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Courchevel / Ski area
Courchevel's ski area is a well-balanced mix of different terrain, clearly defined ski areas for different levels of ability and intriguingly contoured runs both above and below the tree-line. The heart of the ski area is Courchevel 1850 which has a range of different gondolas and chairs heading south, east and west out of the resort base. Directly above the resort stands the peak of Saulire, 2738m, which is primarily accessed by the Verdons gondola and then either the emblematic Saulire cable car or the 12-man Vizelle gondola. Between and around the two lift stations lies a playground for stronger intermediates and advanced skiers, giving access onto a whole range of couloirs and steep reds and blacks. Off the back of here is also the primary way down into Méribel and beyond into the rest of the Three Valleys.Looking right from Saulire to La Croix des Verdons lies a whole flank of different couloirs and cliffs that can all be skied. Starting with the steep gun barrel directly underneath the cable car, there are two more separate routes before you come to the Grande Couloir. These are accessed along a narrow ridge where you can also drop off down another couloir into Méribel and do not involve any walking. However, if you can resist the temptation to point your skis downhill, there are several more couloirs that get a lot less traffic further to the right. All of these tend to be very steep with varying width at the top through the rocks and then open out into a wide flank of steep off-piste leading down to the piste of Combe Saulire. Stay high and continue working across the flank, however, and you can tuck in behind a large rocky outcrop to open up a huge bowl of powder, shown directly above the Lac Bleu chair on the piste map.
There are several different ways to get from the centre of resort over to Col de la Loze (2274m), shown on the righthand side of the piste map. The Chenus bubble is quite slow so you are better either taking the higher Coqs chair or skiing down through the village to catch the Plantrey chair. This gives access to some excellent reds and a couple of the most characterful blacks in the three valleys, all of which drop down 1000 vertical metres through the trees to La Tania and Le Praz respectively. The Col is also a path which links round to Méribel above which stands the imposing cliffs of Rocher de la Loze (2526m) where the extreme ski championships are held.
The other side of Courchevel 1850 can be subdivided into two different areas. There is the Creux valley, overlooked by the emblematic Aiguille du Fruit (3051m) which can be accessed from the top of the Vizelle and Saulire lifts along a nice red (Creux) which spans the broad width of the valley or by some narrow red runs which follow the shoulder line down. Alternatively, hang skier's left and drop down the wonderful black of Suisses. On the opposite side of the valley is the Chanrossa chair with a couple of nice steep runs and good off-piste running adjacent to it, it is also an ideal way to drop off the back into the 1650 ski area. A wonderful intermediates area with lots of well-pitched fast reds through the trees that is generally much quieter than the rest of the resort.
Courchevel
| Base | 4,265 ft (1,300 m) |
| Summit | 8,923 ft (2,738 m) |
| Elevation | 4,718 ft (1,438 m) |
| Snowmaking | 353 acres (0 ha) / 27 % |
| Ski area | 1,305 a (528 ha) |
| Beginner | 59 % |
| Intermediate | 33 % |
| Advanced | 8 % |
| Number of trails | 120 |
| Longest trail | 3 mi (5 km) |
| Snowfall | 195 inch (496 cm) |
| Season start | mid Dec |
| Season end | late Apr |
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