Travel Guide: Les Deux Alpes

You are your only limit – Unknown

Les Deux Alpes, France

Breaks with the Piste Map in Les Deux Alpes

Are you dreaming about the best ski slopes in Europe? Are you desperate for your next snow fix? Whether you’re wondering if a ski holiday is for you or an adrenalin junkie who loves the outdoors, Les Deux Alpes in France comes highly recommended.

With impeccable views, 415 hectares of marked and unmarked ski area and incredibly great value for money package holidays available from the U.K., discover why Les Deux Alpes should be your next snowboard or ski holiday destination in Europe with our handy Les Deux Alpes guide.

Getting to Les Deux Alpes

From London airports, the easiest way to reach Les Deux Alpes is to fly to Grenoble airport, taking around 2 hours. From Grenoble airport, your transfer time to Les Deux Alpes takes nearly 2 hours but expect some delays if you are travelling during peak times.

You can also fly into Lyon airport although the transfer from here is a little longer. Popular low-cost airlines who regularly fly this route include Jet2 and Easyjet. Check out the lowest airfares at skyscanner.net available today for your holiday dates.

It is also possible to drive from the U.K. to Les Deux Alpes, using either the Eurotunnel or ferry services. If you choose to drive, Les Deux Alpes is nearly a 10-hour journey from Calais in France, plus whatever distance you need to drive in the U.K. to reach your chosen port and your crossing time. To find the route and crossing type most suitable for you and your party, visit Direct Ferries today.

The Resort

Les Deux Alpes is an excellent resort town with ample bars, restaurants and shops to keep everyone entertained. The resort sits at 1650-1800m high and your airport transfer or personal drive into town involves steep mountain climbs with exceptional views.

Once in resort, benefit from plenty of small supermarkets including a well stocked Spar. You’ll also find a tourist office, lift pass office, medical centre, two outdoor heated swimming pools, a sports centre with indoor climbing wall, cinema and bowling. Ice skating and swimming are even included with your lift pass so you can enjoy these two family-friendly extras at no further cost.

There is also an obscene amount of bars and restaurants to choose from in Les Deux Alpes after a hard day of exertion out on the mountain. With so much to see and do off the ski slopes, take at least one afternoon to wander the shops or soak tired muscles in the outdoor heated pool.

Find other great destinations in this Where to Go Snowboarding in Europe Guide.

Where To Stay in Les Deux Alpes

When it comes to a place to lay your head, the choice in Deux Alpes is outstanding. From hotels with mountain views to catered chalets with all the home comforts, you’re bound to find a place to stay in Les Deux Alpes to suit your budget and board style.

There are also hostels for the price conscious visitor, or for anyone looking to meet other outdoor adventure enthusiasts on their Deux Alpes ski or snowboard holiday.

Our Hotel Recommendation: Les Lutins

We find the most cost-effective way to enjoy many European ski destinations is via a package holiday where you are given a limited choice of properties that work with U.K. based ski companies. In Les Deux Alpes, we chose Hotel Les Lutins for its unbeatable location and excellent value for money.

Les Lutins hotel in Les Deux Alpes is a traditional and simple, family-run Bed and Breakfast that offers everything you need for a 7 day winter holiday. This quaint property is in an ideal location, with the popular Jandri gondola only a 2-minute walk away. You will also find secure board and ski lockers in the basement with direct access to the street across from the Jandri gondola. Wake up early and beat the queues for the first lift at 9am.

Staying at Les Lutins

The breakfast selection at Les Lutins is great value for money with tea, coffee, orange juice, cereal, yoghurts, freshly baked French bread and pastries, and a mixture of fruit on offer. Our wonderful hostess was happy to offer soya milk and gluten-free bread at the request of us and other travellers. You will not find a more warm and friendly welcome and service than that at Les Lutins. We were even accommodated with an earlier breakfast on our check out day so that we could eat before heading to the airport.

On top of the other benefits, you’ll also enjoy excellent housekeeping daily, along with clean towels and a selection of toiletries. If you are planning to stay at Les Lutins, we highly recommend you ask for a room with a balcony, ideal for wintery sunrises over the mountain peaks in the distance or lazy afternoons of spring sunshine at the end of your active day. Please be aware that you are required to pay a tourist tax during your visit of around 1-2 euros per night per room.

Compare the best apartments and hotels available in Les Deux Alpes now.

Mountain Conditions in Les Deux Alpes

Deux Alpes is positioned at a great height of 3200m with a glacier offering skiing and snowboarding all year round. This make Les Deux Alpes a snow-sure choice for your snowboarding or skiing holiday, even if snowfall has been a little light.

However, this means that when the weather is very cold and snow is falling heavy, winds at the top of the glacier are harsh and temperatures plummet. Bear this in mind if you are travelling with small children or looking to explore the whole piste on your holiday. In our opinion, Les Deux Alpes is best enjoyed in late winter to early spring, or even in the summer, when conditions are stunning.

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Who Is This Holiday Suitable For?

Les Deux Alpes is home to plenty of blue and green runs for beginners, as well as excellent red and black runs for advanced riders if there is enough snow cover. On busy days or popular weeks like half term, the number of people and variety of abilities found in Deux Alpes can be a challenge.

If you’re not sure of your ability or stamina, start on blue runs or check yourself into the highly rated European Snowboard and Ski School.

One of the great things about Les Deux Alpes is that beginners and those who prefer to take things easy on their ski holiday can take blue runs all the way from the top of the glacier back down into the resort. For non-skiers, there is also lots to enjoy, with a funicular, a viewing platform at 3200m and even an ice cave.

European Ski School in Les Deux Alpes

We cannot rate the European Ski School in Les Deux Alpes highly enough. With affordable rates, fantastic organisation and knowledgable teachers in English and French who will show you best parts of the slopes to practise for your level and confidence, get yourself into a lesson or two during your holiday.

No matter your level of experience or ability level, there’s always a new challenge to overcome or cool trick to learn when it comes to skiing and snowboarding.

Snowrental is the ski hire specialist in France and Europe: 800 shops for your ski and snowboard rental in over 400 resorts in major ski destinations

Snowrental offers up to 60% discount on walk in shop prices !

Navigating Les Deux Alpes Piste

Diable chair lift is a great first-day option, taking you to Cretes area at 2400m where you’ll find plenty of manageable options for everyone. Jandri Express is the fastest way to the glacier, also stopping at Toura area at 2600m.

Get the Les Deux Alpes piste map here.

Information teams can be found on the mountain to help with any questions you may have. There is also a snow park for advanced riders and a timed parallel slalom video zone! Perhaps spend a day away from the busier side of the resort and travel over to Vallee Blanche, included on your lift pass too.

This area is much smaller and quieter so is ideal if you want to escape the crowds. However, we found that when there is less snowfall, Vallee Blanche was not maintained as well as the popular opposite side of the mountain so bear this in mind for your Deux Alpes visit.

You may also like Visiting Zell am See in Winter.

The Best Restaurants

A resort town such as Les Deux Alpes offers multiple food options for its visitors so you should try eating out at least once or twice if you are on a half board package holiday, or choose a Bed and Breakfast option only so that you can enjoy getting to know the town better.

Expect to find typical French cuisine in Les Deux Alpes with plentiful fresh bread and pastries, as well as cheese everywhere you turn.

Eating Vegan in Les Deux Alpes

Most places in Deux Alpes offer vegetarian meals but many do not currently offer vegan food. We traipsed all over the resort to discover the best places to enjoy vegan food so take advantage of these great recommendations, all of which are particularly great if you are a mixed party of people with vegan and non-vegan eaters.

Non-plastic cutlery in Smokehouse Les Deux Alpes

Vegan Food On The Mountain

Not every cafe or restaurant on the slopes of Deux Alpes will offer you a vegan option, although all seem to have vegetarian food available. To avoid the excessive amounts of French cheese found everywhere, stop at La Patache for their amazing Vegan Spaghetti. Portions are large and freshly made, and they even have juicy strawberries if you are hungry enough for a lunchtime dessert.

A little higher up, Smokehouse offers a vegetarian burger or you can choose a combo of sides as a meal including ‘baked beans’ (kidney beans), mushrooms, salad and corn on the cob. Be sure to ask for no butter and a non-dairy salad dressing.

Discover our top vegan-friendly places to travel with our Vegan Travel blogs.

3 Vegan Restaurants In Les Deux Alpes Resort

With seven evenings to enjoy eating out, we hunted high and low for the best vegan food in town. If you are also staying in Les Deux Alpes for a week, some of these places will have to be eaten in twice to cover your stay, or alternatively book an accommodation option with a kitchen so that you can rustle up your own vegan food on some nights too.

Veggie Fajitas at Smithy's Les Deux Alpes

1. The Spot

The most fun place to eat out in Les Deux Alpes resort was The Spot where you can make your own burger and name it! The pick ‘a’ mix style menu includes a veggie pattie, a variety of buns and a wide choice of fillings including lettuce, tomato, onion, pickle, beetroot, avocado, pineapple, tomato spicy salsa, BBQ sauce and so much more.

2. Smithy’s Bar and Grill

Smithy’s Bar and Grill will provide you with a generous portion of Veggie Fajitas, a Veggie Burger and even a Smithy’s Poke Bowl which includes either rice or noodles with a selection of vegetables. Smithy’s doesn’t just offer vegetables with its Poke Bowls or Fajitas, but tofu too, so this little gem quickly became one of our favourite places to enjoy vegan food in Les Deux Alpes.

3. La Rouge Noir

If you would prefer to eat somewhere French in town but still avoid meat and dairy, La Rouge Noir has a very impressive and large salad on its starter menu, as well as a vegetable noodle stir fry for a main. Both include an abundance of colourful vegetables, making this a great option if you are craving a huge fresh veggie fix.

When we searched for vegan food in Les Deux Alpes online, Soul Kitchen came up too however although they have great vegetarian options, their menu changes every night so they may not have a vegan option on the night you visit.

Other Vegan Options

Eating vegan in Les Deux Alpes was definitely a little challenging. The supermarkets also offer vegan crisps and snacks, loose fruit and vegetables and pre-prepared lunch items like couscous pots. If you get a self-catered apartment, you can easily cook vegan dinners for your evenings and make sandwiches for the mountain.

Drinks wise, most bars and restaurants offer fruit juice and herbal teas in abundance, but for a typical mountain beverage, we highly recommend you take your own vegan hot chocolate to enjoy on your snow-covered balcony!

Neilson Ski Holidays: Book A Package

We always choose Neilson for our one week package holidays to European ski resorts. Here are some of the reasons why:

Prices with Neilson are competitive and excellent value for money
We love the choice of flight times and U.K. airports
Transfers are on an air-conditioned coach with your friendly Neilson rep on hand
Welcome packs are provided including pre-ordered lift passes and your piste map
Up to date information is given on road traffic on your transfer journey
Your attentive reps visit during the week to check all is going well
Resort pick up time on your final day is all taken care of for you
Excellent advice is on hand for your ski and snowboard school options
Assistance with pretty much anything you need whilst in resort

Book your Neilson Winter holiday today.

How Much Will My Holiday To Les Deux Alpes Cost?

Package prices for one week to Les Deux Alpes with Neilson can be booked from £550pp pre-season and often much cheaper with last minute deals during or at the end of the season, depending on availability. Bear in mind that if snow conditions are strong, leaving your booking until the last minute may not be advisable. Personally, we prefer to get pre-booked, plan our annual leave, and know we can start getting excited for our next snow holiday!

A 6-day area lift pass costs from £257. Lessons start from £125 for 3 lots of 2 hour morning sessions for intermediate to advanced snowboarders. Ski rental is also available if you do not have your own equipment, including helmets, skis, boots and boards.

Prices in the resort of everything from food to clothes is very typical of the French Alps. You can expect a meal for 2 to cost around €50.

Our 3 ‘Don’t Miss’ Things To Do In Les Deux Alpes

If you’re lucky enough to enjoy a sunny day or two in Les Deux Alpes, head down Jandri 1 a little early and spend the last hour or so in the bar at the bottom, relaxing on an outdoor sun lounger with a refreshing drink and the warmth of the sun on your windswept face.
Pick a clear day to head all the way to the top of the glacier via the Jandri gondolas and then the funicular to grab a well-earned view over the towering snowcapped mountain peaks.
Head to the snow park where you will find the famous Les 2 Alpes sign. Take the small chair up past the sign and then ski or board down, keeping high and right to be able to stop and enjoy the perfect photo opportunity.

Les Deux Alpes Holidays

If you’re looking for you’re next affordable European winter holiday destination, Deux Alpes has it all. Suitable for all abilities, enjoy the thrill of some of the best mountain peaks in France without the overpriced tag associated with some French ski resorts.

Enjoy the glacier by day, the town by night or try some outdoor swimming or ice skating! We highly recommend Les Deux Alpes for skiers and snowboarders. It’s also a great option for those who have no idea whether they even like snow holidays yet. We enjoyed Les Deux Alpes as a second honeymoon because, at the low prices we found, it would’ve been rude not to!