J2Ski Forum Posts and Replies by Julia Moss

Although quite rewarding and some great skiing in good conditions, the run over to Cesana / Sansicario and the rest of the Mily Way takes quite a long time via the Rocher de l'Aigle and the long descent from Sagna Longa. We found that starting from the bubble at La Comba in Cesana was a quicker way in and the parking is free at the base of the lift. It's only 10-15 mins drive back to Montgenevre.
An authentic mountain restaurant for lunch is Ciao Pais which is above Sauze d'Oulx. You'll find the food and drinks are a bit cheaper on the Italian side. If you do ski over from Montgenevre there's a great coffee (1€) / hot choc (3€) stop at the Canalino Bar above Claviere.
When we did the Milky Way the lifts closed at 16h15 giving us just enough time to ski back down to the bubble to Cesana which closes around 16h45. Look out for signs saying what time you need to get back by.
Enjoy!

You could also try http://www.alpjob.com/

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.

Tony_H wrote:Just to mention it again, La Grange at the Alpette cable car mid station.

That should ensure you get a free pizza next time you're there :-)

Really interesting report particularly as we were in Vaujany, Oz and Alpe d'Huez the week before - in fact we were in A d'H when about 50cms of snow fell on the 21st Jan.
Fortunately we skied La Sarenne on the previous Wednesday in near perfect weather with clear sunny skies and good snow conditions. By no means an expert skier but capable of tackling most things, I still bottled out of the narrow entry in favour of going down the flight of steps which gives you an easier entry next to the top of the chairlift. The moguled upper sections are not too bad because they are wide but for more timid skiers, there seemed to be several ways of avoiding the worst. I agree, most of the run is like a red until near the end when the legs get a bit of a rest. Fantastic to have done it though and the snack bar down near the Auris lift was a very welcome sight because I'd made the mistake of not taking something to eat and drink.
I agree entirely that some of our best runs were down into Oz and Vaujany on some swoopy reds and blues though it's a shame the bubble out of Oz is so slow - it puts you off going back up for a second go.
Wish we'd found the pizza place - that sounds like a great find...

Les Orres is wonderfully situated between Gap and Briancon and receives significant snowfalls triggered by the Massif du Parpaillon. As with other southern resorts there is significantly more sunny days than in the mountains further north. Views from the resort are amazing down to the crystal blue waters of Serre Poncon.
The village at 1600 is the older purpose built ski village with older style apartments and a compact centre. At 1800 there's a new village Bois Méan with modern apartments and hotels and some ski-in ski-out accommodation. We stayed in La Combe d'Or at 1800 and skied from the front door down to the lift every morning.
The terrain is mainly intermediate cruising with some lovely long blues down through trees to the main village. Things get more interesting the higher you go and there's some fabulous red runs from the top of the resort. There used to be three difficult draglifts up to this area but just this year, I think two have been replaced by one fast chairlift making things a lot easier and with the addition of two new blue runs in the sector it opens the area up to practically everyone.
We loved the skiing at Les Orres and the views are amazing. It's a dynamic ski station and one of the first we know of to offer a free village WiFi network.
Enjoy!

A great family resort,with plenty to entertain early intermediates but a few surprises such as the Mens and Womens Olympic runs with great dips and swoops for more advanced skiers.
We stayed in the Domaine de l'Arselle at Chamrousse 1750 which is great for families as there's easy access via chairlift to the slopes and a small selection of shops, bars and an on-site restaurant too. If you opt for staying at Chamrousse 1600 the fast gondola will whisk you to the top of the resort in minutes where as previous people have said, the views are magnificent.
For skiing in March, it's difficult to be sure. The resort has plenty of artificial snowmaking and we may get a long season. You might be better opting for a slightly higher family resort in the same region - Oz en Oisans or Vaujany with easy access to the Grand Domaine of Alpe d'Huez are only half an hours drive further from Grenoble.
Look at www.skicollection.co.uk for holidays to Chamrousse or www.peakretreats.co.uk for Vaujany and Oz en Oisans

Where are you staying? The villages of Risoul 1850 and Vars sit at either end of the ski area and are very different in style. Between them they should satisfy most tastes, with Risoul attracting younger skiers and Vars for those preferring a quieter, more traditional experience though there have been quite a lot of new residential developments in recent times and the increased numbers of visitors have brought the town centre a bit more to life.

The two areas combine to form the Foret Blanche. Vars is renowned for its impressive freeride terrain and its purpose-built speed-skiing piste. It also offers extensive and varied intermediate terrain, plus safe learner areas and facilities. There are some surpisingly long cruising runs here, including some fine tree-lined descents on the opposite side of the valley below Peynier (2273)m. The 2750m Pic de Chabrières is accessible only by drag-lift, but rewards the effort with astonishing views and some superb descents, including a bracing drop over into Risoul.
From the Risoul side there's gentle, tree-lined lower pistes and steeper stuff higher up below the 2571m Razis (departure point for Vars). The liaison to the Vars sector is straightforward, yet with a sense of covering some distance – and the scenery is simply amazing.

The Pic de Chabrières above Vars, at 2750m altitude.