OFF-PISTE PERFORMANCE SKI COURSE

This itinerary is an example of type of skiing and terrain you can expect to experience on this course.

You will meet with your group and your mountain guide at the Chamonix Experience office in Chamonix Sud on Sunday evening to discuss the programme for the week. Your mountain guide will let you know about the weather and snow conditions in Chamonix, you will have the chance to ask any last minute questions.

Le Tour is a good place for your mountain guide to assess everyone’s ski level and run through the basics of mountain safety and avalanche awareness. The off-piste at Le Tour is easily accessible and of a gentle gradient. It also offers brilliant tree skiing and long runs to Switzerland over the Col de Balme. The back bowls of le Tour are also perfect for studying how wind, terrain and temperatures affect the snow pack and avalanche risk, so here is where we will do our avalanche awareness training to get the week off to a safe start.

The south facing ski areas of Flegere and Brevent offer fun terrain with many secrets bowls. When Brévent is good it is maybe the best off-piste in the valley. There is the famous “Hotel face” and ENSA couloirs to mention only a few of the classic itineraries.

Grand Montets’ north facing aspect means that this area holds the snow the best and the latest in the season. This offers excellent long steep pitches. From the top you have access to the Rognon Glacier. Before setting out your mountain guide will brief you on how to safely ski on glaciated terrain.

No week to Chamonix is complete without skiing from the Aiguille du Midi. This is where the famous Vallee Blanche starts and where off-piste skiing in a high mountain environment is at its best. There are many different ways down with various difficulty and steepness. All routes take you through the most amazing landscape of ice towers and deep crevasses, not to mention the surrounding peaks of the Mont Blanc Massif.

You will drive through the tunnel to Italy and La Palud where the Helbronner lift will take you in three stages up to Point Helbronner. From here there are various options to descend “Glacier de Toule”. Course ends with debriefing in our office on Saturday evening.

We can help you to organise your transport to/from Chamonix. We work with well established airport transfer companies using new and comfortable vehicles, which have the capacity and know-how to handle everything from delayed and cancelled flights, to unexpected traffic jams with professionalism and efficiency.

To book your transfer, we will need the following: 

• Your full name 
• Mobile phone number 
• Email address 
• Your destination address 
• Your flight details (date, time and flight number)

SHARED TRANSFERS: 

This is the most economic and ecologically friendly way of travel. The driver will meet and greet you at the airport, gather you and the rest of the passengers together and then head off to your chosen destination. The door-to-door service means that you will be dropped off and picked up right at your hotel /chalet / apartment. From 40€ per person for one way and 80€ per person for a return trip.

PRIVATE TRANSFERS: 

Private Transfers are the quickest way to get to and from the airport. Your driver will meet and greet you at the airport and guide you to your vehicle. There is no waiting for other passengers. Private transfers are available for one to eight person bookings and travelling together and you are guaranteed sole occupancy of the vehicle for your transfer.

If you need help to find a place to stay in Chamonix, don't hesitate to let us know! We work with a network of excellent chalets, hotels, gites and B&Bs offering Chamonix accommodation to suit all tastes and all budgets.

We don’t include mountain rescue insurance in any of our courses but we strongly recommend that you have it. Mountain rescue may be very expensive, particularly if helicopters are involved. Check with your travel insurance provider if you are covered for the specific activity you are going to do with us.

If not, we can organise the mountain rescue insurance for you with our specialist altitude sports insurance partner. Details of the insurance cover are different for EU and non-EU residents; please contact us for more information.

CHAMONIX LIFT PASSES - FREE BOOKING & COLLECTION SERVICE

You can easily avoid the morning queue for the lift tickets - order your lift passes with us and then just pick them up the day before! We'll collect your lift passes and have them ready for you, free of charge.

If you have booked a course or a private trip with us, your guide will bring your lift passes along for you. There are two types of lift passes in Chamonix - Mont Blanc Unlimited and Chamonix Le Pass - please don't hesitate to contact us to find out which lift pass will be the best for you.

For this course you will need the 5 days Mont Blanc Unlimited lift pass, please contact us for further details.

We highly recommend that you book any equipment with us at least 2 weeks in advance as the hire shops can have limited availability in the busy season.

You can collect your equipment the evening before the start of the course and return it in the evening at the end of your course. We work with the following Chamonix ski hire and mountain shop:

• Concept Pro Shop which is conveniently located directly next door from our office. Open 7/7 08:00-19:00