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3 Valleys & Tarentaise

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3 Vallees

Here 1400 km2 are fitted out for winter sports activities during the winter months and numerous other activities in the summer such as hiking, climbing, fishing and mountain biking. The 3 Valleys have come a long way since 1925. At that time several English businessmen and experienced skiers wanted to create a resort in France like those that already existed in Austria and the Swiss Grisons. In order to do so they asked Arnold Lunn, the most senior of the British skiers and inventor of the slalom, to go and explore the Saint-Bon valley. He organised a small expedition to methodically prospect the Dauphinoise and Savoyard Alps. His verdict of the 3 Valleys was as follows: "in Savoie there is an exceptional site that comprises three almost parallel valleys: Saint-Bon, Les Allues and Belleville. In spite of their different features, they lend themselves well to the development of large resorts.

The slopes are magnificent, very well positioned, the risks of avalanches are minimal, they are easy to locate and therefore easy to stop. There are also now 10 Michelin starred restaurants in the 3 Valleys in 2010. "The legend of the 3 Valleys was born".

Espace Killy

From the 70’s concrete jungle at Tignes Le Lac to the charming Tignes Les Brévières there is a resort for everyone but one common attraction: they all have direct access to the famous Espace Killy ski area. With some of the highest runs in Europe Espace Killy brings guaranteed snow – even in Summer! Well known by experts skiers from around the World the joint ski area between Val d’Isère and Tignes is much sought after.

Paradiski

The well established resorts of La Plagne and Les Arcs have now become a part of one of the largest ski areas in the world with the opening of the Vanoise Express cable car connecting the two areas. The distinctive double-decker cable car connects the two resorts via Les Coches in La Plagne and Plan Peisey in Les Arcs creating a combined ski area that is known as Paradiski with a huge 425kms of marked pistes.

Both Les Arcs and La Plagne comprise modern purpose built winter factories but also a few pretty villages such as Champagny, Les Coches, Montchavin or Peisey Vallandry. Bordered by the scenic Vanoise National park, the area includes some typically pretty mountain landscape.

For thrill-seekers, Les Arcs’ famous Flying Kilometre course is the place for the World’s speed record on skis with more than 150mph to beat.

Located by the arrival and departure points of the Vanoise Express cable car, both Peisey and Les Coches provide probably the best base for exploring the combined ski area.

Sainte-Foy

This off-the-beaten track resort is ideal for those who want to avoid the crowds of the mega neighbouring resorts. Its own ski area is small but highly rated and with easy driving distance to the larger ski areas listed above it offers a great base to discover the whole area.

La Rosiere

Linked with La Thuile in Italy, it is the only Savoyard resort to offer an international ski area of 150 km pisted runs. The ski area is known as Espace San Bernardo. With a high sunshine record (thanks to the south facing aspect of La Rosière) and an excellent snow record (with north facing slopes in Italy), l’Espace San Bernardo offers something for every type of skier.

The area is easily accessed via main trunk Motorway network from Chambery.

See here for Paradiski-Ste Foy Ski Special Offers

Sainte Foy Tarentaise The small hamlet of Sainte-Foy Tarentaise has been described as the "best-kept secret of the Alps". The new ski station is set on steep north-west facing slopes with superb views. It came into being in 1990 and is only a stone's throw away from the big names: Tignes, Val d'Isere and Les Arcs. There is no high rise, just chalet style buildings that nestle amongst the trees and incorporate local Savoyard features such as round stone columns and stone slab roofs.	La Rosiere La Rosiere is located in the heart of the Haute Tarentaise and set in a forest on the Italian border. It is a friendly south-facing resort built in an attractive chalet style in keeping with local architecture. Linked with La Thuile in Italy, it is the only Savoyard resort to offer an international ski area of 150km of marked pisted runs (Espace San Bernardo).
Peisey Vallandry The small traditional villages of Peisey and Vallandry are situated halfway between the main resorts of Les Arcs and La Plagne. Peisey is an authentic pretty mountain village with real farm buildings and Baroque heritage. Plan Peisey is its recently developed area that offers a small selection of bars & restaurants, mini-market, local speciality take-away shop, nursery, chemist and medical centre.	Les Coches Les Coches is one of the most attractive resorts in the huge La Plagne ski area. It also has the added attraction of being right next to the spectacular double-decker Vanoise Express cable car lift (which spans the Ponturin Gorge) that links La Plagne to Les Arcs to create the Paradiski Area, one of the world's largest.
Montchavin Montchavin is a charming village that has grown up from an old farming hamlet and retained its ambience despite development and expansion. It is a quieter alternative to bustling La Plagne yet it shares its giant neighbour's Paradiski ski domain, one of the world's largest.	Champagny The attractive farming village of Champagny is in a pretty wooded setting where modern expansion was carried out sensitively. Tucked away on the sunny south-facing slopes of the Grande Plagne ski area, it is also the gateway to the famous and magnificent Vanoise National Park.
Saint Martin de Belleville The old stone farming village of Saint-Martin de Belleville is full of character, in complete contrast with neighbouring Les Menuires, a purpose-built resort with a somewhat controversial architecture, and the above-perched snow-sure resort of Val Thorens.	La Tania La Tania is a ski resort in the Courchevel area of the legendary 3 Valleys and is situated at 1400m. It was developed for the Albertville Olympics in 1992. Originally a small hamlet between midway between Meribel and Couchevel, La Tania is nestled in the heart of a fabulous spruce forest and has managed to be preserved with emphasis on wood and traditional materials.
Brides-les-Bains Brides-les-Bains, is a lovely French Savoyard town created in 1848 and renowned for its slimming cures and spa. The high-speed Olympe gondola lift connects Brides-les-Bains to the bottom of the slopes in Meribel in 25 mins and then allows access directly to the heart of the famous 3 Vallees ski area (Meribel, Meribel Mottaret, Courchevel, Les Menuires, and Val Thorens).	Bourg St Maurice A bustling town in the Tarentaise Valley, Bourg St Maurice provides a different ski holiday experience from the traditional ski resort. Being the main town for the Tarentaise Valley and surrounded by ski resorts that see more than 10 million skiers visiting each winter between them, Bourg St Maurice has more than its fair share of shopping opportunities as well as a good selection of restaurants, banks, a cinema and museum.
Tignes les Boisses Tignes is proud of its snowsure reputation, with summer skiing on its glacier, one of Europe's 20 highest ski areas. The village of Tignes Les Boisses 1850 has and will undergo massive changes in the years to come. The first part of these changes has been the creation of a new road linking the dam to Tignes Le Lac and Tignes Val Claret which avoids the centre of Tignes Les Boisses.	Tignes les Brevieres Tignes is proud of its snowsure reputation, with summer skiing on its glacier, one of Europe's 20 highest ski areas. The architectural reputation is much more questionable, although a beautification process is underway across the resort. Older, uglier buildings are being improved and new buildings more sympathetic to the stunning mountain scenery.
Valmorel The main village begins at around 1400m and is lift-linked to Celliers, Doucy Combelouvière and (beyond the famous Col de la Madeleine) Saint François Longchamp. The resulting 152km of pistes are spread across an impressive 3600 hectares, whose combined terrain is known as le Grand Domaine.