 Poster: A snowHead
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Just returned from a weeks skiing in Les Arcs 1800 - Two Travelling, independent booking.
Transport, Transfer
Travelled via Day Eurostar train from Ashford to Bourg, leaving Ashford 10:47 arriving 18:51 in Bourg
Left Car at Ashford Train Station Car Park D at £5 a day. (Payable on return)
Found Car Park easy to find and not too far a walk to check in (though you could do a drop off and then park)
Checking in and passing passport control was a breeze. Plenty of space in the Departure Lounge and a few cafe bars.
Allowed down to the platform 20mins prior to departure and was clearly marked where the carriages would stop.
Getting onto carriag and finding seats was easy enough, plenty of space for cases, though larger items and skis
were a struggle, two rows of seats were assigned for these items, which was just about enough.
The 7 hour journey went without hitch, didn't make use of the buffet car as we had our own picnic!
Half the train seemed to disembark at Moutiers. We stayed on to the end of the line to Bourg.
Bit of a walk to the exit, but being in carriage 3 we were nearer the exit than the higher numbered carriages. No
need for passport check as that had been done in Ashford.
We turned right along the platform to head towards the furnicular...which warning alert is a bit of a slog
as is a long platform, then a high stair case to get up and over, then down the other side.
Arriving suitably exerted at the Furnicular station we bought a return at 11.50 euros each and jumped on the train
to take us up the mountain to Arc 1600 where we changed to the waiting Ski Bus to take us to our Accommodation at
the Charmettoger end of Arc 1800. - This took about 20mins and after asking the driver, we got off at the correct
stop.
Accommodation
I had booked back in August, through the Maeva website, a Mezzanine Studio, however the day before travelling I
received a call to say that we had been upgraded to the Pierre et Vacance Belmont Residence.
We were told that this was due to over booking at the Maeva Charmettoger Apartments.
At the Residence Belmont we found the staff on reception to be helpful. Our room was a 4/5 person residence, with
sleeping in the lounge with a sofa bed, and a seperate bedroom with 3 single beds.
This self catering accommodation had all bedding (incl duvets) along with towels and cleaning equipment provided.
The accomodation was certainly spacious for a couple, plenty of storage, and a seperate toilet, however the
bathroom and kitchen were very small, so would think twice about booking that size for 4 people (though that is the
case with most similar french properties)
We were very pleased with the accommodation, it was ski in/ski out and had our own locked locker room and ski box with heated boot hangers.
We would come again.
Skiing and slopes
The resort is well suited for beginners and intermediates but also has choice and variety for the advanced skier with mogul fields, blacks and off pistes.
Below are some of our stand out blue and red runs that we enjoyed the most:
Vallandry - Renard, Rhodos
Morey, Aigle
Arc 1800 - Charmettoger
Arc 2000 - Vallee de l'arc
Teppes, Plagnettes, Arandellieres
Arc 1600 - Mont Blanc
Villaroger - Aiguille Rouge
We found that there was sufficient skiing not to need to go across to La Plagne.
Weather
First 4 days - clear blue skies and sunshine, enabling
skiing across the whole area, on thursday (5th day) it was a bit overcast, we found good skiing around Arc 1600 at lunchtime and
Charmettoger around 3pm, light was flat in places, but picking the right runs helped.
Last day Friday saw cloud and a lot of snow falling all day, we got 4 hours skiing in from 11-3 and stuck to the charmettoger run, wasn't too busy, and lots of powder, was really good fun and a proper slope, not a path.
Food, Eating, Apres Ski
We were self catering, we bought food at the Sherpa supermarket in Villards, this was cheaper supermarket than the Spa in Le Charvet, and closer to Charmettoger.
Villards had a wide choice of bars and restaurants and was just a 5 minute stroll from our accommodation in Charmettoger.
We ate out on one occasion... details below on bars we frequented:
Bar King Mad
Happy hour 4-7pm 3.50 euros for pint of Kronenbourg (red)
Red Hot Salloon
Happy Hour 4-10pm 4 euros for pint of jupiler
Ambiente
Happy Hour 4-6pm 3.50 for pint of stella, 4.50 for pint of Leffe and 5 euros for cocktails
Getting Home
We needed to get the 9.50 eurostar from Bourg, we aimed for the 7.20 bus from Charmettoger to Arc 1600
However it had snowed all day friday and night, so part of the road was not accessible by bus, we walked down to Villards bus station and picked up the 7.40 bus, made our train with plenty of time, but again the walk from furnicular to eurostar was a challenge with luggage.
Eurostar left on time but was held in Moutiers for 20 minutes waiting on a bus transfer that had got delayed.
Arrived in Ashford at 4pm
Overview
All in all the transport, transfer and accommodation all went smoothly, we had a great time in Les Arc, there was plenty of good runs and snow.
The lack of transfer time from Bourg was a winner for us, though a bit of a struggle getting to the furnicular.
We would recommend it and will visit again.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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soberade, welcome to snowHeads.
If I go by train with the usual amount of ski luggage I normally take a taxi from the train station to Arc 1800. It's about €55 each way, which adds a bit to the overall cost of the journey but does mean the pain of getting to the funicular and then from the funicular to your apartment is avoided.
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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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Layne,  The numbers get a bit more appealing if there's a group of three or four...
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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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The train, booked in august was £180 return each. The property we booked was €330 but the upgrade was more (€610 but didnt pay) I know we had a result.
The week we went was cheapest and booking train early gets best price.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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soberade, , welcome to snowHeads.
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We turned right along the platform to head towards the furnicular...which warning alert is a bit of a slog
as is a long platform, then a high stair case to get up and over, then down the other side.
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We have made that mistake as well. Next time, to avoid the high staircase, it is easier to walk down to the road which runs parallel to the platforms. Instead of going down the platform as directed, carry straight on down the ramp to the road, past the buses which will be on your left, and then turn right to the funiculair.
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FAQ
Out of interest how much was the train and apartment?