Conditions Report
Report from Tuesday, December 3, 2024
Tignes received a refresh today with 4″ (10 cm) of fresh snow overnight. We were keen to see the difference the fresh snow made and headed out straight after breakfast to make the most of the day.
The conditions were perfect again—blue skies and sunshine, zero wind, and around 30ºF.
- Yesterday’s report: Tignes, France, Report: Decent Conditions and Plenty of Terrain for Early December
The resort advertised that the Tommeuses chairlift opened today for the first time this season, allowing easy access to the adjacent resort of Val d’Isere, so we headed there. The pass we have offers easy access to both areas (known collectively as Espace Killy), offering a combined 9,093 acres of terrain (more than North America’s largest resorts), 6,300 feet of vertical, 190 miles (300 kilometers) of pistes, 153 runs, and 75 ski lifts across both resorts. There’s no way we could see it all this week.
Conditions on the Tignes side were fantastic. The fresh snow made all the difference, and the few inches of light and fluffy powder were super fun. We skied a couple of runs off Tichot and Grattalu, finding plenty of fresh snow, before taking the Bollin chair down to Tufs, and going to Val d’Isere.
One thing I failed to mention yesterday was the lift lines–there aren’t any. With terrain and chairlifts limited this early in the season, I’d expect people to be condensed into smaller areas. But not so. We have skied straight onto every lift we’ve taken. And not only that, I think we’ve yet to share a chair with anybody else!
From Tufs we skied down to Marmottes. Conditions on Val d’Isere compared to Tignes were night and day different. Literally. Socked in and cloudy, visibility was poor, so we decided to head back to the sunshine of Tignes and return to Val d’Isere later in the day, hoping it would clear up.
We headed up Les Lanches to Vanoise and then up Grand Motte. Conditions on the glacier were spectacular. There was slightly more snow, and we found fresh tracks and deep snow on the pistes and just off to the sides. We were both lapping it up: fresh powder, good coverage on the sides, and even the start of powder moguls forming.
We did a couple of laps up here; the conditions were worth a do-over, and we were still finding fresh tracks. Even on the pistes, which were well-skied, the snow was soft but condensed enough to throw down big arcing turns.
We quickly returned to our Club Med locker room for complimentary espressos and a bathroom stop. An all-inclusive buffet lunch was an option, but having made the most of the buffet breakfast again this morning, it wasn’t necessary. The convenience of ski-in ski-out right at the resort’s base is a godsend.
After our short break, it looked brighter above Val d’Isere, so we took the Bollin to Tufs chairs again and went deeper into the resort. The snow underfoot was just as good as Tignes. The clouds had broken, the sun was out, and visibility was 100%. We rode Marmottes chair and lapped the Manchett Express a couple of times. On one trip up the Marmottes we saw the most incredible sundog.
There seemed to be fewer people here, so the snow still wasn’t skied off. We enjoyed exploring just to the sides of runs, enjoying fresh powder and some natural features. At around 3:30, we decided it would be a good idea to return to Tignes. We weren’t familiar with the chairlift times and didn’t want to get stuck in Val d’Isere! As we made our way back, the après at the world-famous La Folie Douce was just getting started, with a bassline deep and loud enough to trigger an avalanche.
As we returned to Tignes, my legs were starting to feel it. It doesn’t matter how much I run in summer, squat, or deadlift in the gym; after a few hours on skis in fresh snow, my legs tire and burn! I think I might need to check out the fabulous hot tub and spa facilities here in the Club Med Tignes resort to help my legs recover.
After another fabulous Club Med dinner tonight, the evening’s entertainment, and a good night’s sleep, I’ll be ready to do it all again tomorrow. My main aim for the remaining few days is to ride the Leissières chairlift, famous for the views it offers as it ascends then descends a steep ridgeline.
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