The spectacular slopes of Les Arcs in the French Alps

My kind of place: There’s plenty of attractions in this part of the third-biggest skiing area in the world.

Skiers head down a pisted track towards the Arc 2000 resort complex in Les Arcs. The area is made up of a series of villages. iStockphoto.com

Alf Alderson

Why Les Arcs?

As part of the Paradiski area, along with neighbouring La Plagne (which is accessed by the spectacular Vanoise Express cable car, across a 300-metre drop), Les Arcs makes up the world’s third-biggest ski area.

This means there’s great skiing and snowboarding for every level of ability, from beginners on the brand-new pistes of Mille8 to intermediates, who will love the huge selection of blue and red runs, and experts, who can head for the pistes and freeride terrain of the Aiguille Rouge.

The villages that make up Les Arcs (Arc 1600, Arc 1800, Arc 1950, Arc 2000 and Peisey-Vallandry) are not, with the exception of Arc 1950, particularly enchanting, but they all offer ski-in/ski-out convenience and a good selection of shops, bars, restaurants and accommodation.

Come the summer, the resort has world-class mountain biking trails, easy hiking with lovely views across to Mont Blanc and a huge variety of children’s activities at Arc 1800.

A comfortable bed

The new, four-star Aiguille Grive (www.hotelaiguillegrive.com; 0033 4 7940 2030) in Arc 1800 is an impressive wood-and-glass structure with contemporary-style rooms boasting views of Mont Blanc, plus six separate chalets with four to six bedrooms. Double rooms cost from €250 (Dh1,039) per night; chalets from €130 (Dh540) per person.

In Arc 1950, the Radisson Blu (www.radissonblu.com; 0033 4 7923 1000) has apartments and suites in different design styles – traditional Alpine, Nordic, "modern ethnic" or Canadian, from €290 (Dh1,205) per night.

Enjoy an authentic alpine experience in the small outlying village of Le Pré, on the edge of the Les Arcs ski area. The British-run Mountain Vacances (www.mountainvacances.com; 0033 6 4032 8752) offers half-board accommodation in the lovingly restored Chalet Violettes, from £700 (Dh3,917) per week.

Find your feet

The best way to find your feet is actually on skis, since not all the villages are linked, so the combination of ski lifts and skis is necessary to get between them (in summer, lift-accessed mountain biking and hiking provides the same option). Each village has a tourist information centre (www.lesarcs.com).

Most of the locals speak English and there’s a welcoming atmosphere about the place. If you want a larger-town vibe, your lift pass also includes the funicular railway between Arc 1600 and the regional market town of Bourg-St-Maurice, which is an alternative accommodation option, especially if you’re on a budget.

Meet the locals

L’Etranger bar (0033 4 7907 4186) in Arc 1800 is a popular option with local ski instructors as well as visitors, and has a lively ground-floor bar and cosy upstairs with leather sofas.

Le Chalet du Solliet (0033 6 6896 0407), above Villaroger, takes some finding, but the generally quiet slopes on which it’s located offer lovely views across to the neighbouring ski resorts of La Rosière and St Foy. There’s a sunny deck on which to dine or a cosy interior on snowy days.

For something very different, take a trip over to La Plagne, where you can scare yourself on the Olympic bobsleigh run (www.laplagne.com), which is open from Tuesday to Sunday evenings in the winter. From €41 (Dh170) per person.

Book a table

Chalet de l'Arcelle (www.larcelle.fr; 0033 4 7904 2135) in Arc 1600 is an attractive old Savoyarde barn refurbished in timber and stone by local craftsmen. Main courses start from €19 (Dh79), one of the highlights being fillet of beef with foie gras, truffles and roasted figs.

On the mountain above Arc 1800, L'Arpette Restaurant (www.arpette.fr; 0033 4 7907 4580) has reasonable value pizzas (€13 [Dh54]), but more fun is the traditional tartiflette served on the wide, panoramic deck (€13 [Dh54]), which some evenings can be combined with a torchlit ski descent back down to the resort.

In Arc 1950, Le Chalet de Luigi (www.restaurantchaletdeluigi.com; 0033 4 7900 1536) serves a mix of Italian and Savoyarde food, with good tartiflette and raclette (€25 [Dh104]) for two people; the tortellini (€15 [Dh62]) is also recommended.

Shopper’s paradise

A good option for Les Arcs souvenirs is The Shop (0033 4 7904 1375) in Arc 1950, while Skimium (0033 4 5814 0350) close to the tourist office in Arc 1800 has a wide range of ski and snowboard clothing and equipment, and also offers a rental service.

The better shops and boutiques tend to be down in Bourg-St-Maurice, however, with a busy pedestrianised centre that has wide range of shops, bars and restaurants.

What to avoid

The slopes are busy during half-term holidays – usually the second week of February until the end of the month.

Don’t miss

The B&E Invitational freestyle event (www.beinvitational.com) takes place on March 12 and 13, featuring some of the world's best freestyle skiers, including Candide Thovex, Henrik Harlaut and Phil Casabon.

Go there

Return flights with Etihad (www.etihad.com) from Abu Dhabi to Geneva take seven hours and cost from Dh3,935, including taxes. Transfers to Les Arcs with Mountain Rescue (www.themountainrescue.com) cost from €290 (Dh1,205) for one to four people, and take about two-and-a-half hours.