It is snowing big in the Alps now, so all eyes are looking at the different resorts webcams to see if they will have an early start, or at least, start on their attempted start day. So far it is looking good!
As per Skiinfo and TheLocal.it, here are the opening dates of the different resorts:
Opening days of Italian Ski Resorts. My boys on a magic carpet at La Thuile. Photo: The-Ski-Guru
Typical dates of opening is end of November or beginnings of December. But Cervinia is already opened since 26 October, accessing with its lifts to ski on the Swiss side where the glacier is. Now they are opening their own side of the slopes. From 20th November, Plain Maison, Fornet and Bontadini chairlifts open. The Italian ski pass costs EUR 55. You need the Swiss pass to ski on the glacier on top (which is a bit pricier!)
There are so many resorts linked to the Mont Blanc or Monte Bianco, but there are some, that are more related than others. Like Chamonix and Courmayeur, with the Mont Blanc just on its boundaries, and then La Thuile and La Rosière, with more panoramic views of the Monte Bianco or Mont Blanc.. And how come La Thuile is considered the Wild Side of the Mont Blanc?
La Thuile is home of the steepest slope in Italy, as well as the place with 13 km dedicated to beginner skiers. So, it caters to both sides of the spectrum.
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Our half term ski-safari holiday based in the Valdigne of Aosta Valley- Courmayeur, Pila and La Thuile.
This article may contain affiliate/compensated links. For full information, please see our disclaimer here.
This past February, as it is usual now, for our eight year in the row, we left home very early, this time with our pooch, and drove to the Eurotunnel, one hour- and a bit now due to the diversion in the M2/M20, and us trying to find an open petrol station to fill up our car.
Driving off Calais to the mountains. Our half term ski-safari holiday based in the Valdigne of Aosta Valley- Courmayeur, Pila and La Thuile.
We arrived with time to only go to the toilet and we boarded on our way to France. Thirty-five minutes later, we were rolling down the A16 and then A 26, all the way to Reims, and then around Reims and down to Troyes, and changed to A5 towards Chaumont. Just on exit 24 you get off the motorway and, after paying the hefty toll fee, and get into the route nationale 10 to get through a lovely wooded and windy road to Chaumont.
Following our road in the map. Our half term ski-safari holiday based in the Valdigne of Aosta Valley- Courmayeur, Pila and La Thuile.
We made it in fantastic time to Chaumont, we got in our room at the Ibis Styles Chaumont Centre Gare and after trying to have a nap – an impossible task with the boys wired and running in the room, I went out with my eldest into town…
Arriving into Chaumont through the Route Nationale 10. Our half term ski-safari holiday based in the Valdigne of Aosta Valley- Courmayeur, Pila and La Thuile.
Just a nice walk around town, we’ve visited an old chocolate store with long showcase cabinets, which is a pleasure in itself. We got some chocolates, then we went to a fashion shop. My eldest is into fashion now…. getting to be a tweeny! He wanted a brand t-shirt. I don’t know why kids are so much into brands now. I negotiated with him that I was giving the money in exchange of one Amazon voucher he was given as a gift in Christmas and he could buy it.
Around Chaumont with my eldest and Ozzy. Our half term ski-safari holiday based in the Valdigne of Aosta Valley- Courmayeur, Pila and La Thuile.
After going to the local supermarket to have some little something in the room as it was still early, we came back to the hotel room.
At the chocolate shop in Chaumont. Our half term ski-safari holiday based in the Valdigne of Aosta Valley- Courmayeur, Pila and La Thuile.
Stay at the Heart of the Valdigne (Il Cuore della Valdigne) to ski in Courmayeur, La Thuile and Pila/Aosta for your ski or summer holiday.
This article may contain affiliate/compensated links. For full information, please see our disclaimer here.
The Aosta Valley is magnificent from wherever you look at it. Great mountains, from the Mont Blanc, Monte Cervino (Matterhorn) and Monterosa, to glaciers, rivers, hot springs, lakes, you name it.
Living room at Il Cuore della Valdigne. Stay at the Heart of the Valdigne to ski in Courmayeur, La Thuile and Pila/Aosta.
Having a holiday there is the best way to disconnect from everyday worries, the rat race and why all of us who love the mountains, want to at least, do once a year.
Il Cuore della Valdigne is a beautiful stone and wood apartment in the middle of the Valdigne, the valley of the Mont Blanc, what in my opinion, has the nicest vistas of the Aosta Valley and one of the nicest of the Alps.
Being in the middle of Morgex, just 10’ outside Courmayeur, 3 minutes from the Pré Saint Didier terme (natural hot springs) and 20’ from La Thuile, and to the other side, 25’ to Aosta and the gondola of Pila, the chalet is located in a great strategic location for going skiing, cross country skiing (in Arpy, Val Ferret or Cogne), mountain biking, snow shoeing, winter walking, white water rafting and relaxing in the hot springs.
Living room at Il Cuore della Valdigne. Stay at the Heart of the Valdigne to ski in Courmayeur, La Thuile and Pila/Aosta.
The apartment has two bedrooms and two bathrooms with showers in two floors, a living room with a double-sided chimney that also opens to the dining room. The wooden kitchen with the slate kitchen top is a delight, with all you need if you fancy doing a big meal. If you don’t, no worries, you are a stone throw away from many bars and restaurants in Morgex: Mont Blanc Café, Café de l’Archet, La Locanda, Trattoria da Bepe, and if you fancy something much more deluxe, the renown Casa Quinson, all within two blocks from the apartment.
Our Route des Grandes Alpes to cross from France into Italy
This past summer we went to have a holiday in the mountains. From Chamonix we were off onto Courmayeur. But it was a Saturday – what is considered here in the mountains as a Samedi Noir or Sabato Nero, meaning very long queues to cross the Mont Blanc Tunnel.
This past summer was ridiculously hot – even in the mountains – with the temperature being 31 C in Chamonix in the morning – imagine staying a couple of hours in line to cross the Mont Blanc Tunnel did not seem too much fun at the time.
How adventures start – with a good map. The IGN Route des Grandes Alpes. Our Route des Grandes Alpes to cross from France into Italy.
I’ve asked the evening before some friends I have in Chamonix on how other way we could go – and how about taking the Petit St Bernard Pass. Arnaud Jamson, the deputy director of the Chamonix Tourism Office suggested me to go all around and stop in Megève for lunch, then go to the Lac du Roselend and from there go up to La Rosière to cross into La Thuile through the Petit St Bernard. This is a typical road for motorcyclists and bikers alike – many of these roads have been used by the Tour de France!
As I have a memory of a mosquito, I’ve asked at the hotel’s reception where I could get a good map, and I was told to go into the main street in Chamonix. There is a wonderful books and magazine store – that I could stayed for hours just looking around, where I bought the IGN Map of Route des Grandes Alpes. I love maps and this one was a great addition to my collection.
Work is underway to open the Petit St Bernard Pass – up to 7 meters of snow.
From AostaSera.it
LA THUILE – The abundant snowfall on the Piccolo San Bernardo hill, at 2,200 meters above sea level, has led to the formation of a thick layer of snow along the highway that leads to the border crossing with the territory of Savoy, in France. In some sections the snow accumulations reach 7 meters in height. The reopening of the pass is scheduled for the end of May.
Work is underway to open the Petit St Bernard Pass – up to 7 meters of snow. Photo: AostaSera
ANAS is at work at the Colle del piccolo San Bernardo (Petit St Bernard’s pass) for its reopening. The abundant rainfall on the Piccolo San Bernardo hill, at 2,200 meters, has led to the formation of a thick layer of snow along the highway that leads to the border crossing with the territory of Savoy, in France. In some sections the accumulations reach 7 meters in height.
“The activities are carried out with turbine blades able to cut the compact front, collecting and channelling the snow which is then ejected at a distance of several meters from the roadway using the ejector pipes”.
7 killed as helicopter and light aircraft crash over the Ruitor Glacier near La Thuile in the Italian Alps.
From CNN and AFP/NST
Emergency services on Saturday found the bodies of two people missing after a helicopter and a small plane collided above a glacier in the Italian Alps the previous day, taking the total number killed to seven.
The crash occurred over the Rutor glacier near La Thuile, in the Aosta Valley, close to northern Italy’s border with France and Switzerland.
7 killed as helicopter and light aircraft crash over the Ruitor Glacier near La Thuile in the Italian Alps. Photo: Corpo Nazionale Soccorso Alpino e Speleologico.
Five people were confirmed dead and two injured on Friday.
The two people who remained missing were found after the search resumed Saturday morning.
Two helicopters were sent up carrying medical personnel and emergency rescue workers to scour the area, the officer said. All those on board the two aircraft are now accounted for.
The helicopter was carrying six people — the pilot, an alpine guide and four passengers who were heli-skiing. Three people were aboard the light aircraft, all of them pilots who were training in mountain flying.
La Rosière is a great resort that holds the key to a French-Italian ski area with 160km of pistes, boasting long and gentle, sunny slopes on the French side and more challenging skiing on the north face of the mountain in the Aosta Valley. La Rosière is perfect for all types of skier: families and beginners can meander around the sunny southern side of the mountain while pleasure-seekers set off on a quest to sample some Italian delicacies across the border. Perched on a mountain balcony overlooking the Tarentaise Valley, La Rosière offers wraparound views and glorious sunshine from dawn to dusk!
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