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Les Menuires - Les Menuires is situated in the beautiful Belleville valley a few miles up the valley from St Martin de Belleville. It is a quiet, inexpensive base from which is explore the Three Valleys, linking to the ski resorts of Val Thorens, Meribel and Courchevel.There is more than enough skiing in the Belleville Valley to keep all standards of skiers happy during their ski holiday, without having to venture further afield.
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The skiing goes up to 3200m and with over 270 snow cannons good snow is almost guaranteed throughout the ski season. Ski schools are numerous and tuition caters for all ages with special facilities for children.
Les Menuires being purpose built offers real skiing convenience, almost every building is on the piste but much of the architecture is no longer in fashion. Most of the accommodation is for self-caterers. There is no shortage of bars, restaurants and nightclubs and with two swimming pools and cinemas showing English films, most people’s needs are adequately looked after.
LOCAL ATTRACTIONS
Nearby Attractions: Parents can rest assured that their children are well looked after in their own villages, so for a days rest from skiing there are a number of different choices.
Family Information
Call 08707543477 There are numerous child care options available throughout all the resorts in the Three Valleys. Please call our dedicated call centre who will be happy to advise you of all the facilities and contact details.
Walking is spectacular and well organised with marked paths. The kids will have fun on the 200m pistes for rubber ring tobogganing, parents can go too!
Shopping is good and there are some quaint little traditional places to buy your gifts. Enjoy a coffee and delicious homemade cake in one of the patisseries.
Wednesday is the day for a guided walk to the Notre Dame de la Vie Sanctuary, which is completed by a visit to the local church. This is a 3 hour tour. The gym and excellent health centre are both available to the visitor.
Aprés-Ski: After dark activities are very good and choice of eating ranges from the romantic tete a tete in a candlelit French restaurant with the mountains as your backdrop, to a quick take away pizza to line your stomach for a night of revelry
The Maurice Romanet Hall hosts regular live concerts that are a mixed bag and mostly for free. The snow scooters are popular and fun in the evening.
The cinema is always open and films are sometimes shown with subtitles.There are a huge array of bars, with some in hotels and restaurants, so if it's a quiet after ski drink with friends or a wild night filled with loud music, It's here!
Town: les Menuires
Top Lift Elevation: 9354 ft
Vertical Drop: 4595 ft
Trails: 62
Lifts: 39 ( 17 chair lifts 13 surface lifts )
Gondolas/cable cars: 9
Half Pipes: 1
Terrain parks: 1
Snowmaking: 25%
Total cross country: 28 km
Restaurants: 48
Nearest international airport: Geneva
Nearest train station: Moutiers
Getting There
Airport transfer (approx) 4hrs Fly drive reduction per person £10
Resort recommended for:
Beginners, Intermediates, Advanced, Skiing for all standards, Snowboarding, Off piste, Families, Value for money, Purpose-built convenience, Ski to door, Glacier
Nearest airports/stations:
Chambéry - 2 hours
Lyon - 2.5 hours
Moûtiers - 1 hour
Geneva - 3 hours
Resort altitude: 1850m
On the snow: top: 3300m - bottom: 1850m
Lifts in area: 167 (40 cableways, 69 chairs, 58 drags)
Lift pass: Trois Vallées adult €204, child 5–13yrs €153.50, both for 6 days
Trails/pistes: 600km
Large sunny purpose-built resort in the giant Trois Vallées area favoured by the budget-conscious who want to ski Méribel and Courchevel without the high cost of staying there. Suits all standards of skier and rider
The ugly ducking of French ski resorts from the 1960s has grown positively handsome in middle age. A swan it is not, but Les Menuires has long since matured from the low-cost concrete dormitory that it once was into a comfortable and convenient ski base that lies 450 vertical metres short of Val Thorens up the winding road from Moûtiers.
The original eyesore of La Croisette had a makeover for the Albertville Olympics (the slalom events took place here) and then a couple of years ago the worst résidence was bulldozed to make way for a gleaming new MGM apartment block that has completely changed the aspect of the resort. The construction of a church also gave it physical, if not spiritual, soul providing a focal point for the real village that Les Menuires had finally become.
Much of the new development is concentrated on the pleasant satellites of Reberty, Les Bruyères and Preyerand, slightly higher the hill, which have really become a resort in their own right with restaurants, shops, and bars (but no pharmacy – the only one is in La Croisette).
Inevitably the downside of this grand metamorphosis is that Les Menuires is no longer the bargain basement it once was. However, accommodation prices remain significantly lower than in the more fashionable big-name resorts of the Trois Vallées. Val Thorens, St-Martin de Belleville, and Méribel are easily reached on skis. A trip to the lower reaches of Courchevel is more of an expedition – a full day out with scarcely time to grab a quick lunch before beginning the homeward journey. Missing the last lift connections involves an expensive taxi ride home.
Linked resorts: Courchevel, La Tania, Meribel, St Martin de Belleville, Val Thorens
Mountain
The skiing takes place on both sides off the valley. Les Menuires has its own challenging and usually uncrowded ski area on the 2805m Pointe de la Masse, reached from the village by gondola and chair. Runs down the front face include the infamous black Dame Blanche, which can be tricky in icy conditions. The summit is the starting point for several off-piste itineraries towards the Lac du Lou and Val Thorens, as well as down the valley towards St-Martin.
On the other side of Les Menuires, an assortment of gondolas and chairs take you up to Roc des 3 Marches and Mont de La Chambre above the Méribel Valley. The new Les Granger six-seater chair has replaced two old drag-lifts here. The enormous area of open slopes leading back down to Les Menuires provide the sunniest and some of the most enjoyable skiing in the Trois Vallées. A huge battery of snow-cannon usually manage to maintain cover on the lower slopes into April, although inevitably they suffer from their south-facing aspect. Riders have a new terrain park and a snowcross course in the Combes-Becca sector.
Learn
The ESF, t +33 (0)479 00 61 43 is the main ski school in Les Menuires. Most – but not all – instructors speak reasonable English. There is also Snow Bow in Reberty 2000, t +33 (0)684 89 04 11.
Lunch
Le Grand Lac, t +33 (0)479 08 25 78 is a new gourmet restaurant at the bottom of Les Granges chair. Chalet 2000, t +33 (0)479 00 60 57, at Reberty, is warmly recommended. Chalet des Neiges, t +33 (0)479 00 60 55, above St-Martin, has good food and a sunny terrace, and Quatres Vents, t +33 (0)479 00 64 44, at Les Bruyères, maintains a high standard.
Dine
Eateries include La Marmite du Géant, t +33 (0)479 00 74 75 and Les Sonnailles, t +33 (0)479 00 74 28, which are both in Les Bruyères. La Trattoria, t +33 (0)479 00 74 23 in La Croisette and La Ferme de Reberty, t +33 (0)479 00 77 01 are also recommended.
Party
Après-ski in Les Menuires is fairly muted, with most French families keeping to their apartments. The Tilbury, L'Oisans and Crazy Bar are popular watering holes. Le New Pop at La Croisette and Le Leeberty at Les Bruyères at the late-night venues. Night-time tubing takes place on two 200m-long pistes equipped with a moving carpet. Swimming and skating are the other après-ski activities.
Children
Village des Schtroumpfs, t +33 (0)479 00 63 79 cares for non-skiers from three months at La Croisette, and those from two-and-a-half years can go to the Village des Piou Piou, t +33 (0)479 00 69 50 in Bruyères. The ESF, t +33 (0)479 00 61 43 gives lessons from three years.
Les Menuires, France
Practical, functional, the best value of Les Trois Vallées resorts.
Les Menuires, France: Practical, functional, the best value of Les Trois Vallées resorts. Saint Martin de Belleville. Les Trois Valees.
Consider Les Menuires the claw hammer of les Trois Vallées resorts. While not as pretty as some European ski resorts, it’s one of the most practical and functional, offering some of the best values in one of the world's finest ski areas. Les Menuires calls itself "The Smile of the Alps" after the arc of the main building, and the uncrowded, sunny skiing here certainly brings smiles to skiers. As with Val-Thorens, the highest elevation ski resort in the Alps that's just up the valley, altitude equals quality skiing with a base at 1,850 meters (6,084.65 ft).
From the top of the lifts the quarters of Les Menuires spread like blocks across their sunny, open valley. When visitors note that there are more than four quarters, the locals merely shrug. Quarters vary from modernist Berlin to the village feel of Reberry-Les Bruyères to La Croisette, the oldest area built in the 1970s. La Croisette is still the shopping center and site of the ski lift offices.
Each quarter is within easy access of the 45-lift system that can move more than 50,000 skiers an hour up and onto 160 kilometers (80 miles) of pistes spread over 5,600 hectares (1,400 acres). Since the lifts also move people between quarters, they stay open until 11:00 p.m. With free shuttle buses as well, you’ll have no problem getting around the resort.
What's Great
Probably the cheapest place to stay in the famously extensive Three Valleys area - biggest in the world
Some great local slopes
Lots of slope-side accommodation
Extensive artificial snowmaking
Trying hard to smarten the place up
What's Not-So-Great
Possibly the ugliest resort in the Alps
Main intermediate and beginner slopes get a lot of sun
No woodland slopes
Beginner slopes are busy as well as overexposed to the sun
Reviews
1 April 24, 2006 - 03:58 PM
Tomas from UNITED STATES
stayed in the Hotel des Alpes. Perfect location on foot of slopes. The food did not have a large choice but was still very nice. Plus the hotel was very cheap and with very friendly staff. It is very easy to ski to both Meribel and Val Thorens and beyond! BUT, for my friend and I at night there was hardly anything to do. it was "dead".
2 February 15, 2006 - 08:16 PM
Shorty from UNITED KINGDOM
My girlfriend and i spent the last week of 05 here and we had a thoroughly good time. It's fairly quiet of an evening as there seems to be a family atmosphere. I never experienced any wait for the lifts even though it is considered to be a high season week and some runs are nothing short of excellent(I was on a board). If you wish to do some distance, save some money and have a few quiet beers & a meal of an evening its the place to explore the 3v.
3 February 15, 2006 - 10:29 AM
Rachel from UNITED KINGDOM
Stayed in Reberty in Feb 05. A satellite village just up the hill from Les Menuires main resort and much more 'sympathique' than the concrete jungle of Les Menuires itself. We had absolutely fantastic accommodation, real ski-in, ski-out chalet with SilverSki, even included a hot tub to rest the weary legs. Wonderful to ski right back to the garage door at the end of the day and it's so high up (just above 2000m) that even the last run had delightful snow and no horribly icy bits for tired legs.
Three Valleys skiing is phenomenal if you just like to cruise and cover lots of ground. Potential for completely different terrain and views every single day you go out. We had great snow so were able to ski all the way down to St Martin de Belleville which was a first in three holidays in this area. La Masse had superb snow, as did the fourth valley which has a couple of fantastic long runs and was virtually deserted by 3 o'clock in the afternoon (everyone is obviously panicking about getting back to base before the lifts close!)
Can't recommend this place highly enough, 6 days of superb sunshine following a huge dump of snow on the weekend we arrived. Has to be the best ski holiday ever!
4 January 19, 2006 - 09:32 PM
Pete - UK from UNITED KINGDOM
Same height as Courchevel 1850 so snow is pretty much guaranteed. Loads of stuff to go at - La Masse has huge off piste potential and is usually quiet as it's the furthest from Courchevel and Meribel. Check out that fantastic new sports centre as well - amazing new facility right in the village centre. Some nice new chalets available now. Bit of an undiscovered gem for us Brits.
5 December 13, 2005 - 10:58 AM
Glenn McMenamin from UNITED KINGDOM
From a tourist point of view, this is not the prettiest resort in the 3 valleys.
However, from a budget point of view, it is substantially cheaper than the likes of Courchevel and Meribel etc, but has equal access to the same skiing areas, so do the maths.
There is a lot of money being spent year on year to bring the resort in to keeping with the more traditional style of its neighbours, and I think that you will certainly see this reflected in price rises in the coming seasons.
You must check out La Masse area, which has very good snow cover, and quieter slopes, especially in the morning.
I am now a property owner in the resort, and have been for the last 4 years, this is in a new suburb, just below the main resort, which is fast growing, and is built in the traditional wood/stone way etc, making the area look a lot more authentic.
Just my 0.02p anyway !
6 January 05, 2005 - 12:30 AM
Alberto Pinho from CAPE VERDE
Mágnifico. Tempo espectacular, boas pistas, excelentes restaurantes e gente muito simpática. � para repetir.
7 March 25, 2004 - 07:37 PM
Nick Blamey from UNITED KINGDOM
great skiing, friendly locals and some great restaurants up at Les Bruyeres. Forget Croisette: just snack bars, Shame that french dog owners are allowed to let their dogs pooh all over the resort. Disgusting when you have small children and statistically more dangerous to children than used needles apparently!
8 February 27, 2004 - 02:31 PM
Mike Hutton from UNITED KINGDOM
Stayed here in Feb 2004. Great value resort in relation to Meribel and Courchevel in neighbouring valleys.
Skied in all three extensively to find that Les Menuires has the most interesting mix of easily accessible red runs with enough variety in blues to keep the wife occupied perfecting her parallels.
Meribel Mottaret has the most challenging and well thought out snow park by far for me and the boys (13 & 14 yrs, skis and boards), and Courchevel 1850 the best scenery and black runs, with plenty of choice in all other departments.
The day before we arrived there was a dump of 0.5m of powder, followed by 6 days of cloudless blue skies, making the whole experience the best winter holiday ever.
Plenty of bars and restaurants in town for apres ski activities. Restaurants on the hill were generally steak hache/frites types with one at the top of the Bruyeres 1 cablecar offering a wider selection from a substantial hot food counter.
Still much terraine to be discovered so expect to be back there next year.
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