French Ski Resort Closes
8th October 2024
After two difficult winters the resort of Alpe du Grand Serre is shutting. Poor snow, falling numbers, a lack of investment and bleak prospects are to blame. NEW
Alpe du Grand Serre is a collection of six villages in the southern French Alps near Grenoble.
The resort opened 85 years ago and had 55 km of ski runs served by ten drag lifts and three chairlifts.
It is a blow to the locals who rely on the resort for employment.
Up to 200 people are reported to be affected including 25 ski instructors and their families.
A local sports shop owner, Lauranne Vincent, told France 3 television: “We are devastated and shocked. It’s a brutal decision coming two months before we were due to open. We were hoping the opposite would happen. We said all lights were green to go.”
Some low and medium level resorts are struggling due to climate change and declining snowfall.
However, it has not come out of the blue and the warning signs have been on the cards for some time.
Following dwindling snow and competition from other areas, the local council voted to close the area by a large majority.
