Les 2 Alpes long-term plans 2018-2023

For this winter, the two old lifts on La Toura have been replaced by an express eight-man chairlift. This is not actually a new lift but the top half of the Glaciers chairlift. This season, access to the glacier sector will only be via the Jandri Express. You will still be able to use the lower half of the Glaciers chairlift to reach 2900 metres, giving access to most of the reds and the runs into La Fee.

For winter 2019-20, a new lift will be built in the Chalance bowl, giving access to the glacier from La Fee. The four-man Crêtes chairlift – a bottleneck at busy times – will be upgraded to a fast eight-man chair, utilising the other half of the Glaciers lift. The Crêtes chair will be moved into Le Thuit to replace the slow lifts there and give a faster return route from La Fee. Finally, the Super Venosc chairlift will be replaced with a shorter, faster chairlift reusing the old Toura chair.

In order to improve the reliability of snow conditions on lower and mid-mountain slopes, the snowmaking system will be extended with the creation of a new La Mura reservoir. The aim is to have snowmaking serving 30% of the piste network. In particular, more snowmaking facilities will be installed between La Toura at 2600 metres and Les Crêtes at 2100 metres. This will ensure good, safe skiing conditions even when natural snow cover is poor.

The Jandri Express is to be replaced by a new 3S gondola. This will triple the capacity of the main route into to the centre of the ski area and on to the glacier. When it first opened in 1985, the Jandri Express was well ahead of its time, carrying twenty people per cabin in an era when most gondolas only managed four or six. However, times have moved on and the lift is ready for an upgrade.

The long-discussed link to Alpe d’Huez is planned to open in 2022, pushing the combined area into the top five largest ski areas in the world. The link will run from Mont de Lans to Auris en Oisans, joining the closest points of the two piste networks. With the link arriving at Mont de Lans, the connection from Mont de Lans will need upgrading to cope with the visitors from Alpe d’Huez. This will be achieved with a gondola to Les Crêtes via an intermediate station in Village 1800.

Along with the improvements to the lift system, the resort's accommodation will undergo a wave of expansion. Numerous projects are under way to improve both the capacity and the range of beds in the town. For this winter, the new People’s Hostel will be open, providing good quality budget accommodation in both dormitories and private rooms. Up in Village 1800, the Club de Soleil Villages will also open its doors.

In 2019, the biggest development will be the Néméa Tourist residence, providing over 900 beds in almost 200 apartments alongside the Vallée Blanche lift station. At the same time, the Terres de Venosc development should be completed, with 30 new chalets. There will also be new developments in La Résidence, the old Alpinistes Hotel and the Chalet du Soleil.

In 2020, the site of the Glaciers hotel will be developed into a new 50 room hotel, two apartment buildings and a senior citizens residence, while the Clarines residence will add another 160 apartments. There will also be a second Belambra hotel in the Village area.

To support these projects, and the extra visitors and staff they will bring, a series of improvements to the town’s infrastructure and leisure facilities are also planned. Car parking and public transport, the helistation, the tourist office and the fibre-optic internet connections are all due to see some improvements. Leisure-wise, a new ‘Aquafun Centre’ is on the way, and the new, million-euro skatepark has just been completed.

Read more from our reporter Ian on his website.

Les Deux Alpes is one of the most popular ski areas in the world, and these developments will only improve the experience for all visitors. So, what are you waiting for? Get out here this winter and the winters to come.