Montgenevre - slopes
There is skiing on both sides of Montgenèvre – on the north-facing Les Gondrans, which provides the on-piste link to Claviere and the Milky Way, and Le Chalvet, a small, uncrowded mountain that’s popular with locals.
A piste bridge in the village links Chalvet and Gondrans while the new Serre Thibaud 'Télémix' (combined gondola and chairlift also known as a chondola) links Chalvet with Tremplin.
Intermediates and experts should hop on the bus to spend a day in nearby Serre Chevalier.
Ski highlights for all levels
Beginners: the layout of the slopes makes this one of the best resorts in the Alps for beginners to learn. A wonderful area of sunny nursery slopes, with a special beginners zone, is accessed right by the village and there are plenty of blues to progress to once these have been mastered. Confident beginners should attempt the gentle green from Gondrans into the village. It's the perfect set up for learning some turns and then going for a hot chocolate - or a vin chaud - to celebrate.
Intermediates: this is a great resort for intermediate skiers, with varied blues and reds above and below the tree line in Montgenèvre’s local ski area and even more cruising terrain in the vast Milky Way area.
Experts: Montgenèvre suits advanced skiers and boarders who enjoy freeriding more than challenging piste skiing, as the the piste terrain isn't the steepest. However, there are some good red runs to carve and cruise. But the resort has wonderful powder areas when it snows: take a guide to explore the virtually untouched off-piste in the Gondrans bowl, Rocher de l’Aigle and off the Col de l’Alpet.
Heliskiing is also available from Montgenèvre – contact the Bureau des Guides (00 33 476 79 90 21) for further information.
Ski schools and guides
There are two ski schools in Montgenèvre: the local ESF (00 33 492 21 90 46), which is known for its small classes and friendly instructors, and A Peak (00 33 492 24 49 97) – a small international school with English-speaking instructors.
Lift system
There has been fairly consistent investment in lifts in recent years, with the new Serre Thibauld chondola facilitating access to the Milky Way and the new Chalmettes chondola speeding up access to Les Gondrans.
There are still lots of drag lifts, which can be challenging for beginners. Queues are fairly infrequent during the week but they do build up during peak season weekends.
Terrain park
There’s a well maintained half-pipe accessed directly from the village.
Snow reliability and snowmaking
Montgenèvre is generally very snow-secure, thanks to its high altitude and plenty of north-facing slopes. Furthermore, half of the resort’s slopes are covered by snow cannons.
