Chatel | Ski Resort Review

Location is everything in the Alps. Chatel's central spot in the huge Portes du Soleil ski area—linked to famous French resorts like Avoriaz and Morzine in France, and Champéry in Switzerland—makes it the perfect destination for those wanting to take full advantage of the 600km of slopes in this vast domain.

Situated at the upper end of the long Abondance Valley, just a stone's throw from the Swiss border and close to the Swiss resort village of Morgins, Chatel is one of a number of handsome French Savoyard villages in this area that retain much of their traditional rural charm. The villages are still very much working farming communities, as well as popular tourist spots in summer. Chatel in particular is famous for its gnarly downhill mountain bike trails.

"Chatel is famous for its special breed of Alpine-adapted cattle, and the Abondance cheese that comes from their milk"

The Abondance Valley is famous for its special breed of Alpine-adapted cattle, whose milk is used to produce the world-renowned Abondance cheese, and the meadows around Chatel echo with the sound of cowbells during the summer months. These lush high meadows that are vital to the local dairy industry are also a prime factor in the local winter sports tourism industry; their grass-covered slopes hold snow very well and don't require much depth of snow cover to be viable as ski pistes.

The only real issue in the Chatel skiing resort is the altitude, which can cause issues at the start and end of the season, or during warm spells. It's not among the best resorts for late season or spring skiing. But at every other time of the year, it's magic. 

Chatel - Ski Map & Pistes:

The local Chatel ski area is split into two separate sectors: Super Chatel/Barbossine and Linga/Pre-la-Joux, the former accessed by a gondola directly from the centre of the village. The local area lift pass covers both these sectors, as well as the linked slopes of the Swiss resorts of Torgon and Morgins (Corbeau sector only) and the Braitaz sector at La Chapelle d'Abondance. Together, these resorts offer a respectable total of 130 km of pistes; these and all other sectors in the Portes du Soleil domain are covered by the full-area lift pass.

Chatel village is quite spread out along the side of the valley, so many outlying chalets and hotels are some distance away from the gondola terminal. You'll find an additional chairlift access point in the northern suburb of Le Petit Chatel and a regular ski bus service that connects with the base terminals of the ski lifts at Villapeyron and Pre-la-Joux in the Linga/Pre-la-Joux sector.

Super-Chatel is focused around a mid-altitude plain that houses wide beginners' slopes. Above this lies a good range of attractively wooded slopes perfect for progressing novices, and you'll also find a snowpark and boardercross course. The slopes on the Barbossine side of the area are much tougher, as are those just over the border at the nearby linked Swiss sector of Torgon.

There's only one permanent home-run piste to Chatel, a red run from Super-Chatel down to the gondola base terminal. There are various escape sections cut into the slope, so most competent novices can manage it when conditions are good.

Adventurous intermediates can strike out from Super-Chatel towards the other Swiss resorts in the Portes du Soleil with easy links to Morgins, but the most straightforward way of getting to the core domain is to take the bus to Pre-la-Joux. From here, chairlifts link via Plaine Dranse and Les Lindarets into the higher part of the ski area at Avoriaz.

The Linga/Pre-la-Joux sector itself is great for intermediates and advanced skiers or riders, offering some terrific long reds and testing mogul fields on north-facing slopes sheltered by forest, however, none of the runs in this sector extend to Chatel village.

Chatel - Off-Piste, Backcountry & Ski Touring:

There’s also good off-piste to be explored over into the neighbouring valley of La Leiche. As always, if you're out touring or venturing off piste, you need the proper avalanche equipment (beacon, shovel and probe) and you should be accompanied by a IMFGA-accredited mountain guide. Contact the Bureau des Guides for bookings.

Chatel - Restaurants, Bars & The Town:

Chatel is an attractive and friendly resort village, with an authentic Savoyard ambience; it's best suited to families and couples and has a good range of facilities and amenities to match the needs and expectations of those types of guests.

The heart of the village is focused around a buttressed stone church and a bustling central commercial area that stretches along the through-road. There's a good range of shops, street-side café-bars and restaurants. Other attractions include two cinemas and a tenpin bowling alley, ice-skating and curling rinks, and a number of small spas and beauty salons. There's also a superb aquatic centre in the heart of the town.

"The heart of the village is a buttressed stone church"

Alternative activities available in the surrounding area include ice-hole fishing and under-ice scuba diving, paragliding, snowshoe trekking, and visits to a local Abondance cheese-making farm.

Après ski is generally low-key, however—especially compared to Morzine and elsewhere in the Portes du Soleil. There are a couple of bars in the village centre that get pretty lively: Nazca Bar is cool and Le Avalanche is a long-established favourite; there's also La Voga, the resort's one nightclub, where the party carries on into the wee hours!

Chatel - Ski Hire:

There are plenty of options for ski hire in Chatel, including the local branch of Intersport , Vincent Sport, Richard Sports and Sport Evasion. Pra-la-Joux Sports is also recommended - it's right by the lifts, is ski-in, ski-out and you can safely store your skis here.

Chatel - Ski Schools & Lessons:

If you want to learn to ski in Chatel, options include the local ESF, ESI Pro Skiing Chatel, and Chatel Sensations.

Chatel - Snow Forecast:

To make the most of your Chatel ski trip, check out the latest Chatel snow forecast at WePowder.com or Snow Forecast. Combined with the embedded Chatel resort webcams, you'll be able to stay updated about the weather in Chatel.