The La Tania Ski Blog
Latest news, snow, pics, gossip and information from the locals in La Tania – latania.co.uk
All the latest news from around the Three Valleys from the La Tania locals. A real blog since 2006, not just endless re-posts for search engine optimisaton! Photos, gossip, snow reports, what's on and all the latest on the Apres Ski scene... Now fully optimised for iPhone, Touch and Android Mobiles - just go to latania.co.uk/blog and view on your phone. Our other past blogs & favourites here
Aliens over The 3 Valleys
Great spot by Mike T on the Dou des Lanches Webcam above La Tania on Col de la Loze…
On Monday and Tuesday we had some snow on the local Webcams with the Bouc Blanc Terrace (now with it’s new extension) and across to Saulire from Chenus.
Today that Bouc Blanc extension just about complete and work being inspected! Still the barrier at the top end to go in though.
And looking magnificent on another blue sky day in La Tania today (a Blue Bird requires fresh powder for anyone needing a reminder!)
All the Webcams at: www.latania.co.uk/webcam
First Artist’s Impressions of La Croisette Development in Courchevel 1850
Images of the planned new development of the main La Croisette building in Courchevel 1850 have been released. This is the building that hosts the Jardin Alpin, Verdons, Chenus and Grangettes gondolas.
These are just initial views at present, still plenty of planning, architects, public meetings and Town Hall involvement to go through yet but the idea is to improve access for skiers and pedestrians with the main through traffic and the bus station possibly underground.
The new Grangettes gondola (with mid-station planned for an Aquamotion link) plans show the top station in La Croisette below but still with the main road in place.
New Le Praz Gondola Building, Tourist Office & Underground Parking
Meanwhile work is to start on the new €27m Le Praz gondola base station building this Summer for completion by December 2019. Original plans included an extension of the Praz gondola to La Croisette but that looks unlikely now.
The building will include:
– 500 parking spaces on 2 levels
– A new gondola station
– S3V Lift Pass Office
– Tourist Office
– A children’s playground;
– Public toilets and ski storage;
– Multipurpose room of 245 m2 and a terrace
– A medical centre with piste and ambulance access
– There will also be sports facilities on the roof and a reception area
– Landscaping around the building and lake.
La Tania Moretta Village Development
No news on dates for the La Tania Moretta Village development on the car park near the Gondola yet – there was a rumour around some Israeli investment to add to all the others…
Impression of the development as viewed from the main road past La Tania
Plans are getting more detailed every year and even the new chair lift has already been designed with a commitment from S3V the lift company to go ahead with a 6 seater high speed detachable chair to link with the Bouc Blanc chair once the proposed “village” building goes ahead. It may be starting as far as possible away on the far side of the gondola station though – encouraging a split of the village as many fear.
Location of the development on the Parking du Saz
The latest plans we’ve seen have the construction consisting of:
– 990 Tourist Beds
– 60 Seasonnaire Beds
– 175 Private Parking Places
– 100 Public Parking Places
– 2 Restaurants (one with 450 covers)
– Bar / lounge with 250 seats
– Ski Shop
– Crèche
– 650 m² Fitness Centre
Impression of the development from the snow front side
Weather / Snow Outlook & Extreme Cold Warning
A light covering of snow last night – one the Bouc Blanc guys weren’t expecting as they left their terrace set up overnight!
No significant Atlantic weather systems on the horizon for the next week or so but a chance of some snow on Friday night / Saturday morning with precipitation bubbling up from the South East.
The main weather story is the cold temperatures however.
While staying cold and plenty of Sun through this week there’s a good chance that the cold blast from deepest Russia will lead to double figure minus temperature at resort level on Monday / Tuesday.
The GFS models showing the plunge in temperature below:
A lot has been made of the Sudden Stratospheric Warming (SSW) and Polar Vortex collapse phenomenon but it does look like this is allowing this cold blast right through to Western Europe.
We’ve had a temperature of -14°C at resort level this season already so it will be interesting to see if that is beaten (lowest ever on the latania.co.uk weather station is -19°C in 2002).
So if you’re coming out next week maybe bring an extra layer and make sure little ones have all their skin covered up especially if you’re high up.
There’s some snow on some forecasts for the middle of next week too but a bit far out to be sure yet.
Whatever, the snow depths and general piste skiing are all excellent at the moment. Enjoy…
Detailed Daily Piste Bulletin, Off Piste Avalanche Report and Detailed 3-Day Weather Forecast
Next Week’s Tourist Office guides to all the events and activities are now on-line.
What’s New 2018 #5 of 5 – Summary, Other Stuff & Future Plans
Following on from…
What’s New in La Tania & 3 Valleys 2018. #1 of 5 – The New Lifts
What’s New in La Tania & 3 Valleys 2018. #2 of 5 – New Pistes & Ski Area Work
What’s New in La Tania & 3 Valleys 2018. #3 of 5 – New building work, chalets, new experiences etc.
What’s New in La Tania & 3 Valleys 2018. #4 of 5 – Travel & Transfer News
This post gives a summary of all the new stuff plus some other new bits of information and the future plans and developments (including new lifts) for La Tania & The 3 Valleys.
The planned new Moretta Village development at the entrance to La Tania
What’s New 2018 – The Summary
In case you missed it…
new ariondaz 8 seater gondola courchevel 1650, new roc de tougne 6 seater chair mottaret, new beginners covered magic carpet rond point meribel, new moraine 10 seater heated gondola val thorens, new western park courchevel 1650 beginners facilities, new 3km luge 1650, 115 new snow cannons in courchevel & la tania valleys, 2 selfie machines relocated, lac de la chambre piste from val thorens to meribel regraded blue, meribel altiport snow cannon reservoir massively extended, turn & run, elements & yeti parks in meribel all upgraded, couloir tournier renamed gopro couloir with automated video recording, 2 new picnic cabins & rest points with new furniture in meribel, new corniche piste in val thorens, new croix d’Antide piste on orelle side, new les menuire premium pass, new 3 valleys 4 hour pass, new roc 1 & snow park les men picnic areas, more new snow cannons in meribel and les menuires, new lac de lou refuge, new val thorens ski touring area la camille, new lift pass facial recognition software, new steamboat lodge piste side chalet construction in la tania, new lift pass office in la tania, road at the back of kalinka in la tania up to saboia tarmaced at last, alpine action 25th birthday, alpine escape new self catered chalet in 1650, snow chateaux new chalet in la tania, ski-dazzle refrued chalet juliette, freeride republic new ski in/out chalet in 1550, aman le melezin hotel in courchevel 1850 reopens 15 dec for £3k a night, new aerials slope for display at la croisette 1850, new residence l’ecrin blanc under construction opposite aquamotion, l’havana apartment complex in central meribel now under construction, hameau des cimes chalets going up in meribel village, new montana lodge in val thorens, new igloo pod on the pashmina hotel in val thorens, new designer hostel in les menuires, new italian restaurant at Oxalys vt, free wifi across brides les bains, 3v gormet skiing trip with ski cool, les menuires holding a geek fest, new moutain refuge near st martin, new 80s cars on the ise circuit val thorens, new 3 valleys cafe in moutiers, new supernova store in val thorens, parallel slalom coming to world cup in courchevel, courchevel and meribel bidding for world cup 2023 and meribel bidding for 2018 tour de france, new easyjet southampton geneva flights, new jet2 stansted grenoble & geneva, plus glasgow geneva flights, new ba heathrow grenoble & manchester chambery flights, lots of new scheduled shared transfers including mid-week ones, new clean air windscreen stickers required for city centre driving in paris, lyon & grenoble, new speed bumps in la perierre, only one sunday eurostar operating, no booze allowed on any overnight eurostar ski trains, monarch cease trading, saboia ‘b’ block out of action for winter 2018, car park in la croisette to get 4 electric parking points, new le praz gondola station, ticket office and underground car park announced, new grangettes gondola and aquamotion gondola plans revealed, refurb of reception and bar area at hotel montana la tania, new floor and deck alterations and new beers at pub le ski lodge, new tarmac near hotel montana, public lift and bridge in la tania, new cash machine in la tania, new piste shaping from aiguille du fruit to chanrossa/marmotte area, anyone still reading?anyone still reading?
Other Stuff We Missed Out
La Boulotte (aka Katies) in 1650 is still up & running and looking forward to welcoming you all with a big smile and special hospitality this Winter – fantastic community spirit and friends rallying around at the end of last season – good work everybody.
Parallel Lines Snow Sports School will have more instructors in La Tania this Winter – they’re becoming more & more popular and focusing a lot of their marketing on La Tania. They’ve taken on more British and International instructors again for this winter which will keep their team really strong in teaching and technical ability. And what a classic album to name themselves after by the way…
We’ve noticed a lot of ground work around the top of Aiguille du Fruit towards Chanrossa (Rama piste) – probably re-shaping to avoid such direct sun contact which does make this run suffer in late season.
Magic or Magic Ski Academy or Magic in Motion etc who got together with a joint marketing approach last Winter with Oxygène Ski & Snowboard School have now merged in to Oxygène completely. The Oxygène brand has been running for 25 years and have over 20 staff and 200 ski instructors spread across 8 resorts in the Tarentaise. Look out for them in La Tania this Winter with their distinctive blue uniforms (but now with a splash of Orange as an ode to Magic).
There’s a new cash machine in La Tania…
Note that it will try and persuade you to take the “guaranteed exchange rate” which is nearly always a rip off – select the amount in Euros which will convert at International Bank Rates not the rate of the cash machine manufacturers / installers / agents / town hall etc. It’s going to be particularly hard to work out which option to take after an Après session at Pub Le Ski Lodge opposite.
ESF Courchevel 1650 are offering new Off Piste Packages for Winter 2018. Starting with the 2 Day Discovery Pack as an introduction to off piste skiing with local classics such as “Little Canada”, “Les Arolles”, “The Petit Canyon,” “Pyramids”, “The Canyon des Avals” included. The ESF 1650 will provide Safety equipment including shovel, probe, avalanche transceiver and bag. Prices start from €199 per person for groups of 4.
We must mention Sam Burrows of Snowlimits Ski School (and of Pat n Sam who play at La Taiga) who’s just opened a new Wood Fired Pizza Restaurant in Wilmslow, Chesire. Wood.Fire.Smoke opened on 2nd October but we’re sure we’ll see Sam in the Alps during Winter…
La Tania Swimming Pool & Beginners Area
No definitive news on the upgrade to the beginners area (a single long, covered magic carpet lift was rumoured with an easier winding beginner piste). Currently this is managed by the ESF and there are rumours the the Swimming Pool may go – whether this is due to the new beginners area or for cost savings (and to encourage use of the €63m Aquamotion Centre) is not known. Certainly it would kill La Tania in Summer without that pool – it’s our one USP in Summer. With no Tourist Office Director and Courchevel running things it will be interesting to see how all this pans out…
Future Developments in La Tania and The 3 Valleys
La Tania
Apart from the issues above around the beginners area, the main future development in La Tania is the Moretta Village that has been talked about for years. Plans are getting more detailed every year and even the new chair lift has already been designed with a commitment from S3V the lift company to go ahead with a 6 seater high speed detachable chair to link with the Bouc Blanc chair once the proposed “village” building goes ahead. It may be the route as far as possible from the gondola station though – encouraging a split of the village as many fear.
The latest plans we’ve seen have the construction consisting of:
– 990 Tourist Beds
– 60 Seasonnaire Beds
– 175 Private Parking Places
– 100 Public Parking Places
– 2 Restaurants (one with 450 covers)
– Bar / lounge with 250 seats
– Ski Shop
– Crèche
– 650 m² Fitness Centre
Remember North is at the top (unlike a piste map)
Lift Stats: Length 921m, Vertical 346m, Top station 1703m, Pylons 10, Chairs 45, Speed 5.5 m/s, 2400 skiers/hour
Currently we have not heard of any final commitment to a start date on this project. There have been impact reports and planning discussions – but none have dealt with where the parking will be during the construction phase, that is already an issue on peak weeks. No mention of pedestrian access to the chalet quarter or general update of the resort centre infrastructure including the pavement and lighting either – just the grand plans – is this what the merger to Courchevel has brought us (plus buses in the Summer!).
A meeting is planned on 25 Oct 2017 to discuss the future of the La Tania Tourist Office – held in inter-season when no one is about of course…
New Gondolas in Courchevel 1550 and AquaMotion
The Grangettes gondola from 1550 to 1850 is due for replacement with work scheduled to start next Summer in order to open for December 2018.
Also revealed are plans for a gondola from Aquamotion to join a mid station on Grangettes (remember map is North at the top unlike the piste maps).
Pistes from 1650 and 1850 down to Aquamotion are also planned and a large new apartment complex down there is now under construction
New main lift building and car park in Le Praz
Work will start in Spring 2018 on a new main gondola building and underground car park in Le Praz – a solution aimed at day skiers to reduce traffic to higher levels.
The new building will have:
– 500 parking spaces on 2 levels
– A new gondola station
– S3V Lift Pass Office
– Tourist Office
– A children’s playground;
– Public toilets and ski storage;
– Multipurpose room of 245 m2 amd a terrace
– A medical centre with piste and ambulance access
– There will also be sports facilities on the roof and a reception area
– Landscaping around the building and lake.
The total cost of the project is estimated at €27m and is scheduled for completion by December 2019. Not sure if the new Praz gondola right up to 1850 Croisette (longer than the current one) is included in this timescale.
Other Rumours and Expected Developments
In Val Thorens a new blue piste from Cime de Caron is to be built – this will be needed in future to carry bulldozers etc for the construction of the new gondola from Orelle to Cime de Caron.
Mont Vallon is to get new gondola cabins – lets hope they have seats eh?
A new La Masse snow cannon reservoir at altitude is expected to be constructed next Summer.
No news on the possible Val Thorens (Plan de l’Eau base area) to La Masse lift we reported on last year or anything else towards Monte du Borgne either.
A Bozel lift has been discussed in various planning meetings once again this year – the preferred option was via St Bon to Aquamotion but this still seems a long way away with numerous planning, political and technical difficulties to overcome.
Rumours of a new 6 seater chair in the Meribel Valley – whether this will replace Roc de Fer, Cherferie, Olympic, Cote Brune or something else is not confirmed yet.
Useful Links
What’s New in La Tania & The 3 Valleys 2018. #1 of 5 – The New Lifts
What’s New in La Tania & 3 Valleys 2018. #2 of 5 – New Pistes & Ski Area Work
What’s New 2018 #3 of 5 – Building Work, New Chalets, New Experiences Etc.
What’s New 2018 #4 of 5 – Travel and Transfer News
Photo Credits: Mairie de Courchevel, Ralph Corner, Charlie Gorman, ESF 1650, La Tania & Courchevel Tourist Offices
May Snow Pics – A Wintry Last Week…
The snow down to resort level on Monday 1st May 2017 – Val Thorens Closing Day for Winter 2017
Wed 26 Apr 2017
Snow coming in on Thursday Night 27 Apr 2017
Fri 28 Apr 2017
Fri 28 Apr 2017
Meribel Village 28 Apr
Meribel 28 Apr
Sun comes out on Sat 29 Apr 2017
But by Monday 1st May – back to Snow
Mon 01 May 2017
Bouc Blanc Terrace – around 30cm here 01 May 2017
Courchevel 1850 on 1st May 2017
Saulire 03 May 2017 – First Tracks for those who hiked
La Troika 01 May 2017
Green again by Wed 03 May 2017
La Tania lifts open for Winter on 16 Dec 2017 (and in July & August for walkers and bikers)
Looking like Winter again…
Some fresh snow overnight making things look like Winter once again in La Tania.
The Bouc Blanc terrace left out overnight in true La Tania superstition tradition.
As forecast only a good covering turning everything white really but it will freshen up the pistes considerably after all that sunshine.
Still looking positive for significant snow next week as GFS Models start to agree and Météo France are forecasting snow all week! (And generally they’re a bit more conservative and accurate about snow than the myriad of automated guessing weather apps).
Snow Pics Around La Tania 10 November 2016
Lots of snow today to the valley floor and a little more forecast for tomorrow too.
Will we see the Bouc Blanc terrace central rail buried overnight? That’s about 90cm!
6pm getting closer to the top of the rail…
Snow Pics, First Tracks & Info on Courchevel OPENING Preview Day Fri 11 Nov 2016
The first tracks of the season on Saulire today and S3V have announced Courchevel will be OPENING this Friday 11 November 2016 for a FREE preview day 09:30 – 15:00 with the Biollay, Verdons & hopefully Saulire lifts planned. Lifts and piste opening will depend on conditions on Friday as more snow is expected on Wednesday & Thursday this week and safety is of course of paramount importance. Temperatures are remaining really cold throughout this week too.
There will be free parking, free instruction tips from the ESF Ski School and free snacks served on the piste in the afternoon from 3pm – great news, time to get booking that early trip or Christmas… Lifts open on 10 December Book Now!
First Tracks for Winter 2017 on Saulire from those hiking up this morning – Good Work!
Looking down Saulire and grooming has already started plus the snow cannons are blasting away today too
The Ski Lodge Terrace in La Tania today
Looking down towards La Tania
La Tania and the forest – looking magnificent
The Bouc Blanc Terrace above La Tania
Fantastic views from the webcams this morning of La Tania, Courchevel and Meribel courtesy of the Tourist Offices, S3V and Merinet
La Tania – latania.co.uk – La Tania Ski Resort Community Web Site
Summer in La Tania
Click here for What’s On in La Tania this Summer Updated for 30 July to 5 August 2016
Pub Le Ski Lodge has Moules & Frites on special every Thursday night plus the original Alpine home made Fish n Chips with mushy peas on Fridays. Full Menu & Snacks – Reservations (0)685 107013
The Alpes-Home Exhibition takes place in Meribel 29-31 July. More dates in Here Comes The Summer…
The race up to Le Bouc Blanc (7km / 600m vertical)
Video clips and pics from this year’s event courtesy of Snow Retreat
Courchevel Wake Park at Le Praz
Now open every day until 15 Sep 11am – 7pm. Prices start from €20 per hour for under 16s and €23 per hour for adults. You can hire the lifts for a maximum of 6 people for 1 hour for €150. Paddle boards from €10 / half hour. More here…
Summer Shuttle Bus Service 2016
The free Summer shuttle bus is now confirmed for Summer – timetable here. The service runs from Bozel, 3 times a day up to Saint-Bon, then approx every half hour from Saint-Bon up to 1850 (nearest stop is Le Praz for La Tania – take the footpath down in the Summer!) and it of course now stops at Aquamotion between 1550 Courchevel Village and 1650 Courchevel Moriond.
There is also a Brides les Bains to Courchevel bus. Useful for the bikers heading down the valley – note this is Sunday Only from 10 July to 21 August. Leaves Brides at 09:30, 10:50, 14:00 and 16:30).
Here Comes The Summer!
La Tania opens for Summer on Sunday 3rd July until Friday 26th August – Summer Life in La Tania
La Tania in Summer – Pics of La Tania, The 3 Valleys and surrounding area
Photo Credits to: Robin Garner, Anna Jasiolek, Atelier du Vent, Noel Pelegrin Kamelot Camp,
Tourist Office La Tania, www.latania.co.uk, 3V Infosnews, La Tanier des Momes.
La Perrière and Saint-Bon merge in to “Courchevel”
It may have been an April Fool by us a few years ago saying La Tania was being renamed Courchevel but it is getting nearer (sort of)…
The two local councils (La Tania belongs to La Perrière) have approved the merger and will make a final decision on the naming of the towns before the 30 September 2016 with the new towns coming in to effect on 1st January 2017.
As we understand it these are likely to be La Perrière commune de Courchevel, Saint-Bon commune de Courchevel and La Tania commune de Courchevel. We can’t see the name La Tania disappearing anytime soon – the 1550 and 1650 designations are still widely in use for Courchevel Village and Moriond.
Financially these changes do make sense so hopefully a new lift or escalator/walk way up the chalets area can be financed and the main centre of La Tania & the arrival area at The Montana can be all refurbed now.
The further benefits of one commune and joint publicity, tourist info, major developments, ski area improvements and belonging to “Courchevel” one of the premier ski resort names in the world are all fairly obvious too. Inter-village transport links should improve too and maybe La Tania will have full free bus links at the beginning and end of the ski season and through the Summer too.
Of course no one with lose their job and there will just be additional bureaucracy available and two town halls etc etc. Further information in the Mairie Newsletter
Winter 2017 Eurostar Tickets Now On Sale
Tickets for next Winter’s Eurostar services from London St Pancras International or Ashford International direct to Moûtiers (only 16km from La Tania) are now on sale from £149 return.
Same timetable as last year with Friday/Saturday evening trains and a Saturday day time service.
Further Information and 2017 Eurostar Ski Train Timetable
easyJet Flights for next Winter & La Tania Apartments for 2017 now on sale
The second Winter batch of easyJet flights went on sale on 9 June 2016 at 7am for flights until 25 March 2017 (this includes Half Term, Valentine’s & St Paddy’s but not Easter).
easyJet are still leading the way with up to 59 flights per day from the UK to Geneva next Winter. Flights up to 5 Feb 2017 were released on 14 April 2016. All the routes & all the flights here
Privately owned self catered apartments for rent next season are now on-line with prices and availability La Tania Apartments 2017
La Tania, Courchevel & Méribel Valleys all scheduled to open Sat 10 Dec 2016 to Sun 23 Apr 2017
All opening dates and lift pass prices for 2017
All the links you need to get yourself out here!
Specials | Accommodation | Apartments 2017 | Flights | Transfers | Car Hire | Driving | Book Now!
Euro 2016 France
Full coverage of England’s tournament hopes once again as we revived the England Tournament Blog from Brazil as La Tania Does Football once again… More to come on the inquest soon with more of the highlights as another dismal tournament (well the football bit) ends for us. Great trips, memories and catching up with friends across France following England’s 4 games. Could be an end of an era though with Russia & Qatar looming & next Euros all over the place, it’s certainly been a trip since Italia ’90…
La Tania Ski Blog / Snow Reports / Latest News
Click here to open a new page latania.co.uk/blog
Quick Links and The Important Stuff
Latest Photos and Latest Videos with the video snow reports plus The Ski Blog
Value For Money in The Three Valleys – where you can eat & drink well without breaking the bank
Ski Flight Information – all the routes, all the operators, all Winter
The Toughest Days Skiing Ever? The Escapade 35 lifts, 51,000ft vert, 92km
La Tania does football – some of the past trips suffering watching our teams…
Shops and Services – all the shops and services from electricians to vets to paragliding
La Tania Shop – order lessons, ski hire, child care, catering, flights, GPS, insurance on-line
Holiday Reviews of La Tania now on-line and searchable by company / chalet
Our YouTube Channel with video snow reports, skiing, bands and general carry on…
The La Tania Maps / Aerial Pics pages – interactive maps, piste maps and village plans
Ski Gifts – all your ski gifts, presents, books, DVDs, car hire, flights, hotels, parking… Charente Gites
Our Summer Life in La Tania Page and The La Tania Celebrity Watch
Mobile Site – WebApp with off-line content.
Last Remaining Snow on Col de la Loze
The last patch of snow visible on Col de la Loze from La Tania must only have a few days left in the +30º temperatures we’ve seen over the last couple of days – that said there are some storms and a drop in temperature over the next couple of days so mountain tops will be white again briefly.
The view from the Bouc Blanc terrace
The view from the orientation table looking back to Rocher de la Loze
Still masses of snow left in the main Saulire bowl – more than usual for July
