On The Slopes
Ski Area
La Clusaz covers five inter connected mountain massifs and boasts 13okm of extensive and varied pistes, the majority of which are north facing, explaining the excellent snow record enjoyed by the resort. A well planned lift system incorporates two cable cars, four gondolas, 14 chairlifts and 35 drag lifts. There are 25 green runs, 28 blue, 23 red and seven black runs, not to mention extensive off piste skiing and the area is well served by artificial snow making. Many lower slopes wind gently through the pine forests, while higher up the mountain, skiers can enjoy the impressive sight of Mont Blanc.
Beginners
La Clusaz provides a wide range of beginner slopes on the lower slopes
near the town centre and on the Beauregard plateau, which is served
by a high speed cable car. The Beauregard area has lovely gentle green
runs to progress to, including one long one which takes you around the
base of the mountain back to the village. For a first experience of
chair lifts, take the long tree lined runs from the Cret de Merle to
La Balme and back, which provide a fantastic alpine experience. Most
of the beginners slopes are in close proximity to the mountain restaurants
or town centre, which makes La Clusaz an ideal beginner site for skiers,
and parties of mixed abilities. Beginner lessons can also be taken at
the Croix Fry area of la Clusaz, which provides quieter gentler slopes,
served by mainly drag lifts.For a change of scenery, Le Grand Bornand
offers easy access to the Rosay area via a cable car. It is an ideal
place to start, progressing on to the gentle slopes of La Joyere, Gettiers
or Chinaillon.
If you are beginner, take a look at our special learner packs, which
are all inclusive - accommodation, skis + boot hire, ESF half or full
day lessons and ski pass.
Intermediates
If you are comfortable on blue and red slopes then La Clusaz
offers an abundance of skiing with some fantastic wide long blue and
reds in the La Balme area. These are also some of the highest runs,
and therefore hold their snow very well, late into the season. However,
it can be a lot colder at the Col de Balme and the chairlifts are often
shut if the wind is strong or the visibility is too bad. The L'Aiguille
at La Clusaz is another of the three high altitude ski areas and provides
the start of a long run down into the town. It is often quite mogully
at the top and provides a real top to bottom leg burning challenge with
stunning views. The main body of the La Clusaz ski runs are above the
town and accessed mostly by chair lifts. There is also a decent snow
park and boarder cross course.
The Etale and Col de Medassier areas are in the third highest area
and offer the steepest runs and provide some good skiing, especially
in fresh powder.
Manigod and Beauregard are good areas for pottering amongst the
trees and enjoying the scenery, as the runs are shorter and easier than
their grading suggest.They also provide a means of completing the whole
route around the La Clusaz ski area, which makes for an excellent day
on ski's.
La Balme area of La Clusaz, which offers some long wide runs. A button in the adjoing bowl of Torchere, is well worth taking. The Maroly area of Le Grand Bornand provides some fabulous long wide blues to practice your technique. Access to this area is generally recommended from the Tolar run which is a comfortable red, as the only other access is via a green run which is quite slow but gentle. The area can also be accessed by Lachat, but it's not to be recommended as your first run of the day, as it's the steepest of the Le Grand Bornand runs. The snow park and boarder cross in Le Grand Bornand are also located in the Maroly area and have some decent graded jumps, rails and a half pipe.
Advanced and Off-piste
Although not top of the resort listings for advanced skiers, La Clusaz offers some fantastic off-piste and demanding black runs. Etale, Combe de Fernuy and La Balme both have long varied black runs, which are often unbashed and have challenging moguls. The off-piste on all of these can be great fun when the powder is good, and if you take advice on where to go. Guiding can be arranged. At the Col de Balme there are various renowned off-piste routes over the Col on both sides, however, these should never be attempted without a guide and are best to tackle in January or February when the snow is safer and the avalanche risk is lower.
Le Grand Bornand offers a few black runs off Mont Lachat and Floria. Although these are the first to be closed if the weather or snow conditions are poor. The best off-piste however is to be found in the Maroly area, which usually remains untouched for quite a while when the powder has just fallen.
Guiding by someone who knows the area is always recommended, as any off-piste skiing can be dangerous and is at your own risk. Advice should also be sought on snow and weather conditions on the day and avalanche warning signs noted.
Fun in the parks
The snowpark at La Clusaz has always
benefited from an easy and fast access by its own lift, but it has also
now been remodelled to offer maximum safety and pleasure. The snowpark
elements have been better planned, are more varied (with more springboards
and rails) and with more space between them. The new snowpark is composed
of three big sectors: a slopestyle, with rails accessible to all levels;
two world cup standard big airs; and a fab 80m pipe. It will be maintained
every day by tampering and shaping machines.
Technical info: Height: 1500 m; Surface: 900 m2; Length: 350 m
New elements: Flat 5 form in snow for 5 kickers of different sizes;
8 rails of different sizes and forms; 1 super pipe of 80m of length;
2 big airs: 15m in length and 4m in height.
Good news for boarders and skiers who want to try something new, La
Clusaz now has a boarder cross course.
The piste masters of La Clusaz have taken over one of the smaller slopes
at Le loup area to sculpt the new boarder cross course, which can be
used by everyone not just the ski clubs (as was the case last year)!
Accessible directly by the mini-loup chairlift, this course can be used
by all levels and will also remain intact for the summer to provide
a challenging mountain biking course, providing a superb track with
alternating banked corners, hoops (sequence of small round bumps), and
break areas for the jumps.
If you are here in April make sure you come and watch the Candide invitational - where Candide Thovex, one of La Clusaz's freestyle champions, invites all his international mates to ski and board on some fantastic jumps and rails. They are truely awesome!
Nordic ski area
For those wishing to try cross country skiing, you will find 70kms of interesting and scenic trails from which to choose, on the Confins (1450 m) and Beauregard (1690 m) plateaus. Real sport enthusiasts can try out their skating technique on a special run (3 km); and by taking the Bellavarde (10 km) black run you can join the Grand Bornand area.
The Nordic ski area of La Clusaz is classed "Quality Plus" by France Cross-country, and is a renowned cross-country site with exceptional views and unspoilt natural surroundings.
La Clusaz Tourist Office - www.laclusaz.com
Le Grand Bornand Tourist Office
- www.legrandbornand.com
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