Avoriaz

Avoriaz 1800 offers varied groomed terrain for all levels locally, or a huge 650 km piste network for those armed with a full Portes du Soleil lift-pass It adds up to a whole lot of quality skiing in some magnificent settings.

Which pass to buy will depend largely on your technical level – novices and early intermediates have enough easily-accessible terrain to be getting on with around and above Avoriaz itself, while just about everyone else is likely to be here for the full Grand Domain experience.

We’d bet that very few skiers will actually do it all in a week. But that’s not the point; as you’ll see straight away from the piste-map, wherever you head it will feel like something of an adventure.

In fact, just a couple of chairlift rides will get you to the Franco-Swiss border (so carry your passport and remember you’ll be leaving the Euro-zone), seamless gateway to linked areas like Champéry, Champoussin, Morgins, Torgon and Val d’Illiez.

That’s in addition to the French ski resorts of Abondance, Châtel, La Chapelle d’Abondance, Les Gets, Montriond, Morzine and St Jean Aulps – most are lift-linked, and for the others there are free shuttle buses.

A first encounter with the trademark high-rise style of Avoriaz 1800 can feel rather like Blade Runner-comes-to-the-mountains, but once you know the remarkable history of this place (and precisely why the startling architecture looks the way it does) chances are you’ll warm to it. Or not.

There’s no denying that the traffic-free concept works very well, making it all ski-in/ski-out – or that everything you need, from the gentlest of ski-school areas to a wide range of shops, bars and restaurants, is close at hand.

Tucked away beyond the central ski-school area, though, you’ll discover another side to Avoriaz. The Dromonts area has a calmer, less in-the-thick-of-it atmosphere and not surprisingly some of the most desirable addresses, including the illustrious Hôtel des Dromonts, which is high on style, both inside and out (and which remains, surprisingly, the only hotel in Avoriaz).

Avoriaz 1800’s primary appeal is undoubtedly (but by no means exclusively) to families and younger skiers, to whom it has always been just about ideally suited. It was designed from the outset with youthful skiers in mind, in fact.

That said, there are some long, quite demanding black runs here too. It’s also an obvious choice for anyone looking for a snow-sure base from which to explore the vastness of the Portes du Soleil ski area.

It probably won’t suit traditionalists (who have plenty of choice in nearby alternatives like Les Gets and Châtel) but the wealth of apartment accommodation, bars and entertainment, combined with as much ski terrain as you can handle, offers a solid-value package for keen skiers and snowboarders.

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