Our guide to family skiing in Arc 1800, France

Les Arcs is a purpose-built ski resort in the French Alps. It is about 2 hours South of Geneva in the Parc national de la Vanoise.

It is made of 4 pedestrian villages, which are all named after the height about sea level. We always stay at Arc 1800.

In this guide to Arc 1800, we will look at how we have booked all elements of our trip independently and what has worked well for us as a family.

There is a wide choice of accommodation in Arc 1800 and there is something to suit most budgets.  We stay at Residence Le Belmont, which we book directly with Pierre & Vacances.

This is an ideal residence, as you can ski in and out from the boot room.  It is on the edge of the forest, so is quiet, but is only 500 metres walk from the centre of the resort.

The accommodation is fairly basic, chalet-style apartments, but has everything we need for our family ski holiday.  There are ski lockers in the basement, which lead directly out onto the slopes.

The skiing at Les Arcs is fantastic.  The Paradiski area covers the slopes of Les Arcs, Peisey-Vallandry and La Plagne, making it the 2^nd biggest linked ski area in the world.

The resort has 435 km of pistes and offers something for all skiing abilities.  As 70 % of the resort is above 2000 m, there is always great snow coverage.

We order our ski passes in advance before we go and have them delivered to the house, so that we don’t have to waste time collecting them on the first day.  You can choose whether or not to buy a ski pass for the whole area or just the local part.

The children have morning ski lessons with the French ski school, Ecole du ski francais (ESF), which we book directly from home.  The meeting point is at the bottom of the gondola, which we can ski to directly.

In the afternoon, we ski as a family, or with other families in the group we go with.

There are plenty of places to stop for refreshments on the slopes, though these do tend to be pricier.  Our favourite restaurant on the slopes is Le Lodge, based on its location.  We tend to avoid the restaurant and order from the snack bar on the side, which we can eat outside on the terrace.  It’s a great venue, with magnificent views.

For a cheaper option, take off your skis and walk in to town (or slide down!)  Our favourite place in town is the Red Hot Saloon.

We have a self-catering apartment, so have the option to save money and eat at home too.  We can walk to Le Sherpa supermarket, which is small, but has all the basics we need.

On the slopes near the Arcabulle chiarlift you will find the magical Igloo Village Ice Bar.

You can stop at this giant igloo for drinks on the outside terrace, where you can chill and absorb the magnificent mountain scenery.

Even better,  you could take a look inside.  Here you can take a seat in the ice armchairs and admire the ice sculptures.  The light projections and music enhance the atmosphere.

The kids love it.

On the Wednesday evening, the ski school instructors do a torch lit show on the side of the mountain.  This really is a must-see event.

The show starts with expert boarders and skiers showing off their skills.  It finishes with a finale of a torch lit procession from the top of the mountain.  This is all done with a light show to the sounds of the dj and is exciting from beginning to end.  The evening always ends with an impressive fireworks display further up the mountain.

It is an awe-inspiring show, though Kevin much preferred the first year with the addition of the dancing female storm troopers!