45.448724, 6.980346
006°58'82"E | 45°26'92"N
Val d’Isère, Espace Killy
Altitude1550 - 3456m
Downhill ski terrain: 300km
155 Pistes:
23 Green | 62 Blue |44 Red | 26 Black
44 Lifts:
3 Rope tows | 14 Draglifts | 21 Chairlifts
2 Gondola | 3 Cable cars | 1 Funicular
Beginners/Families
Intermediates
Advanced/Expert
The Intermediates score reflects the occasionally deceptive piste-grading.
-
Value - Accommodation
- Dining Out
- Nightlife
- • Vast, linked-domain experience.
- • Terrain for intermediates up to the most adventurous free-riders.
- • Wealth of accommodation for even the most demanding clientèle.
- • Snow-sure glacier skiing, both here and above Tignes.
- • You’ll come back a better skier.
- • Cred-value — so arguably you just have to do it, sooner or later.
- • Not the most tranquil choice.
- • Village boutiques and restaurants require deep pockets.
- • Long transfers, often with traffic congestion on changeover days.
- • Avoid the crowds by heading to the more distant terrain, or off-piste.
The Fornet cable-car,
at the head of the valley .
Behind the glitz there still lies
an old Savoyard village.
Les Balcons de Bellevarde
La Daille, Val d’Isère.
Recently refurbished apartments facing the slopes, opposite the La Daille gondola lift and just 200m from the Funival funicular which links La Daille directly into the Belvarde ski area. It’s also covenient for La Daille’s shops and restaurants.
Val d’Isère town centre is easily reached by free shuttle bus service.
Enquiries and bookings:
MountainPassions Ski Holidays
Tel: 0845 863 0540 (UK)
These sought after apartments provide an attractive, high quality base in the very heart of the resort. They are very close to both shops and nightlife, and just a short walk from the slopes. There is a bus stop next to the apartments to link you with the other areas of Val d’Isère.
Enquiries and bookings:
MountainPassions Ski Holidays
Tel: 0845 863 0540 (UK)
This recently-upgraded 4* hotel has a Savoyard style and is ideally located within a two minute walk from the ski lifts, in the old part of Val d’Isère town centre. The 109 spacious Standard or Superior rooms combine modern facilities with the traditional style of the village.
Accommodation is on a Bed and Breakfast basis, with a Half-Board upgrade also available.
Enquiries and bookings:
MountainPassions Ski Holidays
Tel: 0845 863 0540 (UK)
AT THE HEAD OF THE TARENTAISE VALLEY beyond Les Arcs, La Rosière, Sainte-Foy Tarentaise and Tignes the Route des Grandes Alpes hits the snowy buffers each winter in Val d’Isère. If anything, this glamorous ski area is even bigger than it looks on paper, and is linked seamlessly to neighbouring Tignes to form the legendary Espace Killy. So it’s very much a case of quality and quantity. Off-piste is virtually limitless, although beginners and less than confident (and fit) would probably be happier elsewhere. Or join those who come just to be seen. 
This had better be worth it. Driving to Val d’Isère, especially in the chill darkness, feels like a real to-the-end-of-the-line experience. And when the snow-line creeps down from the Col de l’Isèran and closes the road at the end of the valley just beyond the Fornet cable-car, it’s exactly that. Having enjoyed driving the Route des Grandes-Alpes in autumn, we’re now looking forward to finding out how one of the more memorable sections looks and feels beneath our skis.
This slightly surreal experience will have to wait, however, until after we’ve devoted some time to getting our bearings, particularly as we’re based at the opposite end of the valley. Fortunately La Daille is far from isolated, having three high-capacity ski-lifts of its own, including the metro-like Funival funicular, which dives deep into the mountain and emerges way up at the Rocher de Bellevard at 2827m.
An extensive ski area requires a capable, modern lift system.
Ahead lies a vast panorama, and a dazzling choice of ski runs. This being Day One, we pass on legendary descents like the Face Olympique de Bellevarde and 'OK' Coupe du Monde and instead warm up on a gentle cruise over to the Borsat Express lift, then to the Col de Fresse chairlift. From here we could drop more or less straight down into Tignes Val Claret, but elect to stick closer to ‘Val’ and see what its own terrain has to offer. The snow quality feels good, so we work our way eastwards, passing below le Rocher de Bellevard to reach Santons, a blue-graded piste which plunges down into Le Châtelard, close to the heart of Val d’Isère 1850.
Definitive scenic skiing, here with a distant backdrop of the Lac de Tignes.
By mid-morning the restaurant sun terraces are already filling, but we press on, taking the Solaise Express chairlift up to 2560m. We’re getting into our stride now, continuing our smooth progress through the lift system and the connecting runs. Minutes later we’ve ridden the Madeleine Express, dived down through the Col de la Madeleine, and joined the Glacier Express. The security and effectiveness of these new lifts becomes apparent when Cugnai, an older fixed chairlift serving a single red-run, fires us off onto a tight 180° hairpin turn followed by a steep plunge back down to the Col once again. Next time we’ll be prepared.
Central areas above the village can get congested, unlike the open spaces and great skiing further afield, for which the area is world-famous.
Not that the new, high-speed lifts don’t hold a few surprises of their own in store, as we discover when the Leisières Express takes us not only up but over a high ridge, before making a steep (and rapid) descent into the neighbouring Vallon de l’Isèran.
By now we’ve almost reached our target, the Pissaillas Glacier. Even before we step off the Cascade Express we know we’ve found somewhere special — not in terms of size (it’s pretty modest) or terrain (the pistes are pretty undemanding). It’s quite simply a magical spot, with vast, top-of-the-world views over to the distant Grand Motte Glacier, silhouetted almost 3500m above Tignes — about the same altitude as we are now, in fact.
To prove the point, closer to hand is a privileged overview of the 2770m Col de l’Isèran (left), one of the highest road passes in Europe, and for much of the year comprehensively snowed-in. The glacier is also a point of departure for various off-piste routes, but we break for lunch, ski the groomed pistes for the fun of just being here, then begin to make our way back to our starting-point. Not bad for a first day’s skiing.
During our stay we cover a lot more ground, yet still feel like we’ve only scratched the surface. And yes, we do get to ski down the section of the Route des Grandes Alpes whose roadside piste-markers looked so incongruous back in the autumn. This really is quite a place.
© MountainPassions.com
By car
Autoroute A43 Lyon / Albertville, then N90 to Bourg-Saint-Maurice. Follow the signs to Val d'Isere, a 30-40 minute drive. Allow a full day to travel from Calais and be prepared for long delays on Saturdays as you approach the main ski areas.
By air
The nearest airport is Chambèry, with transfer times of to 2-3 hours. Lyon, Geneva, and Grenoble are all possible but transfer times and occasional delays make them less convenient.
By train
The
runs from late December to early April and takes you direct into Bourg Saint Maurice for a short transfer to Val d’Isère by bus, taxi or hire car.
Take the train...
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Flights to the Alps
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Ferry Travel
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Transfers
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Holiday Taxis offer private transfers from airports to ski resorts in the Alps. Whether it's just you or a bunch of friends, they have transport to suit your needs.
Car Hire
Insurance
A PROTECTED ENVIRONMENT
Val d’Isère was one of the first French mountain communities
to sign the Sustainable Development Charter aimed specifically at ski resorts. Two thirds of the territory
is in the heart of the Vanoise National Park or is
protected as an area of outstanding natural beauty.
Two good examples of its commitment to protecting
this unique environment are its carbon management
programme launched to monitor and control CO² emissions,
with particular attention paid to home and transport
pollution and its new parking and transport policy aptly named “Val d’Isère en blanc” (a return to white,
snow covered surroundings). The aim here is to expand
pedestrian and areas accessible on skis, to maintain a
constant fine layer of snow on the roads, to ban salting,
to enforce strict rights of passage for delivery vehicles
and to build new covered and expanded outdoor parking
areas with priority given to all forms of public and
group transport.