Unlike the ugly apartment blocks that dominate many of the ski resorts in the French Alps, Plagne Montalbert is delightfully unspoilt; a daily treat from glistening dawn to glowing sunset over the pine forests. It remains a traditional, friendly, village surrounded by stunning scenery: the Tarentaise valley to one side, Mont Blanc and surrounding mountains to the other
La Plagne is split into 10 stations that give you an opportunity to ski a number of quaint unspoilt French villages and some purpose built resorts at higher altitude. The four main areas at the upper most part of the area are Plagne centre, Belle Plagne, Plagne 1800 and Plagne Soleil and are all linked by free bus which runs until after midnight.
the skiing
La Plagne offers possibly the biggest single resort lift system in the world and has superb and extensive runs for all levels of skier. The area is most suited to intermediates and large distances can and will be covered on red and blue runs, which radiate out in all directions. With 215km of pistes there is so much to choose from you won’t know which one to choose first! The snow reliability is very good – but the low lying villages can be a little sparse on snow at the beginning or end of the season. In 2004 we will see the much publicised link to Les Arcs being opened making this possibly the largest ski area in Europe!
advanced
Head for Bellecote where you will find 2 longs runs with vertical of 1000m. At Aime La Plagne you will find the north facing long Emile Allais run through the forest which is usually deserted as there are only a couple of drag lifts to bring you back up. There are lots of long reds to get your teeth into but you really should hire a guide to explore the vast off piste potential that the area has to offer.
intermediate
An absolute dream for intermediates! From exhilarating motorway skiing to quiet powder runs in the trees, La Plagne has it all! Not skied by many, the runs down to Champagny are a real treat. Fast blues bend round the contours of the mountain. I last skied to Champagny in 2002 with my son Sam and although it was the February half term, I can’t recall ever seeing more than a dozen skiers in line ahead of us.
This resort is highly recommended for intermediates of all levels.
beginner
Gentle nursery slopes and excellent English speaking ski instructors ensure that novice skiers will soon be enjoying the multitude of blue and green runs across the resort. This is a great resort for beginners to learn.
family
Children have facilities in all of the villages and many of the tour operators run dedicated crèche facilities from their chalets. The ski schools are located in all villages and vary in group size and class type. – Something for everyone!
snowboarding
Good terrain for all standards of rider, there is a good mix of long, easy high open runs but the more experienced boarder will find some fantastic off piste boarding, and unlike many other resorts with a reputation for off piste where the snow is quickly carved up – here after fresh snow, off piste boarding will last for weeks!
après ski
La Plagne is fairly quiet during low season, although a wide choice of après ski is available, catering particularly for the younger crowd. Plagne Montalbert has all the amenities you could want in a ski resort with plenty of restaurants, great bars and a number of ski shops. La Tourmante is a very lively pub / restaurant which often has live music, shows football on its large screen TV downstairs when the big matches are on and serves a variety of great value food in the upstairs restaurant. It was highly recommended last season. Le Totem is the village nightclub open until very late.
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