 Poster: A snowHead
|
Hi everyone,
Just booked a lovely apartment in Argentiere (near the GM lift) in early Feb for our family but although I've read previsous threads I can't find much info on this specific area. So wondering if the ever helpful snowheads could advise please!
We initially wanted to go to Chamonix as we have a mixed ability family group and will have 3 under 2's and Chamonix caters for non-skiers with things to do and I believe a nice town centre! However, we couldn't find any chalets or apartments that ticked the exacting requirements of others in our party. Obviously the young ones will be there mainly to curtail their parents ability to ski this year  so they have no specific requirements, and the parents will only get limited ski time. However, I've realised we've inadvertantly booked in to an expert skiers off piste heaven!! This is all good for a couple of our party - the Dads will love this challenge, no doubt!
But, can anyone advise on snowboarding school for a 13 year old with 2 weeks experience please. The ski schools seem reluctant to give this info out freely. I've looked at ESF Argentiere but it doesn't specify which area the kids snowboarding lessons are in. Anyone know please? Also, anyone know if they will even run snowboarding lessions for kids that aren't absolute beginners during this week - 2 feb.
Secondly, is La tour on a direct bus route, and is this a good place for the majority of our experienced beginner and intermediates to ski for the odd few hours - babies permitting?
Thirdly, are there any toddler friendly things to do in this area?
Finally, we'd be grateful of ski hire shop / restaurant / activity recommendations please.
Any other useful info for this area gratefully recieved, we will have use of a car.
Thanks in advance
|
|
|
|
|
|
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
|
|
kyoto49, No experience re toddlers, but you've chosen well re skiing potential. You are right regards Le Tour for easier skiing, GM tends to be serious and my favourite area of Cham. Buses generally good, you'll have a great time. Some people much more experienced re Cham will be along soon, but my favourite French ski area, a proper off piste gem, will be having a long weekend there myself end March all being well.
|
|
|
|
|
|
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?
|
Car is good, buses are a pain in the Cham valley IMHO.
Hope that your date also doesn't clash with any Brit/French public hols, 'coz the cranky old infrastructure will soon start to creak if it does. 
|
|
|
|
|
|
You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
|
kyoto49, yes, there is a direct bus from Arg to Le Tour and it's much better there for beginners / Intermediates.
Arg is brill for off-piste, but not much fun on piste, except on the glacier.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
|
kyoto49,
Snowboarding lessons:
The 13-year old in your group will be fine! The ski schoolsl conduct lessons on whichever one of the 4 main ski mountains is best suited to the ability level of the group/individual and also dependent on the weather and snow conditions on the day of the lessons. While Grands Montets has good lift-served off-piste it also has pistes and I was taken there on my 4th day of lessons. I highly recommend lessons with Evolution 2.
Toddlers:
For the toddlers, there is a fantastic Panda Club based in Argentière for children aged 3 and upwards. On bad weather days, they have an indoor play area to keep the kids occupied. I think it's also run by Evolution 2 but could be mistaken.
Not much else for very young children to do, that I know of. But I don't have children so I've never looked into it. I only know about the Panda Club because I spend a lot of time on Grands Montets and see them around and always end up chatting to the instructors/minders.
Valley buses:
The valley buses go from Les Houches, through Chamonix town, to Brévent, Flégère, on to Grands Montets and then Le Tour. And then back again. All the info you need on bus routes and timetables is here.
It's 20 minutes by bus (half that by car) from Argentière to Chamonix town, so very easy to get around. But be aware that the frequency drops drastically in the evenings and there are no late night buses. The taxi services are a bit hit and miss too. If you have a car, then even better.
The mountains:
Le Tour is seen as the easiest mountain but is prone to white outs and high winds. Flégère has two lovely greens for beginners and a couple of the blue and red runs segue into the green and all use the same uplift. So it's easy to meet up if you're splitting up based on ability. Brévent has some great blues interspersed with reds, so again it's easy to split up and meet at the lifts. Brévent also has a nursery slope but it's at the base of the mountain so if you leave someone there you won't see them again till you come down the mountain.
Restaurants:
A good restaurant in Argentière is the Rusticana. I highly recommend a dinner (sans kids) at the Eden Hotel in Flégère. While it's only a 3-star hotel the restaurant has 5-star food and is superb. There are plenty of restaurants in Cham town itself - if you search on the Chamonix websites (of which there are a few) you'll find info on them.
Ski hire:
Same goes for ski hire - there are many hire shops and they're all a much of a muchness. Although, Ravanel (in both Flégère and Cham town) is a family run affair and I've always had fantastic service from them when hiring mountaineering gear. Their selection of skis is good too.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
FAQ