Portes du Soleil Skiing Review
Chatel and the Portes Du Soleil have a fantastic snow record. Their location between Mont Blanc and Lake Geneva creates an environment which means that the area tends to get significant snowfall from the start of December through to when the lifts close in late April.The historical snow chart compiled with data from Ski Club of Great Britian over the last 11 years, show how Chatel can hold its own when compared with higher more famous resorts. An excellant snow record can be seen for the Avoriaz ski area which is easily accessible from Chatel.
Walking distance from the resort centre are lifts up to the local forested slopes around Super-Chatel, which are ideal for cruising and generally building confidence. A super-efficient free bus service links the different sectors of the resort.
The main Chatel skiing is in the exciting Pre-La-Joux and Linga area, here you can huge amount of skiing packed into a relatively small area. From fun blue slopes to more challenging reds with plenty of off piste action available too, this is one of the best areas in the entire Portes du Soleil. A couple chairlifts away and you're in Les Lindarets, a great lunch stop, with plenty of tree lined runs, then moving above the trees to explore the open terrain above Avoriaz and over to Switzerland which has some of the quietest slopes in the area above Champéry and Champoussin.
For the freestylers out there, well-maintained parks and pipes abound across the Portes du Soleil, but the main ones of interest are located in Super-Chatel, Champéry and Avoriaz. In all it has over 400 miles of ski slopes, well-served by 208 ski-lifts all accessible using a single, inclusive card. Cross Country Skiing is also well catered for and popular in the Portes du Soleil.
