New this winter | Val d’Isère : Alps ski resort and winter sports

Restaurants New on the plate

L'Art des Mets In the Manchet valley

By opening L’ Art des Mets in the protected Manchet valley, Caroline and Emmanuel wanted to offer a responsible restaurant that serves carefully-prepared dishes, made using local ingredients.

Most come from the surrounding area, organic and non-organic from their French friends and suppliers.
The products and utensils used in the kitchen dining room and for cleaning all have the Eco Label.
The building itself has been renovated for optimal and sustainable energy efficiency.

The next goal is to instal a greenhouse by 2025 to grow herbs and a few vegetables at an altitude of 1,900m! L’Art des Mets is located at the crossroads between the marked footpaths, cross-country skiing trails and off-piste trails in the protected Manchet valley, on the edge of the frozen Calabourdane river. The restaurant is open during the day for lunch and afternoon snacks, and dinners are organised in the yurt, upon request.

Palladio Italian with a Venetian touch

Airelles Val d’Isère opens its doors on 6th December 2024 with an Italian dining concept called Palladio. Inspired by classic Italian dishes with a Venetian touch, Palladio promises an ideal culinary experience from its immense terrace that opens out onto the bottom of the slopes in Val d’Isère. Artistic director Christophe Tollemer designed both the indoor and outdoor spaces.

The company’s other culinary offerings include Matsuhisa Val d’Isère, Chef Nobu’s first restaurant in the French Alps; Le Piaf, an evening haunt perfect for revellers; and La Grande Ourse, one of the village’s oldest restaurants, which serves classic Savoyard cuisine accompanied by live music.

Les Fils à Maman Home cooking

Les Fils à Maman opens their first high-altitude establishment at the bottom of the slopes in Val d’Isère. The restaurant’s nostalgic menu features all of the classic mountain dishes, such as diot sausages, buttered mash and salad. For families, the children’s menu is priced at €12, and waffles and hot chocolate are served after a day on the slopes. The inside of the old chalet has been renovated to include tables with benches in an authentic setting, and the new bar in the basement is a cosy spot for après-ski. Outside is a south-facing terrace, sheltered from the wind, with stunning views of the surrounding peaks.

I discover

What's new in Folie Douce

The children de la Folie Douce

During all the school holidays at Christmas, February and April, the La Folie Douce teams organise parties exclusively for children. On the festive dance floor, in the heart of La Folie Douce, after a family lunch, children can dress up, dance and DJ. Throughout the season, Folie Douce offers a children’s club with its entertainers: L’après-ski des enfants de la Folie.

From 3.30pm, children can enjoy a fun-filled programme including tree house building, hands-on workshops, games, laser biathlon, snow sculpture, molky parties, mini-golf and even a café boys’ race… before enjoying a snack at La Petite Cuisine!

Early-morning appointments

Backstage breakfast at La Folie Douce
At 9.30am in the Folie Douce bell tower, it’s time for a private tour of the Folie Douce kitchens and a meeting with the chefs to make homemade apple turnovers, followed by breakfast facing Mont Blanc, before taking part in cabaret rehearsals or enjoying the reading room.

Yoga brunch at the summit
La Folie Douce’s weekly winter wellness rendez-vous, the Yoga Brunch, is an interlude at 2400m, facing Mont Blanc. Taking place on one morning a week with a yoga, pilates or a gym session with La Folie Douce’s sports coach. Sessions will be held indoors or outdoors, weather dependent.

La Fruitière Celebrating 30 years!

It’s been 30 years since the opening of this unique place at an altitude of 2400m, where every day the Folie Douce chefs revisit traditional cheese recipes. For the festivities, local cheesemakers, Michelin-starred chefs and the entire Folie Douce team will be highlighting the history of cheese, with new cheese recipes, dedicated shows, redesigned costumes and decor, and a closing banquet bringing together former Avalins, local cheesemakers and customers.

More about La Fruitière

Hotels something new to discover

Experimental chalet

Experimental Chalet Val d’Isère opens this winter in the heart of the old village, just a few steps from the slopes. The four star hotel houses 113 bedrooms, suites and loft apartments, as well as a bar, two restaurants and a spa with a pool, sauna and steam room.

Interior design is by Dorothée Meilichzon. The bedrooms, suites and loft apartments are all unique, with a nod to the Savoie region and the surrounding Alpine forests: wooden features complement the earth tones, rich greens, deep blues and warm terracotta hues.
The first restaurant combines rustic and Savoyard touches with a wood fire and a menu that features traditional dishes, such as authentic mountain cheese, tartiflette and raclette. The second restaurant echoes the spirit of the forests in and around Val d’Isère and serves hearty sharing platters in a cosy setting. Experimental Chalet Val d’Isère is also inaugurating the sixth Experimental Cocktail Club, a real hallmark of the group that is present in each of its hotels, serving après-ski cocktails, pre-dinner drinks and nightcaps.

On the slopes with the ski lifts

Vallon gondola : Optimized links to high-altitude sectors

Faster, more comfortable, safer and with a lower environmental impact, the replacement of the Vallon gondola in 2024 adheres to Val d’Isère stringent demands in terms of customer satisfaction and environmental impact.

In 1972, with the installation of the Col drag lift, the Vallon de l’Iseran and Pisaillas sectors became accessible. In 1982, the Vallon TCD6 gondola was installed to improve access to these high altitude areas, and the lift had not been changed since. The new Vallon gondola has modernised the ride up from the Vallon de l’Iseran to the high-altitude sectors:

Comfort and safety for skiers: 10 seats, panoramics views and space.
6.5 minutes to reach an altitude of 2 790 metres : very high altitude in very little time.
Limited impact on the natural area: installed along the path of the existing lift in order to preserve the local wildlife and plants; 30 pylons from the old lift were dismantled, and all of the protected flowers present on the project site were transplanted.