Having previously stayed in pretty much every "Arc" village from Villaroger to Peisey, a recent presentation from Arc 1950 persuaded us to try the most recently built of the Les Arcs stations. Cheap flights from easyJet and the promise of quiet slopes in the opening week sealed the deal and here we are.
We stopped over in Bourg Saint Maurice last night, and were treated to a classic temperature inversion; scraping the ice off the car in Bourg at -6C and then climbing up the Les Arcs road with temperatures rising to about 3C at 1500m, before they began to vary markedly between sun and shade (we'll come back to this below - because it matters for the snow).
So, about that snow...
As was clear as soon as we got to Pre St Esprit (the lowest point of the Arc 1950/2000 valley), there is, actually, no problem with piste cover at this altitude and above. We dropped straight down from 1950 for our first run of the season to warm up the ski legs and found good snow - "packed powder" - all the way down. This part of the mountain gets limited sun at this time of year and that's obviously helping.
Higher up, the pistes are in good condition with every variation of the aforementioned "packed powder" - some patches of sugary cannon contributions but generally a firm base under a "chalky" surface. There are areas of hard pack, on slopes with more sun exposure but those are limited.
The lower pistes, probably from 2100m down, hardened up notably as the sun left the valley around 3pm and the air temperature dropped rapidly.
Where the snow is lacking is off piste. Some of the highest "between the piste" areas look tempting but much of it also looks quite sketchy with thin cover and plenty of rocks apparent that you'd want to be well buried. Unless you're very confident of your line, and know the underlying ground well, we'd really advise to stay on the marked runs until more snow comes.
Les Arcs - phased opening
Somewhere around half the ski area opened today (first day of the season), with notable exceptions including the runs down to Villaroger which remain closed. The resort plans on gradually opening up more runs as the week progresses and we'll report on that as we do.
We stayed in the 2000 valley today, but will head over the ridge to 1600 and 1800 tomorrow to see how conditions compare.
More pictures to come tomorrow, but this view of Mont Blanc from the top of the 2000 valley gives a good overview to start with...
You can make out La Rosiere half way down the right half of the picture; and it's clear the snow is thinner on slopes exposed to more sun.
There are deals still to be had for Xmas week, but we doubt they'll last long as people previously looking at lower resorts switch their attention to those like Arc 1950 that have the height to keep the snow.
[Disclosure - Arc1950 Tourist Office are kindly supporting our trip, although our opinions are our own!]
We'll post plenty more updates on the conditions, and lift openings, through the week.