Skiing and snowboarding
Like a soft blanket, the low-hanging cloud cover stretches over the village and the valley in which it lies. It’s clear up here, on the flanks of the Savoian Alps. So, with only the white-topped peaks that surround the valley in sight, it feels like a world apart. Cut off from the stressful everyday life, skiers and snowboarders zoom down over the white mountain mantle. Welcome to Val Cenis!
Val Cenis is about a 12-hour drive from the Netherlands, slightly further away than the popular winter sports areas in Germany and Austria. If you choose to fly, it is best to do so at the airports of Chambery or Grenoble. Keep in mind that you have to pay extra to bring your own winter sports gear on your flight. It will probably be worth it: renting skis in Val Cenis is unfortunately not cheap.
Winter sports in Val Cenis
Val Cenis consists of several small villages. We were in Val Cenis Les Hautes and that was simply great. In my almost twenty three career on slats, I have never stayed at such a comfy destination. Everything is just a few meters from each other. And by everything I mean: the apartment, the ski equipment shop, the supermarket, the restaurant and café with a large sunny terrace, the bakery, the chairlift and meeting point for the Ecole du Ski. Really, ideal! In no time there is fresh bread on the table, you have brought baking butter and pepper & salt (I always forget to bring it from home :)) and the children are ready for ski lessons with all the trimmings. No fuss. Just Chill! The fact that restaurant Aux Deux Mousses served delicious raclette and was nicely decorated was a nice bonus of course. And that the friendly baker also had super crispy baguettes and sweet pain au chocolat. So far the mountain village of Val Cenis.
Skiing in Val Cenis
The ski domain is also first class. Maybe not as big as Val Thorens or La Plagne to name a few, but big enough if you can only ski in the morning without kids. 16 green runs (of which the Escargot with its 10 km is the longest in Europe!), 19 blue runs, 22 red runs and 5 black runs. The ski pass costs €155 for 6 days and gives you access to all slopes.
I found La Renova to be the nicest bar on the mountain. L’Alpage d’Augustin is also new since 2023. A beautiful mountain hut, both inside and outside, with a lovely sunny terrace. Perfect for coffee or a glass of wine.
The viewpoint over the French and Italian Alps at the top of the Met chairlift is an absolute must see! An incredibly wide panorama over the lake and the mountains. Really beautiful.
Skiing with children
Skiing with the kids was great fun again! It’s crazy to see how in a year, with ski lessons in between on the brush track in Soesterberg (www.skicentrumsoesterberg.nl), just climbing ten steps on the ski skill ladder. The eldest was at times impossible to keep up with. Because of speed, but also enthusiasm. As soon as you were with her, she started skiing again. And go! And the youngest I had to help much less this year. She could do the pancake lift alone and the green and blue slopes were no problem. Some reds even went smoothly. In a ‘pizza point’ position straight down.
Going to ski lessons also caused much less whining this year. “Just with the instructor and then with mom and dad.” That’s right, honey.
After 6 days of skiing, they won the medal for ère Etoile and Ourson. eat this!
Skiing with my brother and his family
In addition to our family, there was another family with young children. And as it turns out, skiing with family has many advantages:
- Your kids have friends to play with after skiing.
- That gives you as a parent space and time to enjoy an extensive aperitif.
- Your children are in class with familiar faces. Encouraging and pleasant.
- And parents can ski together during class. Or drink a beer on the mountain. Also super cozy.
- If you don’t feel like skiing in the afternoon (how is that possible?), your child can probably join a group.
✈ Tip: Healthcare costs during winter sport
Of course you don’t assume it, but something can always happen on the slopes. Before every winter sports holiday, we recommend that you carefully check your insurance policies. Your standard basic insurance does not cover everything for example, because costs on location are higher than the rates in the Netherlands. If you are a real winter sports enthusiast, it pays to take out good health insurance with international coverage for medical costs.
Secondly, it is important to carefully check the policy of your travel insurance. For example, take out extra winter sports cover if necessary and also carefully check the infamous gypsum flight. An extra cover for ‘repatriation’ is often indicated for this. Learn more at www.zorgwijzer.nl
✈ Tip: Another great tip is www.car-bags.com You’ll never have packing stress again. Because everything fits perfectly into your car. Check out the car-bag sets and the roofbox bags.
So what are you waiting for, pack your bag and let’s go skiing!