| Les Deux Alpes | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Location: | France |
| Nearest city: | Grenoble |
| Coordinates: | 45°00′26″N 6°07′18″E / 45.00722°N 6.12167°E |
| Top elevation: | 3600m |
| Base elevation: | 1300m |
| Skiable area: | 430 hectares of marked pistes |
| Runs: | 100 (21 green, 47 blue, 19 red & 13 black ) |
| Lift system: | 51 ( 1 funicular, 3 cable cars, 3 gondolas, 23 chair lifts, 21 surface lifts) |
| Terrain parks: | 1 |
| Snowfall: | m (average 1998-2008) |
| Snowmaking: | 214 cannons |
| Web site: | http://www.les2alpes.com |
Les Deux Alpes (also Les 2 Alpes or Les 2 Alpes 3600) is a ski resort in the French Isère département. The village sits at 1650m (5,413 ft.) and lifts run to 3600m (11,811 ft.). It has the largest skiable glacier in Europe and is France's second oldest ski resort behind Chamonix, where the largest mountain in western Europe is located, Mont Blanc. It is a 71 km (44 mile) drive southeast of Grenoble.
Contents |
Resort
The "two Alps" in the name do not refer to the two mountains that the resort encompasses but rather the two villages of Venosc and Mont De Lans that sit at either end of the north-south plateau on which the resort was built. Access to the resort is by road from the north - no road connects the resort to Venosc down the steep slope to the south.
Winter
Les Deux Alpes offers approximately 220km of pisted runs and 2300m (7 545ft) of vertical drop. In terms of pistes the resort has been termed "upside-down", as the lower slopes down to the resort are steeper and more challenging than the higher ski areas, including the wide and forgiving glacier runs. Less advanced skiers either take a gondola down to the resort or follow a lengthy, gentle but narrow, track on the path of the access road. A wide area at the very bottom by the town is given over to nursery slopes. In total there are 100 marked runs spread across the resort however, in addition, it is said to have as much off piste as groomed piste. [1]
Les Deux Alpes also boasts one of the most extensive and revered snowparks in Europe, with a halfpipe, multiple kickers, and two boardercross courses.
Les deux alps also boasts the use of ęcole du ski français, which is the largest ski-school in France.
Lifts
The lift system has a combined up hill capacity of 66,000 people her hour. [2]. In total there are 51 lifts serving the resort. At peak times lift queues can be very long, and it can take over an hour to travel from the village to the top of the glacier, which is often closed due to blizzards, high winds, avalanche risks, or a combination of both.
The resort of La Grave can be accessed from the very top lift at the Dome de la Lauze by either walking or at certain times by ski-tow behind a Snowcat. It is only recommended for advanced skiers under supervision of a qualified guide.
Ticketing
A part of the Grande Galaxie area of un-linked ski resorts including Alpe d'Huez, La Grave, Puy Saint Vincent and Vaujany which offer limited sharing of ski-passes. A six-day ski pass includes two days in Alpe d'Huez and one in Serre Chevalier.[3] Ski passes in the resort can now be used hands free.
Glacier
The glacier enables year-round skiing (although the lifts are only open from mid-June to the end of August in Summer and December to end of April in Winter with some dates in October too). A funicular railway tunnelled under the ice transports skiers and, in summer, tourists to 3450 m (11,319 fr.), from where panoramic views can be seen of the surroundings, including Mont Blanc, some 100 km (62 miles) distant, L'Alpe d'Huez and the Plateau de Vercors above Grenoble.
Summer
In summer, Les Deux Alpes becomes a popular venue for downhill and freeride mountain biking, with access to the glacier via the Jandri Express gondola lift. This opens up a vertical mile of trails down to the resort and an even bigger drop to the Barrage du Chambon. Les Deux Alpes also has the largest skiable glacier in Europe. Summer skiing in Les 2 Alpes takes place between 2800 and 3600 metres on the Girose and Mont de Lans glaciers above the resort. The summer ski area is open between June and September. 110 hectares of ski area is there for ski enthusiasts. Les Deux Alpes is one of the few remaining resorts where you can ski in the summer.[4]
References
- ^ http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/snowandski/3190275/Les-Deux-Alpes-ski-guide-introduction-and-basics.html
- ^ http://www.ifyouski.com/resorts/view/?objectid=258004&template=ski Lift Capacity
- ^ http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/snowandski/3190275/Les-Deux-Alpes-ski-guide-introduction-and-basics.html
- ^ http://www.summerski.co.uk/
External links
 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Les Deux Alpes |
- Link to official site
- Les Deux Alpes mobile wap information & meteo resource
- Link to accommodation provider
This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)
