Tignes Skiing Revealed

Tignes is approximately equivalent in size to Val d’Isere. During the winter months, it offers 47 ski lifts which include a funicular railway, a cable car, 24 chairlifts and 19 drag lifts, enabling you to ski round the 150 kilometres of pisted terrain. Tignes has a variety of skiing for all levels and can be split into four areas, La Grande Motte Massif, Palet/L’Aiguille Percée, Toviere and Les Brévières. The Grande Motte offers a good choice of wide open blues, but it can often be deceptively cold on the glacier, and not always conducive to learning. There are a number of cruisey intermediate runs and although there’s not a huge selection of blacks, you can try the 'Sache', a long black run from the top of the L’Aiguille Percée to Tignes Les Brévières - it provides some fierce moguls and challenging skiing. There is also a board park at Val Claret giving riders the chance to try their hand at some freestyle jumping, rails and ‘big air’! For the more adventurous, Tignes has access to some of the worlds best off-piste in the French Alps. ... see "Tignes Skiing Area" for more

The Espace Killy is located in the Tarentaise area of the Savoie department in the Northern Alps, and is the name given to the combined ski domain of Tignes and Val d’Isere. Named after France’s Olympic downhill skiing champion Jean Claude Killy, the ski area offers over 300kms of pisted skiing and some of Europe’s most spectacular scenery. The area remains a firm favourite with both the British and French because of the huge variety of ski terrain available. The 'Espace Killy' is dedicated to all aspects of skiing, and is set to host the World Skiing Championships in 2009.

Due to its location against the peaks of the Italian border, the Espace Killy's record of snowfall is exceptional. Whilst benefiting from the same Atlantic depressions as other French resorts, it often receives heavy falls of snow from the Mediterranean low pressures which dump their snow on the Italian Alps. The snow coverage tends to be one of the best in Europe, and conditions normally facilitate good skiing right to the end of the season (May 8, 2005). ... see "Where to go in the Espace Killy for..." for more

Val d'Isère is located in a steep valley and it is these steep slopes that have attracted the hard core skiers since the resort opened for downhill skiing in the mid 1930s. There is a vast choice of slopes in the high Alps where intermediate skiers and boarders can sample the stunning views and learn from those on the steeper pitches, on the bumps and in the snowpark. The skiing area in Val d'Isere can be broken up into 3 areas, namely Le Fornet, Le Solaise and Bellvardes,all varying in style and complexity. ... see "Val d'Isere Skiing Area" for more

Cross-country skiing (ski de fond)

• In La Daille – To the left of the main road just past La Daille is an easy, green,1.5km long trail


• In the Manchet Valley – There is a 1km track running from the Solaise cable car to the Clochetons restaurant (green) and then a further 3km to the Manchet old hamlet (blue) - this trail is sunny in the morning and early afternoon. There is also a 6.5km long red run – Le Manchet


• At the Ouillette lake – At the top of the Solaise cable car, walk to the Madeleine chairlift and there is a 2km blue trail around the ‘Ouillette lake’ on the right hand side


• In Le Fornet – From the Le Fornet cable car, there is a 5km blue trail out of Val d’Isere to the border of the Vanoise National Park