CAN YOU KEEP A SECRET?

19th March 2018 | James Cove, St Gervais

Last modified on August 23rd, 2021

PlanetSKI’s 4-day weekend ski trip to France with Skiweekender comes to an end. With a surprise. Sssshhh…

Day 1 was spent skiing in the resort of Le Grand Bornand near Annecy.

It was a fabulous day in a fabulous resort:

A short ski break: Day 1

As you will see from my first report I’m staying 4 days with the UK company, Skiweekender, in the village of St Jean de Sixt and then St Gervais for a single night.

The village of St Jean de Sixt gives access to the resorts of Le Grand Bornand, La Clusaz and Manigod.

The first day was Le Grand Bornand and then it was La Clusaz on Day 2 but the weather changed on my second day of four.

A short ski break: Day 2

And then on Day 3 it was round to St Gervais:

A short ski break: Day 3

Megeve/St Gervais, France. Image © PlanetSKI

DAY FOUR

If you can’t keep a secret then please read no further.

This is a ski area that needs to be kept for those in-the-know and not just passed around to all and sundry.

I have just discovered a fabulous little ski area that is part of a world-famous resort that I knew nothing about until a week ago.

And it’s so good I’ve just been back for more.

And this time after some overnight fresh snow.

Step forward Cote 2000 that can be found on the edge of the Megeve/St, Gervais ski area and is part of the mighty Domaine Evasion Mont Blanc, with its 445km of interlinked pistes.

The area itself is little-known yet offers a massive ski area and I have just found what I consider the best ones in the entire Domaine Evasion Mont Blanc.

St Gervais, France. Image © PlanetSKI

You get to it (and back from it) on a couple of old poma lifts, plus there is a little traverse and a pole along a flattish blue path.

That probably puts off 99.9% of the people who ski in Megeve.

But the two chair lifts in the area, Radaz and Cote 2000, give access to some fabulous slopes and some stunning scenery.

I first skied here last week when I was testing the 2018/19 range of skis offered by Decathlon.

We hit the groomers, the steeps, the powder and the trees.

It was no co-incidence this area was chosen to put a range of skis through their paces – it has everything,

And now I’m back for the final morning of my 4-day weekend trip with Skiweekender.

“We should really go to the Cote 2000 area as it has some of the best skiing in the entire Domaine Evasion Mont Blanc area,” said the boss of Skiweekenders, Paul Turnbull, who was showing me around.

“I skied there last week and vowed to return, but I didn’t think it would be so soon. Let’s go!” I answered.

St Gervais, France. Image © PlanetSKI

And here is what it was like to ski on piste this morning:

So, just to re-cap it is the Cote 2000 area – but, Ssshh, don’t tell anyone.

It is a world away from the glitz and glamour of Megeve.

The ladies of Megeve. Image © PlanetSKI

Now as you may recall in yesterday’s blog I promised a tour of the town to look at its stunning 19^th Century architecture.

I’m afraid I delayed getting off my skis till the last possible moment.

I had time for a quick walk round town but no time to find out about the town’s history and details of its architectural heritage.

It will have to wait until I am back next time – and I WILL be back.

You can draw your own conclusions from the pictures.

St Gervais, France. Image © PlanetSKI

So there it is.

The end of my 4-day weekend trip with Skiweekenders.

I’m tempted to use an old cliché and recount that I had squeezed a week’s worth of skiing and adventures into my weekend away, but that would be incorrect.

It was far more than a week’s worth.

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW:

See here for further details about Skiweekender.

4 day Weekends run from Thursday to Monday evening and 3 day Midweeks from Monday to Thursday evening.

Prices start from £459pp for 4-day weekends and £299pp for 3-day midweeks.

And, new for this year, the company is also offering two short breaks rolled into one.

We wrote about it earlier on PlanetSKI: