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Winter Activities

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Skiing and snowboarding

St Gervais and Les Contamines are part of the Evasion ski area - a huge area of around 445km of pistes, comprising the resorts of St Gervais, Megeve, St Nicholas de Veroce (which are all linked), and Les Contamines and Combloux which are only a short 10 minute drive away.

You'll need a photo for passes of three days or more, but they take these at the cable car through the glass so it's super quick and super easy!
Costs for 2008/2009 were 171 Euros for an adults 6 day Evasion pass, and 137 Euros for the childrens pass. There was the option to buy a family pass, 2 adults and 2 children, for 554 Euros (10% saving).
Here's the piste map for the area so that you see just how big it is! Click here for the area without Les Contamines (800K file) and click here for Les Contamines (200k file)

Cross country (Nordic) skiing

The Nordic ski area in les Contamines covers 23.5 kilometres of groomed and signposted trails (Les Contamines cross country piste map). Situated in beautiful alpine surroundings the area opens at the first sign of snow. Skating and classic paces are possible on all slopes.

The Nordic ski area is also equipped with an information centre, a picnic room with open fire, a free sledging area for kids, 3 kms of easy snow covered footpaths (free access) and 2 restaurants (La Vielle auberge & Le Pontet).

The Cross-Country ski area :
3 slopes : classic and skating + I beginners slope for all the family (classic only)
Green slope “les Lacs” (classic) = 4 km
Blue slope “les Chapelles” = 6 km
Red slope “le Belvédère” = 8,5 km
Black slope for Biathlon = 3 km


Information Centre Tel : +33 (0)4 50 47 10 00 - info@lescontamines.com 

Access to the area costs:

Access is free to the cross country initiation zone which can be found near the information centre. A 2km floodlight slope is open every Wednesday evening from 18:00 to 20:00, access is free.

Les Contamines also has a Biathlon (cross country skiing and air rifle shooting) stadium. The French Ski School (ESF) run safe, friendly and fun introductory courses.
2 hours: 25€

St Gervais has 30km of cross country pistes and access is free. There are pistes in 3 areas - Le Bettex, St Nicolas de Veroce and the Prarion.

St Gervais cross country ski and snowshoeing map

At St Nicolas de Veroce there is the 'Boulce du Plateau de la Croix', an easy, circular piste of 3km. A 5.5km red piste runs between St Nicolas de Veroce and Le Bettex. From Le Bettex there is a long blue run heading out towards Megeve.

The Prarion can be accessed either by the Tramway du Mt Blanc or by the Prarion cable car in Les Houches. There is a 20 minute walk to access the blue and red pistes.

St Gervais Spa

The Parc Thermal in Saint Gervais/Le Fayet is the perfect place to relax. The spa offers a range of medical, health and beauty treatments.
Tel: 00 33 (0)4 50 47 54 54
www.thermes-st-gervais.com

Ice skating

There is an indoor ice skating rink in St Gervais which is open all year and is one of the homes to the Mont Blanc ice hockey team and regularly hosts ice hockey matches during the season.

Other activities

There are many activities that are available during the winter in St Gervais and the surrounding area. You can take Europe's highest cable car up to the Aiguille du Midi from Chamonix (25 - 30 minutes drive away) and once at the top you can eat in the restaurant or just take in the panoramic views on the viewing platforms. Or take the Montenevers rack rail train will to the foot of the Mer de Glace (Sea of Ice), Europe's largest living glacier. Once at the glacier you can visit the Ice Grotto carved out of the glacier.

You could take a day trip to the beautiful city of Annecy, pop into Geneva, or nearby Megève or even Courmayer in Italy.

Visit a husky farm in Chamonix. The Husky farm is open for visits and trips. Tel: 0033 (0)4 50 47 77 24 www.huskydalen.com

Nearby Megeve offers hot air ballooning and helicopter and plane rides around Mont Blanc and the area.

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