Travel Thirst

Tignes Les Brevieres is one of the smaller and quainter villages that make up the skiing area of Tignes in the French Alps. Unlike its larger, more commercialised bigger siblings of Tignes and Val d’Isere, Les Brevieres has maintained its village feel and real sense of community spirit.

If you’re on a late arrival, a warm welcome will often be lavished upon you from the guy who knows the guy who runs the chalet you’ll be staying in. Next thing you know, you have a personal, albeit vaguely inebriated guide taking you directly to your door. Be prepared to be seeing a lot more of him as there’s only a couple of pubs and one late bar that cater for this small resort. But there-in lies the charm of les Brevieres. You meet lots of interesting people and genuinely have a good time après-ski. The unadulterated backdrop of traditional farmhouses, wooden lodges and narrow streets makes for a characteristically alpine environment that some of the larger resorts tend to lose. Look out for the donkey sausages on the street market though!

The slopes won’t let you down either. Les Brevieres is perfectly situated at the foot of the Espace Killy ski area. Assuming you get good snow from a seasonal perspective, the skiing here is really good and you can make it as extensive as you like. North-facing slopes often keep their snow into May and are generally not as busy as neighbouring resorts. They’re regularly pisted with plenty of nice little off-piste cut-throughs for those looking to experience ‘safe’ off-pisting. But the region isn’t that big so it’s inevitable that you will want to venture into Tignes itself as well as Val d’Isere and surrounding areas.

Skiing over to Tignes can be done leisurely in a day. There are plenty of nice wide sweeping slopes when you take the chair lift to the top of the Les Brevieres side up to the ‘needle’ and make your way down to Tignes town. Stop for some lunch and spend the afternoon on the variety of slopes that range from easy to pretty challenging. There are some good slopes here if you are learning to snowboard but watch out for schuss’ that can catch you out if you’re a bit worried about picking up too much speed just yet. You could be in for a tiring walk to the lifts! For those seeking a bit more of an adrenaline rush there’s a great black run that leads straight into the lifts – the steep incline leading to a flat home run allows you to pick up some serious speed and challenge your nerves on the way down. There’s plenty to do on this side of the mountain before returning back to the sanctuary of Les Breviere - you could even try parasailing off the mountain in your skis or ice-diving in the lake!

For a longer, more energetic day, you could carry on from Tignes over to Val d’Isere. The funicular will take you up the mountain from the town and there you can choose from a vast range of slopes – the only thing stopping you will be time. There is always the option of getting the bus back if you don’t have time to ski your way back across, or you could consider stopping for a night. The nightlife in Val d’Isere is lively and you’ll find a real mix of nationalities here.

Back in Les Brevieres, there’s nothing nicer than skiing straight off the mountain into one of the bars for a nice warming glass of vin chaud as you un-buckle your boots and watch the last die-hards make their way off the mountain. Bliss.