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Plagne 1800 - Pra Conduit
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La Plagne is a collection of small, purpose-built ski resorts and traditional villages located on the edge of the Vanoise National Park.
Renowned as a family-friendly ski resort, it offers a good selection of slopes for beginners as well as excellent choices for more experienced skiers or snowboarders. In addition, La Plagne is part of the famous Paradiski ski area, linked to Les Arcs by the Vanoise Express cable car.
This vast area of united resorts and villages makes La Plagne a true playground for outdoor enthusiasts in both summer and winter.
La Plagne is a beautiful resort in the French Alps where you can ski from 1250 metres (at Montchavin) to the 3250 metres of the Bellecôte glacier. Skiers can choose from 225 km of slopes (17 black, 35 red, 73 blue, 8 green) and 73 lifts (2 cable cars, 8 gondolas, 36 chairlifts, 35 skilifts), including the daring Vanoise Express cable car that connects La Plagne with Plan Peisey in just 4 minutes.
Connected since 2003, Paradiski is an area that includes all the resorts of Les Arcs with those of La Plagne and Peisey-Vallandry, which means that regardless of where you are staying, you have access to the entire Paradiski area with its 141 lifts, 260 pistes and 425 km of ski terrain. Of these 260 pistes, 12 are green, 135 are blue, 77 are red and 37 are black.
La Plagne is suitable for both intermediate skiers who want to try out new tracks and beginners who want to visit a large ski area. The long red slope down to Champagny en Vanoise and the one under the Bellecôte gondola are very beautiful.
Characteristic of the resort is off-piste skiing, for example on the north side of Bellecôte and the Cul du Nant. La Plagne is home to the Olympic bobsleigh run, where the 1992 Albertville races were held.
Several snow parks offer the possibility of bonk, jibbing and learning new tricks, while there are also 80 km of cross-country skiing and a half pipe.
The winter season usually runs from mid-December to mid-April, with possible early opening of lifts, depending on snow conditions. If you are looking for sunny slopes, the best time is March or April. If your perfect skiing holiday involves quiet slopes and lots of fresh snow, then January is the right time.
From one of the two villages, Belle Plagne and Plagne Bellecôte, you can reach the highest part of the resort via the Bellecôte cable car, up to the glacier at 3,417 metres. From here there are a handful of red slopes, a couple of blue slopes further down and access to many off-piste areas. Halfway up the mountain is the top of the Roche de Mio chairlift, which gives direct access to the resort.
From the Montchavin and Les Coches area you will find access to the Vanoise Express, the large cable car that connects Peisey and Les Arcs.
There are six other lifts connecting numerous blue and red slopes, cross-country ski runs and some mini freestyle areas.
This group of villages (Plagne Soleil, Plagne Village, Plagne Centre and Plagne 1800) forms the centre of the resort, with numerous lifts and gondolas: just below Plagne 1800 is the start of the Olympic bobsleigh run.
There are several green and blue slopes just above Plagne Village that lead back to Plagne Bellecôte, or you can head towards Les Verdons at 2,500 m or the Grande Rochette at 2,505 m. Alternatively, descend on the other side of these mountains to Champagny.
The village of Champagny is located at 1,250 metres and has its own gondola and four other lifts connecting to the central part of La Plagne.
Off-piste enthusiasts may want to try some of the tree lines on this side, or if they prefer the piste, there is a choice of blue and red, plus a slalom area, snowpark and freestyle areas. Cross-country skiers can head to Champagny en Haut.
Aime La Plagne or Aime 2000 is distinguished by its angular buildings jutting out of the ridge at 2,000 metres. You can circumnavigate Aime 2000 on a red run and then join the blue run to the bottom of the bobsleigh run below Plagne 1800.
Alternatively, head down the valley to one of the lower parts of the resort at Montalbert.
These two villages are located at an altitude of around 1,200 metres, with four ski lifts, many cross-country skiing routes, several blue runs and a small freestyle area. The slopes run under trees, which makes it a good place to be on bad weather days.
In 2015, Montalbert’s main ski lift was upgraded from a chairlift to a bubble lift, making it much faster and more comfortable.
In the following map you can see the location of the main places of interest mentioned in this article.
La Plagne is a great place for a freestyle skier or snowboarder: it has a huge snowpark that is located above the centre of Plagne and below the funicular that can be reached from the top of the Colorado chairlift, arriving from the centre of Plagne or from the top of the Blanchets from Plagne Bellecote.
La Plagne has a huge 1km long snowpark, known as 7 Cube, that caters for all abilities. You will find jumps of different sizes classified in the same way as the slopes: green, blue, red and black, named according to their level of difficulty and the diversity of their obstacles.
The park is divided into two and each branch has a selection of rails and boxes and one also has a wall ride. Unfortunately, there is no ski lift for the park, so one has to use the Colorado chairlift from Plagne Centre. There are often small competitions in the park that everyone can participate in and try out, especially on Friday afternoons.
At Plagne Bellcôte there is a halfpipe open to everyone. There is a chairlift called Blanchets right next to the pipe that can be used to access it.
Starting at the top of the Arpette chairlift you will find a new Fun Slope area, which includes a number of features similar to a boardercross and slopestyle course, which is the longest of its kind in Europe. It features jumps, rails, incline turns, rollers and a fantastic spiral turn in a tunnel.
La Plagne has an excellent reputation for off-piste skiing. The resort covers such a large area that much of it is untouched by ski lifts, resulting in even more powder snow and smaller villages.
The main area, of course, is the glacier. The most famous slopes are on the north face and there are many off-piste routes to choose from. The Petit Face Nord is the easiest and most accessible as it is a fairly straightforward traverse from the Traversée chairlift. The Couloir Canadian is the next step and involves an uphill hike.
The Verdons Sud slope of Grand Rochette is a large open wall with an extraordinary formation and fun terrain.
Numerous trails through the trees, perfect even on bad weather days. Large open basins can be found between Dos Rond and Mont St Jacques. Up here, there is an incredible trail through the trees from Mont St Jacques to the base of the Olympic bobsleigh run below Plagne 1800.
For powder-loving beginners, there is a beautiful off-piste track that follows the blue course of Les Bauches, starting at the top of Dos Rond.
The best place to see the north face is from above Vallandry, where the difficulty increases simply by looking from right to left. Some parts are very steep and very large avalanches are frequent, so a guide is definitely needed for all glacier descents as well as for most off-piste skiing.
The main attraction for those coming to La Plagne in winter is, of course, skiing and snowboarding in Paradiski, with 425km of pistes spread across a series of small, purpose-built ski resorts and traditional villages.
However, there is a whole host of other activities to do in La Plagne in winter, suitable for all ages: from snowshoeing to sledging, from husky dog rides to snowmobiling.
La Plagne is home to the only bobsleigh and skeleton track in France. Set beneath Plagne 1800, it echoes a deeply rooted tradition in the Alpine resort. Even before La Plagne became a ski resort, locals used to race street bobsleds and took advantage of the intense cold of the area to create the precursor to the track.
In 1992, the Olympic Games in Albertville consecrated the love for bobsleigh and designated La Plagne as the host resort for the Olympic discipline. Since then, the team has shared its passion by creating unique machines, invented by and for La Plagne, that allow the general public to take to the track. It is open to holidaymakers in the late afternoon, after sports training. Don’t forget to book your descent.
Some numbers to give you a better idea of the bobsleigh run in La Plagne:
A team of ice specialists take loving care of the track and the speed record on the La Plagne track is 134 km/h.
There are various types of descent
In La Plagne there is a unique place, the 24-metre high ice tower, which welcomes beginner climbers as well as the sport’s elite.
The Champagny le Haut ice tower is a steel and wooden structure on which water is sprayed that turns into ice in the polar temperatures of the valley. The design of the tower allows you to advance safely, with a gradual slope. The equipment is perfect for learning and there is no shortage of advice from experienced guides.
There are several places to ice skate in La Plagne. It is a fun activity to do with the family, or in a group to do something different for après-ski.
There is an indoor artificial skating rink in Les Coches, every Tuesday and Wednesday in winter. It is located at the top of the Montchavin cable car. There is also an outdoor skating rink in Plagne Centre, open in winter only.
For a truly unique experience, strap on your crampons and hike on one of the many nearby glaciers: Glacier de la Chiaupe, Glacier du Varet and Glacier Bellecote, to name a few. The breathtaking views and spectacular crevasses make this experience an incredible adventure.
This is La Plagne’s exclusive new experience, the only one of its kind in the world: a sensational aerial ascent with the Glaciers cable car. Two cable cars, called L’Acrobate and La Funambule, replace the classic cable cars to take the most daring up to the summit. Completely open, they will transport you to the heart of the mountains offering an exceptional and unobstructed panoramic view.
At the summit, participate in the Live 3000 experience: a walk, a picnic, a break at the Sixième Ciel bar or simply the view of the panorama.
Departure from Roche de Mio, arrival at Live3000. Duration of the experience: 30 minutes including briefing and cabin tour.
Minimum height 1.40 metres and price €49 per person with compulsory reservation.
The ice cave in La Plagne is a must-see: with its beautiful ice sculptures, it is a fun and beautiful experience for everyone. Located at the top of the Plagne Bellecote glacier at 3417 m, you can explore the ice cave and admire the beautifully sculpted animals and statues.
Every season the glacier changes and the sculptures are redesigned. The glacier is composed of many layers, which means that the colours in the cave range from blue to green – a sight not to be missed.
The mecca of relaxation is in Belle Plagne with the 1,500 m² Deep Nature wellness complex, consisting of a Premium and a Family zone.
In addition, numerous residences and hotels also have their own spas, with saunas, Turkish baths and indoor and outdoor pools. Each of them has its own individual touch that will relax you after a busy day on the slopes.
If in winter the mountain offers scenery out of storybooks, in summer it offers a vast open-air playground. Activities take place in a fabulous natural setting, with Mont Blanc at its centre.
The Tarentaise resort is equipped to satisfy all levels of cyclists and mountain bikers, whatever their level of preparation.
Kilometres of itineraries, a well-maintained bike park and fun E-spots await you. For those who prefer road cycling, La Plagne offers numerous fantastic circuits to climb the peaks and passes of the mountains.
As well as having over 145km of marked trails to choose from, mountain bikers also have specially built trails and parks including enduro on a purpose-built speedway that goes all the way to Macot La Plagne.
Suitable for everyone is the Greenway, which runs from Bourg Saint Maurice to Aime, along the river Isère: 14 km of asphalted road with an easy, even gradient. On the river bank, with plenty of shade, the route is refreshing and perfect for families. Along the route is the Versants d’Aime amusement park.
Access to the hiking trails in the Vanoise National Park is completely free, whatever the time of year.
The only thing you may have to pay for is a pedestrian ski pass, should you wish to take a chairlift or cable car for faster (and less strenuous) access to some of the high-altitude viewpoints, such as La Roche de Mio or La Grande Rochette. More adventurous hikers can explore the glacier and see the ice caves, or you can take a trail map and wander along the paths admiring the panoramic views.
Indeed, La Plagne is a mecca for walks and hikes in the beautiful alpine mountains. When the snow melts and the sun begins to shine, the mountains become an excellent place to hike or walk. Hiking is the perfect activity for groups, families and friends. Choose from a range of routes that vary in difficulty, from easy walks suitable for children to challenging day hikes. Along the way you will be treated to fantastic mountain views, beautiful scenery and wildlife that are normally hidden during the winter months.
La Plagne also has an area called the valley that has a real ace up its sleeve, the River Isère, which has its source in the Alps and flows into the Rhone, 8 km upstream from Valence.
The stretch in the upper Tarentaise valley combines three parameters that make it a truly exciting river: the natural gradient of the terrain, the melting snow and the spring rains. It also benefits from an extraordinary environment: wooded slopes, the passage through Aime, river gorges.
In this idyllic setting, you can enjoy various water sports such as kayaking, hydrospeed, rafting, canoeing and canyoning at different points in the valley.
La Plagne is made up of a series of small, purpose-built resorts and villages scattered along the mountainside, all connected, each in its own way, to the ski resort.
They are located at high altitudes (1800 to 2100 metres). They have a good choice of flats, chalets and hotels, all with ski-in/ski-out access, as well as restaurants and nightlife. The more traditional villages of Monchavin, Montalbert and Les Coches are at lower altitudes (1250 m to 1450 m) and, although they have their own slopes, they are also connected to the La Plagne ski resort.
Getting around is easy thanks to free shuttle buses and a large network of ski lifts connecting all the resorts and villages. Some of these connections are open at night to help visitors get from their accommodation to the various restaurants, shops and bars in the nearby resorts.
This is one of La Plagne’s prettiest villages and offers visitors a traditional panorama of snow-covered wooden chalets clustered along some of the steep curves of La Plagne’s winding road.
Suitable for families, it offers a small beginners’ ski area where lessons are held, while the Mélèzes and 1800 chairlifts connect the village with the rest of the resort via Plagne Centre and Aime 2000. The slopes back to the village from the surrounding area are a mix of red and blue runs. A wide range of accommodation is available, from private chalets and flats to full-service hotels.
Plagne Bellecôte is connected by shuttle bus to Plagne Centre and 1800 and by bubble to Belle Plagne. It is full of accommodation, restaurants, shops, activities and events and rivals Plagne Centre as the hub of the entire resort scene.
There are no chalet-style chalets here: the accommodation consists of giant U-shaped flat blocks, rising like a wall at the bottom of the slope. Although they are less chic than the snow chalets, they are also less expensive.
Unbeatable for access to the slopes, the village of Bellecôte hosts a convergence of slopes from all directions. With four chairlifts, a tow chairlift and a bubble chairlift heading to different ski areas, all within a stone’s throw of each other, plus a beginner’s ski area complete with magic carpet, you can really make the most of your days.
If the excellent access to the ski slopes, numerous restaurants, bars and nightclubs aren’t enough for you, take advantage of one of Bellecôte’s many activities, such as the heated outdoor pool in the centre of the village with a view of the slopes, a ski-joering trip with local horses, a world-class half-pipe race.
If you’re lucky enough to be there for New Year’s Eve, relax and enjoy the perfect spot for the biggest event on La Plagne’s social calendar, the epic outdoor party on the slopes, La Nuit du Pompom Rouge.
This is by far the largest of the three high-altitude villages in La Plagne, situated at 2,050 metres. Charming and cosy, pedestrianised in the centre and made up of traditional buildings in wood, stone and slate, Belle Plagne will give you a real feeling of being immersed in the mountains.
The slopes surrounding Belle Plagne are wide, family-friendly blue runs that provide access to children’s areas, the beginners’ ski area, the ski lift to the snow park and all the way to Bellecôte, from where you have access to the chair lift to the rest of the resort. The ESF and Oxygene ski schools are also located here.
In addition to the beauty of the village and the breathtaking views, Belle Plagne offers services of all kinds, from souvenir and clothing shops to grocery stores, with numerous service and ski rental outlets, restaurants and bars for the evening.
It is a wonderful village with guaranteed snow, making Belle Plagne the ideal place to ski and admire beautiful scenery, with family-friendly restaurants, a lively nightlife and even a bowling alley.
This is the heart of the ski resort and by far the largest of the La Plagne villages. Plagne Centre is packed with services, all accessible via internal tunnels, including grocery shops, bakeries and delicatessens, tobacconists, souvenir shops, clothing and equipment shops, ski hire, ski service and ski schools, internet cafes and plenty of places to dine and spend your evenings.
Plagne Centre is lively, functional, fun and friendly, but unfortunately not the prettiest of villages: it was built in the 1970s, when concrete was the recurring feature. However, there is accommodation to suit all needs and budgets, even snowy chalets.
Plagne Centre hosts a convergence of slopes and lifts that only Bellecôte can rival. The new and improved Becoin lift is rapidly opening up the Mont Albert side of the resort and has at its peak the Crêtes, with access to some epic black runs. The pedestrian Grande Rochete offers spectacular views, red, black and easy blue access to the south side of the mountain.
Bellecôte is quickly accessible in several ways and from there there are lifts to the glacier, Montchavin and the Vanoise express to Les Arc. Plagne Centre is unbeatable for beginners: it is the meeting point for most of the ski schools, has a beginners’ area with a ski lift, snow garden and the longest green run in the resort served by its low-speed chairlift.
As the highest inhabited part of La Plagne, with unique and distinctive buildings, it is dominated by a giant, pointed building, built to emulate the surrounding mountain peaks and one of La Plagne’s most recognisable landmarks. It is full of self-catering flats, while the ground floor consists of shops, services, bars and restaurants.
There is an easy blue run down the hill to Plagne Centre, a choice of long blue and red runs to Montalbert and in the centre of the village there are two beginner ski areas complete with ski lifts. The Bécoin chairlift that departs directly from Plagne Centre discharges skiers to a short blue run and also offers easy access to the series of black runs down the back of the mountain, while from 6pm there is a connection to two lifts back to Aime 2000.
The best feature of Aime La Plagne, apart from its piste-side location, is its altitude. The village has epic views of the valley, the surrounding mountains and Mont Blanc, and this aspect also gives it the advantage of excellent sun exposure. Not being in the shadow of the mountains, the light stays much longer than in the nearby Plagne Centre, perfect for an après-ski drink on the balcony.
A word of warning: do not confuse Aime La Plagne (2000) with the small town of Aime, located at the foot of the mountains, which is not part of the resort and is within walking distance of the ski lifts.
Plagne Villages and Plagne Soleil are the two smallest villages in La Plagne, but they rival Belle Plagne for the supremacy of highest village: they are located just a stone’s throw from Plagne Centre, at the vertiginous height of 2,050 metres, always snow-capped, with breathtaking views across the valley to Mont Blanc.
They are quiet, secluded villages, and each has a small Spar supermarket, a couple of ski-hire outlets, ski schools and experience agencies. Plagne Villages has a tobacconist and a souvenir shop, but for any other shops you will have to go to one of the larger villages.
The two villages are located in the middle of several blue slopes that run down to Plagne Centre from where you have full access to the rest of the resort, which means you can start your day with a ski slope instead of a chairlift. Returning to your accommodation couldn’t be easier as there is easy access to the same blue slopes from Plagne Centre and Bellecôte and the villages are well signposted from the lifts and at the forks of the slopes. There are small beginner ski areas in both villages and a meeting point for ski lessons in Plagne Village.
Plagne Villages and Plagne Soleil offer an excellent alternative to the larger villages for a quieter , more reasonably priced holiday, where you will find everything you need, with entertainment available, in a quiet semi-isolation to enjoy a relaxed holiday with excellent access to the ski slopes.
La Plagne is located in the heart of Paradiski, one of Europe’s largest and highest mountain resorts. Geneva Airport is the preferred airport for most international visitors. Alternatively, you can land at Lyon airport, which is a 2-hour and 30-minute drive away.
La Plagne is not on a railway line, but high-speed trains(TGV) from Paris and the Eurostar train for snow stop in Aime, which is only 20 km away.
From there, you can take a bus to the resort. There are 2 stations serving La Plagne: ‘Moûtiers – Salin – Brides-les-Bains’ and ‘Aime-la-Plagne’. From here you need to take the bus or taxi to reach your holiday destination. The bus stations are adjacent to the SNCF stations.
From 1 November to 31 March, it is compulsory to be fitted with metal snow chains or fabric snow socks to equip at least two driving wheels of the car or to be equipped with four winter tyres.
What's the weather at La Plagne? Below are the temperatures and the weather forecast at La Plagne for the next few days.
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