This year its just 2 days at Half Term with my beginner 12 year old.
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This year its just 2 days at Half Term with my beginner 12 year old.
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Hmm. Good question. I don't know the beginner slopes - right down in the valley the snow might not be too great and the higher areas would be too difficult. Because I ski LC from the Belleville side I never go down the bottom, usually. As for crowds, it's probably a bit less crowded than some places.
What's the structure of your holiday, cardweg, (e.g. what kind of lessons - private, presumably, if it's just 2 days). And accommodation? 2 days at half term is not super-easy to find. There might be better places.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Arno, Dick. 
AlpineAddict, The place doesn't exist, it's just a rumor.
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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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SMALLZOOKEEPER, it's Richard to you
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pam w, That's exactly my problem. skiing with "the lads" we just go wherever our skis point when we get off the lift. It's a whole new ball game having to consider the needs of a beginner, although he does have one week under his belt, so we should be able to tootle about on greens and blues. It's really about keeping him in practice, rather than makning any huge strides in progressing to the next level. That can wait until next year.
As far as the holiday goes, I'm sort of resigned to staying out of resort & have a couple of options sussed out down near the autoroute. With a car, it's then a matter of finding somewhere with a short commute, the quieter the better. That's why the interest in LC. It's the first week of the French holidays, but the week before the english schools get off, so it might not be completely manic, just crazy 
CW
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You know it makes sense.
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In my experience even during French and English half terms LC never gets manic!!
I would have thought that it would be a good resort to take your 12year old to.......... there are some nursery slopes in the village and if they progress onwards then there are more up the mountain just above the top lift station and just above the mid lift station... the run from the top to mid lift station is a nice wide blue but there is one steep section which might be a bit off putting if they're a nervy 12year old.....
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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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Just thought I would add my review of Les Contamines which we snowboarded between 8 - 10 March 2011.
Just had a brief 3 days at Les Contamines, which I have had on my hit list for a couple of years.
Access by car from Geneva is really easy. It's literally 10 minutes up the road from St. Gervais and should be accessible even after snowfalls.
The village is nice, parking is not a problem, and there's a much friendlier atmosphere than most French sites. Seems to attract Brits and French families -- so not much in the way of international mix. We got reasonably priced accommodation in one of the Pierre Blanches apartments in Hameaux du Lay which is near the main cable car and were close to the Tetras bar which is great for watching soccer. Also a nice French bar: Saxo, round the corner. The advice above about staying on the top end of town is definitely correct
I am used to ski in-ski out, so I was not wild about the fact that you need to get a lift up to the ski area and it's not really possible to get down to the village on a snowboard which meant you needed to end the day before the main return lift closed.
The snowboarding was generally good even though there was not that much recent snowfall in France. One small gripe is that there's a awkward narrow blue slope that takes you to the important Junction area that gets fairly crowded and it was not great in the hot sunny conditions we had.
The snow park is really good fun and I thought this and the main run down from the Signal area were the best sections.
My son felt he had exhausted the site after 2 days, but a group of Brits I met who come every year were of the view that the site is always full of surprises and never fails to hold their interest.
I felt there was a lack of tree-level pistes which meant a lot of the terrain felt the same but to be fair I did not get to the Hauteluce side. I suspect that a week here could be too long.
On the plus side, St. Gervais is very accessible by car and that has some great restaurants including the Enterele pizza which is probably the best pizza joint I have ever experienced. Really worth the trip but you may want to book to be sure.
On our last day we moved on to Chamonix - one day at the Flegere lift about 50 minutes drive from Contamines. The conditions were colder there, even though it is lower. Great tree level pistes mixed with wild and wonderful ski lifts and cable cars. It made a great contrast to Les Contamines and I can recommend the mix between the two. I would not like to do Flegere in bad fog though!
To sum up -- Les Contamines is a good site, with decent value for money with shops and accommodation which are reasonable. Also, in good snow conditions you have the option to drive and explore St. Gervais, which looks interesting and is a great small town with plenty of good eateries. Plus the fact that Chamonix is not far away.
If you fancy just one resort then I would recommend nearby Flaine over Les Contamines (but the road up there is harder if the snow is falling).
For a short stay this is a great choice.
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Poster: A snowHead
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I felt there was a lack of tree-level pistes which meant a lot of the terrain felt the same but to be fair I did not get to the Hauteluce side. I suspect that a week here could be too long.
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The Hauteluce side pistes are mainly treeless (and a bit samey, actually). The one red run down to the bottom at Belleville is tree-lined but can be quite tricky if the snow is less than perfect.
That blue track down to "Jonction" can indeed be a bit of a pain, but you can avoid it by going over to the Belleville side and getting the chairlift up - it's a long way round, but if you're there to ski......
LC is indeed small compared to mammoth French resorts and I've only ever been over there for a day at a time, as it's a very easy drive over to Belleville from our place. I think one of its attractions is for people seeking some easily accessible and not too gnarly off-piste. With 120kms of pistes it's not that small and as Derekf notes there's a lot of other places within an easy drive. But it's not the place for someone who wants ski in/out and never to ski the same piste twice.
For us, one of the draws is the snow quality - often pretty good right to the end of the season.
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