Alpine Club Châtel
Mountain Sports Holidays in the French Alps

Snowboarding is magic...

Even when snowboarders return year after year to Chatel and the Portes du Soleil the area is so vast that they continually discover new routes and challenges for their skills in this awesome natural playground, and what a choice it offers... 

The Portes du Soleil is vast. Just sticking to the pistes offers more than 420 miles of trails - equal to boarding from London to Glasgow! But how many boarders stay entirely on the pistes? If you are willing to adventure there are miles of truly crazy trails out there waiting for your board to lay down the first tracks of the day.

Our location at the entrance to Chatel provides easy access to four separate bases - Super Chatel, Linga, Pre la Joux and La Chapelle. So you should not get bored.

The crazy gang will head via the Pre La Joux lifts for Avoriaz, and Les Crosets boarder parks where the vast kickers, massive ramps and precipitous pipes will bring most egos down with a bang.

At the Pre la Joux lift station you will find La Perdrix Blanche restaurant provides a convenient rendezvous at the end of the day located right beside the beginners slopes and luge run, whilst steep red and blue runs converge from the mountains above. The left side of the Blue run offers loads of bumps for informal jumping, whilst the red run has numerous informal trails for those willing to try cutting through the trees but watch out for the river! At the end of the day the Perdrix Blanche restaurant also serves as the pick up point for our minibus shuttle.

If you need to get your act together, check out the 600 metre long boarder park in Super Chatel. With its impressive half pipe, manic sound system and rather more manageable selection of mounds, ramps and jumps you'll quickly get your jumping legs back. At the end of the day you can normally follow a narrow winding green run which leads all the way down to the base of the main lift station in the village below, and just a few minutes walk to the Tunnel Bar where our mini bus shuttle will be happy to collect you after a swift drink or two.

Freeriders will find the vast area above the Linga and Pre la Joux lift stations provide an all terrain obstacle course with steep winding gullys, narrow ledges, tree lined trails and huge drop-offs aplenty. New high speed chair lifts have revolutionized access to this area particularly the 6 man express lift direct link to les Combes from the Pre La Joux car park.  However it seems that jumping off the roof of the pisteurs hut does not go down too well... oops.

Another firm favourite with boarders, is the range of slopes accessed from the La Panthiaz lifts just a few minutes down the valley at La Chappelle d'Abondance which provide superb access to some of the most underutilised slopes in the Alps, often offering virgin slopes for days after the last snow fall. Don't overlook the  sides of the massive wide main piste where you will find inviting mounds of deep powder snow just ideal to perfect that really crazy new jump. Better still the mountain restaurant at the top of hill offers astonishing value meals with one plate of chips more than enough to fill three people. Try out a bowl of soup large enough to launch a model submarine in and check out the steaks they are vast. After your day on the slopes you will find a warm welcome at the Fer Rouge pub/brewery offering an excellent choice of Real Ales brewed with Yorkshire malt, in the village below, and where once again our minibus shuttle will be happy to run you home after a well earned real ale or two.

 Throughout the Portes du Soleil you will find plenty of conveniently sited restaurants. Over the years most have been tested by various Club members and the chalet staff, who will be happy to provide advice if you plan to explore the farthest parts of the area. Any confident boarder can easily get over to Morzine or even down to Les Gets and back in a day so even the farthest parts of the system are well within reach if you can get up!