Chamonix

Hi Dids1 - we really enjoyed Les Houches too, but I agree it is confusing. The Les Houches pass covers all the lifts in that ski area - regardless of which company runs them. The Kandahar is within the Les Houches area and terminates at the Telepherique de Bellevue, which we used to get back to Bellevue. From there we caught the TMB back to St Gervais. (You can't ski from Les Houches back to St Gervais).

On our second visit there, we drove into Les Houches village & parked at the Telepherique de Bellevue so were able to ski down the Kandahar & back to the car :-)

Interestingly, we purchased a combined TMB & Les Houches ski pass at the station in St Gervais for 2 adults & 1 child for 110 euros. The 3 lift passes for Les Houches , which we purchased the following day were 104 euros, making the journey on the TMB very good value!

I too found it fragmented, too much travelling around, especially if there any lift closures as the buses do get very full very quickly.

If you can adapt to the travelling around/ carrying skis then the variety of skiing is excellent due to the different hills and the location of them.

Have fun

Off-piste is exceptional in Chamonix but your best bet would be to get a guide. Some exits can be tricky and you don't want to take many wrong turns there - we had to side step up for almost 30 minutes once. Everything depends on your level of skiing and if you hire a guide for say a couple of days, he'll start relatively mellow so that to assess where he can take you, and if you are up for it your second day can be a really good adventure, if you like steeps you can get proper scared:) He'll also know where the best conditions can be found in the area. Vallee Blanche is a must. Technically for the most popular classic route you don't need a guide - it's like a motorway, skiing is easier than on Chamonix red slopes and you can't get lost. Arete is the hardest and scariest part but this is before you even put your skis on and you can't avoid it unless you are coming from the Italian side. I would recommend to hire crampons for the arete, as in this case you don't need to get roped up, and I find walking by myself over 2.5 thousand meters drop less scary with a good traction than tied to the rope and sliding. There are variations to the classic route where snow is often better due to less traffic and you need a guide or someone who knows the place really well. If you are vertigo sufferer a guide can also drive you to the Italian side and ski the Vallee Blanche from there.

Sounds like there are few people with good knowledge of Chamonix on this discussion. We're too going to Chamonix in a couple of weeks and are right on top of the Plan Praz gondola. We're a couple of intermediate skiers who just like cruising around. Any ideas of what we can expect from the Brevent and Flegere area.

Thanks

Hoolio, you'll like Brevent and La Flegere then.
As long as you know you'll have to get a bus or drive you'll also like La Tour and Vallorcine.
Word on the street is bad weather has been a problem this week and lots of lifts have been closed meaning people going to Les Houches.
This, of course, is a hazard on any skiing holiday and can change from day to day so nothing to worry about.
Enjoy.

Thanks Dids1. Much appreciated.