Summer ski on glaciers in the French Alps
‘Summer ski I hear you say?’ ‘But the skiing season finished for another year back in April?’ ‘Did you know you could ski in the summer in the French Alps? Well you can!’ No need to put away that precious ski gear as from June until September you can practise your technique skiing and snowboarding on Europe’s highest glaciers. Normally open during the morning hours means that the afternoons are left for you to enjoy the resorts activities or to soak up the sun. What could be better combining skiing and sunbathing?!
The Survival of summer ski in the Alps
If you go back a few years, there was plenty of choice when it came to summer skiing. France offered numerous resorts that allowed skiers to continue their passion during the summer season. These included Alpe d’Huez, La Plagne and Val Thorens but all have ceased offering summer skiing in recent years. These joined other high profile ski resorts such as Verbier and St Mortitz in Switzerland as well as Alagna and Marmolada in Italy.
It was up to France to keep summer skiing alive. So, where can you summer ski now? Summer ski is available on the glaciers in the two French Alps resorts Les 2 Alpes and Tignes. Tignes, located in the Tarentaise region of the French Alps, used to have skiing 365 days a year. However, now the days people can ski has been reduced and emphasis on other sporting activities has been heightened. This means that Tignes is a more rounded resort and offers a fantastic array of mountain and water activities. Les Deux Alps, located in the Oisans region of the French Alps, remains a hot spot for the summer skier, offering 10 weeks of skiing throughout June until September. Les Deux Alpes also gives holidaymakers the chance to enjoy plenty of other activities, including mountain and watersports, bars, shops as well as sunshine to keep boredom at bay.
Where to next? Summer Ski in Tignes | Summer Ski in Les Deux Alpes | Accommodation | Activities