Val Thorens Cable Car Out of Action for Whole Season
6th December 2024
Last modified on December 9th, 2024
EXCLUSIVE: The Cime Caron cable car crashed just ahead of the resort’s opening last month. PlanetSKI can reveal the cabins are to be replaced & the lift will not open this winter.
It was carrying 16 resort workers and was being operated manually at the time of the accident.
Six people were injured, two seriously.
We reported on it at the time:
PlanetSKI’s, Simon Wilson, is in the resort and went to see the state of repairs.
The damaged cabin at the top of the lift remains in place.
Val Thorens, France. Image © PlanetSKI
Val Thorens, France. Image © PlanetSKI
The lower cabin is also wedged into the base station and is damaged.
The image from the bottom the the lift was sent to us by PlanetSKI reader, Steven Gwilliam.
Val Thorens, France. Image © Steven Gwilliam.
Simon recorded this video report at the top station ahead of discovering the news that it would be shut for the rest of the season.
Simon found out its future just a few hours later after requesting an interview with the Director of the Val Thorens Tourism Office, Vincent Lalanne.
He announced the news of the closure for the season exclusively to PlanetSKI.
“We could repair the damaged cabins”, Monsieur Lalanne told PlanetSKI, “but we are a big resort and we can afford to plan ahead with two brand new modern cabins,”
He said the cable itself and the mechanism which powers the cable car was still operational, but that the two cabins had been badly damaged.
He said he was confident the refurbished lift would be back in operation during 2025 and in time for the 25/26 winter season.
It is still possible to reach the summit from Val Thorens by taking a series of chairlifts from the resort and then skiing over the back to the mid-station above Orelle in the so-called ‘fourth valley’.
A new gondola then goes to the same point at 3,200m.
Val Thorens, France. Image © PlanetSKI
Val Thorens, France. Image © PlanetSKI
The Cime Caron cable car was once the longest in the world at the time of its construction in 1982.
It is a major blow to the resort, but not an insurmountable one.
The Cime Caron was to have been used for the inaugural Freeride World Tour event in January, but that will go ahead as planned.
Riders and spectators will need to take a longer journey, and it will be more difficult to organise and transport the infrastructure needed.
“Having Val Thorens on the Freeride World Tour for 2025 is a significant moment,” said the FWT Founder and CEO, Nicolas Hale-Woods.
“The resort’s world-class terrain and dedication to top-tier sports make it a perfect fit for the Tour.
“We’re excited to see the athletes compete on this exceptional mountain and further elevate Val Thorens in the freeride world.”
PlanetSKI will be in the resort for the Freeride World Tour at the end of January.
The investigation into the cause of the crash is continuing and the Albertville prosecutor has indicated that human error may be to blame.
The accident happened in poor weather conditions and the lift was being manually operated.
Val Thorens raims to continue work on a new restaurant complex which is nearly complete at the summit of Cime Caron.
The accident has delayed final work on the complex, but Monsieur Lalanne told us he hoped the new restaurant would be able to open as planned in January 2025.
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