| nter is approaching in the Northern Hemisphere, many | | | | abandoning the charming rustic designs of traditional |
| people from all over the world will be planning winter | | | | ski resort architecture. |
| vacations. What better way to enjoy a winter | | | | Skiers in La Plagne will encounter various permutation |
| vacation and yet having a healthy full body workout | | | | of piste and off piste, from exhilarating steep |
| instead of gaining winter weight by going on a skiing | | | | descents on the huge glacier at Bellecote(3,000m or |
| vacation? | | | | almost 10,000ft), then cruising delightfully down quiet |
| In this article, we will be taking a look at two of the | | | | meandering larch lined avenues to the charming |
| more popular ski resorts in France and if you are | | | | villages of Montchavin-Les Coches, |
| heading to Europe for your winter holidays then the | | | | Champagny-en-Vanoise and Montalbert. |
| information here may come in useful. | | | | Now let's take a look at Les Arcs. This resort has a |
| The ski resorts of La Plagne and Les Arcs in France | | | | Eurostar train terminal connection at Bourg Saint |
| are surrounded by breathtaking white capped | | | | Maurice and thus making it the most accessible |
| mountain ranges. Both resorts attract skiing | | | | high-altitude ski resort in France. |
| enthusiasts mainly from France and Europe. However | | | | Les Arcs is also known to have pioneered the so |
| in the past few years, the resorts are also attracting | | | | called 'ski evolutif', which is a technique used for fast |
| more and more Asians and American skiers and | | | | learning by progressing quickly from short skis to |
| holiday makers. | | | | longer skis. |
| La Plagne is one of the largest single ski areas in the | | | | Les Arcs is also the homeground of the "Kilometre |
| world, with 212kms (about 132 miles) of pistes | | | | Lancee" in which daredevils on huge 237cm or 8 ft |
| served by 144 ski lifts and is linked to Les Arcs by a | | | | skis, clad in thin aerodynamic plastic suits and donning |
| four minute cable car ride. This ski resort is made up | | | | 'Darth Vader of Star Wars' style visors, speed down |
| of 10 villages and is probably the most visited ski | | | | the specially designed track at exhilarating breakneck |
| resort in the world. | | | | speed of up to 240kph (150mph) or more. |
| In additional to skiing activities, visitors can also | | | | Just like La Plagne, Les Arcs ski resort has acres and |
| indulge in other activities such as bowling, working out | | | | acres seemingly never ending good cruising ski terrain |
| in a fully equipped gym and sports centre, get away | | | | and its off piste opportunities are simply fantastic. |
| from the winter chill by taking sauna baths, go | | | | Take for example, the Aiguille Rouge, which |
| hang-gliding or ice-skating. | | | | dominates the resort has many challenging runs down |
| For a family outing, there are more than 200 shops | | | | its front face slopes. The Aiguille Rouge is also the |
| to go shopping in or dine in La Plagne myriads of | | | | starting point for one of the longest skiing descents |
| restaurants. Bars and dance clubs light up La Plagne | | | | in the French Alps. The largely black run down to the |
| by night. | | | | charming village of Villaroger is over 16km or about 10 |
| La Plagne is sometimes billed as the 'third generation' | | | | miles long. Whew! |
| French ski resort with its futuristic architectural | | | | With such fabulous skiing opportunities, it is therefore |
| designs has probably also influenced other ski resorts | | | | not surprising that La Plagne along with Les Arcs ski |
| in France such as Flaine, Avoriaz and Les Arcs to go | | | | resorts in France is able to attract so many skiing |
| for the new world space age architecture and | | | | enthusiasts from all the world, isn't it? |