Colin from UNITED KINGDOM writes:
A group of us have just got back from La Plagne staying at 1800 in Clubhotel Rhododendrons, there were 2 boarders and 5 skiers.
The hotel - cheap but more than cheerful. We got what we paid for and a bit more. The room was basic, 4 sharing, 2 singles and one bunk bed. A bit tight but was perfectly adequate for 4 blokes if a bit smelly. The food was a bit disappointing at breakfast; continental, but was made up for in the evening by an excellent 3 course meal. The bar was a bit uncomfortable and would not accomodate all guests at the same time but did the job during happy hour when beer was 3.5 euros a pint. There was also a games room with pool & table football. Great staff and manager.
The resort Plagne 1800 - arguably the better looking resort but not the best for night life, the only usable bar to speak of was La Mine which got very busy when the bands were on. There was another Pizza/bar but it was always closed when we turned up. Given the choice, I would have booked Plagne centre; lots more bars and just felt a bit livelier. However, in 1800 there is a Spar and a Tabac so you could buy beer, fags and snacks without any problems and we still managed to enjoy ourselves at 1800.
Transport - excellent - free, regular and on time bus services that serves 1800, Belle Plagne and Plagne Centre. V useful if you are tired at the end of the day and don't fancy skiing or boarding back. You can get taxi's but I have no idea of rates. The one from Plagne centre back to La Plagne 1800 was running up until 12.45 so you can have a reasonably late night if you want it.
Cost - yes it is expensive but as long as you find the Happy Hour's you can get a reasonably priced beer up until about 9pm, ususally 3.5 euros a pint. Thereafter you end up paying between 5 to 7 euros depending on where you are and what you are drinking. We were catered but lunch times we did eat out and we were paying 10 euros for a massive Pizza & chips that we shared between 2, which was reasonable enough. On chef's night off we went to Le Chaudron and had the set menu which was 30 euros each plus wine & coffee on top - not too bad. You can also pilfer bits from breakfast for your lunch however, if you board like me you may end up with an unappealling, soggy, wafer thin croissant.
Skiing - the skiers amaongst us tell me that the skiing was excellent for all abilities at La Plagne, off piste, moguls, forgiving reds, tough blues and long sweeping motorway pistes. Additionally, you can get to Les Arcs as well. Everyone in our party had a great weeks skiing and cannot fault it. The lifts seemed only really busy first thing and one of our group got the first lift up and the last lift at 5.30 - he is a nutter but La Plagne accommodated him well.
Boarding - so, so. We are not the best boarders and found the amount of paths at La Plagne torture. There were very few runs that did not involve a path or two and the subsequent thigh and calf burning agony was a little off putting. There were also some large sections where it was either flat or (slightly) uphill and if you either fell over or stopped to look at a map or a junction, you can find yourself skating or walking a bit. More competent boarders would have no problems I'm sure and we did indeed see them whizzing past us at great speed. They also had a snowpark, 2 half pipes and a boarder cross section so they catered well for those whose abilities surpass my own. Despite this, we still had a brilliant time.
Weather - loads of snow first few days then petered out leaving blue skies and sunshine. More snow = easier boarding - hooray. Piste bashers = less snow, harder boarding - boo.
As a boarder, I will not be rushing to go back to La Plagne (the paths) but the 5 skiers would go back at the drop of a hat. A great time was had by all.
2009-03-16 |
