What’s New in Courchevel – Winter 2020
Big changes are happening in Courchevel, with huge investments in Le Praz making them even better for skiers and snowboarders.
New for Courchevel Le Praz: The Alpinium
If you visited Courchevel in Winter 2018-2019 you can’t have failed to notice something was happening in Le Praz, as building work was already underway for the new ‘Alpinium’ lift station building.
The old ‘Praz’ gondola has been removed, as well as the whole building housing it, including the lift pass office and toilets and the new Alpinium building has replaced it for Winter 2019-2020.
The new gondola transports 10 skiers per bubble and takes under 6 minutes to travel from Le Praz to Courchevel 1850.
The opening hours of the bubble are longer than the slopes are open for, meaning that you could head up extra early to be first on the mountain, and that you can stay up in 1850 for a drink after skiing and whizz down on the bubble afterwards.
The aim of the new lift is to try and reduce the number of vehicles on the one and only road up to Courchevel 1850 (estimated at a whopping 7,500 per day!)
The new building has been designed by the architects to fit subtly into its mountain setting. The roof of the building will have a football/rugby pitch in summer, and in winter 2023 for the World Championships, it will be the finish line for the men’s downhill run!
The investment for the project was 26 million euros.
Cycling: Courchevel’s brand new traffic-free route
If you’re into road biking then you might be interested to know that a new tarmac road has been opened which links Courchevel with Meribel and creates a brand new ‘col’. Starting at the Courchevel Altiport, it is 7km long with the final 5.8km restricted only to cyclists. The average incline is 7% and the Col de la Loze is at 2304m.
The col was cleared of snow and opened to the first cyclists (who started from the bottom of the mountain at 900m!) on May 12th 2019. Locals who were crazy enough to be among the very first up this new route said it was very cold indeed but appreciated the soup and BBQ!
Photo credit: Courchevel Officiel
Looking to the future: improving the Croisette in Courchevel 1850
As always, Courchevel will continue to invest and make improvements for visitors. The Croisette building in 1850, which dates back to 1971, is being refurbished to allow easier access with escalators and make the building lighter and brighter to overlook the snowfront and provide a space for après-ski events.
Looking for a ski chalet in Courchevel?
Head to our Chalet Collection or Contact Us with your enquiry.
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