Skiing in La Clusaz
La Clusaz’s local ski area consists of five connected mountains, the highest of which is the Massif de Balme, where the top lift reaches the Col de Balme at 2477m. There are 125km of runs but this figure almost doubles to 211 km of runs if you buy an Aravis lift pass that also includes the bus-linked ski resort of Le Grand Bornand which is just 6km from La Clusaz. There is also some off-piste freeride which is well worth exploring with mountain guides.
La Clusaz Ski Area
Massif de Balme
The highpoint of the La Clusaz ski area. A 2,600m mountain with three lifts that reach the 2477m Col de Balme and 2364m Torchere. Most of the skiing is on quite challenging north-facing red runs.
Massif de l’Aiguille
A 2,400m mountain with lifts reaching up to 2257m. Mostly red runs at the top and blue runs lower down. The slopes head off in three directions: north-eastwards to the La Balme base station, north-westwards to the centre of La Clusaz and westwards to the subirb of Les Etages at the foot of the Massif de L’Etale/Le Belvedere
Massif de l’Etale / Le Belvedere
The Etale mountain is a great choice for busy days as it doesn’t seem to attract the crowds. A good mix of blue, red and black slopes on a north-facing mountainside. From the top of the Belevedere (1957m) enjoy the challenging red run ‘Regine Cavagnoud’ or black ‘Les Tetras’.
Beauregard
The Beauregard gondola (1648m) gives access to a sunny plateau and the best nursery slopes in La Clusaz. From here you can get back to the village via a long, scenic blue run or a more testing black run that both face north-east. Or you can keep going westwards to Manigod via an easy blue run which links the Beauregard area with La Croix Fry and Merdassier.
Massif de Manigod / Col de Merdassier
There is skiing on both sides of the Col de Merdassier with predominantly blue runs coming down from the Tete de Cabeau in all directions, and west-facing red runs on the other side of the col, although the connecting run back to Etale is a blue.
Aravis Lift Pass and le Grand Bornand
By purchasing the ‘Aravis’ lift pass you gain access to a further 88km of skiing at the neighbouring resort of Le Grand Bornand, cost of ski bus included. The skiing is mostly on 2100m Mont Lechat, where there are predominantly north-west facing runs for all standards.
There is also a small beginner area at St Jean de Sixt.
Beginner Skiing in La Clusaz
The piste map doesn’t seem to have a lot to offer experts, but most of the sectors present off-piste variants to the pistes and there are more serious adventures to undertake when accompanied by a qualified guide – all the more attractive for being ignored by most visitors.
The best terrain is at La Balme where there are several fairly challenging pistes above mid-mountain including the black Vraille run which is seriously steep. The piste map now shows the long new Lapiaz Black run down the Combe du Fernuy as well as La Noire at Beauregard, though the latter does need very good snow cover to be enjoyable. The Tetras on l’Etale and the Mur d’Edgar bumps run below Cret du Loup are also classified as blacks, and rightly so.
Boarding & Freestyle in La Clusaz
Snowboarding is popular in La Clusaz and it is relatively easy to get around the resort. Although there are still a lot of drag-lifts, most are avoidable. Boarders and freestylers can check out the terrain-park and half-pipe on l’Aiguille and the separate boardercross course.
La Clusaz was one of the first resorts to grant boarders access to all areas and introduce terrain features. La Balme mountain is considered a freeriding paradise with numerous cliffs, big carving slopes and drop-offs, especially on the far Combe de Bellachet side. Candide Thovex, current freestyle champion, hails from La Clusaz and ensures that the freestyle spirit thrives here with a full calendar of events each winter.
La Balme mountain is considered a freeriding paradise.
Mountain Restaurants in La Clusaz
In La Clusaz you’ll find, refreshingly, mostly rustic family-run restaurants serving good and reasonably priced Savoyard food.
La Clusaz has managed to avoid the plague of self-service mountain restaurants which have sprung up in so many resorts. Here you’ll find, for the most part, rustic family-run restaurants serving good and reasonably priced Savoyard food.
Try The Bercail on the Cret de Merle for seriously good tartiflette (local speciality) or La Ferme, a little further down the piste, with its wood fire and home-made pizzas.
Bruno and Sam’s Relais de l’Aiguille is a great place to enjoy a sun-downer with its lovely sunny terrace and eclectic mix of music whilst the Telemark Café is a good chill-out lunch spot over at l’Etale. La Vielle Ferme at the Col de Merdassier has a charming restaurant with excellent food and service and is a great place to stop for lunch if you’re doing the 5 mountain circuit.
On the other hand the two restaurants at La Balme, one at car park level and the other at the mid-station are rather disappointing and lacking in atmosphere.
Most intermediates will love La Clusaz if the snow conditions are good. Early intermediates will delight in the gentle slopes at the top of Beauregard and over on La Croix Fry at Manigod, where there’s a network of gentle tree-lined runs. And they’ll be able to travel all over the area on the gentle green linking pistes, where poling or walking is more likely to be a problem than fears about steepness. L’Etale and l’Aiguille have more challenging but wide blue runs. More adventurous intermediates will prefer the steeper red slopes and good snow of La Balme and the long red down Combe du Fernuy from l’Aiguille.
Advanced & Expert Skiing in La Clusaz
There is plenty to challenge advanced skiers at La Clusaz, especially off-piste. The best terrain is at la Balme.
The piste map doesn’t seem to have a lot to offer experts, but most of the sectors present off-piste variants to the pistes and there are more serious adventures to undertake when accompanied by a qualified guide – all the more attractive for being ignored by most visitors.
The best terrain is at La Balme where there are several fairly challenging pistes above mid-mountain including the black Vraille run which is seriously steep. The piste map now shows the long new Lapiaz Black run down the Combe du Fernuy as well as La Noire at Beauregard, though the latter does need very good snow cover to be enjoyable. The Tetras on l’Etale and the Mur d’Edgar bumps run below Cret du Loup are also classified as blacks, and rightly so.
Boarding & Freestyle in La Clusaz
Snowboarding is popular in La Clusaz and it is relatively easy to get around the resort. Although there are still a lot of drag-lifts, most are avoidable. Boarders and freestylers can check out the terrain-park and half-pipe on l’Aiguille and the separate boardercross course.
La Clusaz was one of the first resorts to grant boarders access to all areas and introduce terrain features. La Balme mountain is considered a freeriding paradise with numerous cliffs, big carving slopes and drop-offs, especially on the far Combe de Bellachet side. Candide Thovex, current freestyle champion, hails from La Clusaz and ensures that the freestyle spirit thrives here with a full calendar of events each winter.
La Balme mountain is considered a freeriding paradise.
Mountain Restaurants in La Clusaz
In La Clusaz you’ll find, refreshingly, mostly rustic family-run restaurants serving good and reasonably priced Savoyard food.
La Clusaz has managed to avoid the plague of self-service mountain restaurants which have sprung up in so many resorts. Here you’ll find, for the most part, rustic family-run restaurants serving good and reasonably priced Savoyard food.
Try The Bercail on the Cret de Merle for seriously good tartiflette (local speciality) or La Ferme, a little further down the piste, with its wood fire and home-made pizzas.
Bruno and Sam’s Relais de l’Aiguille is a great place to enjoy a sun-downer with its lovely sunny terrace and eclectic mix of music whilst the Telemark Café is a good chill-out lunch spot over at l’Etale. La Vielle Ferme at the Col de Merdassier has a charming restaurant with excellent food and service and is a great place to stop for lunch if you’re doing the 5 mountain circuit.
On the other hand the two restaurants at La Balme, one at car park level and the other at the mid-station are rather disappointing and lacking in atmosphere.
La Clusaz provides some excellent accessible skiing for first-timers. There are a couple of beginner lifts at resort level but the best area is undoubtedly at Beauregard which boasts a sunny plateau with gentle blue and green slopes. Beginners can progress to ‘Le Meridien’, a long blue run right back to the village, or to the Croix Fry/Merdassier slopes via another easy piste and a 2-man chairlift. Another favourite is the Cret du Merle area where beginners will find lots of Savoyard mountain restaurants for a well-earned pit stop.
Ski Schools & Ski Lessons in La Clusaz
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Intermediate Skiing in La Clusaz
Most intermediates will love La Clusaz if the snow conditions are good. Early intermediates will delight in the gentle slopes at the top of Beauregard and over on La Croix Fry at Manigod, where there’s a network of gentle tree-lined runs. And they’ll be able to travel all over the area on the gentle green linking pistes, where poling or walking is more likely to be a problem than fears about steepness. L’Etale and l’Aiguille have more challenging but wide blue runs. More adventurous intermediates will prefer the steeper red slopes and good snow of La Balme and the long red down Combe du Fernuy from l’Aiguille.
Advanced & Expert Skiing in La Clusaz
There is plenty to challenge advanced skiers at La Clusaz, especially off-piste. The best terrain is at la Balme.
The piste map doesn’t seem to have a lot to offer experts, but most of the sectors present off-piste variants to the pistes and there are more serious adventures to undertake when accompanied by a qualified guide – all the more attractive for being ignored by most visitors.
The best terrain is at La Balme where there are several fairly challenging pistes above mid-mountain including the black Vraille run which is seriously steep. The piste map now shows the long new Lapiaz Black run down the Combe du Fernuy as well as La Noire at Beauregard, though the latter does need very good snow cover to be enjoyable. The Tetras on l’Etale and the Mur d’Edgar bumps run below Cret du Loup are also classified as blacks, and rightly so.
Boarding & Freestyle in La Clusaz
Snowboarding is popular in La Clusaz and it is relatively easy to get around the resort. Although there are still a lot of drag-lifts, most are avoidable. Boarders and freestylers can check out the terrain-park and half-pipe on l’Aiguille and the separate boardercross course.
La Clusaz was one of the first resorts to grant boarders access to all areas and introduce terrain features. La Balme mountain is considered a freeriding paradise with numerous cliffs, big carving slopes and drop-offs, especially on the far Combe de Bellachet side. Candide Thovex, current freestyle champion, hails from La Clusaz and ensures that the freestyle spirit thrives here with a full calendar of events each winter.
La Balme mountain is considered a freeriding paradise.
Mountain Restaurants in La Clusaz
In La Clusaz you’ll find, refreshingly, mostly rustic family-run restaurants serving good and reasonably priced Savoyard food.
La Clusaz has managed to avoid the plague of self-service mountain restaurants which have sprung up in so many resorts. Here you’ll find, for the most part, rustic family-run restaurants serving good and reasonably priced Savoyard food.
Try The Bercail on the Cret de Merle for seriously good tartiflette (local speciality) or La Ferme, a little further down the piste, with its wood fire and home-made pizzas.
Bruno and Sam’s Relais de l’Aiguille is a great place to enjoy a sun-downer with its lovely sunny terrace and eclectic mix of music whilst the Telemark Café is a good chill-out lunch spot over at l’Etale. La Vielle Ferme at the Col de Merdassier has a charming restaurant with excellent food and service and is a great place to stop for lunch if you’re doing the 5 mountain circuit.
On the other hand the two restaurants at La Balme, one at car park level and the other at the mid-station are rather disappointing and lacking in atmosphere.