PlanetSKI’s French Road Trip
26th March 2022 | Jane Peel, Villard de Lans, France
Last modified on April 3rd, 2022
PlanetSKI is on a mini road trip, visiting some of the lesser-known ski resorts in the Isère region on the edge of the southern French Alps. First up, Villard de Lans. We discover some unexpectedly good late season skiing, a village with its place in history and some of the best food we’ve eaten in France – cooked by a Brit!
Perhaps you’ve heard of it. Maybe not.
Some years ago British and Dutch ski tour operators organised holidays here.
Now, however, foreigners are a rare sight.
It’s very much a French affair.
The vast majority of its skiers and snowboarders are from France and particularly Isère.
The region’s capital, Grenoble, which is also the capital of the French Alps, is around 45 minutes’ drive away so it’s a good option for weekenders from the city.
It’s also just 1 hr 30 minutes’ drive from Lyon airport, which is how we arrived.
The base station of the ski resort is around 4km drive from the village.
Looking down on the Villard de Lans base station – photo © PlanetSKI
If you don’t have a car, you can take the free shuttle bus.
The lifts connect you to the pretty neighbouring village of Corrençon en Vercors.
Corrençon en Vercors. – photo © PlanetSKI
Corrençon en Vercors – photo © PlanetSKI
Corrençon en Vercors – photo © PlanetSKI
The whole ski area is majority-owned by a sporting superstar.
The French-American former professional basketball player, Tony Parker, bought a 60% shareholding about three years ago, though he’s apparently not a regular visitor.
So what’s Villard de Lans like?
A big, big surprise. In a good way.
But before we get on to the skiing and snowboarding we should point out that we thought Villard/Corrençon was in the southern French Alps.
It turns out we were wrong.
It actually sits between the southern and the northern Alps in a place known as the Prealps.
The mountain range is the Vercors massif.
Its appearance is quite different from many other parts of the French Alps,
Some of the rock formations resemble those in the Dolomites in Italy.
Villard de Lans/Corrençon ski area – photo © PlanetSKI
Villard de Lans/Corrençon ski area – photo © PlanetSKI
There are tree-lined runs, cliffs, and canyons.
And the views are stunning.
Villard de Lans /Corrençon ski area – photo © PlanetSKI
Villard de Lans/Corrençon ski area – photo © PlanetSKI
View from the Villard de Lans/Corrençon ski area – photo © PlanetSKI
View from the Villard de Lans/Corrençon ski area – photo © PlanetSKI
But it’s the location that’s proved to be a real benefit this season.
The Vercors Massif likes its weather fronts to come in from the west.
When that happens, the snow dumps on the first mountain range it hits – which happens to be the Vercors.
According to locals, that’s exactly what happened this winter, particularly in the early season, giving the ski area more snow than many others such as those further to the east and south.
So, good news for a late-season visit.
We can vouch for the fact that, despite the recent lack of snow and wall-to-wall sunshine across the Alps, conditions here in late March are surprisingly good.
Jane in the Villard de Lans/Corrençon ski area – photo © PlanetSKI
On the pistes in the Villard de Lans/Corrençon ski area – photo © PlanetSKI
And the skiing is not even that high. Skiing is from just under 1,200m up to 2,050m.
There’s hardly anyone here.
The French holiday crowds who flock here in February have long gone and the slopes are pretty much deserted.
https://www.facebook.com/planetski/videos/557388538795179/
With no high traffic, even the soft and slushy spring snow doesn’t get too cut up and lumpy by late afternoon.
And the lack of crowds is evident when we stop for lunch at one of just three mountain restaurants.
No trouble finding a table for lunch on the mountain – © photo PlanetSKI
The ski area is not the biggest you will find in the French Alps and it doesn’t have huge areas of terrain for advanced skiers.
There are 125km of runs and 22 lifts.
But sometimes we would rather blast around empty slopes than fight our way through the crowds on more challenging slopes.
Intermediates and beginners can get around pretty much the whole mountain and snow cannons across the majority of the ski area have enabled many of the lower runs to remain open.
Villard de Lans/Correncon ski area
Norbert Fillot, a ski instructor with ESF in Villard de Lans told us what he loves about it….
https://www.facebook.com/planetski/videos/651713702798910/
Villard de Lans has an interesting history.
During the Second World War it had the only Polish high school in occupied Europe and its students and teachers were deported to Nazi camps.
The village and the wider Vercors area became a base and a refuge for the French resistance.
Whole families of resistance fighters lost their lives and their sacrifice is marked on a memorial in the centre of the village.
French resistance memorial, Villard de Lans – photo © PlanetSKI
French resistance memorial, Villard de Lans – photo © PlanetSKI
A short walk from the memorial we found one of the village’s biggest surprises.
My Little Terroir is a small, homely-looking Italian-British restaurant.
My Little Terroir, Villard de Lans – photo © PlanetSKI
Yes, in France.
It’s run by a husband and wife team.
Chef Mark Lawrence is originally from Brighton, and Marianica Sanna was born in France but her parents came from Sardinia.
Marianica & Mark, owners of My Little Terroir, Villard de Lans – photo © PlanetSKI
“Mark said ‘you’re crazy’ when I said I wanted to open an English-Italian restaurant in France,” Marianica says. “I was also told that if you are in the mountains you have to do cheese. I said I didn’t want to do cheese!”
My Little Terroir opened in 2012 and has become a popular haunt for locals and visitors.
I could have gone for the classic Brit fare of fish and chips but opted for Minestrone del Mare with scallops, prawns, mussels and bulgar wheat.
Minestrone del Mare at My Little Terroir – photo © PlanetSKI
It was delicious, as were the desserts.
Desserts at My Little Terroir – photo © PlanetSKI
Not surprising, perhaps, from a man who once worked under the great 3 Michelin star chef, Georges Blanc.
Another good reason to spend some time in this neck of the woods.
Next up on PlanetSKI’s mini road tour of Isère is the resort of Les 7 Laux.
We hear it is one for advanced skiers.
Check back for the next instalment, coming soon on PlanetSKI.
UPDATE: Parts two and three now available…
FACT BOX
For more information visit the websites of Villard de Lans, Isère Tourism and ESF
Flights – Return direct flights from London Heathrow to Lyon Airport cost from £60 with British Airways
Car Hire – Five-day car hire from Lyon Airport starts from £152 with Sixt
Accommodation – One night stay at Grand Hôtel de Paris in Villard de Lans is priced from £48pp room only, based on two sharing.
Lift Passes – A one-day adult lift pass for Villard de Lans is priced from €38/£32. A full price list for lift passes can be found here
Food – PlanetSKI ate at:
