Insider's Guide to Les Carroz

When it comes to the Grand Massif, Les Carroz is hardly the first resort you think about. That honour normally goes to Flaine or Samoens on either side of the resort. It is however, one of the nicest. Les Carroz is where you find many of the best mountain restaurants, it’s where you find the cutest Alpine village, and it’s in convenient reach of the high, snow sure bowl that makes up Flaine.

Aside from the weekends, when through traffic picks up a little, Les Carroz feels like it exists in its’ own bubble. That might not seem like too much of a positive if you’re looking for the excitement of Val d’Isere or Verbier, but if what you’re after is a genuine French village with a great ski area it’s a different story.

There might be a couple of lively bars and a small nightclub that’s open in the early hours, but Les Carroz is still largely family oriented. That’s reflected in the activities in resort, which include ice skating, dog sledding, quad bike driving on ice, fat biking, and something rather unique called snake sledging. The latter involved several sledges attached in a line, and runs in the evenings. You do need a guide to take part, but believe me, it’s worth it.

In terms of restaurants, the Bistro du Gron is a tiny local restaurant where they grill your food in front of you. It’s always pretty packed and very toasty inside though, so book in advance, and make sure it’s easy to de-layer when you’re inside.

Elsewhere, the Hameau des Airelles restaurant sits right beside the piste, and it’s open at lunchtime and during the evenings. The food’s good, and it’s really cosy inside, so it’s always nice to eat here when the weather’s bad. There’s a sunny terrace next to the piste too, which I’ve never actually been able to sit out on, but I hear is great during good weather.

In terms of skiing, the tree lined slopes that form the immediate area are usually pretty quiet, with some steeper groomed runs and gentle blues. There are only a couple of fast lifts to get up to Flaine, where the most challenging skiing is, and the home runs are well covered with snow cannons, avoiding any chance of replicating Samoen’s gondola bottlenecking problems.

In short, we’re big fans of Les Carroz, and we’re delighted to see that there are a few more investment opportunities coming up in the resort.