If you’re looking for a traditional village rich in French ambience, but with one of the world’s biggest ski areas on your doorstep, you can’t do much better than Châtel, which is part of the vast Portes du Soleil ski area that straddles the Swiss border and boasts an incredible 650km of runs.
It’s a resort with a strong agricultural heritage, but it’s also invested in all the mod cons, including some flashy new lifts installed over the past few years which have interlinked its various sectors better than ever before. Down in the resort, there’s a modern swimming pool complex too, along with a big range of shops and restaurants.
Throw into the mix easy access from Geneva (or by road or rail from the Channel); in short, it had all the ingredients we were looking for when planning our family holiday, and it did not disappoint.
The area directly above the village is called Super-Châtel. There’s a gondola with the ski school meeting place at the top. From there, a number of chair lifts and drags open up a gentle ski area with tree-lined pistes dropping across the Swiss border and back again.
Credit – JF.Vuarand
It’s here that two brand new chairlifts have directly linked the Super-Châtel area with the main Portes du Soleil sector, meaning no more buses are required from Châtel to start the day off. Among many advantages this new connection opens up is that it’s easy to get over to the Linga sector quickly, opening up more challenging terrain that includes some off-piste possibilities when the snow conditions are right.
Although the Portes du Soleil isn’t the highest in altitude (Châtel is 1,200m and the highest point in the area is 2,466m), they have an excellent snow record mainly due to the area’s proximity to the northwestern fringes of the Alps.
The sheer size of the area means that whatever level of skier or snowboarder you might be, there’s something for everyone, from the blue runs in Super-Châtel, long reds high above Avoriaz and of course the famous Swiss Wall black down into Les Crosets – full of moguls the size of small cars at an eye-watering angle only to be attempted by the most experienced skiers. On bad-weather days, either stick to the slopes around Super-Châtel if you want blues and easy reds, or head across to the Lindarets Valley if you’re after slightly more challenging terrain, including some powder runs through the trees.
This whole area has some of the highest concentrations of mountain restaurants you’ll find in the Alps, providing choice and competitive pricing – for cosiness try the Pomme du Pin and for a more special lunch go for La Crémaillère in the Village de Chèvres (Goat Village), just tucked away from the cluster of restaurants at the bottom of the Lindarets slopes.
Credit – JF.Vuarand
When the sun is out, head up via Avoriaz to the Swiss border at Pointe des Mossettes (2,277m), where the views across to the Dents du Midi are perhaps the best in the Alps – the “Dents” is the largest singular mountain in the Alps, and its peaks form a collection of jagged “teeth”, giving it the name of the Giant’s Teeth. The superb run from here all the way down to the village of Ardent is 8km long and never steeper than an easy red. There are also some interesting off-piste opportunities coming off the Pointe des Mossettes, but be aware because there are some steep sections and cliffs that produce avalanches after heavy snowfalls.
Back towards Châtel and because of the new link, it’s possible to ski all the way back to Super- Châtel and take your skis off in town, snow conditions dependent.
We’d gone for a self-catering option in the Chalets d’Angèle, a modern apartment building just below the main town centre that has been designed and built to a really high specification – there were two bedrooms and a really comfortable living area. We also opted to eat in during the evenings, always a big money-saving advantage of staying in a well-equipped French apartment for families, after having a large lunch on the mountain. That said, thanks to the currently strong pound and comparatively reasonable prices in the Châtel area, eating out – as well as shopping in the resort supermarkets and in the hypermarket en route there – was definitely at the more affordable end.
There is an advantage to having a vehicle in Châtel, especially if staying in a self-catered chalet, but the resort is keen to minimise the use of private cars once its guests have arrived in the village. Buses run regularly from outside Chalets d’Angèle to the town square, a three-minute walk to the ski lift, and also to the large supermarket just outside of town. The new ski lift connection to Super-Châtel also means that you can get to most areas over snow now, rather than needing to take the shuttle bus.
Credit – JFVuarand
There’s also an excellent new aquatic centre in Châtel with an indoor and outdoor pool, spa and wellness area, perfect for a family when the weather closes in or you need a day off from the slopes.
Don’t always expect ski-in/ski-out here, but if you’re after rustic charm and considering a rail or self-drive holiday to the Alps, then Châtel is well located for a late-season family ski holiday in the snow.
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Dom and his family stayed at the 4★ CGH Les Chalets d’Angèle self-catered apartments in Châtel travelling with Peak Retreats.
Seven nights here cost from £204pp based on five sharing a two-bedroom apartment with the price including Eurotunnel crossing.
Peak Retreats are also now accepting advanced registration for winter 2016/17. Just £100 deposit all fully refundable on bookings: peakretreats.co.uk (tel: 0844 576 0170)