 Poster: A snowHead
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You know the weather is bad when the queue for the magic carpet in Le Lac is longer than the magic carpet!
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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| chocksaway wrote: |
| You know the weather is bad when the queue for the magic carpet in Le Lac is longer than the magic carpet! |
When you are desperate for a slide, any lift will do!
Hoping that it starts to clear this afternoon and evening so that tomorrow is a good day. Kids are at each other's throats.
Shout out to the Ultimate Ski guys this morning who took the kids into the Maison for an Avalanche lesson and how to stay safe. Our 15 and 14 year olds loved it and got to play with their transponder. Make the most of a sorry situation!
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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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@FrediKanoute, Enjoy tomorrow - safely - it looks like a nice day, although it will be a slow start. The moderate to heavy snow starts again tomorrow night and continues into Thursday. The avi risk forecast for Thursday is, you guessed it, 5 out of 5.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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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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@moosepig, That turned into a fairly accurate prediction 
Val had much more stuff open early doors. Tignes now has a few more lifts running thankfully.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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A it of spare time today - so here's a fuller forecast. After a few sunny periods this afternoon the skies will cloud over and it will start snowing late in the evening - potentially moderate to heavy in intensity. The wind will also pick up. Tomorrow will see snow al day - mostly light in intensity but increasing in the evening again. But, the avalanche risk forecast is for 5/5 again tomorrow (to be confirmed around tea time tonight). So mostly a day for magic carpets again and a few chairlifts later in the morning. There will probably be a few periods when the roads are closed again. Friday will also see cloud and light snow - this may ease off in the early afternoon and there may even be a hint of sunshine depending on how quickly the weather system passes through. Thankfully, Saturday looks nice with just a few clouds on the peaks and a bit of a breeze - so with the snow stopping on Friday the roads should be clear(ish). Sunday is likely to have a bit more cloud - a milky layer may hide the sun.
Good luck with teh sledging tomorrow.
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Avi risk 5/5 confirmed for the Haute Tarentaise tomorrow.
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I’m amazed at how much is open and judging by my messages I’m not the only one. As the snow measuring on Lumiplan is gibberish can anyone say if lasts nights snow arrived in the forecast quantities of 20-30cm.
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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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It's astonishing. 5/5 risk level and the place is opening up like Janet Jackson's wardrobe. The list of what is closed looks more like a 3/5 day after overnight snow. I can only imagine that PIDA was going on most of the night! 
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@moosepig, Good job the vis is crap - or we’d be in the headlines again.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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@moosepig, 4/5. But still dodgy as FK. I’m waiting it out today.
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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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@Dr John, Yes I see it's now been downgraded (although BERA is forecasting 5/5 again tomorrow )
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It’s strange that all the signs say 4/5 on the mountain, but social media accounts say 5/5 - so it really is 4/5. Heavy going and many people and may bumps!! Snow in Val on the La Daille sector way nicer than down to Brev, I can confirm. Val groomed the slopes and Tignes appears to have not done any.
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You know it makes sense.
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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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These are great. I have links on my phone for all the resorts in France I visit. It's quick and easy and linked to the basic tech that provides it to more glam but harder to use interfaces.
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Poster: A snowHead
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@stevew, They are - that’s why the links are included on P1
In other news the wind speed is increasing and a ‘go home’ to your resort has been issued.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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@chocksaway, and it's easy to work out the rules for other resorts without have had a link.
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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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@stevew, Or go to the page that lists all the resorts.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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| rjs wrote: |
| @stevew, Or go to the page that lists all the resorts. |
What a great wee link. It includes the ski areas in the Massif Central too.
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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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| moffatross wrote: |
| rjs wrote: |
| @stevew, Or go to the page that lists all the resorts. |
What a great wee link. It includes the ski areas in the Massif Central too. |
Brill, I've never managed to find that before 
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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Thanks for posting the links. I don't mean to be difficult, but they are still super contradictory. Like today, it says risk is 5/5 for Val D'isere, but then you scoll down lower and it says it's 4/5. Then you go to Val D'isere website and it says it's 5/5. Lift openings are a complete mystery as you have red crossed on them all on the link, but on the website some are amber. As a guest of the ski area I think it's super confusing to actually know what's happening. You look at Tignes's site and it suggests that the link to Val will be open, so clearly a reasonable amount of openings are predicted.
Update: at 0840am, it updated and now it appears almost everything will open, with 5/5 rating.
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| Alex A wrote: |
Thanks for posting the links. I don't mean to be difficult, but they are still super contradictory. Like today, it says risk is 5/5 for Val D'isere, but then you scoll down lower and it says it's 4/5. Then you go to Val D'isere website and it says it's 5/5. Lift openings are a complete mystery as you have red crossed on them all on the link, but on the website some are amber. As a guest of the ski area I think it's super confusing to actually know what's happening. You look at Tignes's site and it suggests that the link to Val will be open, so clearly a reasonable amount of openings are predicted.
Update: at 0840am, it updated and now it appears almost everything will open, with 5/5 rating. |
The open slopes will have been secured and will be safe, thats the primary job of the pisteurs who will have been out since dark o'clock.
In the real world - and given the recent events in Manchet - does it really matter if it says 5/5 or 4/5?
As always, if you choose to go under the ropes then caveat emptor etc................
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The road from Val to Le Fornet is shut - so no skiing in Fornet or Pissailas sectors.
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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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| Alex A wrote: |
Thanks for posting the links. I don't mean to be difficult, but they are still super contradictory. Like today, it says risk is 5/5 for Val D'isere, but then you scoll down lower and it says it's 4/5. Then you go to Val D'isere website and it says it's 5/5. Lift openings are a complete mystery as you have red crossed on them all on the link, but on the website some are amber. As a guest of the ski area I think it's super confusing to actually know what's happening. You look at Tignes's site and it suggests that the link to Val will be open, so clearly a reasonable amount of openings are predicted.
Update: at 0840am, it updated and now it appears almost everything will open, with 5/5 rating. |
Live map, shows many lifts and pistes are closed.
https://lumiplay.link/interactive-map/Tignes_ValdIsere/en
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As it's Friday, I have a seat in the 'Met Office'. At last change is coming and a respite from the storms is here (for at least a week probably). Of course the avalanche risk remains high and as the sun come out and the temperatures rise folks are going to take a risk. Fingers crossed that everyone is now aware and is more careful.
Tignes will be on the edge of a high pressure system from tomorrow which will build slowly - and this makes forecasting a little easier for man and machine. The skies will progressively clear tonight to leave tomorrow a day of sunny periods. There will still be a stiff breeze and the temperatures won't go up much so a nice day for skiing and sitting in traffic jams. There is a weather system to the north which will bring light rain for Lyon and Geneva which could encroach on the Tarentaise - but unlikely. Sunday will see a mix of cloud - could be a milky sky but nothing untoward - the temp will increase by about 5 degs from Saturday and a breeze will remain. Monday - just a few fluffy clouds on the peaks and the breeze will drop and Tuesday on current forecasts will be glorious - blue skies, another 2 or 3 degs warmer and little wind. These temps will of course turn any remaining light snow into much heavier stuff especially in the Sun.
For the travellers tomorrow - the whole of the UK is prone to gusty showers so it might be a bit bumpy. Over on the Continent it will all be good for flying, despite the aforementioned rain. As for the roads - at least there should be no weather issues but with 37k vehicles aiming for the Tarentaise and 33k leaving there are going to be queues both ways (The biggest number of arrivals ever was 38k). So if you are leaving - go tonight or by 6 in the morning - for those arriving expect queues from mid morning till dark. But just sit there and gloat at the folks leaving as you are heading for fresh snow and sunshine.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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| chocksaway wrote: |
| Fingers crossed that everyone is now aware and is more careful. |
I wouldn't bet the farm on it... the Parisians are coming 
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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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@moosepig, Ahhh yes, lock up your skis (advice from the locals).
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@chocksaway, in your experience what are traffic numbers like on weekends of 14th and 21st March
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You know it makes sense.
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Afternoon - I had a look at the webcams this morning around 1030 in Tignes Le Lac and VC . The lift queues looked v long and checked earlier and still as long. Lift status looked all ok. Is there a lift issue or just its a v busy week ? Anyone out in resort can advise ? Thanks
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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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@Charlie333, It’s probably the busiest week of the year.
@kb36, Generally not too bad - as long as the weather plays ball. The first week you mention has the Mountain Shaker event which will add a few vehicles to normal. The second week is European Snow Pride which is about 1000 strong but makes little difference to traffic.
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Poster: A snowHead
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@chocksaway why is it the busiest week of the year at the mo ? Always thought that was Feb half term (UK school hols) or New Year. Has something changed ? Hope youre avoiding it 
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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@Charlie333, I’m in Yorkshire!
Biggest French holiday week by numbers.
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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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@chocksaway, mahoosive numbers. unpleasant.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Hmmm... I was at Toviere bubble 10:15am, no queue to speak of. Down towards Marmottes and Borsat chairs and as these looked busy, carried on to La Daille bubble - no queue to speak of. Back up to Mont Blanc, no queue. Past Marmottes and Borsat, rather busy. On to Tommeuses, no queue at all. Down Creux to Mont Blanc and - shock horror - had to queue for three minutes! Marmottes Café for late elevenses cocoa. Left at noon and no queues whatsoever on: Borsat, Grand Pre, Fontaine Froid, Tommeuses, Tichot, Col des Ves, Grattalu, Grand Huit, Aiguille Percee, Aiguille Rouge, Paquis. All the pistes connecting these largely or completely empty save for Henri and a few folk bottom of Lac and top of Corniche. Fantastic snow conditions.
Retired via Chartreux piste at 3pm, remarking on how well resort staff are managing the busiest week of the season!
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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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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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Skied today from 10:30 till 2:30; on Bollin and Fresse queues were light/normal. Borsat, Marmottes and Tommeuses all rather busy so skipped those. La Daille gondola: took the unofficial singles line with the lifties' blessing on the first lap; didn't need to on subsequent laps as queue was negligible or non-existent. By 11:30 Tommeuses queue was normal. After that used Chaudannes, Paquis, Marais, Aiguille Rouge for the rest of the time as they were all deserted, barely a soul on them. Home via Aster and Chartreux.
Pistes still in excellent nic, delightful spring snow at lower levels.
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Are there any plans to open the black run from the top of the motte? With all of the blue runs having disappeared, it is sad that what used to be a big playground at 3500m is currently a single red piste.
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@Noob921, When I looked in Jan it was too steep to be a run and had a ‘hint of crevasses’ look to it. The glacier changes shape each year and runs are placed accordingly.
Perhaps more worrying is the emergence of quite a deep compression about half way down the first run. At the moment it slows you down a bit - if it gets a lot more pronounced then it might be a hike up. That is not difficult if you look up from below and join the dots in the topography from left to right.
The exploitation of the glacier was a major theme in the ‘Imaging Tignes in 2050’ document. It highlighted that as they do not know the topography below the ice at the moment they cannot confirm whether you will be able to ski the glacier in the not too distant future or not.
The short answer to your question is probably not!
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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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| bobski62 wrote: |
PARKING 2025-26
Last few seasons I’ve posted up info here on the various car parks in Tignes. What follows is initially a re-hash of how things were towards the end of April 2025 but I will do on-going updates once I’m there, hoping late November a few days before the season starts.
Few folk will be unaware by now that the whole parking operation has been outsourced to Indigo Neo. The contract is for several decades and I understand will include the re-building of some of the car parks – something that has already begun. The other old news is that during the skiing season parking is no longer free anywhere in the Tignes villages – Les Brévières included. The only exception is Blondin in Tignes 1800 which I will cover later. Outside of the skiing season, parking continues to be free throughout Tignes.
A quirk of the Indigo website last few winters was stating that all car parks are limited to 1.9m in height. However, the signs at the car parks' entrances say different. This season, Indigo have improved their web info and given slightly more accurate height restrictions once you have navigated to the specific car park you want to book. The heights given below are what was actually posted up at each entrance or intermediate level within.
Another quirk is that if you want to book a space for your visit, once you have specified you want to park in Tignes you have to set the dates for your stay right at the top, then your prices and options are displayed down the left hand-side. If you try to do it in any other sequence it won't play ball. If you arrive at indigoneo.fr via en.tignes.net, Tignes is pre-selected.
Here are some websites for parking info, courtesy of Tignes and Indigo. Be aware that it’s going to be a bit ‘work-in-progress’ during the autumn so not all the links will work and booking a space may not be possible until closer to the start of the season.
https://en.tignes.net/resort-guide/mobility/car-parks (links on this are Tignes-specific)
https://www.indigoneo.fr/en (using this, you will need to first chose 'Tignes' as your location of choice)
Val Claret
Golf
Covered parking on the edge of Val Claret. Height restriction 2.30m. Short-term and long-term parking OK. Golf has two entrances. The first one you see on the left as you start up the hill is for season-pass holders; the main public one is higher, going left as you enter the town. Not directly linked by shuttle - you have to walk down the hill to the big roundabout by Hotel Ecrin, then turn left to get the bus at Platieres or right to get the bus at Chartreux. The walk is about 8-10 mins. Or you can walk into town, past the Bureau des Guides, turn right and take the Platieres lift (elevator) down to the Platieres bus stop. Other snowheads have reported dripping ceilings in this car park during thaws and mild weather. That might seem minor but apparently the stuff that drips damages the paintwork. The spaces specifically affected were no 10 and those surrounding but we wonder whether it might occur elsewhere too. There are two EV charging stations outside, on the corner of Golf car park, just below the cinema.
Grande Motte
Last winter what was left of the open air parking on the plateau where the new Club Med building now stands was open to seasonnaires and public alike and could be reserved in advance. This was due to change as it was to have been converted for summer leisure use (football, volleyball, pétanque) as extra parking was planned for Boucle Sud. Last winter Boucle Sud was still a building site, but it’s mostly completed now and re-named Tufs. Latest info trickling through from Indigo is that Grant Motte is now reserved for folk who live next to it but it does have a tariff board at the entrance and it looks like you can take a ticket to enter, if there are spaces free (which is not very often). If you try to book in advance, you are directed to Indigo's "À la Demande" service, whereby you set up an account, and on entry and exit it scans your plate and charges your account accordingly. Good luck to anyone who tries this and do let us know how you get on...
Tufs (formerly Boucle Sud)
This parking is just up a little higher than Golf, lying between the cinema and the top of the nursery slope by the bottom of Tufs chairlift. The entrance is directly opposite the main entrance to Golf. Last winter two floors had been completed of a brand new car park on this site, over three levels and providing 650 spaces (though the existing 120 outdoor ones will be lost). The roof was to be be planted and alongside there was access for skiers, walkers and piste bashers to get through. And the good news is that it finally opened on 20th December. To get from it to the bus will depend on where you exit. At the bottom, same directions as Golf, above. From the top, you’d have to walk downhill to the Bollin lift (elevator / ascensceur, not the chair lift of the same name), go down to the level below and hop on at the stop outside Club Med. From Indigo's web info, it looks like it has a height restriction of 2.3m but I'll confirm once it's finished and I’ve had a proper shuftie.
Rental Cars & Advance Booking
In previous winters this was a nuisance as the booking system insisted on a car reg in advance (which you don’t usually know until you have picked up the actual car). However, other snowheads did successfully make reservations using either a fictitious reg. or leaving it blank. In the subsequent email confirming the booking they have received a code and on arrival tapped this in to the machine at the barrier to gain entry. It's also needed later on to get out again so don't discard or misplace the code! On the booking site I did see a box to click entitled ‘Hire Car’ so maybe Indigo have reacted to the complaints. Another snowhead has suggested that on the approach to the barrier, you stick a 'trade plate' to the front of your rental car, which you bring with you!
If you have booked in advance, whether your own car or a rental, on no account should you take a ticket at the barrier to gain entry. If you do, it will trigger a brand new booking which you will have to pay for (in addition to the one you have already paid for). If ANPR does not work, use the QR code you were sent; if that does not work, use the PIN code you were sent. If none of these work, buzz the office.
High Season
During peak weeks (eg New Year, February half term) the car parks in Le Lac, Lavachet and Val Claret completely fill up and you may have to park on the street. This is NOT FREE and it is only allowed in controlled areas where there is enough road-side space. To park on the street you have to pay and get a ticket on arrival from the main parking information office in Lac 3 car park.
Day Trips - General Tariffs
If you are coming for the day, it may be cheaper to simply pay by the hour rather than pay and reserve x days of parking. As of last season there is a difference in price between the open air car parks and the covered ones. Here are edited highlights from this season for Golf (covered) which I think match all the other covered ones except for Rosset.
2hrs - Free
2h15 - €3.40
2h15-13hrs - plus €0.50 per 15 mins
13hrs - 24hrs - €27.70
> 24hrs - plus €0.30 per 15 mins (ie €28.80 per day) *
1 day - €26 *
2 days - €49
3 days - €70
4 days - €94
5 days - €112 **
1 week - €112 **
2 weeks - €208
* not a typo but you must exchange your hourly ticket for a long-stay ticket within 24 hours of arrival using the pay machine to get the better rate
** also not a typo; 5,6 and 7 days are all €112
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Just wanted to pay back to @bobski62 for this increadbly useful post (part/cut of it in this quote - see full post on page 1) and thanks for his 1:1 chat on parking in Val Claret for us as a family.
I can confirm all of what was said above is accurate, in our case:
Family of 4, 11 & 14 yo
We booked a car from Grenoble Friday 13th to 21st Feb (UK half term week), it was not "cheap" but ok compared to private transfers / bus availability and timing (Grenoble is not the most connected outside of sat-sat and everything was booked up for HT) So car was £400+£100(snow chains/socks!)+£30 petrol+£20 tolls from Grenoble to Val Claret, it worked out well as we could make our own way up and stop for lunch/super U in Bourg for supplies (more choice/bigger super market as we expected the Sherpa in VC to be expensive/limited but it actually was only a few cents more and had decent choice). - But it was a nice break in the journey and we all love a EU supermarket. (and yes you can get snow chains in the super U in bourg or even the supermarkets / Feu Vert in Grenoble for ~£50, but the hassle and concern of if they fit ok / had them in stock was not worth our risk, given the amount of snow - as it goes even on the snowy Saturday leaving they cleared the road so well the dusting on snow on the road was ok for the all weather tyre's on the care so I didnt need the socks)
We arrived in Val Claret ~3/4pm on the Friday and drove straight into the Golfs parking, we had not prebooked, pressed the help button (they were really helpful), but it was really straight forward - pressed for a ticket (our reg was picked up - it then gets printing on the first ticket), we found a space parked and then when to the machines and scanned/paid (got given a second ticket) for 8 days (€130) - which wasn't bad really .... and esp give the amount of SNOW!!!  - Every day I walked out the Moutiers appt I was so happy I wasn't digging the car out every morning in an outside space!!. We didnt need to move the car so never lost my space, but you can by scanning the 8 day ticket in and out (do not take a new ticket!!). It was full Saturday/Sunday day/night so I could see it as a problem (esp HT), but the new TUFS parking next to Golf now is huge, so should be enough to fit everyone.
You can ski down from the TUFS lift on the Henri piste right to the entrance of the Golf parking which can be handy (esp for the appt near there). To get to the piste from there its best to walk down the main Rue De Val Claret (flat walk to the bottom of the TUFs life and/or a ski down to the bottom of Bollin/Tichcot) , rather than up past the TUFS parking lot (which is up hill to the piste).
The only nightmare for us was last Saturday morning, I did expected it to be slow back getting down the mountain, to Grenoble, but not 7 hours! that was the closest we have ever been to missing a flight! - we arrived at the car rental return with 30mins to the flight :Skullie: - thankfully still we made it to the flight.1
Many thanks @bobski62 and this awesome forum
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There were reports of queues starting at 530 am on the way down - so not surprised
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FAQ
