Montgenèvre and Sestriere – Via Lattea
As long weekends on the slopes go – this was just about perfect.
We booked a budget flight to Lyon for £35 per person per flight, hired a car and drove the 2.5 hours to the huge ski resort on Italian/French border known as via lattea (Milky Way).
The car rental company at Lyon upgraded our vehicle to a nine seater monster at no extra cost, making the journey not only incredibly comfortable but also providing us with oodles of space to store our skis on arrival. This was ideal for our trip as we planned to pop across the border to visit my sister who was already here with Paul.
The Alps had already experienced a massive blanket of snow over the past few weeks, but conditions for us turned out even better, with HUGE dumps of snow happening overnight – twice.
These snowy nights were followed by picture perfect “blue sky” days – ideal powder conditions!
Being weary of the high avalanche risk we didn’t stray too far from the piste, but when we did – wow. These are the days you dream of.
The accommodation we booked was an apartment in the centre of the village of Montgenèvre in France; our balcony overlooked the ski runs heading down from the mountain. It was a bargain given its location – details in hints and tips section.
Each morning the snow ploughs were out before sunrise, clearing a safe path along the road, allowing us to travel the short distance to the slopes.
The views from our place were amazing.
Visiting Sandra and Paul
On the first couple of days we drove across to Sestriere to visit Sandra and Paul who were staying at a rather swanky hotel in San Sicario, Italy. It was a tad more upmarket than our place, something they’d booked with Crystal Ski immediately after our big family trip last year.
They had made some great friends during the week, some of whom we met when we visited.
Paul joined Natty and me for a blast in the much larger Italian ski area, whilst Emma and Hannah tried desperately not to get lost – but failed, the pair of them not having a clue how to read a ski map!
They made it down and home eventually from one of the longest chairlifts on the mountain, which luckily wasn’t only served by black runs! Or else we’d still be waiting…
Unfortunately, Sandra sat it out when we arrived on account of an injury she picked up earlier in the week. But on the up side, there is a bar – hey ho!
And I don’t think it’s put her off – she’s already talking about a 2027 trip…
Staying local – Montgenèvre
The final two days we bought ski passes for the smaller Montgenèvre region, which was idea for the four of us. Plenty of gentle slopes for Hannah and Emma to play on, whilst also huge areas for Natty and I to have a blast, both on and off piste.
Conditions were perfect, so we explored the entire region.
This really is an amazing location, so many areas to ski and lots to do in the evenings.
Evenings in the village
The village of Montgenèvre is not big, but has ample places to visit for food and beers in the evening when we didn’t stay in…
Our final morning.
We were treated to the most amazing sunrise on the morning we packed to leave. But what do they say about a “red sky in the morning”?
Another huge dump of snow is due today…
Hints and Tips
Flights – WizzAir, £35 per flight person with 70kg of bag allowance between the four of us. This included two trolley bags and one in the hold for ski helmets. Usual travel hack page…
Accommodation – A one bedroom apartment, with well equipped kitchen, all mod cons, with added bunk beds and pull out sofa. Cosy, but perfect for our needs – worked out at £45 per person per night.
We received 10% credit for future flight bookings Usual travel hacks page
Address – Beau duplex refait à neuf, 45m2, 4/5 pers, vue
RDC HAUT RÉSIDENCE LA DURANCE 5102A Rue Chante le Vent Montgenèvre 05100 France
Ski hire – local shop called Snow7 via Alpy.com worked out incredibly good value, at around £80 for each person. However, the service here wasn’t that great at first, as Emma and I needed to return on day two to swap our gear which was poorly fitted. The next day the manager was in and it was all sorted out to our satisfaction. Despite the rocky start, I would use these guys again.
Car hire – Budget Hire, Lyon, a little more expensive than planned given we needed a people carrier to ensure we had space for skis and snowboard. Turned out to be. A good decision as they upgraded us to a “tank”.
Ski passes – worked out at around €50 per day give or take.
Bars and restaurants
Best views – Les Terrasses, on the south facing side of the valley.
Most visited – Le Graal cafe
Best value – Masanello Montgenèvre, no pictures of this little Italian restaurant, but incredible value with great pizza and pasta, and local wine!