Les Gets, France

Resort Overview for Les Gets:

Les Gets is a pleasant farming village, which has grown in to one of the world's top resorts apparently without noticing. Picturesque and relaxed, it has neither the sometimes oppressive enthusiasm for health and fitness that some of the high altitude French purpose built centres promote, nor the pre-occupation with glitz that attracts the soulless money-obsessed to others.

Instead, it's charming, relaxed, and full of its own unique character and ambience. How many other resorts can offer a museum of mechanic music and animated mannequins or free excursions to the local cheese farm? For added convenience, the "Maison des Gets" encompassing the Lift Society, the Events Society, the Tourist Office, the nursery, town hall and lift ticket sales desk So clients will easily find all the information they need in one place.

The resort is close to Morzine, six kilometres (four miles) away by road and also the main lift-linked destination over the Pleney mountain. Both are on the huge Portes du Soleil circuit and it's possible to strike out in most directions on skis with a regional pass, or just stay local with a Les Gets-Morzine only ticket.

Les Gets' long history as a winter sports resort is proven by its status in being the location of the first Ecole du Ski Français which opened here in 1940. Don't get the idea that this is some quaint old skiing back water either though, there's been heavy investment in recent years in a series of state of the art lifts.

The Skiing in Les Gets:

There's skiing on largely forested slopes on both sides of the valley. The resort's 'own' mountain Mont Chéry, served by a chair or gondola, offers terrain for all ability levels. It typifies one of the resort's major assets - the fact that you can take a mixed ability group to the top of the gondola or a chair lift and find runs for each ability level - advanced, intermediate and easy, which depart from the same point and meet again at the base.

Beginners have nursery slopes at village level and, across the valley at Les Chavannes (1484m), reached by road, chair lift or gondola, there are altitude nursery slopes, with the added security of snow making. This is also the route over to the skiing of Morzine, and from there on up to Avoriaz, then ultimately over the Swiss border. Thus it is perfectly feasible for reasonable intermediate level skiers to head over to Switzerland for lunch before returning home - the trip is possible on blues and reds, and there are dozens of other itineraries in this huge lift-linked area of 650km (406 miles).

With more than six different routes up on to the mountains from resort level there are rarely any bottle necks in which queues might develop. Much of the skiing above Les Gets and Morzine are cut through the forest, with snow lying on top of meadow grass, so there are few nasty rocks to worry about when the snow cover is sometimes thin at the start and end of the season.

There's a choice of four ski schools: the original French Ski School, the Skiplus School which offers off-piste lessons and the 360 International Ski School.

Après Ski in Les Gets:

Après in Les Gets is generally centred on the various hotel bars and restaurants with many guests going swimming, to the cinema, ice skating or bowling after the lifts close.

Amongst the more lively bars are the Canadian Bar, the irish Pub, the Bar bush and the Copeaux. There is one nightclub, The Igloo.

Accommodation in Les Gets:

Search through our database to rent private ski chalets direct from the owners in Les Gets. Contact owners directly to make a booking. Rent ski chalet Les Gets, France

Bal Eteillaz, Sleeps 15 At Chalet Bal Eteillaz you will have a fun filled holiday. We are a non pretentious down to earth ch...... View details

Chalet La Framboisiere, Sleeps 12 Our chalet is well positioned for the pistes in Les Gets, and is an ideal location for exploring the...... View details

Chalet Bruyeres, Sleeps 14 Please see www.thechaletexperience.com for full details Chalet Bruyeres is new to The Chalet Expe...... View details

Le Vieux Chalet, Sleeps 20 The Picture Perfect Chalet with Charm in every corner Please see www.thechaletexperience.com for...... View details