Val d’Isere opening weekend

Val d’Isere opened for the season on Saturday 24^th November, right on schedule and with a tantalizing amount of snow at altitude. The VIP SKI Sales Team spent the weekend drooling over photos of fresh tracks, shiny new lifts and blue skies. Our winter staff are in their chalets and reports of snow are coming in thick and fast. Before we know it the ski season will be in full swing – we can’t wait!

Can you improve on perfection? Those in charge in Val d’Isere are certainly trying. There are a raft of upgrades both planned and ongoing within the resort, keeping it up there as the best ski resort in the world. We’re particularly excited about the new gondola from La Daille to the Folie Douce, replacing an antiquated 4-person lift with a brand new 10-person, top-of-the-range POMA gondola. It opened successfully to pedestrians on Saturday, gliding above the OK piste in record time and with minimal noise pollution.

The snow conditions above 2300m were incredible for this early in the season. The three main summits – the Pisaillas glacier above Le Fornet, the top of the Solaise and the top of the Bellevarde/Olympique – were all open for business. A good base of snow is crucial for maintaining snow conditions long into the spring skiing months, and with 60cm covering the top we will be keeping our fingers crossed for another record breaking winter season.

Check out this video from our friends at TDC – The Development Centre for a taste of what you can expect:

Val d’Isere is open and tdc - the development centre coach Colin was up there is check out the conditions.#valdisere #tdcski #skilessons Things looking good for our Early Season December Clinics pic.twitter.com/7loyv808Hp
— TDC (@tdcski) November 24, 2018

More snow is forecast over the coming weeks, making the early-season period in the lead up to Christmas the perfect time to book a ski holiday. The slopes are quiet and there is a 10% discount on Val d’Isere/Tignes lift passes for guests staying on the 2^nd, 9^th and 16^th December. The last spaces in our TDC clinics are flying off the shelf, so if you fancy a tune-up prior to Christmas then don’t delay.

Elsewhere, Alpe d’Huez plans to open on the 1^st December, the Portes du Soleil will kick the season off from the 15^th December while the Arlberg ski area is gearing up for it’s opening weekend next weekend. We’ll keep you up to date with all the action from our 10 ski resorts, so keep checking back for updates as the season progresses.