Paradiski - Montchavin (La Plagne)

This means that the ski lifts rise for an incredible 2000 vertical metres above the village to snowsure glacier snow fields, a figure matched by less than a dozen other resorts on the planet.

Montchavin has a small selection of bars and restaurants as well as a nightclub, supermarket, boulangerie, and laundrette.  There’s a further selection of bars and restaurants in nearby Les Coches, linked by ski lifts and a shuttle bus.

The village has a natural appeal for families, which has earned it the Famille Plus accreditation for the quality of its services awarded by the French government’s Ski France organisation. Montchavin is traffic free and offers children’s clubs and a nursery, so is a perfect location for families.

Child-minding facilities (with state accreditation) include the Baby Club Montchavin which provides indoor and outdoor activities including drawing, painting, games, sledging, walks, snowman building and time for a nap, if required, for one to three year olds.

Activities in the village include snowshoeing, an ice rink at the top of Montchavin gondola lift, with 800 sq m of artificial ice rink, a cinema and a well being centre with Turkish bath, sauna, massages and beauty treatments.

In other La Plagne villages nearby there are more activity options, including the rare chance for the brave to descend a bobsleigh run, in this case built for the 1992 Winter Olympics staged in the area.  You can either take a ‘taxi’ bobsleigh at top speed behind a professional driver or jump in a ‘self steering’ craft with friends which goes a little slower but is still fast enough.

Montchavin/Les Coches Resort Opening Dates

Montchavin/Les Coches opens on 12/12/09 and closes on 24/04/10

Follow the links below

Why Montchavin?

·          Direct ski access to the north-facing slopes of La Plagne

·          Located by the La Plagne-Les Arcs Paradiski area

·          A quiet alternative to La Plagne

Childcare in Montchavin

Montchavin has acquired the Famille Plus label for its childcare facilities. Please view here for more information on the Famille Plus label.

Montchavin Les Coches has a natural appeal for families, which has earned it the famous Famille Plus label awarded by Ski France: it's at medium altitude (1,250 m and 1,450 m), has a built environment on a human scale and there's no car traffic in the villages.

In addition, there are high-quality child-minding facilities (with state accreditation) designed to provide a real service for parents wanting to make the most of their day's skiing and to introduce children of all ages to the world of snow in the best possible conditions.

Nurseries

Les Coches (6 - 36 months) and

Baby Club Montchavin (12 - 36 months).

Indoor and outdoor activities: drawing, painting, games, sledging, walks, snowmen and of course, time for a nap, if required.

Registration and reservations baby club and Club ski : OGMC Clubs Enfants - Maison de Montchavin - 73210 Bellentre - E-mail
Contact from 12 December 2009 to 24 April 2010 : 04 79 07 82 43
Others periods : 04 79 07 82 82 fax: 04 79 07 80 18

Open from Sunday to Friday from 8.45 to 17.30, booking on Saturday.

Guideline prices 09/10:

Club Neige: 3 - 9 yrs

Option without ski lessons

Outdoor and indoor learning activities, mountain and snow sports: sledging, games in the snow, treasure hunts, as well as videos and indoor games.

Open from Sunday to Friday from 8.45 to 17.30.

Registration and reservations (at least the day before): Saturday and every day at Club reception times.

Guideline prices 09/10:

Registration and reservations baby club and Club ski : OGMC Clubs Enfants - Maison de Montchavin - 73210 Bellentre - E-mail
Contact from 12 December 2009 to 24 April 2010 : 04 79 07 82 43
Others periods : 04 79 07 82 82 fax: 04 79 07 80 18

Games room
Near the ice rink in Les Coches, an indoor area is open every evening under a youth leader's supervision, once the skiing's over: there's a collection of toys and games, a library, a Playstation, pool table, pinball, etc.

Childrens Ski Lessons in Montchavin

Children can ski from 4 years old in Montchavin with ESF.

Peak Retreats can pre-book this. See here for details.

Activities in Montchavin

Snowshoes
It's a must in winter: get your snowshoes on and head out with a guide to discover a different facet of the mountains: their flora and fauna, and how to read the landscape... for adults and children.

Ice rink
Only five minutes from the centre of Les Coches, at the top of Montchavin gondola lift, 800 sq m of artificial covered ice.

Prices :

Entrance under 4 years : free

Adults €2.80, children €2.10

Hire of skates

Hire under 4 years : free

Adults €2.80, children €2.10

Skate hire costs the same again.

Lessons available on request.

Cinema

At Montchavin there is the cinema seating 250 people. It shows one or two diferents films every day.

In addition, it features: special shows for children, sub-titled films etc.

Sessions at 5:30 pm or 6:00 pm and 9:00 pm normally.

Wellbeing centre

After the skiing, spend a pleasant moment in relaxation centre with Turkish bath, sauna, massages and beauty treatments.

Open for all people.

Call: 0033 (0)4 79 07 83 30

Bobsleigh runs

From December to March, the Olympic luge and Bobsleigh run at la Plagne is open to the public:

Taxi Bob: 1 500 meters run in a four man racing bobsleigh, 3 passengers, over 18 years, are taken for each trip.

Bob Raft: It looks like a conventional bobsleigh and carries for people without a pilot (minimum eight of 1.3m, parental approval mandatory for under 18 years olds, parental presence compulsory for under 15s).

Mono Bob: Just you and the ride of your life. At around 90km/hr, in a semi-horizontal position, all alone in a one-man bob.

Every Wednesday: the Office du Tourisme organises an outing to the bobsleigh run. Depart by coach, at 16:50 to Les Coches and 17:00 to Montchavin.
From 37€00 per person for a bob raft descent. (Without transport)

Eating out, Amenities and Après Ski in Montchavin

Bars, restaurants, nightclub (‘Oxygene’), supermarket, boulangerie, laundrette…More bars and restaurants in nearby Les Coches.

All the above information is for information only. For the most up-to-date information please visit the resort tourist office website

Montchavin Office du Tourisme
73210
Bellentre
Tel: 00 33 (0) 4 79 07 82 82

Fax: 00 33 (0) 4 79 07 80 18
info@montchavin-lescoches.com

Access to Montchavin           

By road: Driving distance from Calais to Montchavin 620 miles 8hrs 50.

From Calais take the A26 motorway via Reims, Dijon and Maçon to Lyon A43/A430 to Albertville and then N90 via Moutiers in the direction of Les Arcs, following signs for Montchavin.             

By Rail: Landry 10km - Shuttlebus +33 479 55 64 76 – Taxi +33 614 82 46 34.     

Airports:

Chambery Airport is 117km from Montchavin (1 ½ hours)

www.chambery-airport.com

Grenoble Airport is 185km from Montchavin (2 ¼  hours)

www.grenoble-airport.com

Lyon Airport is 194km from Montchavin (2 ¼ hours)

Shuttle bus +33 437 25 52 55 www.satobus-alps.com

www.lyonairport.com

Geneva Airport is 196km from Montchavin (2 ¼ hours)

www.gva.ch/en

Shuttle service between Montchavin and Les Coches
Free shuttle between Montchavin and Les Coches Each day from 8:45 am to 11:00 pm (last shuttle at the end of the last cinema session).

Stops: Montchavin Police Station, and Les Coches Tourism Office and Skating Rink

Click on map to enlarge

Access Map

Montchavin

Resort Map

Montchavin

To get to La Plagne there are a few lift systems to take but the local slopes have a number of easy-intermediate runs.

There are ski and boarding schools for beginners whilst intermediates will find many interlinked blue and red ski runs across the entire region.  It can be fun to try to see how far across this giant ski area you can venture in a day, the lifts and runs seem to go on and on. The blue runs on either side of Arpette, on the Montchvin side of the main bowl, are great cruises, but blue further down towards Montchavin are quite challenging.

Experts will be happy if they sign up with one of the ski schools to tackle the under-rated off-piste or attempt the near 2000m vertical down from the north face of the Bellecôte glacier, one of the world's longest and toughest runs.  High-altitude skiing with helicopter drop-off, ski safaris, ski touring and even ascents of Mont-Blanc are possible, always with a professional guide.

La Plagne is equipped with three outstanding snowparks (Bellecôte, Montchavin and Champagny en Vanoise), and 3 boardercross circuits. Of these, the one in Bellecôte is naturally made, snaking between pine and larch trees with numerous handrails and jumps. Also provided are a sound system and barbecue sites… all for the new freestyle generation!

There are 150kms of cross country skiing in this vast ski area (Paradiski) and access to the local tracks is free. There are 16 km of marked tracks that may be reached from the villages and from the top of the lifts at Montchavin and Les Coches, as well as from the Les Coches and Lac Noir Gondola lifts.

In winter, the Vanoise Express cable car is accessible to skiers and pedestrians. 
On Montchavin side though, the cable car arrives on a ski slope.  You can't reach Montchavin by foot.

Montchavin Lift passes

Save Time in resort and budget ahead by pre-booking lift passes. See below for prices.

PRE-BOOK* your 6 Day Montchavin/Paradiski Lift-Pass

**FAMILY PASS: 2 adults & 2 children aged 6 - 17 years. Extra children = £147 for 6 days and £168 for 7 days for Les Coches/La Plagne or £176 for 6 days and £199 for 7 days for Paradiski

Les Coches/La Plagne: 225km of pistes

Paradiski: 425km of piste (Peisey/Les Arcs/La Plagne/Les Coches)

Paradiski Decouverte: Les Coches/La Plagne + 1 day access to Paradiski

Montchavin Ski school

PRE-BOOK* your Montchavin Group Ski/Board Lessons

Please note that a booking fee of £9 per party will be charged

Group Ski Lessons

Times are subject to change

Montchavin Individual Tuitions (09/10 prices, NOT pre-bookable)

Contact ski school direct to book. Phone : 33 (0)4 79 07 80 33
Fax : 04 79 07 82 37

Cross-country in Paradiski

Pedestrian and X-Country skiers

Access to the x-country tracks is free. There are 16 km of marked tracks that may be reached from the vimmages and from the top of the lifts at Montchavin and Les Coches, as well as from the Les Coches and Lac Noir Gondola lifts.

Ask for the plan at either Office du Tourisme.

There is 150kms of cross country skiing in this vast ski area (Paradiski). In La Plagne area there is 80km/50 miles. Try Champagny (Le-Haut) – 14 miles of stunning winding tracks in a sunny valley.

Snowshoeing

Bureau des Accompagnateurs en Moyenne Montagne

Monsieur Christian Benard
Montchavin
73210 BELLENTRE

Phone : 33 (0)4 79 07 83 54
Mobile : 33 (0)6 63 21 77 90

Serge and Cristian, snow-shoe experts and based in the resort of Montchavin-Les Coches for many years are eager to share with you their passion and experiencesof the great outdoors.

The walks are set in picturesque countryside with lots to see : typical mountain hamlets, fairy tale forests, animal tracks…

Transport with a bus is included according to places.

Prices: a half day from 18€00 for adults and from 12€00 for children.

*ALL PRE-BOOKABLE EXTRAS ARE PAYABLE TO PEAK RETREATS IN STIRLING PRIOR TO DEPARTURE. PRICES ARE IN £.

ANYTHING IN EUROS (€) WE ARE UNABLE TO PRE-BOOK AND

WILL BE PAYABLE LOCALLY.