J2Ski Forum Posts and Replies by mat5968

Well, I've finally got back from my week in Montchavin. We had a great week of skiing.

We had some issues getting there last week as we couldn't get the hirecar up the hill (until we put the chains on), and then getting home last night was a bit tricky with nearon every airport in the UK being closed. We were half an hour late leaving Chambery, and then told during flight that East Midlands was closed due to snow and that we were diverting to Manchester. But then half an hour later East Midlands might be open, so we circled for an hour, only to find out that East Midlands was not going to open at all, so the pilot headed for the next best airport which was Cardiff (Birmingham and Bristol were also closed). So we then had a 4.5 hr coach ride to East Midlands, passing within half a mile of my house 2 hours into it, before I could then get my car and drive all the way back again.

Ski hire went perfectly smoothly, as did the apartment (which had better ski-in/out that we were expecting!). We got the full Illimite ski pass, but in hindsight as I only spent one morning over in Les Arcs, I could have saved some cash there.

I had no issues booking adhoc lessons with ESF, choosing to have a 2hr private lesson in the afternoon, and I then booked a second at the end of the week with the same instructor. His English was very good and I made a lot of progress with him.

Gonna go and get some sleep now, as I didnt get home until 6am this morning.

Only 2 days to go !!!!

daved wrote:any day

Thanks Daved

With the Discovery pass, do you have to specify which day you want to got to Les Arcs when you get the pass on day1, or can you decide any day?

daved wrote:I was in Montchavin last week and really enjoyed the area..there are some lovely long runs down to it..mostly through the trees ..and there was lots of snow...there are 4 lift passes the cheapest is for just the Villages at €154 which if you are a beginner or early intermediate would be great as there is a lot of skiing ...the next is for all of La Plagne @ €214 which is enough for most people for a week..the next is the discovery @€237 which gives you a day in Les Arcs..( I bought this one..I thought La plagne was better) and the most expensive is the full Paradise ski pass @ €254

Thanks for the info Daved. From the weather reports, it looks like I shall have more snow than you, as its forecast for a few more falls this week.

I'm the only intermediate in our group - the rest have skiied for years. I think their preference is to get the one that includes Les Arcs on the Vanoise Express. I was potentially thinking of getting the cheaper one and spending the saved cash on getting some private lessons. Then they can go off exploring Les Arcs while I (re)learn how to get down a mountain.

Does anyone know how risky it would be to not book lessons until I'm in resort?

Only 6 days to go!

Far Queue wrote:

mat5968 wrote: but the reason I've been having so much trouble is that all maps of Montchavin are upside down, ie with North down and South up? Any ideas why?

Hmm, just a guess from me, but I would have said it is due to the mountain. Is the higher point to the south? This would be why it is at the top of the map, high to low = South to North.

Of course, my theory goes out of the window if the North is higher :shock:

That makes perfect sense. Looking at some other resort maps, they (logically) all show the top of the mountain at the top of the map, and the bottom at the bottom. Sounds so simple and logical now, but it really got me confused!

Also, does anyone know of any good coffee shops or bars that have wifi?

Thanks for your replies - please accept my apologies for taking ages to come back in here.

We've booked our skis, following some of your recommendations in here - I think we got a good deal, but we shall see next week.

Regarding lessons, I think I probably will want to have a few. I dont want to do every day. Do you think I should book before I go, or would it be better to arrange once on resort?

I've been trying to work out where our accommodation is in the village, comparing the postcode in googlemaps with maps of the village, and i've just worked it out. We are in M11 (Les 3 glaciers), but the reason I've been having so much trouble is that all maps of Montchavin are upside down, ie with North down and South up? Any ideas why?

eg: