Val d’Isère – Tradition meets modernity Val d'Isère (1850 m)

Located at an altitude of 1.821 meters, Val d’Isère is one of the most famous skiing villages of the French Alps, and has merged with the skiing station Tignes to form the „most beautiful skiing region of the world“– Tignes / Val d'Isère. The two local mountains alone Val-d’Isères – Solaise and Bellevarde – provide skiers of all levels with a broad range of slopes and variants – from practice to professional slopes. Thanks to numerous „Fast-four thousanders“ that surround the ski region of Val-d’Isère, especially the freeride and off-piste options are almost legendary already. The most distinct of these peaks is without a doubt the Grande Motte at 3656 meters, whose slopes are the highest of the skiing region. Not without reason do several skiing races in the framework of the alpine ski world cup take place every year – traditionally around December – on the slopes around Val d‘Isère. Since the Olympic games of Albertville in February of 1992, one slope of Val d’Iséres also became a legend. The „Bellevarde“, a slope that was specifically designed for the downhill race by the former Swiss world champion Bernhard Rüssi, has since been in the circle of the slopes steeped in legend, like the Streif in Kitzbühel or the Lauberhorn slope in Wengen. The famous section „Ancolie“ is a must for every skier. What’s special about it: If you ski the slope together with a ski instructor of the ski school ES.F. you are awarded a Bellvarde diploma when you reach the bottom, no matter how long you needed to get down.

Ski village with traditional charm

If you prefer to ski on less demanding slopes you will also find enough selection in Val d’Isère. Quite often you will find red, blue and green trails next to each other on the same slope. In addition you can get directly to the different areas of the skiing region quickly and easily outgoing from the station Val d’Isère. With the underground cablecar Funival ski vacationers travel from the district La Daille all the way to Rocher de Bellevarde. From Joseray, a cableway takes you all the way to the summit. A further cableway and a chair lift with weather protection against cold and snow leads to the Tête du Solaise. And yet another cablecar takes skiers from the district Le Fomet to Col de l'Iseran. You will rarely have to wait at the lifts. 15 of the total number of 67 slopes of the station at all heights are reserved for first ski tests, and 7 lifts that start directly at the station are free.

Ski vacation in Val-d’Isère is worthwhile by all means not only due to the convincing slope offer and the advantages of a highly modern skiing region. In spite of contemporary infrastructure, Val-d’Isère has held onto attractive traces of the past and thus offers a unique ambience. The old centre of town consisting of several traditional Savoyian houses, a small church with a cemetery and the chapel Saint Roche that was erected in 1653 as protection against the pest forms the heart of the chic skiing village. A style that dominates the architecture in Val d’Isère, which consists of the districts La Daille and Le Fornet. Rustic buildings with a lot of wood, stone and slated roofs characterize the overall picture. Small boutiques, Cafés, Crêperies, Pâtisseries, Brasseries, sports shops and shopping arcades provide leisure activities that make Val-d’Isère an ideal place for wonderful skiing holidays also apart from the slopes.

A total of 28.000 beds in hotels of all categories, rustic chalets, cosy holiday apartments or generous vacation homes provide matching accommodation for every taste. Val d´Isère can be reached best from Albertville on the highway N90 to Moutiers and then on towards Aime and Bourg-Saint-Maurice.

Ski village with a history

The history of Val d´Isère as skiing station goes back to the year 1934, which is proven by impressive remains of the original village. In the valley of the Isère located in the Tarentaise, Val-d’Isère is reachable over the highest navigable pass road of the Alps since 1937, which runs over the Col de l’Iseran with 2770 meters. The pass that connects the provinces Tarentaise and Maurienne was even quite often included in the route of the Tour de France.