Stage town: for the 5th time, 2nd time at the Col de la Loze
Mountain resort: in Savoie (73)
Population: 2,400 (Courchevellois.es)
Specialities: crozets au gratin, Beaufort, Savoie wines, fondue
Personalities: Alexis Pinturault (world ski champion), Jean Blanc, Taina Barioz (downhill skiing), Laurent Chappis (architect), Pierre Gagnaire (Michelin-starred chef)
Sport: downhill skiing, ski jumping, hiking, mountain biking, ice skating
Events: 2023 World Ski Championships, 1992 Albertville Winter Olympics (ski jumping)
Economy: high-end tourism, skiing (Les Trois Vallées)
Festivals: international fireworks festival, l'Art au sommet
Labels: Land of Art and History of the High Valleys of Savoy / Famille Plus / Destination d'Excellence / Station verte / Villes et Villages Fleuris 3 Fleurs
Websites: www.courchevel.com / www.mairie-courchevel.com
Courchevel and Cycling
Richard Virenque (1997), Marco Pantani (2000) and Alejandro Valverde (2005): the calibre of the first three winners in the posh Tarentaise resort is enough to sum up the difficulty of the surrounding mountain passes. In 2023, on the other side of the Col de la Loze, it was Austrian Felix Gall who broke away from the favourites to win solo and clinch the greatest victory of his career. This victory also enabled him to take 8th place in the final classification.
Valverde's stage win in 2005 was the Spaniard's very first: he beat the American rider who dominated the race at the time in a sprint to the finish. In all, Valverde has won four stages of the Tour de France and wore the Yellow Jersey for two days in 2008.
Courchevel has also hosted a stage of the Critérium du Dauphiné, won by Mikel Nieve in 2014.
Sights
Courchevel 1850
Construction: 1946 to 1950
History: work on the Courchevel ski resort project began in 1946 when the commune of Saint-Bon handed over the land required to the General Council. The latter called on architect Laurent Chappis and engineer Maurice Michaud to develop the sites. The initial work was carried out with great difficulty, with materials having to be transported by mule and man, such as the wooden poles for the Tovets and Loze ski lifts, inaugurated in 1946 by skier Jean Blanc and the French ski team. The 3 Vallées departmental hotel was also built without mechanical equipment between 1946 and 1948, including with the help of German prisoners of war. The resort was first accessed by car in 1948.
Characteristics: the site is presented as "a revolution in the art of mountain building, replacing the classic Savoyard chalet with its gable roof with a new style adapted to the construction methods of the time and the needs of a short-stay clientele". Courchevel 1850 is thus considered to be the first of the "second generation" winter sports resorts. A number of chalets designed at this time, including the Chalet Lang, the Chalet Joliot-Curie and the Chalet Petit Navire, are also listed buildings.
Special features: since 2003, the village has hosted the International Pyrotechnics Festival
Listed as: Historical Monument since 1998
Notre-Dame de l'Assomption chapel
Construction: 1953 to 1955. Extension in 1970. Bell tower in 1992
Architects: Denys Pradelle, Jean Prouvé, Philippe Quinquet
History: the first phase of work began in 1953, while the sacristy was added in 1951. Completed at the end of the 1950s, the chapel was extended twice in 1970: laterally by moving the south-west-facing glass façade and longitudinally by adding an entrance porch. Finally, an independent bell tower was built on top of the chapel in 1992, the year of the Albertville Winter Olympics.
Listed as: Historical Monument since 2005. Listed as a 20th-century heritage site in 2003
Le Praz ski jump
Built: 1944 and 1990
History: there was a ski jump on this site in the 1940s and 1950s. Another 50-metre ski jump was also located in Courchevel 1850, built in 1970 and used until the end of the 1980s. The site was chosen to host the Nordic combined and ski jumping events at the 1992 Albertville Winter Olympics. Two ski jumps of 90 and 120 metres were built. The facilities were modified so that they could be used during the summer months.
Characteristics: Built in 1990, the ski jumps are still operated and managed by the Courchevel town council. Every year, the site hosts a leg of the Summer Ski Jumping Grand Prix. The site is home to the K-90 and K-120 Olympic ski jumps, as well as a K-25 and a K-601. All four jumps have synthetic surfaces for summer use
Art at the top
History: since 2009, the resort has been organising the L'Art au sommet exhibition, in which monumental works of art are displayed in the ski area. The first exhibition was entitled Dali au sommet. The following year, Confrontation au sommet presented 18 classical and contemporary sculptures (including works by Rodin, Michelangelo, de Chirico, Dali, Botero and Folon). In 2022, the works presented were by Richard Orlinski, a regular visitor to the resort, animal sculptor Michel Bassompierre, as well as Hom Nguyen, Roberta Coni, Gabriel Moreno, Noé Two and Matéo
Vanoise National Park
Created: 1963
Listed as: World Heritage Site (2000)
History: although nature reserves already existed in France, La Vanoise was the first French national park. It was created in 1963. The main reason for its creation was the virtual disappearance of the ibex from the Vanoise massif. The project was entrusted to the architect and town planner Denys Pradelle, who defined a protected central zone (fauna, flora, natural areas, etc.) where, in particular, all hunting was prohibited, and a peripheral zone intended more for tourist development. This demarcation never ceased to divide the public authorities and the local population on the issue of environmental protection and tourism development.
Characteristics: the national park extends over the Vanoise massif between the Isère and Tarentaise valleys to the north and the Arc and Maurienne valleys to the south. It is made up of a protected area, known as the "core zone", covering 535 km², and an accession area, with no specific protection. Adjacent to the Franco-Italian border, the park borders the Grand Paradis National Park in Italy, with which it has been twinned since 1972. With 1,250 km², the core zone of the French park and the Italian park form the largest protected area in Western Europe
Cascade des Poux
Description: the path alongside the Rosière torrent leads to the Poux waterfall. It's an easy route for all the family. Around the bend at Lake La Rosière, you can try your hand at accrobranche or grab a bite to eat at the chalet. There are also barbecues and picnic tables nearby
Lakes Merlet
Description: the Lakes Merlet hike, in the heart of the Vanoise National Park, is dominated by the Aiguille du Fruit, which takes you up to the upper and lower Lake Merlet (known as the deepest lake in the Vanoise). There are two refuges for refreshments: the Lacs Merlet refuge or at the Grand Plan refuge
To Eat
Crozets au gratin
Description: crozets are to Savoie what pasta is to nearby Italy, and they have inspired the greatest chefs to set up their tables in Courchevel. At Les Airelles, Pierre Gagnaire's two-star restaurant, crozets au gratin are the subject of a special, well-kept secret recipe. Similarly, at Fouquet's in Courchevel, chef François-Xavier Simon offers a succulent crozet gratin with old Comté cheese and Morteau
