Les Arcs is located above the town of Bourg St Maurice and is made up of four modern resorts. Ski chalets in Les Arcs are a popular choice for ski holidays. Arc 1600 was the first resort to be built and is connected by funicular with Bourg St Maurice so access from the Eurostar is easy. It is a small friendly resort and is good for families and quiet in the evenings. The largest village is Arc 1800 and is made up of lots of apartments with chalets within. Arc 2000 has good access to the highest skiing and is made up of hotels, apartments and the Club Med.
The new mini village of Arc 1950 sits just below Arc 2000 and is very well laid out. It is a traffic free resort that has been developed by the Canadian company Intrawest so a high standard of accommodation is to be found here. At the Southern end of Les Arcs lies Peisy-Vallandry which is where the cable car link to La Plagne originates. This is made up of a cluster of villages that have a good standard of chalets and some with childcare. Peisy is 1000 years old and has lots of character.
The best place for Après ski is Arc 1800 as this has the JO bar open until the wee small hours. The Red Hot Saloon has bar games and live music or visit the Jungle Cafe for cocktails. In 1600 the Bar des Montagnes has pool and live bands. In Arc 2000 the Red Rock is popular with seasonnaires so will have lots of atmosphere and at 1950 Chalet de Luigi has a bar and nightclub. The O’Chaud stays open late and has live music. Basically there is something to suit all tastes throughout the area.
Off the slopes there are spa facilities at 1950. In Arcs 1800 there is bowling and skating. The cinemas show weekly English films and you could also go shopping in the town of Bourg St Maurice. There is also an ice grotto on the Transarc
The mountains are varied in terrain with good snow sure high resorts and lower runs with trees for bad weather days. The Vanoise Express cable car links to La Plagne from Plan-Peisy accessing yet another huge ski area. Beginners are best suited to Arc 1800 or Peisy Vallandry. However, in all sectors there are good beginner runs to be found. Intermediates will love the woodland runs above Peisy and the bumps on Cachette down to 1600. There is a huge amount of blues and reds to keep mixed ability intermediates happy for a holiday.
Experts will just love Les Arcs as there is so much to offer with a number of steep blacks above Arc 2000 and vertical drops of 2000m. For those looking for some off piste, hire a guide and explore the couloirs. Snowboarders and skiers who like the parks will enjoy the Apocalypse Parc above Arc 1600 as it is on par with Avoriaz. There is also a half pipe at Arc 2000 and boarder cross below Col de la Chal. The best cross country to be found in Les Arcs is at Nancroix where there is 25 miles of terrain.
- Season Start / End: 3/12 – 4/4
- Opening Times: 08:30 – 16:30
- Total Slope Length: 200 km
- Easy Runs: 140
- Intermediate Runs: 65
- Difficult Runs: 37
MOUNTAIN STATION ALTITUDE: 3250m
VALLEY STATION ALTITUDE: 1250m
TOTAL SKI LIFTS: 150
FUNICULAR: 1
CABLE CARS: 5
GONDOLAS: 16
CHAIR LIFTS: 51
DRAG LIFTS: 65
MAGIC CARPETS: 12
