From St Martin de Belleville through De Bettaix and Les Menuires all the way up to the breathtaking heights of Val Thorens nestled at 2300m above sea level, the Val Thorens Valley and its neighbouring resorts of Meribel and Courchevel make up Europe’s largest and most popular ski area. So how did it all come about…?

The History of Val Thorens Ski Resort

In the 1960s the potential of Val Thorens to be transformed from a small mountain village into a location for a purpose built ski area was noted. The first area to be developed was the lower part of the valley in Les Menuires, which began in 1967. In 1969 the access road was extended up to Val Thorens so that development of the resort could start. In 1970 Joseph Fontanet, President of the council and mayor of Saint Martin de Belleville, created a mixed trade union of Belleville in association with the Savoie Department and the neighbouring towns.

This trade union’s goal was to implement the huge project developed by Pierre Schnebelen - creating on one side an important resort and on the other side the Massif de Péclet Polset which would include 2 winter resorts: Val Thorens on the Belleville side and Val Chavière in the south, in the Vallon du Planay, which is situated in the Parc de la Vanoise. The goals of this massive project were on the one hand connecting the region with a network of ski lifts and ski trails thus helping the development of the tourist economy of Modane, and on the other hand creating a vast summer ski complex on the glacier around the summit of Péclet (3650 m).

To their dismay the project at Val Chavière went against the regulations of the Vanoise National Park which did not allow any urbanisation. After many protests and governmental involvement the project Val Chavière was abandoned. The project for Val Thorens – outside the park – was allowed and the first construction works started. Within a year, the department built an 8-kilometre stretch of road between Les Menuires and Val Thorens.  On 18th December 1971 the fist of 3 drag lifts was installed, followed in 1972 by the opening of the first ski school. Like many 1960s purpose built resorts in the French Alps, Val Thorens suffered from a lack of architectural guidelines in the early days, leading to an over dependence on concrete, making the resort not particularly aesthetically appealing and giving it its very ‘purpose built’ feeling.

Year after year, Val Thorens continued to develop and gain international recognition. The Caron cable car opened in 1982 and was at the time the largest cable car in the world. The construction of this cable car put Val Thorens in the top category of European winter resorts.

The Caron cable car in Val Thorens

In less than 10 years, with an average annual investment of 10 million Euros, the ski area of Val Thorens had become one of the most modern in Europe; it included dozens of new generation chair lifts (4 & 6 seats), a cable car with a capacity of 150 people, as well as many technical innovations such as the double boarding ability on many chair-lifts and two funitels (Péclet and Grand Fond), that are unique around the world.

In the meantime, the resort took an architectural turn in the 1980s : the modern style of the 1970s was altered to try and create the architecture and charm of a mountain village. Despite the after-effect of the “concrete years”, Val Thorens returned to its original Savoyard style by repairing the façades, covering the walls with stones and wood and constructing new double pitched roofs.

To help achieve this change, a church was built in 1993 and the appearance of the new area was composed of only chalets. Compared to some of its fellow purpose built resorts such as Les Arcs or Tignes, Val Thorens has a definite charm about it. The fact that it is the highest resort in Europe and it is there for one reason and reason only makes it a very appealing choice for all level of ski abilities. Its architectual turn around in the 80’s, now makes Val Thorens more pleasing to the eye. This young resort has everything to offer. Everything apart from trees.

For more information on Val Thorens or any of the resorts featured in this article, please give us a call in our London sales office or drop us an email. All of our Val Thorens chalets can be viewed at www.valthorenschalets.co.uk

La Plagne was opened in 1961 as an attempt to invigorate the area’s stagnating economy. The area was very much reliant on its farming and mining industries but this was not enough to keep the younger generations happy and they began a mass exodus to the nearby cities such as Chambery in search of bright lights and excitement. It wasn’t until 1961 that the various local dignitaries formed an association charged with reversing this worrying trend. The main driving force behind this association was a Dr. Borrione, who was not only the then mayor of Aime (the largest town in the local area) but also a member of the “Maquis” (French resistance) during the second world war, he was even arrested twice and managed to escape on both occasions! During the war, the mountains above Aime were resistance strongholds, with the mines providing invaluable protection from both the vicious winters and the Nazi occupiers. He was also a medical visionary years ahead of his time, being the first doctor in France to have experimented with Polio vaccinations and succeeded in vaccinating the whole of the local population by 1954.

Dr. Borrione’s role in the genesis of La Plagne cannot be overstated, because of his various achievements, he was one of the few members of the local society that was trusted by each of the four different areas. These areas (Macot, Aime, de Longefoy and Bellentre) were always separated by a deep sense of loc

The Biolley drag lift in its original form

al rivalry and therefore finding a figurehead that all areas could trust was a huge turning point in the early years. Dr. Borrione had his heart set on building the first lifts and accommodation on the “Plateau de la Plagne”, but encountered major resistance from the thenowners of the land. It was privately owned and the main protagonist (who was actually a close personal friend of Dr. Borrione!) refused to sell his land. Subsequently Dr. Borrione decided the only course of action was to take the nay-sayers over to Courchevel to show them what a winter resort can do to help the local community. After having met several local dignitaries, business owners and workers, several were persuaded that a ski resort represented the best chance of saving their community but not everyone was onside. In 1960 Dr Borrione met with the Director of the mines who explained that they would be closedwithin 10 years. This effectively ended anyresistance to the idea of developing a ski resort in the area.

 Dr Borrione then enlisted the legendary skier Emile Allais to give technical advice in laying out the ski area. They took a helicopter trip together in April 1960 and identified two potential pistes, now named Biolley and Grande Rochette. Allais was so impressed by what he saw, he wrote:“La Plagne has some extraordinary possibilities; it will be the most original resort with guaranteed snow and guaranteed sun”.The project was now inevitable and the first 2 drag lifts and 4 pistes were opened in April 1961.

An early photo of Plagne Centre

The original resort was opened on the La Plagne Plateau and is now called Plagne Centre. The ski village itself was designed by Michel Besancon. His revolutionary idea was to build a ski village with an emphasis on convenience. All original hotels and apartments were ski to the door and the main shopping area was all indoors in an effort to make the whole experience accessible to all ages and ski abilities. This was a dream that has certainly been achieved, with La Plagne offering arguably the most convenient overall ski access of any resort in the area (including its more fashionable competitors!) This design proved to be very popular and was the catalyst that caused the massive expansions constructed throughout the 70s and 80s. The ski area grew to encompass the nearby villages of Champagny, Les Coches and Montalbert. Over the next few years, more purpose built resorts were added to the traditional alpine villages; Aime 2000 was constructed in 1971, Plagne Villages (originally called Super-Plagne) was opened in 1972, Plagne Bellecote in 1974, Plagne 1800 in 1981, Belle Plagne in 1982 and Plagne Soleil in 1990.

The most recent and perhaps, most important development was the construction of the Vanoise Express, an cavernous double decker cable car built to link La Plagne with its neighbouring resort of Les Arcs. The new mega resort was named Paradiski and now boasts over 425km of skiing and 141 ski lifts. When you compare this with La Plagne’s humble beginnings (2 drag lifts!), these are remarkable statistics, achieved over a relatively short period of time.

La Plagne is very much a purpose built ski resort by its very nature. Purpose built can sometimes be a dirty word in this industry, and whilst it is never going to be as aesthetically pleasing as Val d’Isere or Meribel, it does offer such convenience in terms of ski access, that La Plagne will continue to be a very popular resort with British skiers.

For more information on La Plagne or any of our many resorts please email us or call our London sales office

A Eurostar train makes its way to the Alps

The direct services stop at Moutiers for the Three Valleys, Aime for La Plagne and Bourg St Maurice for Val D’Isere, Tignes, Les Arcs, La Rosiere and St Foy. There are two classes of travel, Standard and Standard Premier. In Standard class you have an allocated seat and unrestricted baggage allowance. Standard Premier offers a larger seat with more room and meals and drinks served at you seat. If you book early enough, the difference in fares between Standard and Standard Premier is minimal, making the latter very good value indeed, especially considering the length of the journey and the added comforts in the upgraded class.

The trains, which are available to book as of 9 o’clock this morning on www.eurostar.com, are provisionally running to the following timetable:

Train times: French Alps to Ashford/St Pancras International, London

Adult fares in Standard class start at £149pp return, which includes unlimited baggage allowance and skis and from £229pp in Standard Premier, including baggage and also includes light meals and drinks served at your seat.

Upon arrival in Moutiers, Aime and Bourg St Maurice, local buses wait to transport skiers directly to all the main resorts and most transfer times are less than an hour from the stations. Although it’s not strictly necessary to book in advance for these transfers, they do get rather busy on peak dates and pre booking is quite simple on www.altibus.com. Once it’s all booked up, you simply need to get to St Pancras around an hour before your train departs to check in, then just enjoy the smoothest, most relaxing method of travelling to the major ski destinations!

All information on this post is correct at time of publishing, however we would advise checking prices and availability with Eurostar to ensure your chosen services are available before making your chalet booking. For more information on chalets in any of the resorts served by the ski train, please give our sales team a call.

Around the start of the 12^th century, Cistercian monks began arriving in the area of St Jean d’Aulps on pilgrimage from other areas in France, most notably Dijon. The term Cistercian comes from the Latin ‘Cistercium,’ which was the name given to the Dijon village of Cîteaux from whence the monks mostly came. By 1181 they had fully established themselves in St Jean d’Aulps and in the surrounding territories, and Morzine became a “monastic grange” from the abbey of the same name.

St Jean d’Aulps gained independence from the Cistercian monks in 1531, around the time when the monasteries in England, Wales and Ireland were being dissolved by King Henry VIII. This was followed by around two hundred and fifty years of peaceful farming and the continued growth and prosperity of these humble mountain villages.

By 1800, technological developments meant the area’s slate could be successfully and lucratively mined. The slate mines went as deep as 350 metres into the area’s many cliff faces, and the slate that the labourers mined was split into sheets. It was then cut to size before being transported primarily to places such as Thonon, Thônes and Taninges. Morzine earned a great deal of money from this trade, money which would stand the town in good stead in the years to come. In 1862 a road was constructed between Thonon and Morzine, and the slate production and monies earned increased accordingly.

Like so many Alpine towns of the day, with the financial fruits of their labour the population of Morzine turned their attention to tourism and Morzine’s ski club was founded in 1910. In 1925, local tradesman and entrepreneur Francois Baud set up the town’s first hotel to welcome tourists, the aptly named “Grand Hotel.” He went on to build the town’s first ski jump behind the hotel, and employed Austrian ski instructors to run it.

By 1934 Morzine had its first ski lift and progress went from strength to strength. This was helped by the resort’s swollen coffers and a young local man by the name of Jean Vuarnet. Morzine-born Vuarnet won the 1960 Winter Olympics in Squaw Valley, bringing pride and prestige to the little mountain town. It was following this victory and the spoils thereof, that Vuarnet worked during the 1970s as Director in Charge to establish the higher resort of Avoriaz, close to Morzine. Linking in the towns of Champery and Les Crozets, Vuarnet established the ski able domain we know today, and the mighty Portes du Soleil were formed.

Today, Morzine attracts skiers and boarders from all over the world for its impressive range and variety of pistes, and the summers see hikers, parapenters and cyclists a-plenty. The town has maintained its wonderful charm, and the sense of Alpine tradition pervades to this day. The town planners have shunned the temptation to construct high-rise blocks and it’s one of the prettiest ski resorts in the entirety of the Alps.

For further information on Morzine or any of our resorts, please give us a call or have a look at our dedicated Morzine chalets website, www.ski-chalets-morzine.co.uk.

A view over Zermatt and the Matterhorn - Spectacular!

From humble beginnings

Very little is known about the history of Zermatt prior to the 13^th century. The first document mentioning the town dates from 1280 but under its former name of Praborno, yet documentation recording what it was like or how many inhabitants there were is scarce. As the Romance speaking region was gradually colonised by the German speaking people, Praborno was renamed as Zermatt and the earliest evidence of this is on a map dating from 1495.

From that point on until the early 19th century, Zermatt was a poor, rural village whose inhabitants mainly worked on the land and visitors were few and far between. Zermatt is surrounded by some of Switzerland’s highest mountains and these were gradually being conquered by mountaineers and explorers in the early 1800s. As a result, tourism began to slowly develop from 1820 onwards and Dr Josef Lauber opened the first hotel in 1838 which he named the Hotel Cervin. Although he was an important figure in developing the early stage of tourism in Zermatt, two other men really held the key that transformed this farming village into a thriving destination for wealthy visitors from across the globe.  

The famous Monte Rosa hotel in Zermatt

For very different reasons, the development of Zermatt can be predominantly attributed to Alexander Seiler and Edward Whymper. The Seiler family are one of the most important in the resort’s history and it all began when Alexander arrived in Zermatt in 1851 and took over the lease of the Hotel Cervin in 1853. He had very little experience in the hotel trade, yet just one year later he  not only became

Conquering the Matterhorn

While Seiler had been developing Zermatt’s hotel trade, the resort had made its name on the European stage for another reason. When it came to conquering the mountains dominating the skyline around the village, the one that stood out by far was the Matterhorn. As people began to reach the summit of these other peaks, the Matterhorn was the one remaining challenge with several of Europe’s best climbers attempting to reach the summit. The British explorer Edward Whymper had tried and failed eight times to climb the infamous Matterhorn from the Italian side of the border, but in 1865 he decided to attempt it from the Swiss side, and would need to start his expedition in the village of Zermatt.

Whymper joined forces with Reverend Charles Hudson who was also preparing an attempt, and along with two local guides, Peter Taugwalder father and son, a French guide Michel Croz, Lord Francis Douglas and Douglas Robert Hadow, the group of seven began their climb to the top of the Matterhorn in July 1865. They were in direct competition with a group of Italians who had started out the day before from the Italian side and on 14th July, Whymper and his party won the race, becoming the first group of people to reach the summit  and conquer one of Europe’s most famous mountains, standing at 4478m (14692ft) above sea level.  

Sadly, the expedition became most well known by the fact that four of the climbers fell and died on the way down. Only Whymper and the two local guides, Peter Taugwalder and his son Peter Taugwalder Junior survived and completed the descent.

Zermatt in summer

This event put Zermatt firmly on the map and as a direct result of Whymper’s success on the Matterhorn, more and more people wanted to visit the village where it had all begun and to make their own attempt to conquer what remains as one of the great Alpine peaks. The development of the hotel trade under the careful vision of Alexander Seiler meant the capacity was there to welcome the visitors and together with the first ascent of the Matterhorn contributed towards making Zermatt a top summer destination.

The first winter season

After Alexander Seiler’s death in 1891, his family continued his vision and decided Zermatt would be the perfect place for winter sports as well as walking and mountaineering that were now firmly established summer activities. In 1908 they organised a special visit for the press to highlight the winter opportunities that the resort offered. However it wasn’t until 1928 that the first official winter season took place and from then on Zermatt grew even more in popularity. The Gornergrat railway that had been built for guests staying at the Hotel Riffelalp began operating more frequently and gradually more ski lifts and cable cars were built throughout the rest of the 20^th century. Today it is one of the prime European destinations for skiing and attracts a wealthy crowd. In spite of the expansion and increased popularity, Zermatt has managed to retain a certain amount of its traditional charm and village feel. The pedestrianisation of the town centre means people walk far more than they do in other resorts and the air is cleaner, yet there are still electric buses and taxis to shuttle people around if they don’t want to walk.

Today, an incredible ski area with well maintained pistes and an efficient lift system combines with some of Europe’s best mountain restaurants to make Zermatt one of the true must-experience resorts in the world.

If you’re interested in learning more about present day Zermatt by visiting the resort, then give our knowledgable sales team a call or visit our dedicated website www.zermattchalets.co.uk.

Courchevel in France is one of Europe’s premier ski resorts, sitting at 1850 metres above sea level and forming part of the Three Valleys, the world’s largest fully linked ski area. Courchevel is split into 4 villages, each named after their altitudes. They are Courchevel 1850, Courchevel 1650, Courchevel 1550 and Courchevel 1300 (also known as Courchevel Le Praz). The history behind the creation and development of this alpine gem is a fascinating story and having spent 2 whole seasons in Courchevel myself I found my eyes opened by learning the stories behind the modern day resort. This is the first of what will become a regular feature on the history behind all of our major resorts.

The History of Courchevel Ski Resort

The original villages in the area were the villages of St Bon (1100m) and Le Praz (1300m). St Bon was the political centre of the locality, containing the Mairie and town hall. Towards the end of the 1930s the French government started to look for a site for a purpose built ski resort to rival those of Switzerland but the start of the war meant that the political will to complete the project was lacking. Other projects such as Meribel benefited from being privately funded and prospered, but Courchevel’s progress was somewhat slower.

In 1943 Laurent Chappis, at the time imprisoned as a PoW in Austria, began thinking about his own personal project to improve the Three Valleys area, which encompassed the valleys of St Bon, Les Allues (Meribel) and Belleville (the future Les Menuires and Val Thorens valley). He planned to create three linked ski resorts, with the Tovets meadows above St Bon as the focal point for his new resort. Having secured the support of the Savoie General Council’s President of Finances, Pierre Cot, the next hurdle was securing the land to proceed with the project.

Courchevel 1850 as it is now, with the teardrop-shaped Jardin Alpin in the middle

Laying the foundations

St Bon already had a small tourist industry, with the first hotel opening in the winter season in 1925 and the mayor, Francis Mugnier, persuaded all but one of the local landowners to sell land to the project. On 3rd May 1946, their land was transferred to the Department of the Savoie who immediately built an access road and began dividing the area in small plots to be sold on to private investors, with the idea that they would build according to a fixed plan. Chappis’ plans involved a social aspect, which nowadays might seem amazing given the prices of land and holidays in Courchevel 1850. He was insistent that the new resort should have one area for high quality luxury hotels, one for more modestly priced hotels and one for individual chalets. All of the different areas would have equally good access to the skiing and nowadays the layout of Courchevel 1850 still reflects the manner in which Chappis divided the land. The Bellecote area, with its luxury hotels beside the piste remains the most exclusive destination, the budget hotels were in the Plantrey area (although most are now refurbished with prices to match!) with the individual chalets at Nogentil, further up the Bellecote piste.

At the heart of the resort, Chappis proposed that an area would be preserved as a beautiful alpine garden, or Jardin Alpin. The rules surrounding this area were particularly strict, with buildings not permitted above the height of the trees and all residences (hotel or chalet) to be ski in, ski out. The commercial centre of the resort was below the Jardin Alpin and car parks were lower still, at the entrance to 1850, with the idea being that guests would arrive, park their cars and be transported to their accommodation by bus. 

What’s in a name?

The question that still needed answering as the development got off the ground was what to name the resort? Chappis’ idea was to name it after the meadows on which they built first and call it the Plateau des Tovets but others thought a catchier name was needed. After thought, the suggestion was made to take the name of a hamlet a little further down the hill called Courchevel. The original Courchevel would be renamed Courchevel-Dessous or “Lower Courchevel” but this was met with distaste  by the inhabitants of the village. To them, the name implied that their village was inferior and was seen as almost insulting. Finally an agreement was reached and the new resort was named Courchevel 1850 with the original village being named Courchevel 1550. One final problem, the new resort sat at 1747 metres above sea level, why call it 1850? The reason was down to nothing more than rivalry with the other new development along the Tarentaise Valley called Val d’Isere, which stood at 1800m!

Further expansion

By the 1960s, Courchevel 1850 was a fully established resort and although developments and refurbishments were (and still are) ongoing, the resort had become very popular. The original residents of St Bon, who had given up swathes of land to aid the development of the area, were becoming increasingly frustrated at being frozen out of the running of the resort and at missing out on the obvious benefits. They all had steady employment looking after ski lifts, servicing hotels and chalets but of the 157 families who had lived in the commune before the development, only 9 had managed to set up businesses of their own. They began to develop the village of Moriond, on the access road to Courchevel 1850, but without any overall vision from one planner (such as Chappis), the result was haphazard. Buildings sprang up along the main road, with no thought for access or parking and very little consideration given to their visual impact on the area. Even today, driving through Courchevel 1650 (as Moriond is now known), you can immediately see how this lack of foresight led to a sprawling, uncoordinated ski station. The new developments also meant that the lift system was creaking under the weight of ever more skiers.

A new way forward

In 1964 the resort of Courchevel 1850 and the council of St Bon called a halt to all further developments and finally agreed to come together and create a plan for the whole area. They decided that the running of the entire Courchevel area and its infrastructure, which now encompassed Courchevel 1850, Moriond (1650) and Courchevel 1550, where developments had started and a gondola to 1850 had been established, would be transferred back to the local council of St Bon. The responsibility for running the ski lifts would stay with the Department but the local families of the St Bon commune now had much more involvement in decision making and much more power over their own locality.

The resort went from strength to strength over the following decades with links to Meribel established, and by 1973 the whole of the Three Valleys ski area had been connected. The Three Valleys became the largest fully linked ski area in the world, a record it holds to this day. Over 600kms of piste link more than 10 resorts: Courchevel 1850, Courchevel 1650, Courchevel 1550, Le Praz, La Tania, Meribel Village, Meribel, Meribel-Mottaret, St Martin de Belleville, Les Menuires and Val Thorens.

Courchevel 1850 has slowly expanded over time but it does remain quite faithful to Chappis’ original vision for the resort. The biggest change to the original vision was the addition of the airport above 1850 which allows planes of up to 70 seats to land almost directly on the pistes. Courchevel 1650 bears the legacy of the ill advised developments of the early 60s, but has been modernised over time and these days offers a very good alternative to the high prices of Courchevel 1850. Courchevel 1550 remains a quiet village but has very quick and easy access to the amenities of 1850 and direct access to the ski area. Le Praz at 1300 metres is a locals’ village and still houses a lot of the original families from the area. It came to life during the 1992 Albertville Olympics when the Ski Jump competition took place at a newly built jumping facility which still hosts top class ski jumping to this day. Even after the Olympics, the village remains unspoilt by huge developments, but has a good number of tourist residences. St Bon, the original starting point of the entire project remains undeveloped and houses mainly locals. To this day, Courchevel’s politics still take place in this traditional Savoyard village at the bottom of the Three Valleys network.

For more information on Courchevel, or any of our other resorts, please drop us a line or give us a call at our London offices.

The Interactive Resorts crew out for a hike in the Lake District

We spilled out of the train in Penrith, slightly worse for wear, and hopped onto the bus into Keswick. Within minutes we had entered into a sun-drenched frisbee tournament in the park that quickly became highly competitive, despite the presence of various company directors’ children who also wanted to play! Rupert managed to keep his competitive edge under control and only spat the dummy out a little bit when our team beat his on goal difference alone! Our first night in Keswick needed to be a low-key affair, with big plans afoot for the next day. It wasn’t. Yet again, Nick “Balls” Barlow flew the flag for excess and staggered home in the wee small hours, barely able to stand!

9 AM Saturday, and the Interactive Resorts team reassembled, bright eyed and bushy tailed, for a half day of Via Ferrata along one of the high, steep cliff faces outside of town. As ex-seasonaires we all understand better than anyone the medical benefit of Alpine air in clearing a fuzzy head, but we are happy to report that we’ve found a better hangover cure: dangling 60 feet up in the air, hanging onto iron rungs up the side of a cliff face. It works wonders! Some of us were more scared than others and special mention must go to Sarah “the Reservator” Mitchell who was so terrified at the prospect of a zip wire that she began blubbing, only then to absolutely nail it, smile beaming! For a big lad, Crispy’s concern over the diminutive size of his safety rope was understandable, though watching him slowly fall silent and begin shaking before leaping off the cliff side was a highlight of the day that the other lads relished!

The Interactive Resorts pirates getting ready for a night on the tiles

Safely back on terra firma, our minds turned to the afternoon’s festivities. We hot-footed home and transformed ourselves into the most terrifying crew of pirates never to have sailed the Seven Seas, and headed over to the beer festival! We were confronted by a mind boggling array of local ciders and beers, and did a good job of sampling as many as we could. Rossco “Marmot Man” Dolton and Hardcore Holly tucked into the booze wholeheartedly, and the afternoon saw a good few sword fights too. Rob “Fails” Taylor broke a few swords in the mêlée and spirits were high as we plundered the casks till they ran dry, then dominated the dance floor till we could barely stand. Staffy found buried treasure, Mrs B kissed his parrot and Theo was made to walk the plank for insubordination. Business as usual really! Mustering all our strength for the final attack, we climbed the steps into The Loft, Keswick’s answer to Ministry of Sound, and our ship sank without trace!

 …Only then to be awakened at 11 in the morning by Captain Bonington and Lord Staffordshire, the local lads keen to help all us weary sailors get the spring back in our step. A strong team of half-cut ski chalet specialists began the relaxing walk into the hills, and we were soon strolling safely under the cover of tall pines on our Sunday forest walk. Leading from the front, Crispy had no idea which way to go but we made it to the lake for a relaxing sit down at the water’s edge. A rare moment of calm ensued, as we laughed together and pondered on how much fun we’d had as one big team the day before.

 After two and a half days of wonderful sunshine, we didn’t mind the rain that fell as we boarded our bus to the train station. We waved a fond goodbye to our dear friends in the North, and were soon on the train to London for work on Monday morning. So it’s back to reality with a bump for this adventurous team of chalet specialists…Anyone fancy a ski holiday?

For more information on the Keswick Beer Festival, the Lake District or even to discuss your next ski or snowboarding holiday, give the Interactive Resorts team a call or drop us a line. For more information on the Keswick Via Ferrata, visit www.keswickadventurecentre.co.uk

• Wednesday 14th April: Volcano erupts in Iceland.
• Flight departure time to Val Thorens: 05:50 Saturday 17th April.
• Actual Coach departure: 12:45 Saturday 17th April.
• Arrival time in Resort 10:00 Sunday 18th April.

Carrying on from Mr. David Froom’s superb depiction of the week that was….. 

Approximately 1179 miles of land and sea separate London from Iceland, so who would have ever thought that one volcano could cause so much disruption? Whilst Interactive Resorts were sitting pretty in London town there wasn’t a worry in anyone’s mind about the possibility of not going on our end of season trip. Then Friday rolls around and all flights to and from the UK are still grounded with the papers reporting that the country may be at a standstill for a further week. I started to have a small cardiac arrest realising that cancellation was a very strong possibility.

But lo and behold, the brilliant Skiworld pulled through for us and organised a coach to deliver us to Val Thorens safely.

The Journey Begins

To coach or not to coach….

A 12:45 departure from Gatwick Coach station saw us on our way to Dover to catch our ferry. A small delay in Calais from a backlog of “coached” clients trying to get from A to B was not an issue as far as I was concerned….I was just so stoked to be able to go on the trip. I had a small pang of guilt for those thousands of travellers world wide that were unable to go where they intended, especially as that included some of our own crew from the north who we had to leave behind. You were sadly missed.

The Interactive Resorts team outside chalet Bonhomme de Neige

A very eventful and sleepless 20 hours later, we arrived in VT. Job done. Out of all of the ways to get to the Alps I can’t say going by coach would be my first choice. As I say, I personally can’t really complain but for those of you considering to either coach, drive, fly or train I would suggest choosing one of the other options before resorting to the coach. To go on holiday for only 7 days and to spend 20 hours x 2 on a coach really does reduce your slope time. And come on now…..that is what we are all there for, right?

Bonhomme De Neige

Our home for the next week was the huge 28 person Chalet Bonhomme de Neige. Located on the outskirts of the Place du Peclet, it holds a brilliant location overlooking the whole of the resort and the Val Thorens Valley, with the most outstanding views. It’s a chalet that does its job well. For a large group such as ourselves, spending a lot of our time in the communal dining and living areas, I think it’s perfect. The rooms are cosy and comfortable, all offering your own en-suite bathrooms and balconies. 

Val Thorens and Les 3 Vallées

As a ski resort, Val Thorens just about ticks every box. On paper its statistics are second to none. Towering over the rest of Europe, VT nestles itself at a literally breathtaking 2300m. Combined with its sister resorts of Courchevel and Meribel you have a combined mileage of over 600km of piste to play on and ridiculous amounts of off piste to discover and explore. The valley itself spans from St Martin de Belleville (1400m) all the way up to the highest point of the highest lift, the Bouchet charlift (3266m).

Opening its first lifts in December 1971, Val Thorens is there for one main reason, to ski. It is very much a purpose built resort with the majority of accommodation being in 4,5,6+ storey apartment complexes. Although it may not be the most attractive of ski destinations, you can’t argue with the fact that no matter where you stay within the resort your chalet will either be ski in/out or no further than a couple of hundred metres away from the side of a piste, giving you easy access down to one of the main chair lifts or bubbles.

Live for the night

A view from the top

Let me paint a picture….. It’s a scorcher of a day. Not a cloud in the sky. You have been skiing since 10am and it is now 3:30pm and you have just about exhausted all your

energy. You can’t even face one more chairlift let alone another run and then….. there’s this sound… a constant beat. You come over the rise of your last run of the day to be confronted with none other than the living and breathing Folie Douce, Val Thorens style!! There is no other place like this on earth (apart from its original big sister, La Folie Douce in Val d’Isere). It is a haven of madness, table top dancing, drinking, singing and insanely good music that makes you dance even if your muscles refuse you the right to do it with any kind of style. Everyone must, oh you MUST see and experience the Folie! Then when you are made (definitely not by choice) to leave as the music ends, the beers stop flowing and the sun is going down, you have the joy of boarding or skiing home after a few pints which is an experience in itself.

After a quick refresh, then a lovely three course evening meal with wine flowing back at the chalet, we embarked on a little adventure to see what Val Thorens has to offer in terms of nightlife. As we were travelling at the tail end of the season our choice of bars was a little limited. In saying this though, we found one we liked and didn’t particularly branch out much further…..I blame our lack of imagination but also when you travel in a group as large as ours you tend to make your own fun no matter where you are.  Our local hot spot would have to be, without a doubt, the world famous Frog and Roast Beef, which is known for being the highest pub in Europe. This place kept us well and truly entertained with good sounds, cold beer and entertainment such as drum and bass nights and ‘Toss the Boss’ – a dice game where if you roll higher than the barman you get your round for free. Sweet!! Unfortunately my luck was lagging this night but we saw plenty of our crew leave having spent next to nothing.

The now legendary Folie Douce

We had many a good night out at Frog and Roastbeef, Saloon and the nightclub Malaysia. An empty wallet, a sore head and dark rings under my eyes from lack of sleep suggests that VT lived up to and exceeded all expectations in the nightlife department.

A question on everyone’s lips

So for the past few years Interactive Resorts has always had Val d’Isere as its one and only destination of choice for the end of season shenanigans. Adding VT into the mix threw a spanner in the works and was met with a few mixed emotions and opinions. Was it going to live up to the standards to which we were now well and truly accustomed? I think I speak on behalf of everyone when I say that we were nicely surprised and impressed. For a purpose built, aesthetically unattractive resort it has a certain charm that welcomes you. Its ski area is superb for all abilities and offers endless options that will be sure to keep you amused for the week if not longer… I would be more than happy to return to Val Thorens and I am now super excited about sending people on their holidays there as I know their time will be unforgettable!

We stayed at the Bonhomme de Neige in Val Thorens. A week at the Bonhomme starts from £470 during the coming season. If you’d like to chat about Val Thorens or any of the other destinations mentioned here, then please give us a call or drop a line to our sales office!

I decided to base my trip in March in and around Banff. Two hours away from Calgary and on the Alberta / British Columbia border, this small town sits in the heart of the Banff National Park and is surrounded by beautiful views of snow-capped mountains, with dark green fir trees on their lower slopes and clear blue rivers running in between. By not being a resort in itself, Banff has the advantage of offering all the amenities required from a town, yet being just a 15-45 minute drive from the slopes. Although only linked by bus, Mount Norquay, Sunshine and Lake Louise are all covered by the Tri Area lift pass and this makes Banff a fantastic base for exploring all three. If you are used to the ski in/out convenience of European resorts then you will find it a change to have to go everywhere by bus, but they are well-organised (picking up from all of the main hotels and apartment complexes), run on time, have plenty of space for skis and boards and the drivers are friendly!

The awesome tree-lined runs of Sunshine

Although it was still cold when my friend Issy and I arrived, it had apparently been a bad winter in Banff this year, so we decided to make the most of the fresh snowfall in Sunshine the day before we arrived and start our skiing there. 20 minutes on the bus from Banff and we were at the base of the gondola that takes you onto the mountain to start skiing at 2160m. There are three mountain areas all linked together, providing excellent terrain for all ski abilities – Mount Standish for beginners, Lookout Mountain for intermediates and Goat’s Eye for the more advanced. What I loved was that unlike European resorts, the pistes aren’t marked as such, so it is more a case of skiing in a green, blue or black diamond area, thus giving you much more freedom and you can get the feel of going off-piste whilst staying in controlled areas. There are lots of tree runs which make it perfect in bad weather, but luckily we had sunshine and blue sky overhead with fresh powder underfoot for both of the days we were there. I loved skiing either side of the Continental Divide Express and the Sunshine Coast run which takes you from the top of the Goat’s Eye Express and leads into some lovely runs all the way down to the bottom. At times we were the only ones on the piste giving the feel of having the whole mountain to ourselves. Wonderful!

Two days in Sunshine were enough to cover all the pistes properly without getting bored, and so on our third day we headed for Mount Norquay instead. The smaller of the three ski areas and closest to Banff, this is much more of a beginner-friendly resort.  With the snow falling heavily as we got on the bus, we were glad we chose that day to do Norquay. The majority of the slopes are at a lower altitude and tree-lined making it perfect for a day when visibility is poor. Fresh powder and empty slopes meant we were perfectly happy messing about for a few hours without having to really challenge ourselves with the jet lag still taking its toll!

Kirsty enjoying the spectacular Canadian scenery

Day four dawned bright and sunny and so we boarded the bus to Lake Louise. This is certainly the most famous out of the three areas and has the most variety, plus the runs are generally much longer. The Powder Bowls area is fantastic for those who want some off-piste action on a blue-sky powder day. For those who prefer to stick to the patrolled areas then there is more than enough to keep you busy for a few days around the Grizzly Express Gondola, Top of the World chair and over the back in the Larch Area. The only slight issue was that the pistes were very icy first thing in the morning and then began turning to slush just after lunch so our time skiing on nice snow was a little limited, but then we were skiing at the end of March.

As with Sunshine and Norquay, there isn’t really anything in the way of an après-ski scene at Lake Louise so if this is normally a big part of your holiday in Europe, you may find it a bit quiet. If you are looking for a resort with nightlife then Whistler is definitely the place to go to. There are a few bars in Banff which are good for a few pre- or post-dinner drinks and a couple of clubs, all of which are really accessible if you are staying in the town centre. We were in the Tunnel Mountain area, approximately 20 minutes walk uphill so the prospect of doing this after a few drinks and a full day’s skiing was not particularly appealing!

Overall, Banff is a great place to spend a week discovering the delights of Canadian skiing. With three ski areas there is a great variety of terrain, the people are incredibly friendly and there are none of the stresses and strains usually associated with skiing in many of the big French resorts. The town has some fantastic restaurants and although it is relatively quiet, there is generally a very relaxed feel to the place. It made a fantastic change to skiing in Europe and one I would happily experience again!

For more information on any of the resorts discussed above, or if you’d like a general chat about ski holidays then please call our office or drop us an email.

So as suggested above, it wasn’t all plain sailing and the drama started a few days before our scheduled departure on April 17th. The volcanic ash cloud that shrouded northern Europe, shutting down all air traffic for nearly a week, threatened to force the cancellation of the entire trip. You wouldn’t have wanted to speak to any of us during that week had we been forced to swap the Three Valleys for South West London. We all love working here, but who wouldn’t opt for the skiing given the choice? The majority (everyone but me) were booked to travel out by plane but our travel organisers were forced at the last minute to switch air for road and 40 or so of the gang climbed aboard their “luxury” coaches at Gatwick, facing a heavy journey ahead. 22 hours later some weary souls disembarked the coach at Chalet Bonhomme de Neige looking about 10 years older than when I’d last seen them. I dread to think of the horrors on board that vehicle, I think that’s probably best left for a blog by someone who experienced it first-hand.

A sunny afternoon in Courchevel

Finally all safe and sound in Val Thorens, the holiday could begin in earnest. We had some great luck with the weather that week, all but a couple of days brought sunshine and although we were very close to the end of the season, the snow held up relatively well. Obviously there were slushy patches as you went lower in altitude, towards La Tania, Courchevel 1300 or Meribel for example. Overall, about 70% of the ski area was open and the majority of the lifts ran all week. We also got a late season lift pass discount.

Our chalet was the Bonhomme de Neige, a free-standing 28 person chalet that for competent skiers is just about ski in/out. The bedrooms are all fully en suite and the large lounge and dining room has a superb view over the whole of the resort and the Val Thorens ski area. We saw a few other chalets in resort but most of us thought that the Bonhomme was best of them. It wasn’t unanimous, though. Isabel and Holly, after a great deal of consideration, declared their preferences for the chalets Boule de Neige and Flocon de Neige.

Some of the gang making the most of the sunshine at the Folie Douce

Despite the  journey out, most of the team managed to hit the hill soon after arriving, showing excellent stamina and determination. After a gentle first day on the slopes, we headed over to the now legendary après ski venue La Folie Douce. Well known from previous trips to Val d’Isère, the Folie now has a little sister at the top of the Plein Sud chairlift in VT. If you’ve never been before then try and picture the scene; a huge sun-soaked decking area, a large bar at either end and a top DJ and MC making maximum use of an immense sound system. Throw in 500 or so merry holidaymakers, some dancing on the tables, and after a couple of hours the place is a rival to the best nightclubs in any resort.

This became a theme for the entire week and every day saw most, if not all of us heading to the Folie at some point from mid-afternoon onwards. By the time it shuts at 5.30pm the ski back to the chalet can be quite a challenge, especially if you’ve managed to put away 5 or 6 beers whilst bouncing along to the superb entertainment. Tuesday saw our big challenge. After everyone had found their ski legs Andy, Nick and Ross set up the Foxhunt. Dressed as farmers, we skied in teams to the farthest flung corners of the Vallée de Belleville on various tasks, all the time in pursuit of the three of them dressed in brown skin suits and fox masks! We ended up at the Folie before piling back down to town for a huge night out.

Tally Ho!

With a group this big, it’s never a realistic ambition for everyone to ski together so most mornings saw small alliances form over the breakfast tables, with different groups planning different routes through the Three Valleys. Personal highlights for me were managing to get down to Le Praz (Courchevel 1300) for a morning coffee on just about the last day of the season when the Brigues piste down from 1850 was still ski-able (although officially shut!), and one early morning expedition up La Masse. It’s a peak above Les Menuires which few visitors to the Three Valleys seem to know exists and even fewer manage to get up and actually ski. Those who do make the effort are always rewarded with some wide open pistes, acres of easily accessed off piste and a huge vertical drop. If you only ski one run next season, make it La Masse!

 Clichés come easily on ski holidays and Wednesday night, staff night off, was no different. The logistics of getting 40 people ready together and into a restaurant at the same time is too much to bear, so we split into three groups and made our way into town for a meal. What else would you do when in a Savoyard ski resort and hungry? You eat meat and cheese. That’s what you do and that’s what we did. Fondues bubbled, hot stones sizzled and Tartiflettes, well, they were just simply superb.

It was all a bit much for some by the end of the week

The final couple of days whizzed past in a flash, plenty of mileage was covered, the Folie Douce saw quite a bit more of us and by Friday night everyone was pretty well spent. News filtered through that the ash had dispersed and the flight would be leaving more or less on time. By 10pm just about everyone had retired to sleep or pack before the 5am departure. Inevitably it didn’t quite run to time but we had all departed resort by around 7am and were back in London in time for our tea that evening.

A top week in all respects. For late season skiing, it’s hard to contemplate a better destination than Val Thorens. There’s nowhere higher in Europe, so if VT has no snow, nowhere does. The resort stays open until May most seasons and mid/late April is still busy. Unlike other resorts, you don’t get the feeling of being in an end-of-season ghost town. Everything in Val Thorens carries on as normal. The accommodation is good, although I wouldn’t come here looking for luxury it’s a brilliant destination if budget is a factor. I’d never stayed here before, but after such a good week, I’ll be back!

The Interactive Resorts team stayed at chalet Bonhomme de Neige in Val Thorens. A week at the Bonhomme starts from £479pp, including flights from London Gatwick and transfers to resort. For more information on this or any of the other chalets or resorts mentioned above, please give us a call or drop us an email!