| Black Runs | 18 |
| Red Runs | 33 |
| Blue Runs | 69 |
| Green Runs | 10 |
| Highest Lift | 3250m |
| Longest Run | 10Km |
| Snow Parks | 1 |
| Kms of Piste | 225Km |
| Snow Cannons | 359 |
Ski la Plagne
The ski resort of la Plagne is located at high altitude, in the Savoie French Alps. It consists of ten villages, by far the prettiest being Montchavin, all interlinked to create the huge 425km ski and snowboard winter playground. La Plagne caters for all abilities and is the perfect ski holiday destination for all.La Plagne is ideally suited for beginners. There is a wide choice of green and blue runs throughout the different sectors of the resort, with 10 greens and 73 blues out of the 132 runs and 225km pistes in total. ,For intermediates there are 73 blue runs and 38 reds in la Plagne. The area around Montchavin la plagne is a great area to spend the day skiing if you are at intermediate level.
For advanced skiers the first place to go if conditions allow is the Bellecôte glacier, where the two black runs, le Rochu and the Bellecôte, are usually worth trying in any snow conditions. If you like the bumps try a piste called Ski des Bosses (it means ski the moguls) or the big bumps on the Verdon Sud. If you fancy a leg burner try the mogul field at the top of the Traversee chair lift. The moguls are so big that they can be seen from miles away. The other top area for advanced skiers is just above Aime la Plagne, le Biolley at 2350m. Here there are a number of different blacks, with les Étroits being the longest and the most challenging. There are also a couple of short but steep blacks near Montchavin.
La Plagne has a huge 1km long snowpark known as the 7 Cube which caters for people of all abilities. The park is shaped with skiers in mind as La Plagne has a big freestyle ski scene but that’s not to stop the boarders having a go too. You will find different sized jumps graded in the same way as the pistes - The Green, The Blue, The Red and The Black. After the jumps the park forks in two with each branch having a selection of rails and boxes. One also has a wall ride. There are often small competitions for everyone to join in and have a go (usually on a Friday afternoons). There is also a picnic area where you can eat your lunch whilst watching people throw themselves off the jumps while listening to music in the sun.
La Plagne has a great reputation for off piste skiing. The resort is spread over a large area, much of which is not touched by the lift systems, resulting in large powder areas. Even with its reputation of being a great place to ride powder, it takes a surprisingly long time to become tracked. There is an amazing route through the trees from the Mont St Jacques all the way to the bottom of the Olympic Bobsleigh run below Plagne 1800. As with the intermediate pistes, the smaller villages are good places to head for fresh snow. Over in Champagny the Verdons Sud side of the Grand Rochette is a big open face that has an amazing formation. Montchavin/Les Coches has many runs through the trees and there are also big open bowls in between the Dos Rond and the Mont St Jacques. For beginner powder enthusiasts, there is a nice gentle off piste run that follows the blue les Bauches down from the top of the Dos Rond.
The main area of course is the glacier. The most famous runs are on the north face of the glacier and there are many to choose from. The ‘Petit Face Nord’ is the easiest and most accessible choice as it is a pretty simple traverse from the Traversee chair lift. The ‘Couloir Canadian’ is the next step up and involves a hike. The best place to see the north face is from above Vallandry in les Arcs where you can see the difficultly increasing just by looking from right to left. Parts are very steep and very large avalanches are common, so a guide is definitely needed for all runs on the glacier as with most off piste.
