 Poster: A snowHead
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I received an email from Overblog updating me on the status of the proposed new Bozel to Courchevel lift for the Olympics yesterday. It was previously discussed (with photo) in this thread with @davidof but I thought I'd start a thread specific to the project. https://snowheads.com/ski-forum/viewtopic.php?p=5298746&highlight=bozel#5298746
It seems that the Bozel commune formally voted last week to sell the land required for the development and that will cover Bozel's €5m share of the project's costs so it will almost certainly go ahead. The rest of the money comes from the other communes and the 2030 Olympics fund. You can read the article here: https://echosdebozel.over-blog.com/2025/02/bozel-village-olympique-premieres-decisions.html?utm_source=_ob_email&utm_medium=_ob_notification&utm_campaign=_ob_pushmail
A few highlights from this and some other articles:
- The lift will go to C1850 but it is undetermined still whether that will be via an extension from the initial proposed termination point by the Tovets chair or by changing the termination point to integrate with the Grangettes gondola. I would think linking with Grangettes would be both cheaper and more logical but the Grangettes lift can have some big queues at ski school meeting times. The bottom section of the piste back to it is pretty unpleasant most of the year too (icy, narrow, crowded) so would need some reworking IMO.
- There will be an intermediate lift station by the hairpin bend as you leave St Bon, I imagine with a small car park but there's a big bus stop there already.
- The building of a new underground car park with 650-700 spaces. That will be the biggest car park in the Courchevel area by some distance, the Alpinium at Le Praz is 500 spaces.
- A new hotel and tourist residence with 350 beds.
- An Olympic village that will presumably be converted into tourist/seasonal accommodation afterwards.
- A long term plan to create a total of an additional 1,500-2,000 tourist and season worker beds targeting summer as well as winter activities.
- A marketing plan that 70% of visitors will not be on Saturday/Saturday accommodation schedules.
- The creation of a new return piste to Bozel.
The new piste is an interesting one. The Bozel lift is likely to be at an elevation of approx 850m looking on Google Earth so this would create a new continuous vertical drop from the Saulire of approx 2,740-850 = 1,890m. That would comfortably put Courchevel into the top 10 of longest vertical drops that are listed in this thread: https://snowheads.com/ski-forum/viewtopic.php?t=170548&highlight=vertical
I can't see it being open more than a few weeks of the year unless they put cannons in but I'm looking forward to skiing that!
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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That'll be a big change of character for Bozel and a huge jump in property value for those that already live there.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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@Je suis un Skieur, it would be good for the three valleys to get another lift to serve low lying villages, i assume this will alleviate a lot of traffic in the courcheval side of the area, i wonder if it will be similar operating timings as brides/meribel lift, i have always thought it could stay open a little later.
personally, i cannot see a piste going all the way down to Bozel though, not sure it will be financially viable with all the cannons, piste prep it would require, for a few weeks operation. just looking at the interactive meribel map, and all the village runs down to les allues and st bon are closed, presumably due to lack of snow and it is early march!!.
in the mid to late 90's there was (is?) an itinerary run down to brides from les allues, i never bothered with it, as it never seemed to have enough snow on there even then. only ever knew a handful of people to do it, and each time they said they would not bother again.
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| altis wrote: |
| That will completely screw up the character of Bozel ... |
Fixed that for you...
(Particularly the 'Olympic village').
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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re skiing down - they can't even keep the run to St Bon open (don't think it has been officially open more than a few days this year) so no chance of a run down to Bozel making any sense whatsoever. We have only skied down twice this winter over Xmas and it was marginal even then...
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| terrygasson wrote: |
| @Je suis un Skieur, it would be good for the three valleys to get another lift to serve low lying villages, i assume this will alleviate a lot of traffic in the courcheval side of the area, i wonder if it will be similar operating timings as brides/meribel lift, i have always thought it could stay open a little later. |
There's a strong emphasis in the plans around supporting season workers who work in Courchevel but of course cannot afford to live there. I would therefore think it's very likely that it would operate as a pedestrian lift outside skiing times in the same way as Grangettes does. One of the objections to the initial proposed C1550 lift terminal being next to Tovets was precisely that - pedestrians using the lift to commute to C1850 would have to walk approx 300m each way all the time to connect with Grangettes.
| terrygasson wrote: |
| personally, i cannot see a piste going all the way down to Bozel though, not sure it will be financially viable with all the cannons, piste prep it would require, for a few weeks operation. just looking at the interactive meribel map, and all the village runs down to les allues and st bon are closed, presumably due to lack of snow and it is early march!!. |
The piste is specifically listed on the plan but I agree it's optimistic. It requires the construction of two footbridges to make it complete which are part of the plan. I don't think they'll put cannons in, they'll just prepare and patrol what is currently an itinerary that locals already use to ski down to Bozel in good conditions. The issue with the lower runs this season has been freezing levels which seem to get ever higher - that's why St Bon and Les Allues are shut. The levels seem to have been high all season and it's starting to look like a trend.
| terrygasson wrote: |
| in the mid to late 90's there was (is?) an itinerary run down to brides from les allues, i never bothered with it, as it never seemed to have enough snow on there even then. only ever knew a handful of people to do it, and each time they said they would not bother again. |
It's not from Les Allues because you're the wrong side of the Doron river from there. It's from Meribel altiport and starts at the golf course (there's a handy "Brides >" sign at the edge of the forest) through to Plantin where you cross the road and then continue on down. A fair bit of it is just a frozen hiking path through forest. I've done it, in 2005, and always describe it as more of an expedition than a ski. Definitely take your rock skis!
In fairness, the piste to St Bon and the extension to Bozel should be wider and closer to a "normal" piste because there are already natural gaps in the forest almost all the way, it's just the altitude that is the issue.
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Interestingly, just from looking at Google maps and street view, at the hairpin bend there is what looks like a ski bridge over the Route de la Jairaz suggesting that maybe there was once a piste down to Bozel? Another bridge or other crossing method would be required over the Route de la Chouliere but otherwise the route down looks pretty straightforward, few trees would need to removed or big earthworks done. I do agree though that 800m is way too low for reliable skiing and even 1200m is probably pushing it as we go forwards
Edit, never done it but clearly there has always been a piste to Saint Bon
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@rambotion, no extra bridges needed for the skiing bit as we can currently ski all the way down as it is (when there is snow). The only bridges I have heard talked about are between the proposed new car park and the lift station (opposite sides of the river...).
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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| offpisteskiing wrote: |
| altis wrote: |
| That will completely screw up the character of Bozel ... |
Fixed that for you...
(Particularly the 'Olympic village'). |
Can't disagree with that but reading through the long term plans the Mairie clearly feel they need year round tourist income to survive. I particularly liked the disgruntlement over the decision in 1922 not to extend the Moutiers railway line to Bozel. Bozel could have been Bourg St Maurice!
The thing which surprised me the most was the 700 space car park. That's a lot of weekend traffic through the centre to get to the roundabout in the centre that leads to the Moulins area where the new lift is. Would make more sense to me to build a couple of short link roads and widen the existing road on the other side of the river from Le Fay so Bozel centre remains peaceful.
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| offpisteskiing wrote: |
| re skiing down - they can't even keep the run to St Bon open (don't think it has been officially open more than a few days this year) so no chance of a run down to Bozel making any sense whatsoever. We have only skied down twice this winter over Xmas and it was marginal even then... |
I've hardly ever seen the St Bon run open so can't disagree.
Rechecking the article, I can also no longer see the part that talked about creating a piste back to the Bozel station so either I'm losing the plot or it's been removed?
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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| rambotion wrote: |
| I do agree though that 800m is way too low for reliable skiing and even 1200m is probably pushing it as we go forwards |
Agreed. I'm a La Tania local and frequently reassure myself that LT will always be alright even if snow to 1,400m becomes unreliable because LT's got a gondola (rather than a chairlift) to 1,900m. Downloading at the beginning and end of the season used to be extremely rare, now I seem to do it quite often. I wouldn't want to be in Meribel Village at the same altitude for instance, where your only option is a doggy old chairlift or the bus service.
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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Bozel is the new Brides-Les-Bains.
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https://snowheads.com/ski-forum/viewtopic.php?t=87991
Excellent
Love a new lift
Can't wait
Reckon we can shave at least 30 mins off our current PB with that new run.
Bozel to Champagny is nothing.
( although we are going to have to time it well, to be able to ski down to 870m)
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You know it makes sense.
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They have cross country ski trails in Bozel village, whether they open much is another question. The Savoyards are nothing if not optimistic.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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| davidof wrote: |
| They have cross country ski trails in Bozel village, whether they open much is another question. The Savoyards are nothing if not optimistic. |
About a week over Xmas (same as the ski down was do-able more or less)… It’s a shame as I can basically walk out of my garage, cross the road and put skis on when the tracks are in… has been a rare occurrence the last few winters.
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Poster: A snowHead
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@offpisteskiing, I did wonder when they had snow. Same at Bourg d'Oisans and Bourg St Maurice, where the trails are at a similar altitude. They pisted them at Christmas.
The valleys can be much colder than up on the hill so maybe with snowmaking the alpine piste can be made to work.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Anything new on this?
Not heard much for a while about a lift from Bozel.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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Just as an update to this… A meeting was recently held by the Marie in Courcheval and then in Bozel. The slides are on the Marie website.
Looks like it may go ahead in time for the 2030 Olympics but not clear to me from the slides if a final decision has been made or not.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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| rambotion wrote: |
I do agree though that 800m is way too low for reliable skiing and even 1200m is probably pushing it as we go forwards
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That's weird, at Alleghe in the Italian Dolomites they have a home run down to the village & gondola base station at 980m.
The lower part is on a shaded N-facing slope that rarely gets sun and has snowmaking that usually starts when the nights (and days) turn cold in late Nov or early Dec. The run can be made without natural snow input and is usually open mid Dec, before Xmas, and maintained until end of season in early April with a few snowfalls down to that level through the mid-season, so I'm sure it could be done in France with the right will! 
The run is called Ru de Porta and is part of the 1100m vertical Gran Zuita route and is described further down this page...
https://www.alleghefunivie.com/en/ski-civetta/
They currently have 72/72km open, including this slope.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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@luigi, just part of the east / west alps stuff i would say. 800m in the Tarentaise is very low.
Very off topic but is run 34 in Alleghe ever going to reopen? Whenever I've been on the PreBB the drag for it seems abandoned.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
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| stevew wrote: |
@luigi, just part of the east / west alps stuff i would say. 800m in the Tarentaise is very low.
Very off topic but is run 34 in Alleghe ever going to reopen? Whenever I've been on the PreBB the drag for it seems abandoned. |
But the main purpose of the Bozel lift isn't to ski down to Bozel, it's to give workers another way up to the main resort and therefore ease road congestion.
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| JDL65 wrote: |
| stevew wrote: |
@luigi, just part of the east / west alps stuff i would say. 800m in the Tarentaise is very low.
Very off topic but is run 34 in Alleghe ever going to reopen? Whenever I've been on the PreBB the drag for it seems abandoned. |
But the main purpose of the Bozel lift isn't to ski down to Bozel, it's to give workers another way up to the main resort and therefore ease road congestion. |
That was my understanding - it was essentially going to be like Brides les Bain. I thought it was potentially more interesting though because Bozel is so close to Champagny that you could probably justify a day in La Plagne if you were in the 3V. It would certainly help out for that chap on here that did the trek from Orelle to Val D'isere in a day or whatever he did. If they ever had skiing down to Bozel i'd imagine that would be a bonus rather than the expectation
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| monkey wrote: |
| If they ever had skiing down to Bozel i'd imagine that would be a bonus rather than the expectation |
It used to be pretty consistently skiable from New Year to early March, but much less frequent in the last 7/8 years…
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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| IwishICouldThinkOfAFabNam wrote: |
Just as an update to this… A meeting was recently held by the Marie in Courcheval and then in Bozel. The slides are on the Marie website.
Looks like it may go ahead in time for the 2030 Olympics but not clear to me from the slides if a final decision has been made or not. |
If it doesn't go ahead for the 2030 Olympics I can't see it happening at all. IIRC the Brides-les-Bains gondola into Meribel was built for the 1992 Olympics, following a similar rationale. (Fewer cars into resort, more accommodation etc).
The problem with 2030 is that the French organisation seems to be in some disarray, with still some arguments about what sports are going where. Current plans are for ski-jumping (+combined) and some alpine skiing in Courchevel, which would form the basis for this development.
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| offpisteskiing wrote: |
| monkey wrote: |
| If they ever had skiing down to Bozel i'd imagine that would be a bonus rather than the expectation |
It used to be pretty consistently skiable from New Year to early March, but much less frequent in the last 7/8 years… |
I don't ever recall anyone skiing to Bozel when I did my seasons in the early 90s, but sure it would have been possible for a month or so each year, a bit like you could make it down to Brides if you dodged the tree stumps and hidden wire fences.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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| ecureuil wrote: |
| IwishICouldThinkOfAFabNam wrote: |
Just as an update to this… A meeting was recently held by the Marie in Courcheval and then in Bozel. The slides are on the Marie website.
Looks like it may go ahead in time for the 2030 Olympics but not clear to me from the slides if a final decision has been made or not. |
If it doesn't go ahead for the 2030 Olympics I can't see it happening at all. IIRC the Brides-les-Bains gondola into Meribel was built for the 1992 Olympics, following a similar rationale. (Fewer cars into resort, more accommodation etc).
The problem with 2030 is that the French organisation seems to be in some disarray, with still some arguments about what sports are going where. Current plans are for ski-jumping (+combined) and some alpine skiing in Courchevel, which would form the basis for this development. |
Are there any other Olympic standard ski jump venues in France other than in Courchevel 1300?
And yes, the Brides gondola was part of the 1992 developments.
La Tania was built to house the ice hockey players - tucked away out of sight from Meribel and Courchevel! 
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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| JDL65 wrote: |
| Are there any other Olympic standard ski jump venues in France other than in Courchevel 1300? |
The 1968 ones were in the Vercors, the small hill looks to be still there at Autrans but the larger one looks to have been demolished.
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| monkey wrote: |
It would certainly help out for that chap on here that did the trek from Orelle to Val D'isere in a day or whatever he did. |
Wow - we're famous - this has made my day - thanks Monkey
I'm half of those guys who skied Orelle to Val in a day.....
https://snowheads.com/ski-forum/viewtopic.php?p=2233081
We did look at Bozel at the time - on recommendation of a fellow Snowhead. I looked into it in quite some detail - but the snow wasnt going to be reliable enough.
You are right though, a new lift and run down to Bozel, would shave a heap of time off the route from Courchevel to Champagny
5.3Km (from Bozel) vs 14km (to Le Praz)
We also looked at doing the road parts under human power (cycling probably) - to eliminate the taxis and make the whole trip human power (plus ski lifts) - 9km less cycling would be massive.
I agree that opening that up, like as per Brides les Bains (and Orelle) - seems very sensible to me.
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You know it makes sense.
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I've been checking distances as the crow flies.
Courchevel 1850 to east bozel - 2.1 miles
East bozel to champagny - 2.1 miles
Meribel to brides les bains - 3.9 miles
So it would be doable to join la plagne and courchevel via bozel
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