Chamonix Mont Blanc

It’s big, and will both surprise and confuse you during your first visit. Thinking of it not as one ski area but several, spread along both north and south sides of the valley, will help you make sense of it all and find your ideal terrain. Here’s how it breaks down:

Aproach from Lyon, Geneva, etc., and the first area you’ll encounter is Les Houches. Hugely underrated, it offers lots of intermediate terrain, including some surprisingly long drops through the tree line, both back to the village and above neighbouring Saint-Gervais. Then there’s the legendary Kandahar World Cup Grand Slalom descent.

Next, and closest of all to Chamonix is the Brévent area, accessible via a gondola lift to mostly south-facing intermediate terrain at Plan Praz (1999m), with an onward cable car to Le Brévent (2525m) – for advanced skiers only. The same goes for the world-famous Vallée Blanche — a classic 20km off-piste descent with around 2700m vertical drop. It’s accessible via the sensational Aiguille du Midi cable car, on the opposite (south) side of the valley

Beginners aren’t forgotten, however. Les Planards (S of the village centre) and Le Savoy (just to the N., with a draglift to the Brévent gondola lift) are safe, dedicated debutant areas.

Next along the valley is the cable car serving the Flégère area (1877m), with an onward chairlift to 2525m. There’s also a cable car link to Le Brévent – useful when high winds have closed the Flégère cable car. The combined terrain is mostly red- and blue-graded, although there are a couple of greens.

Around 6km further on lies Argentière, whose new gondola lift provides a first-stage haul up to 2138m. Transfer to a cable-car and you'll be transported to 3275m to explore the world-famous (mostly ungroomed) Grands Montets area. The scenery is sensational and the terrain is graded red or black, so it’s strictly for advanced skiers or confident, experienced intermediates. If you don’t feel up to it there are some blues at Plan Joran plus an enjoyable (if occasionally icy) red back to the village.

Opening in Dec 2018, a new 6-seater chairlift "Tabé" will replace two former lifts and transport over 3000 skiers per hour up to the mid-station at Lognan (1900m). Here, Grand Montets have addressed the notable lack of beginners' slopes with the development of a new area which includes two drag–lifts and snow cannons.

Just beyond Argentière a right-hand fork is signed to Le Tour (1462m). Beside the village is a gentle beginner area (La Vormaine), while the Charamillon gondola will drop you 1850m. An onward chairlift heads up to the blue- and red-graded pistes of Les Autannes (2195m). One of the Blue links (Le Col) passes the Plan des Reines chairlift, which will haul you to Tête de Balme (2250m).

From here a red-graded zig-zag through the tree-line (or a nearby gondola descent) drops in on Vallorcine. The Chamonix valley’s final ski area is also the most recently developed, with lots of new skier accommodation. While its own gondola-served ski terrain is effectively return runs, onward lifts offer speedy access to many more between Tête de Balme and Le Tour.

To sum up: It all sounds spread out and it is, but getting around the valley is easier than you might imagine, thanks to efficient shuttle buses and a perfectly viable rail option — those staying in the valley are offered a Carte d’Hôte giving free travel on buses and trains.

Once a humble farming community, Chamonix is today a medium-sized town, yet somehow the village feel lives on in the predominantly locally-owned businesses. Big-brand boutiques are there too (along with a slightly incongruous casino), but there’s also a tangible pride in being a part of this remarkable place. Chamonix is like nowhere else.

As it edges ever further upmarket property values climb relentlessly, thanks to an international reputation and an incomparable setting among some of the most dramatic scenery the Alps have to offer. Despite the glitz and glamour Chamonix remains above all the spiritual home of mountain activities with something for everyone, at all levels and whatever the season.

Les Houches has its own chalet-style charm, steadily-growing accommodation but limited dining-out potential (so you’ll end up heading into Chamonix). Beyond “Cham”, rubbing shoulders with the Golf Club de Chamonix is Les Praz, with a pleasing village feel and access to the mountain via the Flégère cable car.

Further up the valley, Argentière has a friendly, self-contained vibe which has many aficionados, particularly among advanced skiers. Le Tour is predictably slightly more remote-feeling, but preserves a pleasingly down-to-earth Savoyard identity. Much the same can be said for Vallorcine, which despite the volume of recently-added apartment accommodation, remains a year-round working community.

Chamonix is infectiously cosmopolitan and attracts skiers from throughout the world, keen to ski in the birthplace of winter sports. You can ski (or shop) to your heart’s content here, although if you’re really going to get the best from the lift pass you’ll need to be a confident all-mountain skier. Locals will tell you that it’s not overly demanding, but piste grading here can sometimes be optimistic, some blues having red-style challenges. Chances are you’ll return a better skier.

That said, there are some super-gentle debutant areas, and at the other end of the scale, endless off-piste opportunities.

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