Winter Activities

Skiing/ Snow Boarding
 Morillon is part of the Grand Massif (including Flaine, Morillon, Les Carroz, Samoens, Sixt) ski area which offers great varied skiing and snowboarding throughout the winter season (Mid December to end of April). The Grand Massif is known for its consistently good snow record. The ski area is excellent for families or groups with mixed ability from beginner to advanced. The slopes range in difficulty from fairly flat and wide beginners slopes to long, to narrow and steep slopes for advanced skiers and boarders. The Grand Massif has 265 km of pistes served by 75 ski-lifts. There are 2 express bubble lifts up the mountain. The Grand Massif ski area links Flaine, Samoëns, Les Carroz and Sixt making one of the greatest skiing areas in France.

Morillon has beautiful tree lined pistes as does Les carroz. As you ski over to Samoens and then on to Flaine the scenery changes to wide open pistes and stunning vistas of the mountains. There are several peaks on the way to Flaine which culminate at nearly 2600m. From the peaks Mont Blanc can clearly be seen making a great backdrop for holiday photos. It takes about 1- 2 hours to ski from Morillon to Flaine and makes a great day trip on skis or board with lunch at a mountainside restaurant at Flaine. For those that like off-piste on a board or on skis this again is very varied from tree dodging to huge areas of open powdery snow. There are also several snow parks to practice your tricks. 

With stunning 360° views from all the peaks and somewhere different to go every day on the 265kms of piste you will not regret skiing the Grand Massif. It is also 20 minutes drive to the lift linking into Les Gets and Morzine (Porte Soliel) Ski area in the unlikely event you should  wish a change of scenery. With a 6 day ski pass you get a free day at Porte Soleil and we can arrange a guide for you to take you to Switzerland for lunch and back for example.

 

Family, Beginner, Intermediate and Advanced skiing
The Grand Massif has it all from beginner to advanced skiing and snowboarding! It is particularly excellent for families or groups with mixed abilities.

Morillon and Samoens are renowned as excellent resorts for learning to ski / snowboard and progressing rapidly to intermediate level. You can have lessons in Morillon or Samoens and we take you two either lift (3 mins apart) in the morning and there are also excellent child care creche facilities. The areas are excellent for a family or group with a range of abilities from beginner to more difficult slopes all ending up at the same place. So you can split up for lessons and easily meet for lunch in one of the mountain restaurants. Once you have the basics it is then possible to ski to Flaine or Les Carroz and have a day out and a bit of an adventure. We can help you organise ski lessons/ guiding and we pre-order all your ski equipment for you to pick up at the local ski hire shop making your ski holiday easy so you can concentrate on having fun!

Please scroll down this page as there is lots of info on lessons, Child care, ski hire, ski maps, ski adventure, paragliding, snow shoes walking, sledging, igloo making and much more...

Extreme Skiing / Snowboarding Guided Adventure
If you want an extreme adventure then we can organise it for you for your stay with us (it is best to organise in advance as we can then guarantee that the guides are available). This can be something fairly tame to something completely radical but all with the safety of expert guides. Gastronomic or light lunch stops for lunch can be fitted into the itinerary as required. Examples of what can be organised include:

For extreme off-piste skiing / snowboarding you will need security equipment (beacon, shovels and probes) which can be hired.

Prices:

Off-piste maximum 4 people (divide cost of guide by 4). On Piste maximum 8 people (divide by 8). Please book in advance so we can guarantee the guide. Please also note that during January, March (except Easter) and April we can more or less guarantee guides but during school holidays availability of guides is limited and booking early is essential. Gastronomic experiences can be added to your day out depending on what you want to do. Skiing with Helicopter can be arranged but is priced on what you want to do.

Themed and Extreme Sports Adventure Weeks

Please also note that we have specific weeks in January, March and April which are themed weeks. During these weeks the chalets are shared by individuals / groups that are like minded and want a similar experience such as ladies, extreme Skiing, Snow boarding, Speed Riding and Paragliding on skis. Price is just £395/ €415 per person plus cost of whatever extreme sport you wish to take part in. We help to co-ordinate and book activities so that you end up enjoying activities with others in the Chalets and can talk about your adventures over wine with the evening cuisine with the fire burning in the background.

Paragliding and Speed riding in the snow - experience, learn or be guided around the mountains

 

Tandem flights - Discover snowy mountains from up high with a certified instructor.

 

Paragliding on skis and Speed riding courses - We arrange courses for you with our partners Pegase Air. Learn to Paraglide with skis in an afternoon. Experience Speed riding or take a 5 day (5 mornings) course to learn. The 5 day course involves 5 half days as it is quite tiring learning and it means that you can go for a gentle ski for the rest of the day.

 

Paragliding on skis or Speed riding 1/2 day course - £80/€80 per person

Speed riding weekend (2 days) - £150/€150 per person

Speed riding 5 day (mornings) course - £300/€300 per person

 

Speed riding is the latest adrenaline sport that combines flying with skiing (although you can use the glider in the summer in stronger conditions). It is easy to learn and you should have the basics cracked within a few hours. The school we have teamed up with have both French and English speaking instructors and are at the forefront of promoting this new sport. They are also organising the first (will be annual) Speedriding competition open to all at the beginning of April in the Grand Massif. Learn with a truly professional school (My daughter and I learnt with them). You will gain the FVFL (French Paragliding association) qualification. You need to be able to ski red runs well and be a CP Paragliding pilot to do the course.

 

Contact us for more details as we offer accommodation with cuisine and course package which we have specially negotiated with our partners Pegase. As part of this we make sure that you are taken to the different locations that the course runs at during the week. Contact us for more details on +44 (0)1494 485845.

 

Pegase Air Samoens(paragliding) 

Tel: +33 450 34 95 80

Visit: www.parapente-samoens.com 

Sledging
 Behind and infront of the chalet there are slopes that are excellent for sledging for all ages (sledges provided with chalets).

 

Ski Map

Ski Passes
The Ski area is divided in two areas and you can buy the appropriate pass depending on where you want to ski to and your ability:

You can buy ski passes from the ticket booths next to the Morillon or Vercland or Samoens express lifts. Prices vary depending on how long you want a ski pass for. For more information on ski pass prices visit www.ot-morillon.fr or www.grand-massif.com.

 

Hiring your equipment
(approximate average prices as there are many different kinds/ levels of equipment)
skis and boots : about 15€ a day and 80€ a week
Snowboard and boots : about 20€ a day and 99€ a week.

When we take your booking we ask for your ski / board hire requirements - we then email these on to the the local ski hire shop (next to the lift) and they reserve your skis for you so you can pick them up when you arrive.

 

Child Care

At Morillon 1100 there are excellent facilities for beginners and a creche for those too young to ski. The child care should be booked early to avoid disappointment. The “Village des Enfants” is for children from 6 months to 10 years. It opens from 9 to 5 . Alongside at the “Jardin des Neiges” children over 3 can play and learn supervised by Ski School instructors. Children over 4 can have ski instruction. Click here for more details on child care that are on the Morillon website.

The ski school in Morillon and Samoens
Both the ski areas at Morillon and Samoens are excellent for learning to ski from complete beginner to intermediate skiers and snowboarders. Advanced skiers /snow boarders wanting to refine skills can go off with an instructor around the Grand massif and return. Both ski areas are very well suited to families or groups with mixed abilities wanting to learn or meet up after a lesson. We will take you to the lifts at Morillon or Vercland (takes you up to Samoens ski area - 3 mins further than Morillon lift) so that you can have your lessons at either place. The ski schools we use are very enthusiastic and will come and introduce themselves (when possible) at the beginning of the week (except ESF) so you meet the instructor before you get on the slope. We provide guidance on who to use depending on your needs and some advice as to what may suit you and your group. we also know some of the instructors.

If you want lessons in the school holidays we recommend that you book your lessons ASAP as the best lessons / instructors get booked early.

For extreme skiing / snowboarding guiding please see section above.

360 International - This is a small school run by Jocelyn that really looks after you. They are based at Samoens and Les Gets. They provide certificates on your achievements over the week and have small classes. www.ecoledeski360.com Tel: +33 (0) 450 533892 or +33 (0) 608024486

ZigZag - They take you to both Morillon and Samoens depending on ability. It is run by Adrien who tries hard to fit in with your requirements. It is an international Ski School (English/ Dutch and French). We recommend Adrien and his team as they are small and client focussed.
www.zigzagski.com Tel : + 33 (0) 686 660721. Email: info@zigzagski.com

ESF - We also recommend ESF who are well known for their expertise and will teach you the joy of alpine skiing and snowboarding. You can choose either a group lesson or an individual lesson. Lessons can be given in english. There are 2 ESF offices depending on where you want your lessons:
 www.esfmorillon.com  to book and pay online group lessons in Morillon. Telephone / fax: +44 (0) 450 901152 (Morillon 1100 - Les Esserts) to book private lessons. (ask for an instructor that speaks your prefered language and make sure you get your tickets sent to you. If you are asked to pick tickets up then make sure you ask to pick them up at Morillon 1100).

www.esfsamoens.com to book and pay online group lessons in Samoens.Telephone Samoëns 1600 : +33 (0) 450 344312 or +33 (0) 450 344086 to book private lessons (ask for an instructor that speaks your prefered language and make sure you get your tickets sent to you. If you are asked to pick tickets up then make sure you ask to pick them up at Samoens 1600). We drop you at Vercland lift for lessons here.

We can help with advice on ski lessons as there are several options available and we know some of the instructors who we can recommend.

Other Winter Activities

Winter walks (on foot or snow shoes)
15 different signposted tracks to help you discover the valley, its’ villages and maybe surprise a chamois or a squirrel at a bend in the track.
Itineraries are on sale at the tourist office. Each itinerary is described with an illustration and a simplified map.
 Snow shoes walk Adventures
Several organisations provide guided snow shoe walks all through the winter

 

We recommend Gustav Ljungars - AlpTracks. Gustav does offer half and full day snow shoeing outings for adults and children. The program is a general discovery of the environment, with explanations on wildlife and animal tracking in wintertime. There is the possibility of specialist courses, like fundamentals in avalanche tracking and research, using avalanche transceivers (ARVA). With children, they can do general snow shoe discovery tours or more playful outings, including for example igloo building. He is fully qualified and insured to take care of groups of children, unaccompanied by their parents.

gustav.ljungars@wanadoo.fr

http://www.gustadventures.com/AlpTracks/

Tel: +33 - (0)6 61 78 64 57


Other Snow Shoe walking operators include:

École de Ski de Morillon: half-day walks every tuesday and thursday : 

+33(0)4 50 90 11 52 +33(0)4 50 90 15 09
Bureau des guides de la vallée du Haut Giffre : Day or half-day walks every day : +33(0)4 50 34 43 12

 Relaxation and massage
Jacuzzis with essential oils, exfoliation, massage, steam room. From 50 euro. www.fifine.com Tel: Claire +33 (0) 672622464

Reflexology - from 40 euro Mariel Tel: +33 (0)611396599
 

Cinema
In Samoens 2/3 shows per day.

 

Icerink
In Morillon by the Lac Bleu and Samoens near the tourist office. November to April.

 

Dog Sled driving
With Philippe every Thursday morning. Book at the tourist office in Morillon.
 

Helicopter flight
Every Thursday morning there is a scenic flight. Registration at the tourist office of Morillon.
Prices vary on where you are going; there are 2 different flights: the Grand Massif flight and the Mont Blanc flight. Further information from the tourist office.

 

For extreme skiing we can organise a guide for the day where you are taken by Helicopter to various locations to experience some off-piste skiing and you are taken from location to location by helicopter. Truly a special day out.


 Tourist Office

Tel +33 4 50 90 15 76

Explore the following URLs for more detail on Location and activities:

www.ot-morillon.fr

www.grand-massif.com

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