Les Arcs 1600 Ski Holiday Resort
Overview
Arc 1600, A.K.A. Pierre Blanche, was the first village to be built and is set amongst trees at the top of the Funicular and overlooking the town of Bourg St Maurice. With great views over Mont Blanc,1650 is the lowest of the four Les Arcs villages. The resort is mainly made up of apartment blocks that are low rise and set amongst the trees in the resort. It is ideal for families and has a small village atmosphere and is generally uncrowded.
The opening of Club Med's flagship hotel here, Les Arcs Panorama, will certainly put Arc 1600 on the map for season 2018/19.
The Les Arcs ski area is snow sure with a large portion of the skiing at or above 2000 metres. The season is long and with the added bonus of the Vanoise Express taking those that want across to La Plagne, the ski area is huge. The slopes are well marked and there are both wide open slopes and a selection of sheltered woodland runs.
There are two main lifts out of 1600, the Cachette and the Mont Blanc. Getting on the Cachette chair then a short ski down to the Arpette chair sees you arriving at the L'Arpette at 2413 metres and from there you can ski down into Arc 2000 and 1950. A worthwhile run for confident intermediates would be the run down to the traditional village of Villaroger at 1200 metres. The pistes above 1600 offer good links to the whole area and there are many suitable pistes for all levels.
Beginners will enjoy the areas "ski transquille" above the resort as an area specifically designated for beginners. Once you have found your feet, there are plenty of easy blue runs to enjoy throughout the whole area.
Experts are well catered for in the Les Arcs region with a lot of the black runs in the resort left unpisted allowing them to become excellent mogul fields.
Beginners have quiet nursery slopes around the main villages, and can then move onto the long easy blue runs spread through the entire sector. Intermediates have a fantastic selection with lots of slopes having easy and more difficult alternatives.
Apres ski is quiet, although there are lively bars with happy hour drinks and live music, our favourite being the Abreuvoir.
Offslope/apres ski
The funicular down to Bourg St Maurice leaves from Arc 1600 so for non-skiers Bourg offers a lot of off slope activities. The nightlife in 1600 is quieter than 1800, however there are a small number of quite busy venues for apres ski.
Overview
Usually the cheaper of the Les Arc villages and linked into an amazing ski area. Although not the most fashionable of the Les Arcs, it's a good choice for families on a budget, and with the funicular arriving in 1600 it makes an excellent resort if using the Eurostar which arrives each Saturday in Bourg st Maurice
At a glance- Pistes:
- 200km (local) 425km (area)
- Resort height:
- 1600m
- Top station:
- 3250m
Suitability
Positives- Great variety of pistes
- Fast cable car links to La Plagne
- Traffic free ski convenient village
- Great rail access from the UK
- Large range of black runs at high altitude
Negatives- Village centre lacks charm
- Quiet apres ski
- Some slow lifts
- Few green runs
All new for winter 2018/19, All inclusive Hotel Les Arcs Panorama is abrand new 4 star property located in Les Arcs 1600 at the heart of the Paradiski area...
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The Le Roc Belle Face self-catering ski apartments in Arc 1600 are located at the foot of the slopes, offering ski-in/ski-out access. The residence is set on the mountain side...
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