Courchevel Free Preview Day this Wednesday 15 November 2017

Courchevel free preview day is this Wednesday 15 November (beating Val Thorens by a couple of days!).

With the fresh snow over the last couple of days and perfect weather forecast Verdons and Biollay and their main two runs will be open from 09:00 to 16:00.

There will also be the chance to visit the snow making operation, ride piste bashers and breakfast/snacks will be served with music playing at the main 1850 area in front of La Croisette.

Free parking at the Croisette and also in Courchevel Village with the Tovets chair open for access.

They’re getting ready…

More Snow on the way…

Snow turned to rain overnight on Friday as temperatures returned to above freezing level in resort. All set to change later today with much colder temperatures and some snow although fairly localised so predictions of how much are guesses really.

Wigglies – The GFS ensembles showing much colder temps and some snow that’s reflected on local France Meteo forecasts but not on other national (& international) ones.

Resort back to green temporarily – back to white by tomorrow hopefully!

S3V Confirm snow making has started for the season…

Temperatures have finally come down and snow yesterday and overnight has left 23cm on top of Saulire and around 10cm at Courchevel 1850.

With temperatures looking likely to be below average for the time of year (down to -2.3ºC in La Tania last night) for at least the next week or so the snow making system across the Courchevel and La Tania valleys is starting up.

Still quite early for this and whether they’ll start creating pistes down to 1850 remains to be seen or maybe they will just concentrate on establishing a base higher up.

There are now more that 650 snow cannons in this part of The 3 Valleys alone – covering more than half of the ski area. Courchevel is scheduled to open on 9 December with La Tania a week later on 16 December. Meanwhile Val Thorens are kicking things off with a free preview day to Club Val members on 17 November.

More “What’s New” bits in La Tania

Following on from the “What’s New” last month some further work going on in La Tania…

The new state of the art super efficient snow cannon installed at the top of the beginners Troika area in La Tania – another 115 cannons across La Tania & Courchevel including more on the Plan Fontaine greeen run down to resort and the blue Boulevard des Arolles above the Bouc Blanc.
 

The track up to the Saboia area at the back of the Ski Lodge / Kalinka has been tarmaced at last..
 

Resurfacing of the paths up to the bridge across the piste and the area in front of the Montana Hotel.
 

Photos courtesy of Charlie Gorman and Freeride Republic

The Annual “Worst Winter Ever” Headline

The Daily Express does this every year – it did get it right in THE Winter of 1947 however…

Today’s front page has the coldest Winter for 5 years – of course that would make it the best really!

More of the Daily Express snow warnings here

Saboia B Closure and Access to Saboia A for Winter 2018

Further to the news of the immediate Closure of Saboia B Apartment Block a letter has been sent to residents of Saboia A concerning the access to their apartments.

Auto translated below – but basically work will ensure that Saboia A people can access the main entrance via the slope just to the left of Saboia A as you look at the entrance from the road and steps will be put in.
 

====
Dear Sir or Madam
We inform you of an imminent danger of the SABOIA B decided by the administrative court of Grenoble to October 30. Pedestrian access will be blocked by a steel fence.
The external barrier will be installed at the beginning of November .
Consequently, pedestrians for Saboia A will follow the condominium Atrey and follow the path used in Summer to join the main entrance.
Winter access will be ensured by the installation of a handrail from the beginning of the road (on the grounds of Chalets de l’Atrey and subject of course to their authorisation), to the left side and before the season a wide staircase / landing in metal grating covered with a black rubber matting up to the entrance will be installed.
This will remain the responsibility of the syndicate of co-owners of the Saboia B.
The access of vehicles to the underground garages will be preserved but care will be needed.
For emergency services access is maintained with the creation of two pivoting gates strictly reserved for snow removal and rescue.
With good wishes and your understanding,
Madam, Sir, our best regards.
Lys RINCHE-SE ROSE Condominium Manager
====

The time of year to adjust the Temperature Scale…

Temperatures dropped below freezing level down to resort level in La Tania at the weekend and the first snow fell down to resort.

That said we’ve another warm spell this week until November starts and temperatures come back down to generally below the average for the time of year (note that forecast goes outside of the reliable timeframe).


The temperature scales on the La Tania Weather Station change to show negative recordings for Winter…
 

Situated at resort level this year’s extremes so far…
The coldest recorded temperature this year was -9.6ºC on 11 Feb 2017
The hottest recorded temperature this year was 31.6ºC on 01 Aug 2017
 

The short warm spell can be seen on the GFS Chart…
GFS (Global Forecast System) ensembles are models from different weather prediction systems produced at the same time. This graph is for La Tania (or at least 45 degrees Latitude, 6 degrees Longitude which is pretty close). Updated every 6 hours or so.

Bottom lines are precipitation and top lines are temperature forecast at around 1450m (850hPa, the altitude depends on pressure). La Tania base is approximately 1400m.
Red is a 30 year average. Blue is the control line. Grey is a consolidation.
When the lines are all close together the forecast should be more accurate – for snow look for peaks downwards heading below zero from the top lines and peaks upwards from the bottom lines, showing the forecasted amount of snow.
 

Live Webcams, Weather, Temperatures, Forecasts, Lift & Piste Opening Information and the Off Piste Avalanche Risk level can be viewed at: www.latania.co.uk/resort/LIVE

 

And the first snow to lie in resort this Winter on 23 Oct 2017

 

Saulire First Tracks of Winter 2018…

First Tracks of Winter 2018 spotted on Saulire on Monday – Good Work!

So who was it? An S3V pick-up and a Pisteur spotted at the top on Monday afternoon but the hiking / skinning lines were long before that…

Full Size Image Here

Saboia B Announcement & Tourist Offices Merge

UPDATE
The Saboia B Apartments re-opened in December 2019 after remedial work had been undertaken and monitoring equipment installed to guarantee the safety / stability of the building. It took a lot longer than expected but good to see this accommodation now available once again and approved safe.

From October 2017: The Mairie has now finally made a public announcement about the closure of the Saboia Apartment “B” block we reported on 10 days ago. They’ve also announced the takeover of the La Tania Tourist Office by Courchevel – or merger if you like… Auto-translations below.

“SABOIA B” in La Tania

OCTOBER 19, 2017
Due to major disturbances affecting the foundation and structure of the residence “Le Saboïa B” in La Tania, access to this building will be formally prohibited by October 30, 2017.

Accordingly, no person shall enter and remain in the immovable in accordance with the Municipal By – law of Imminent Determination of October 11, 2017 .

This prohibition will apply until the building designed to solve the disorders observed is rested. For any further information, please contact the syndic de co-ownership:

Agency Nexity
56 rue Basse de la Gare
73600 Moûtiers
Tel 0479 24 27 15

La Tania and Courchevel

OCTOBER 13, 2017
At the Municipal Council on October 12th, the elected representatives of Courchevel voted in favor of the transfer of the tourism office of La Tania to the EPIC Courchevel Tourism on October 31, 2017.

Following the merger between Saint-Bon (Courchevel station) and La Perrière (La Tania station) and the creation of the new commune of Courchevel, the elected representatives wished to rationalize the exercise of the competence “Promotion of tourism” in combining resources within a single structure.

“This is an additional step in the merger to optimize our resources,” said Philippe Mugnier, Mayor of Courchevel.

As part of this merger, the Municipal Council will shortly be appointing 4 new members to the EPIC Courchevel Tourisme to ensure the representativeness of La Tania.

In the short term, this merger will result in the pooling of human and financial resources.

The offices of La Tania will of course remain open to continue the functions of reception of the public in the station.

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

Opening Dates

3 Valleys Snow Guarantee

Lift Pass Prices

2018 Piste Maps Downloads

Photo Credits: Mairie de Courchevel, Ralph Corner, Charlie Gorman, ESF 1650, La Tania & Courchevel Tourist Offices