Ski Resorts Archives - France Skiing

Montchavin is a wonderfully traditional resort nestled into the La Plagne and Paradiski ski areas. Far from the hustle and bustle that you’ll find in the bigger villages higher in this world class skiing domain, Montchavin offers you a touch of authenticity rarely seen in the Alps. You won’t find any of the major ski tour companies here, nor any of the major hotel chains. You’ll only find small, family run businesses offering chalets and apartments with their own personal touch. Here, you’ll see that the locals really do care about your experience in this lovely village offering rustic architecture all built using locally sourced materials, friendly service and top-notch skiing right on your accommodation doorstep.

We are going to go through several reasons why you should try out this great resort for your next ski holiday and why making that extra effort through tailor making your ski holiday will really pay and you’ll be coming back time and time again.

Traditional Village

This village offers an incredible location in the centre of the Paradiski domain, offering the possibility to either go straight up to La Plagne with its dizzying peak at 3300 metres, or you can go to the left and ski Les Arcs taking the Vanoise Express opening up another massive ski area that you’ll never have time to totally cover in 1 week unless you are really hungry to put kilometres under your belt! Another huge advantage to Montchavin is that the ski lift is right in the centre of the small village which makes ski in/out very possible, or for a worst-case scenario, a 2-minute walk to get to the chairlift. The chairlift itself is very modern, comfortable and quick and has the added bonus of avoiding the queues you find elsewhere in the region even at peak times. Even on the crazy weeks such as half term, the queues are very minimal, and you’ll very quickly be onto the pistes. Plus, you can ski back to the village which is at a good height of 1250 metres, meaning that it is pretty snow sure throughout the season.

Montchavin Ski Resort

The Montchavin village itself is a joy to wander around with its traditional architecture and wooden and stone buildings that beautifully blend into the mountains themselves giving you the feeling that you are in a genuine village and not a purpose-built resort. Majority of the buildings were built using locally sourced wood and stone which means the colours of the surrounding area is totally respected. There is so much to do for a relatively small resort such as wandering the cobbled streets, visiting the local farm animals whilst they graze peacefully in the fields and visit the shops selling locally made products such as toys, ornaments and of course food such as cheeses, meats and sweets.

There is the aquatic centre called Espace Paradisio which offers slides, saunas, steam rooms and relaxation areas which are perfect after a hard day on the slopes or if you simply want to relax and have a massage. There is an ice rink, a cinema, husky rides and snowshoe walking; all inside a car free village which means it is also very safe to let the children run relatively freely without the fear of passing cars zooming by to get to the village above.

Montchavin Piste Map

Montchavin Piste Map Download

Click on the download link to check out the Montchavin piste map and see its exceptional position within the domain. It is right at the bottom in the middle of the Paradiski region. One of the most wonderful things about this village is the tree lined pistes you can find starting from the Dos Rond lift at 2340 metres all the way down to the village. This makes for wonderful skiing compared to the massive empty pistes that you find in say Tignes or Val Thorens (which do have their advantages of course).

Looking again at the Montchavin piste map, you’ll see that there are 2 possibilities to go up to the skiing. You can either take the Cabin lift up to Les Coches which makes it perfect for beginners or those who simply want to visit another village (with or without skis). You can then choose to either ski back down the red run on the left called Montchavin or follow the wonderful blue run called Mont Blanc that slowly makes it way back down through the pristine and untouched forests on a calm piste often with practically no people on it. Making it perfect for beginners or those uncomfortable having people zip past you very quickly as you can take your time and enjoy the incredible views of the forests and the snow-covered valley in front of you.

There is of course the other option to keep going up higher and higher very easily via either the Vanoise Express (which needs the Paradiski area pass) and is an experience in itself taking you across the valley in a massive stand up cabin with views across the entire valley. You’ll then be able to ski all of Les Arcs and of course make your way back at the end of the day and arrive practically in front of Montchavin with only a tiny bit if skiing to get back to the village if you are very tired (this is a massive domain!). The other option is to stay within the La Plagne area and keep going up and up via fast and modern chairlifts to then access all that La Plagne has to offer with skiing for every level from beginners up to hardened skiers and boarders searching for a real challenge.

Montchavin Weather

One of the big advantages here is the Montchavin weather due to the fact that the village and its respective pistes are protected by its surrounding forests. Like said before, this offers beautiful skiing and stunning views. However, there is another massive advantage, which is that the pistes are protected from storms and fogs which you can naturally experience when skiing. Even when the higher open pistes are being battered by high winds, white outs and bad weather, you can be sure that the Montchavin pistes will be open, offering protected pistes that will allow you to ski no matter the weather. This is fantastic for those who don’t like to ski when you can’t see what you are doing as well as those who love some off piste skiing through the trees. There are so many possibilities to ski or board down through the trees for those with a higher level, or for those with a lower level can enter the forest right next to the runs and then ski back onto them very easily whenever you feel you have had enough. There are so many opportunities!

Les Coches is one of those small villages that make up the massive La Plagne resort. Each village has their own feel and this one is no different. You come to Les Coches for relative peace and quiet away from the crowds, the queues, the crazy nightlife to find a secluded and peaceful place to relax. However, don’t be fooled into thinking that because it is so quiet and relaxed, that there isn’t a massive amount of skiing to be had. Read on to know more about the wonderful Les Coches and what it has to offer.

Les Coches is a secluded village away from the hustle and bustle of its bigger brothers like you’ll find in Plagne Centre or La Plagne itself. It is designed for those who want to be secluded and to be in their own little worlds whether it be with your family, friends or maybe just with your loved one. The joy of this village is that it has been designed for the majority of the accommodations which are chalets to offer ski in / out possibilities. Even these can vary as you can choose to come down blues or reds which are of course suitable for most people. Or, for the more adventurous and skilled, can choose to ski back to your chalet via off piste routes going through the incredible forests that surround Les Coches. Whichever option you choose, you can put your skis on from outside your chalet, ski down to the lift which is only a few minutes away, and ski directly back to your chalet, quite often into the ski room itself!

Privacy and Authenticity

One of the massive advantages of Les Coches is that even though it is relatively secluded and quiet, it is part of the massive La Plagne ski resort which is part of the humungous Paradiski domain. From this village you ski down a few minutes, take one lift up and then either go left to go across to Les Arcs or continue going upwards onto La Plagne. All of this without the long queues you’ll find in the bigger and busier resorts in and around La Plagne. What more could you ask for? From this amazing little village, you can have access to one of the biggest ski domains in France with so many choices of greens, blues, reds and blacks; the choices are endless. On top of the regular pistes, you can take your pick of the many off piste routes going from the top of La Plagne at 3300 metres all the way down to 1250 metres. Now that is a lot of choice.

Once you are finished with your skiing, you can come back to Les Coches and know that you can be peaceful and quiet, with practically no noise surrounding you except the people that you are staying with. And as most people come here for peace and quiet, in general they want the same thing, so you can be rest assured that the intimacy and tranquillity you came here for will be shared with everyone else within this village. So a quick summary would be peacefulness, ski in / out and access to massive skiing; sound good? Please don’t choose Les Coches if you are looking for crazy nightlife, restaurants everywhere and lots of après ski facilities. These are accessible if you want them, but you have to be fairly motivated to make the effort to get to them from this quaint and peaceful paradise.

Les Coches Piste Map

Les Coches Piste Map Download

From this page, you’ll be able to download the Les Coches piste map and its location at the bottom left, above Montchavin and below the rest of La Plagne. You’ll be able to see on the piste map that the incredible Vanoise Express lift is just on the left. This was opened for the 2003 ski season and allows people to access Les Arcs in 7 – 10 minutes. This is a massive advantage for those staying in Les Coches as there are very few queues even in peak season, and practically nobody during the low season. So you can know that staying in this village which may look totally remote and cut off, offers arguably some of the easiest accessing to the Paradiski area in the entire domain. Again, getting back to the village is wonderfully easy as you’ll either ski directly to the village from higher up in La Plagne, or take the Venoise Express from Les Arcs back to Les Coches and then ski into your accommodation.

Les Coches Weather

There is another advantage to this amazing little gem of a village. Even if there is an unbearable wind higher up, or it drops down to minus 20 in La Plagne, or perhaps there is a white out which would normally stop you being able to ski safely. Because it is lower down, plus you are totally surrounded by majestic forests, this is not the case here. The Les Coches weather is quite unique in the region as you are protected by the surrounding forests. This makes for some of the most beautiful skiing possible, in our humble opinion, plus you can be sure you’ll be able to ski no matter what the weather is elsewhere in the area. Even those with a lower level will be able to appreciate the protection the forests offer and may even be tempted to ski in and out of them on the easier runs you can found in and around Les Coches. For us personally, skiing in and next to pristine alpine forests is the most magical skiing experience possible, coupled with the possibilities of off piste skiing if you fancy it. Thanks to the Les Coches weather, everybody of any level can appreciate skiing.

Restaurants – Where to Eat

Although as mentioned previously, that this village is very quiet, it is still possible to find some Les Coches restaurants which offer exceptional value for money. They are very quaint, rustic and offer some of the best value food in the region. Thanks to the fact that those who live and work in this village, have of course chosen it for the same reasons as you which have been described in this blog. Therefore, they have made massive efforts to create a peaceful atmosphere which is traditional and family friendly. You’ll find all the classic mountain dishes such as Raclette, Tartiflette and fondue but at amazing prices and top notch locally sources products. Even if you are staying in a catered chalet, there is that 1 night off a week that you are not prepared food by your hosts, so get out there and try one of the many Les Coches restaurants on offer.

Les Coches Apres ski

Whilst this village isn’t known for a tremendous choice of activities outside of skiing, there are a number of activities in neighbouring Montchavin such as ice skating, the Espace Paradisio Wellbeing Centre with an indoor pool, sauna, whirlpools, steam rooms and massages. There are also lots of walking trails through the forests and on the pistes. If you fancy a lot more night life or even some extra apres ski before the pistes are closed, then La Plagne offers a massive choice of bars, restaurants and activities. You can then either choose to ski down to Les Coches later on in the afternoon, or take a taxi back down to the village if you want to stay particularly late. Of course, as we said before, for most people who have chosen this village, it is for the quietness and intimacy it offers as well as the ski in / out possibilities, so we doubt you’d be interested to check out the La Plagne activities, but you never know of course.

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