Grenoble Airport Ski Transfers: Lessons Learned the Hard Way

As someone who's spent years working in the around the Alpes and in Serre Chevalier I'm all too familiar with Grenoble Airport and the difficulties getting from the airport to resort can bring. A mixture of little available information from French websites, crowds, flight delays and changeable weather mean the potential for problems is endless. After spending far too many hours searching for reliable information I thought I'd try to collect what I've learnt the hard way in one place.

Grenoble to Serre Chevalier and Grenoble to Briancon

Travelling either of these routes means traversing the Col du Lautaret. The Col isn't to be taken lightly – with a high point of 2508 metres this is one of the highest altitude sections of paved road in Europe. Obviously travelling on a road which is as high as some of the pistes you're heading to ski means the weather is a serious factor.

Driving

If you are considering driving from Grenoble to Serre Chevalier in either your own vehicle or a rental car then having snow tyres all round or good chains and 4-wheel drive is vital. For the much of the ski season travel without these provisions is not allowed, and the police often enforce this with checks on either side of the pass. You can check the conditions on the road on this website http://www.inforoute05.fr/wir3/circulation.html but be warned, when the French authorities refer to 'Circulation difficile' the conditions on the road would be reason for closure in most other countries. It is assumed by the authorities that anyone driving this road is familiar with mountain conditions. The Col regularly stays open with 20cms plus of solid compacted snow on the road. It is worth considering also that on the Grenoble side of the pass right until the real climb starts you are driving in the Isere Department and then cross into the Haute Alpes Department – this means the responsibility for clearing the roads is passed on and road conditions in the Hautes Alpes can be vastly different from those in Isere. Don't assume because the roads have been well cleared up to this point that they will continue to be. Another consideration is the wind – even if it's been sometime since the last snowfall a strong wind can make the visibility as poor as in a blizzard.

By Bus or Coach

Travel from Grenoble to Serre Chevalier by bus is not a simple procedure. You must first get the airport shuttle bus to Gare Routiere in Grenoble from the airport. The only company running any regular service is Lignes Express Regionales – LER 35. You can find their timetable here. http://www.vfd.fr/horaires/ler-35/ler35-18-12-2010-au-24-04-2011 From personal experience this service is not the most reliable, on more than one occasion I've been left attempting to hitchhike in the snow when services simply haven't arrived. There is no source of information when cancellations occur except calling the information line (not cheap on a roaming UK phone) as LER do not have staff at ticket offices at either end. Bookings must be made in advance. And at EUR 35 each way it's not great value either.

All in all, Grenoble to Briancon travel is never simple, so these days my recommendation to friends and family is simple book a transfer in advance with a company that has properly equipped vehicles and experienced drivers. Getting a door to door service, particularly when you've got heavy snow equipment in tow or children already tired from travel, is well worth it. From past experience I'm happy to recommend Alpine Transfer Company - http://www.alpine-transfer-company.com/ ATC also offer ski transfers to Les Deux Alpes and Alp d'Huez .
Steve Honey

Good advice Steve.
Having driven it myself I can fully endorse the Col is not to be taken lightly and travelling without the required items is both foolish and potentially expensive if you get stopped.

Good advice.
We drove over the Col a couple of weekends ago from Alpe d'Huez to Serre Chevalier after a huge dump of snow on the AH side. The http://www.inforoute05.fr/wir3/cameras.html website has webcams along all routes in Hautes-Alpes and proved really useful. Although the Col showed it was clear, the tunnel just over the top was full of blown snow so you have to keep your wits about you.