News from Val D'Isere
28th Aug 15
This is the breaking news from Val D'Isere...
It’s been talked about for years, but work finally got underway this summer on the first stage of a €16 million two-year project to entirely redevelop the top of Solaise, one of the two iconic mountains reached from the front de neige base area.
In this case, ‘redevelop’ means literally to reshape the summit. The slope has been regraded from around 16% to 7% to make it a secure learning area.
The old Solaise Express four-person chair-lift, along with the cable-car, continue this winter to provide mountain access. However, from November 2016 these will be replaced by a 10-person gondola with 91 cabins, complete with heated seats and wifi. The lift also serves a new tubing area for kids and adults.
Top stations for all three lifts are on one level beside the new day lodge containing a café, a picnic area, a sun terrace and toilets. It’s a place where you can relax and enjoy spectacular views from the floor-to-ceiling windows.
NEW SNOWMAKING
The snow-making facility has been improved to provide Val d’Isère with guaranteed snow-cover from November
until May. The Snow Factory which represents a total investment of €3 million, is the largest snowmaking facility in Europe and can pump out sufficient snow to fill an Olympic-sized swimming-pool in 30 minutes.
DIGITAL
NEW WEBSITE
The official resort website valdisere.com is in the process of being entirely redesigned and rebuilt for this winter in multi-lingual format. Key points are up-to-date reports on weather and snow conditions as well as a forecast for the days ahead, along with blogs and social media. The replacement website will go online in the autumn.
BEST SNOW APP IN THE WORLD?
We think so. Last December Val d’Isère hosted its first Hackathon. During three days of competition, ten teams of developers from around the world gathered in the resort. The result, available for this winter, is the definitive resort app with constantly evolving content adapted for each user.
ACCOMMODATION
NEW 5* HOTEL: LE YULE
Le Yule is a new ski-in, ski-out hotel on the edge of the front de neige. The hotel has 41 bedrooms, most of which offer exceptional views of the piste. You can lunch in the brasserie or on the sun terrace. In the evening, dine on regional specialities in front of a roaring log fire. The Yule also has a lounge bar, swimmingpool, wellness area (three treatment rooms, two saunas and a steam room), a hairdresser, a ski shop, games room, and a cinema.
LE SAMOVAR
Hotel Le Samovar in La Daille now has four stars. Improvements include a spa with Pure Altitude products, a south-facing terrace for all the first floor rooms, along with a new bar and rooms.
NEW HOTEL VILLAGE LA MOURRA
Hotel Village La Mourra is a new luxury hotel complex at the top end of town that will hopefully be completed in time for this winter. The Hotel Village is designed in the style of a typical Savoyard hamlet. It’s owned and run by the team from the five-star Le Blizzard and has ten suites, along with four large chalets with five to seven bedrooms, home cinema, and a Clarins spa with pool, steam room, sauna, and treatment rooms.
ANYONE FOR BOWLS?
Five-star Hotel Les Barmes de l’Ours now has a two-lane bowling alley, which caters for parties of up to 12 people and is open to non-residents. There’s also a snooker table and a kids’ mini-club.
RESTAURANTS
THE SKI GALLERY & FONDUE FACTORY
The Ski Gallery & Fondue Factory, serving traditional Savoyard specialities, grills and salads, replaces La Perdrix Blanche. Along with a salon de thé, it’s part of a new leisure and dining complex that also houses a permanent display of over 1000 skis from the 19th century to the present day.
L'ATELIER D'EDMOND
L’Atelier d’Edmond, opposite the cable-car at Le Fornet, is one of only 80 restaurants in France to be awarded two Michelin stars for its original cuisine presided over by chef Benoit Vidal.
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