The most wonderful time of the year is just days away and if you love snow covered mountains, the best way to enjoy them is by skiing and snowboarding.
With villages already crammed with festivities and the dreams of a white Christmas a distinct reality, here are some favorite destinations for a seriously cool Yule for the entire family.
Les Gets
If you are planning to spend Christmas on the mountains, look no further than the charming ski resort of Les Gets to spend some magical time skiing with family and friends. With its warm and friendly character, everyone in Les Gets ensures that visitors have a fantastic skiing holiday.
While snowboarding and tobogganing are some activities the whole family could enjoy, Les Gets also organizes special events and programs during Christmas. You can book these events in advance and plan your entire family ski holidays with Ski Famille.
Step into any of the fine-catered chalets which are all located close to the pistes and the ski lifts. Inside the chalets, you will find a decorated Christmas tree, welcome drinks, and a fun pack for the children. We recommend Chalet Bogart, Chalet Bacall, and Chalet Monet.
Several events which take place throughout the week include:
- A visit to Santa’s grotto in the enchanted forest
- See Santa and the elves descend under torchlight on Christmas Eve
- Ride on the Petit Train around the village
- Ice skating on the indoor skating rink
- Enjoy mountain walks with hot chocolate on the way
This gorgeous resort, nestled in the Portes du Soleil ski area provides the right balance of traditional charm and incredible family skiing making it a favorite destination to celebrate Christmas and New Year.
Reberty 2000 (3 Valleys)
The small satellite village of Reberty 2000 gets its name from its location at 2000m, just above Les Menuires and below Val Thorens in the famous Three Valleys ski area of France, covering an enormous 650 km of pistes.
There are a number of good catered ski chalets in Reberty 2000 that are good value for money, especially if you compare them with the prices at nearby Courchevel and Meribel.
Moreover, December is a special month for family skiing in Reberty 2000 as it gives one an opportunity to ski over Christmas as well as into the New Year. To make the occasion more memorable it is recommended to bring the extended family, including grandparents, and book a whole chalet.
The fully-staffed chalets like Chalet Chamois, Chalet Bramble and Chalet Eva are all beautifully decorated with real Christmas trees and include a delicious Christmas dinner served by the chalet hosts.
Christmas in Reberty 2000 ensures children programs and entertainment, carol concerts with Christmas trees adorning the village streets, not to forget the torchlight descent with Santa and the elves skiing down the pistes.
The amazing runs for visitors has made Reberty a top destination for family skiing as the routes are designed to cater to all levels of skiers. The snow quality in the Three Valleys is also fantastic at this time of the year.
Les Bruyeres (3 Valleys)
The festival period is a great time to ski in the French Alps and if you are planning to bring the whole family along, there is a resort and a chalet to cater to every whim.
Christmas in Les Bruyeres sees the arrival of Father Christmas on Christmas Eve and distribute gifts on the big night, followed by wine, hot chocolate and much more to round off your family ski trip in style.
The restaurants switch menus to prepare special Christmas dishes and most chalet owners provide a gala Christmas dinner for the festive occasion to their guests.
Les Bruyeres is located in the Tarentaise,(France, Auvergne-Rhône Alpes, Savoie Mont Blanc, Savoie Albertville) where skiers and snowboarders can explore nine different resorts.
Anyone learning to ski this Christmas will find free ski lifts in four different places around the village and excellent ski schools to get you started. Plus beginners will find long green runs and a huge variety of wide traversing blues.
Les Bruyeres is a part of the Les Menuires ski area and provides access to 160 km of downhill skiing, has 62 marked pistes and is served by a total of 40 ski lifts. It is also possible to ski from Les Bruyeres to other villages of Reberty. With ski lifts as high as 2700m, skiing and snowboarding is assured here all through the season.
We recommend staying in either Chalet Faucon, Chalet Aigle or Chalet Aigrette, some of the top ski chalets. They come with WiFi, hot tub, jacuzzi, sauna, cinema, family friendly activities, childcare facilities and balcony/terrace/veranda.
La Plagne
December is the month when the ski lifts in La Plagne begin to open and the Christmas holidays are on the anvil, with most activities revolving around the last two weeks of the year. From parades to special Christmas menus, a plethora of events await the whole family for an enjoyable ski vacation in La Plagne.
At this time of the year a Christmas market pops up with vendors selling wares, food and drinks from small wooden stalls. Here you can buy local handmade jewellery gift items and enjoy local beer.
As lots of families visit La Plagne at this time, there is a child-like exciting atmosphere as the big day draws closer. Whilst La Plagne itself is full of great apres-ski activities, numerous bars and restaurants begin to open their doors one after another.
La Plagne does a wonderful job of catering to families and also organizes a Snow on Fire Party, for those who prefer something livelier, on New Year Eve. Since Christmas is synonymous with school holidays, La Plagne puts on a special show for them.
There are festive themed shows for children, story telling, Father Christmas parade, torchlight descent and lots of fireworks, including a chance to interact with Santa Claus.
Another reason why Christmas is a popular time for families is that despite the high season, one can always find quiet slopes and minimum lines for the lift. Moreover, if you ski over lunchtime, the slopes are calmer between 1200-1400 hours.
Christmas is a magical time to come to La Plagne so book your holiday in any of these chalets to enjoy a snowy Christmas in the Alps. We recommend Chalet Nicole or Chalet Delphine.
Traveling anywhere with children can be a challenge, and in a ski resort the problems could double up, with things like lift passes and equipment hired to take care of. But since the above mentioned resorts are family friendly, all these things are made as easy as possible. So that is why we recommend having a family ski vacation this Christmas.