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Archive for the ‘avoriaz’ Category
Win a trip to Avoriaz for the Go Wild Music Festival
You and three friends could soon be heading to Avoriaz for the most exciting new music event in the Alps – the first ever Go Wild Music Festival (Festival des Concerts Sauvages) 2-9 April 2011.
We’ve teamed up with P&O Ferries, Ski set and Avoiaz 1800 to provide the ultimate mates’ break: ski and snowboard by day – take in secret acoustic gigs in totally wild mountain locations by night.
The ten gigs at ski-to stunning alpine locations and the acts performing will be announced by a text message to your mobile phone shortly before each performance. Stages will appear and disappear overnight to keep you guessing!
The line up features Warner Music’s finest French tallent. Take a look at the acts on our detailed Go Wild Music Festival post.
Enter now over on our Facebook page for the chance to win the ultimate ski and snowboarding mates’ break. Simply ‘Like’ the page and fill out your details. The prize draw closes at midnight on 18 March 2011. Winners will be announced shortly afterwards.
Trailer Wild concerts festival
Uploaded by AvoriazTV. – Music videos, artist interviews, concerts and more.
THE PRIZE INCLUDES:
• Four free ski passes for the Portes du Soleil ski region which includes entrance to all Go Wild Music Festival gigs for the entire week.
• An apartment with number one French accommodation specialist Pierre & Vacances in one of our nine ski-in ski-out holiday residences in Avoriaz 1800, a totally car free resort.
• Channel crossings for a group of four people and one car from P&O Ferries.
• Free ski or snowboard hire from number one online rental specialist Skiset.
Competition Terms & Conditions: download T&Cs here
1. The prize is a seven-night holiday for four people, staying at a Pierre & Vacances self catering property in Avoriaz. Accommodation is subject to availability.
2. Cross channel ferry will be provided by P&O Ferries for four people and one car travelling together between Dover and Calais. Crossings are subject to terms and conditions and availability.
3. The holiday must be taken during the dates specified.
4. No cash alternative will be offered and the prize is non-transferable.
5. Four six-day ski passes will be provided by the Avoriaz tourist board which include entrance to the Go Wild Music Festival
6. Skiset will provide ECO ski/board hire for four people.
Avoriaz goes wild for music this April
Ski and snowboarding resort Avoriaz is launching a new festival this April, but the Festival des Concerts Sauvages (Go Wild Music Festival) is no normal snow and music festival… Held between 2-9 April 2011, the event will be made up of 10 secret gigs; with concert goers only notified by SMS message where and when the shows will be, just before the first note is played: so it’s ready, set, ski!
The unique festival’s line-up is jam packed with Warner Music’s most exciting talent: Kézia Jones, BB Brunes, Guillaume Grand, Joyce Jonathan, Jamaïca, Inna Modja, Irma and Madalena, and more still to be announced.
Each act will perform an acoustic gig in a pop-up ski-to totally wild mountain location. Stages will be erected overnight and taken down the following day in and around Avoriaz and the Portes du Soleil winter-sports area. Tickets to the festival are free with the purchase of Portes du Soleil region ski passes. To receive notifications, festival-goers should register on the Portes du Soleil website.
The week-long festival is a totally new concept event created by WARNER 360, giving Avoriaz based skiers and snowboarders the chance to see breathtaking performances amid equally memorable wild settings.
Here’s a little taster of the artists already confirmed to rock Avoriaz’s ski socks off:
Keziah Jones is a Nigerian singer songwriter and guitarist. He describes his musical style as “Blufunk”, a fusion between raw blues elements, soul and funk rhythms. It is also possible to detect Nigerian roots and the influence of Yoruba music on his sound.
BB Brunes is a French pop/ rock band, part of the “new French rock scene” (la nouvelle scène rock Française). Their first album “Blonde comme Moi”, released in 2007, was a huge success in France. They released their second album on November 2009, “Nico Teen Love” The band’s musical influences include punk and rock groups from the 60s and 70s.
Guillaume Grand is a French male vocalist and songwriter known for his emotional acoustic bitter-sweet ballads.
Joyce Jonathan is a French singer songwriter with a sweet voice who records cheerful acoustic pop.
Jamaïca is a Parisian Club / Grunge / New Wave duo, formerly PONEY PONEY, comprising Antoine and Flo.
Inna Modja is a Paris based Malian and a rising star on France’s pop music scene with titles like “Let’s Go to Bamako” she described her sound to Reuters as ‘rock ‘n’ love’.
Irma a soulful songstress who’s acoustic music has an up-tempo rhythmic quality to it.
Madalena classic, whimsical French pop.
For regular updates and information about the festival and its line up “like” Avoriaz1800 on Facebook, or follow them on Twitter.
If you like the sound of these popular French acts, check out our retrospective on French music.
To plan your accommodation for the festival visit the Pierre & Vacances website. And Avoriaz is also offering a Go Wild Music Festival special featuring a 10 per cent discount on Portes du Soleil ski passes and accommodation in Avoriaz, in the heart of Les Portes du Soleil from 15€ per person per night. For more details email reservations.
Avoriaz ski news: The snow is here!
As we mentioned very excitedly on our Pierre & Vacances Twitter account today, the snow has arrived in France!
Avoriaz in particular has had a huge amount of snow fall this week, particularly overnight (Thursday 25th November).
As of today, Friday 26th November there are 90cms of snow on the ground, and it’s evident in the pictures below:
(Pictures courtesy of our friends at Avoriaz 1800)
If you’re thinking of organising a trip to or are visiting Avoriaz and want up-to-the-minute snow reports, take a look at the real time Avoriaz webcam. If you haven’t yet booked your holiday to Avoriaz, book your ski accommodation in Avoriaz with Pierre & Vacances now! Click here to visit our Avoriaz page on the Pierre & Vacances website.
For snow reports across France, check http://www.snow-forecast.com
Keep checking back to our blog as we’ll be posting any key snowfall in France for skiers and Pierre & Vacances customers.
Thanks all!
Skis on the Silver Screen – Top Ski Film Locations in France
It’s the time of year when thoughts turn to shorter days, big knits and fresh powder…that’s right, time to start scheming the next ski (or snowboard) trip! And whilst the Alps are lush and fresh and green it won’t be long before they come alive again with the white stuff. To help inspire you here’s the lowdown on top celluloid ski moments.
So whether you’re a James Bond or a Bridget Jones, here’s our guide to the dos and don’ts of skiing like a star. And if you fancy replicating their antics, we reveal the French film locations where the action took place:
1. On Her Majesty’s Secret Service
It all began back in 1969 with George Lazenby and Diana Rigg.
Check out Bond’s bobble hat and the all-in-one outfits…not sure you’d get away with that these days (unless you’re Italian).
The film location lists for the Bond movies read like Around the World in 80 Days. The ski scenes for On Her Majesty’s Secret Service where mostly shot in the Swiss Alps (and on Mt Blanc), where production was allegedly hampered by weak snowfall. The producers even considered moving to another location in Switzerland, but it was already taken by the production of Downhill Racer. The central resort in the film was the Grandes Rousses ski domain in Alpe D’Huez.
More fab Bond ski moments include Roger Moore’s parachute jump in The Spy Who Loved Me and Pierce Brosnan’s ski off with love-interest Electra in The World is Not Enough. Chamonix stood in for the Caucasus mountains in Brosnan’s chase scene.
2. Downhill Racer
‘How fast must a man go to get from where he’s at’ asks the tagline. Starring a young Robert Redford and Gene Hackman along with bucketfuls of astonishing Alpine photography the film features plenty of thrilling ski action. Shot mostly on location in the Swiss Alps, Megève in France also puts in an appearance. Watch out for Gene Hackman’s top quote, “All you ever had was your skis, and that’s not enough.” Wise words, perhaps a hip flask too??!
A bit of further trivia for you, Megève is the ski resort in the beginning of Charade where Audrey Hepburn’s Regina Lampert meets Cary Grant’s character.
3. Bridget Jones: Edge of Reason
Pink outfit, spectacular bobble hat, grey furry body warmer and ski skills to match, Bridget serves as a reminder to us all that whilst we may think we’re Bond on the slopes we may be more Dr No-good.
4. Better off Dead
This teen romance ends with a ski competition between a young John Cusack and his rival on a treacherous Californian slope called the K-12. Although not an Alpine on-location (the film was mostly shot in Utah) the film has gone down in ski history as a classic thanks to the line “I want my two dollars!” hollered by a persistent paperboy chasing Cusack’s character, Lane Meyer, downhill.
5. Pink Panther
For après ski fashion tips look no further than this classic Peter Sellers ski chalet scene,
Great knitwear, great hairstyles, perfect fireside glamour puss-ing. Don’t forget to practice your dance steps, cha cha cha.
6. Top Ski TV
Some of the greatest ski moments aren’t restricted to the silver screen. From Richard Hammond in Top Gear to the evolution of Ski Sunday, we’d also like to pay homage to some of the best ski TV.
Top Gear
Ski Sunday original
Ski Sunday 2008
But the award for top ski TV moment has to go to Ski Sunday spin off, Alaska: The Arctic Man Ski and Sno-Go Classic when presenters Ed Leigh and Graham Bell took part in the ultimate snow challenge for our televisual delight.
Now Go
Follow in the snow shoes of our stellar line up with one of the following Alpine packages for the 2010/11 season. Book your ski holiday now and save up to 20%.
- Three Valleys: Book now for next season and save 20% at Résidence Maeva Grand Bois in La Tania. From €360 per week for a studio cabin sleeping four to five.
- Paradiski: Book now for next season and save 20% at Residence Le Mont Soleil in La Plagne. From €472 per week for a studio sleeping four.
- Alpe d’huez: Get two nights free over Christmas and save €111 at Résidence Maeva Horizons d’Huez in the heart of the Grandes Rousses ski area, from €629 for nine nights in a studio cabin sleeping four, from 17 to 26 December.
- Avoriaz: Book now for next season and save 20% at Pierre & Vacances Avoriaz Sépia in Avoriaz 1800. From €720 per week for an apartment sleeping four to five.
Holiday Like the French guide by Pierre & Vacances: How to have a ski holiday like the French!
Holiday like the French part four
How do the French manage to swan around ski resorts year on year, looking chic and unflustered? More importantly- which ski resorts do they spend time in, and do they save any money whilst being there, compared to us Brits?
Hopefully, our guide will point you in the right direction and help you choose the right slopes and resort without busting your bank balance.
If you’re planning a ski holiday to the Alps and are trying to get the most for your hard earned bucks, it’s time to put Hello and Heat out of your mind and start googling the brilliant ski destinations you can actually afford.
OK, so the Beckham’s have strutted their stuff in Courcheval, Hugh Grant and Jamie Oliver live it up in Verbier, and Kate Moss and George Clooney are just a few of the big names who flock to St Moritz, but if your budget is more suited to packed lunches than hanging out in Michelin-starred restaurants, it pays to choose your resort with care.
At Pierre & Vacances, we firmly believe that choosing to stay in an affordable French ski resort does not mean you have to comprise on style, comfort and access to the slopes. Pierre & Vacances have plenty of resorts in top ski areas of France, with plenty of secret gems that even the A-List haven’t discovered yet. The French flock to these hubs in their droves, and you won’t catch a savvy French ski party following celebrities’ wake, they prefer to ski their own path!
Our French neighbours who, thanks to their proximity to the mountains take regular trips to the slopes, know the top spots that deliver the best snow and après ski for a lot less. To find out what we Brits could learn from our friends across the Channel, The Independent’s Travel Editor, Simon Calder interviewed French ski buffs Jerome and Marie for a special Pierre & Vacances video feature – ‘How to Holiday Like the French.’
Follow our guide to skiing like the French…
Where to ski in France?
While the unfriendly Euro exchange rate puts a squeeze on your budget wherever you go in the Alps this season, the French resorts that have traditionally offered better value for money will still come in cheaper than the slopes graced by the stars.
French ski lovers on a budget avoid the upmarket resorts. At the top of their lists are the equally enticing but better value snow havens of Chamonix, Avoriaz, Serre Chevalier, and Valmorel – all of which are easily accessible from the UK, too.
Three of the best – value ski resorts in France
Serre Chevalier
Located in the Haute-Alpes region, Serre Chevalier is one of France’s biggest resorts with a massive 250km ski area. Its 13 villages and hamlets scattered across the valley blend tradition and modernity, and the resort also offers a wide range of activities for the whole family. With its large natural terrain it is also considered one of the best snowboarding destinations in Europe.
Hot deal: Situated in the mountain village of Villeneuve, Résidence Pierre & Vacances L’Alpaga , has comfortable, spacious self-catering apartments with fully equipped kitchens, and it is surrounded by a landscaped garden. It is ideally located just 50m from the shops and 200m from the ski lifts. Transfer: Grenoble airport (2 hrs) or Chambery station (3 hrs).
Studio apartments for up to four people costs from 530 Euros for a week’s ski holiday in January 2010.
Valmorel
A great choice for first-timers and family ski trips, Valmorel is a purpose-built French ski resort comprising several small satellite villages in the Grande Domaine. Valmorel and St Francois Longchamps together offer 165km of marked pistes.
Valmorel’s resort centre is car-free and it also scores top marks for families as most of its pistes cater for beginners and intermediates, and there are plenty of designated practice areas. The ski area is on your doorstep which means you can literally ski to your door – another big plus if you’re skiing with kids.
Hot deal: Built in the traditional Savoyard style, the Pierre & Vacances Chalets du Morel residences comprise a selection of small hamlets scattered around the resort. All residences offer comfortable self-catering apartments within 200m of the ski lifts and shops and restaurants of the resort centre.
Seven nights in a studio apartment for up to four people costs from just 520 Euros.
Chamonix
Chamonix is a much-loved ski resort due to the variety of outdoor activities you can participate in here. The summit of Mont Blanc is the third most visited natural site in the world and the mountains hosts activities such as ice climbing, alpine mountaineering and extreme skiing. There is all sorts of terrain, but this is the perfect destination for the expert winter sports enthusiast and the adventurous.
Chamonix is famous for its cable car up to Aiguille du Midi as well as the panoramic restaurant at the top station of the Brévent cable car, which boasts impressive views of the Mont Blanc Massif.
Hot deal: Check into the Maeva Chamonix La Riviere residence in the district of Chamonix Sud. Here you’ll enjoy comfortable self-catering apartments with the Aiguille du Midi cable car just 300m from your door.
Studio apartments for up to four cost from just 365 Euros for seven nights in January 2010.
When to go skiing
It pays to remember that the UK and French school holidays don’t necessarily coincide. In order to avoid the crowds, canny French skiers book their holidays when our kids are at school. So take their lead and plan your trip when they’re not going to be on holiday!
While the French are able to enjoy last-minute weekend breaks that can prove more difficult for us as we have to cross the Channel, there’s another French trick you can follow. Travelling to the mountains mid-week, particularly if you go by rail during the day will not save you money on travel costs but resorts will be quieter as so many French people head to the mountains just for the weekend. Mid-January is a great time to go - you’ll get the best snow and all the schools have gone back so you’ll have the slopes all to yourself. In March or April, you can pick up some great last minute and short break offers for the end of the season.
Go self-catering
The French favour self-catering apartments over catered chalets for good reason – they not only love cooking up a feast ‘at home’ for family and friends but know that getting into this ski habit saves a heap of money. Take their lead by stocking up on local goodies from the supermarket to make your own tasty packed lunches (you don’t need us to tell you have pricey the cafes on the slopes can be) and hearty dinners. Do this and might well be able to afford a celebratory splurge in your resort’s best restaurant on your last night.
Self-catering apartments are so much easier than hotels for families too – you can cook when you want to and share rooms and space rather than being restricted by meal times and hotel rooms.
Ski lessons
To save money, think about getting a group of friends together to share a lesson – or join one of the existing group lessons, which the Ecole du Ski Francais run in every resort. Private lessons are for stars like Victoria Beckham only! Don’t forget to check out the free parties that the local tourist offices hold, too.
All Pierre & Vacances residences featured are ski in/ ski out and are self-catering apartments with fully equipped kitchens and cooking facilities.
To make your Euro go even further, Pierre & Vacances have introduced the hugely popular offer to help Beat the Euro Designed to help cash strapped Brits ‘beat the Euro’, the deal offers at least 15 percent off all ski accommodation on PV-Holidays.com, the website for Pierre & Vacances. The offer is valid all season, on all dates and resorts and can also be combined with any other offer currently available on the website, including the 20 percent early booking discount.
The exclusive discount code is 8258 and you can claim your discount to get money off your next ski holiday. Pierre & Vacances will also be posting lots of offers in the new year.
