I’m a sucker for adventure.
It doesn’t matter whether it’s a change of country or a spontaneous road trip – if the opportunity is there, then it’s pretty much a sure bet that I’ll want to experience it. So when the opportunity arose to take a last minute trip to La Plagne over Christmas, my original plans were changed and my bags were pretty much packed from the moment S’s mum said “It’s all booked!” Ok… So that last sentence may be a slight lie, I’m totally a last minute packer… But you know what I mean!
Winter holidays are the stuff that dreams are made of.
Don’t get me wrong I love exotic sun-soaked sands as much as the next person, but there’s something that’s so incredibly pure about being surrounded by snow-topped mountains and filling your lungs with cold crisp air. The excitement leading up to our departure was unbearable but it wasn’t long until the 19th of December rolled around and we were making our way to Gatwick.
After a delayed flight due to baggage checks and delayed baggage due to security checks we finally made it out of Grenoble airport and onto our coach, where we sat stationary for almost two hours due to the aforementioned security issues.
Soon after we were off and a further two hours later we began meandering up the mountain edge and arrived into our resort of Belle Plagne.
Belle Plagne is a quant relaxed resort in the French alps located just a short distance away from La Plagne. The 10 minute distance between the two means that you get to enjoy all of the facilities that La Plagne has, but without all of its hustle and bustle. The area has plenty of pizzerias, pastry shops and restaurants, which if you’re craving cheese fondue like I am – means you’re pretty much set!
We haven’t explored many of the runs yet as the snowfall prior to our arrival hasn’t been great (although it’s currently snowing so fingers crossed that soon changes!) meaning that many of the runs are closed but the Paradiski area offers 425km of pistes with 141 lifts meaning that once there’s a few more cm’s of snow there’ll be much more to explore.
We spent the first day exploring the runs in La Plagne, which due to being incredibly early in the season was beautifully empty. I’ve been skiing for four years and I don’t think I’ve ever come across a run so vacant.
After a few hours of skiing and *ahem* one or two falls we retreated back to the chalet for some tea and cake before settling down for our three course meal (seriously you guys staying with a chalet host is the best thing ever) and finishing reading my book.
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