Race your way to FAMILY FUN
If you’re thinking about booking an Easter ski break with family or friends but haven’t yet chosen your resort, set your sights on high-altitude fun in Les Trois Vallees, the largest ski area in the world and...
side — a day of skiing fresh powder on the slopes of Courchevel and Meribel with some of the best snow of the season.
You never know who you’ll bump into on the 3V mountains — I spent some time skiing with Three Valleys ski and bike ambassador Timy Theaux, a pro skier and instructor who specialises in sk’e-bike which combines his two great passions of skiing and mountain biking. In spring, Timy e-bikes to the slopes, goes ski touring and finishes off by riding his bike back down the mountain on single track trails.
As snowfall patterns change and ski seasons are predicted to shorten, Timy’s sk’e-biking could be the future for many year-round mountain resorts. In the meantime, I loved doing powder laps with him off the Cote Brun chair lift at the top of Meribel.
I had opted to stay in Les Menuires (1,800m) for the Enduro race and checked into the new Higalik hotel — it means ice house in the Inuit language — a chic cocoon reflecting the mountains with metal and wood structures softened by shimmering textiles. Set right next to a ski slope at the entrance of Les Menuires, it was a free shuttle ride or ten-minute walk to Croisette, the main Les Menuires hub.
Purpose-built and with five different areas, Les Menuires was traditionally considered to be the ugliest duckling of the Three Valleys but also offered a more affordable gateway to skiing in this vast area. Friendly Les M has seen a lot of upgrading recently and will gain both a five-star hotel and residence in the next few years.
With hotels making up just 5 per cent of its tourist accommodation, the resort is now home to plenty of lovely apartments and chalets but still offers relatively good value for money compared to some parts of the Three Valleys.
It was a perfect base from which to plot our Enduro course, ski a diverse mix of slopes and enjoy fine food. In the Les Menuires area, we ate at the classy l’Ours Blanc hotel, La Maison de Savoy, Le Comptoir at Croisette, Antigel and the famed Chez Pepe Nicolas (Val ThorensLes Menuires) which specialises in Savoyard dishes with a modern twist, perfect for preEnduro carb-loading or postEnduro celebrations over Easter weekend 2024.