» A Small, Alternative, Very French Ski Resort

A Small, Alternative, Very French Ski Resort

Print This Post Written by Chris Maskier on January 19, 2009

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The first in a series of reports about working a ski season in the small French resort of Val Cenis.

The perfect snowfield / Photo by Simon Hutton

Before I start, let me set my stall out; I’m working for what is essentially a package holiday operator that offer ski holidays in the French Alps. Probably not the typical choice for the make travel fair reader. Having said that, there are a few fundamental differences between your typical ski company, and the organisation that I’m working for. We operate solely from one resort and have been established here for around 20 years. Over time, the company has established incredible links with the local community and a truly symbiotic relationship has been forged. The local economy benefits from the constant stream of tourists, who in turn get to experience a unique tranche of French culture, rather than moving their own traditional pub culture into the Alps. Unusually for a ski resort, the vast majority of the local community in Val Cenis are here for the entire year. It is a year round working village, not a purpose built resort.

Leaving Home For A Season In The Alps

We were due to be collected in Lyon and driven to the resort, but the biggest dump of snow in Val Cenis since the seventies meant that leaving the village to collect us was not going to be possible for a good few hours. It was the first opportunity of the season for the locals to help us out as they emerged en masse to assist with digging the hidden cars out from under nearly 2 metres of snow. After a bus, a train across France (unrecognisable as a train compared to what I was used to after my gladly left behind commuting days), and a short drive, we arrived in the picture postcard scenery of a ski resort setting up for the season.

“Val Cenis is located in the Haute-Maurienne region of the French Alps, close to the Italian border. It is composed of two villages; Lanslebourg and Lanslevillard. The villages sit at 1400m and 1500m, respectively, and lifts climb to a maximum altitude of 2800m. The resort is fairly unheard of in the UK, and attracts a mainly French contingent each winter. It is a lot quieter than larger ski resorts in the French Alps and does not normally suffer from long lift queues.”

Val Cenis – Wikipedia

Christmas In A Ski Resort

The festive season in ski resorts is strange, especially as a ‘seasonaire’. I’d forgotten that Christmas was approaching as skiing itself was far more on my mind. The staff all had the day off and we spent a lazy morning skiing between mountain bars, wishing Christmas greetings to friends. New Year, or ‘St. Silvestre’ is a much bigger holiday for the locals than Christmas.

Getting to Val Cenis from the UK

By road

Snowcoach is one option that services Val Cenis. The Dover-Calais ferry crossing with P&O takes just 75 minutes and then it’s an overnight ride to your resort. They offer Royal Class and Club Class coaches with ‘seat only‘ prices starting at £94 return.

By rail