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What's on in La Plagne winter 2018/19
A roundup of the best events in La Plagne this season
After last season’s epic winter (9.22m total snowfall), it’s perhaps inevitable thoughts start turning to what this year might have in store for us in La Plagne.
While we can’t make any assurances on snow conditions, we can be sure of a few things already announced in the resort’s calendar. Highlights for 2018/19 season include the following.
Opening day 2018 - December 15th
The season kicks off in the altitude resorts of La Plagne on December 15th with the lower villages and the full Paradiski La Plagne/Les Arcs link opening a week later on the 22nd. For reference, the altitude resorts comprise Belle Plagne, Plagne Bellecôte, Plagne Soleil, Plagne Villages, Plagne Centre, Plagne 1800 and Plagne Aime 2000 – pretty much everything on the top half of the piste map. La Plagne’s lower villages constitute Montchavin, Les Coches, La Roche, Plagne Montalbert and Champagny-en-Vanoise – basically the lower half of the piste map. Last season we had full cover across the entire area from early December so here’s hoping for a similar story this year.
Christmas and New Year - throughout December
La Plagne prides itself on its family-friendly reputation and the resort makes a big deal of Christmas with a host of activities and events, particularly suited to children. The full events list will be announced soon but expect the usual Father Christmas appearances, reindeer parades, torchlit descents and firework shows.
The festive celebrations come to a close with the annual Pompon Rouge dance and fireworks party, held on New Year’s Eve at the Front de Neige in Plagne Bellecôte. This year’s theme is 'Tropical' (whatever that means – last year was ‘Superheroes’). The Pompon Rouge is the perfect way to see in the New Year and features live music and DJs as well as a fireworks show at midnight. More details to follow.
Snow Frappadingue – December 15th
The Frappadingue is a series of gruelling endurance races held at various venues across France. The event comes to La Plagne for the first time this year with the aim of introducing a snow stage to the circuit. Competitors have a choice of two courses – either a 5km or 12km track – each littered with climbing walls, nets, tunnels, sprint stages and other challenges. If you’re familiar with the Tough Mudder concept, Frappadingue is essentially the same. A similar event held last year saw participants tackling the obstacles in around a metre of fresh snow, adding to the already tough competition. If you’re interested in taking part in Frappadingue registration takes place on December 14th in Plagne Centre.
La Grande Odysee Savoie Mont Blanc – January 18th
Billed as the world’s toughest dog sledding competition, the Grande Odysee series is held from January 12th to 23rd at some of France’s most prestigious ski areas. La Plagne’s stage is the sixth in the calendar and features a 67km track over an elevation gain of 3140m. The Grande Odysee Tour calls at Samoëns, Praz de Lys, Grand Massif, Les Gets, Megève, Pralognan, La Plagne, Val Cenis, Sardières, Aussois, Grand Revard and culminates in Bonneval-sur-Arc on January 23rd. La Plagne’s stage will be held on January 18th in and around the forests of Plagne Montalbert, La Roche and Montchavin-Les Coches with various viewing platforms at scenic spots around the track.
Odyssea Race – February 2nd-3rd
Odyssea is a French breast cancer charity. The association holds various events and races through the year raising funds for research into the prevention and cure of the disease. Odyssea comes to La Plagne for the first time this winter with a convivial race held over the weekend of February 2nd-3rd. Over its 16 year history, Odyssea has raised over €8 million for cancer research with over 840,000 people taking part in its charity events. The fundraising weekend will see a host of activities in and around the resort all aimed at increasing breast cancer awareness while raising money for the charity.
Ice Climbing World Cup – February 9th-10th
Following the success of the 2017 event, the biennial Ice Climbing World Cup returns again to La Plagne in 2019. The competition features the best ice climbers from around the globe battling for top prizes on La Plagne’s huge Ice Tower, a 25m ice structure located in the centre of Champagny-le-Haut. The competition features two disciplines: Speed (a head to head race to the top) and Lead (judged on competitors’ line and creativity). Champagny-le-Haut is a tiny village with quaint chalets, built in the authentic Savoyard style. It lies in a secluded valley at end of a winding track above Champagny-en-Vanoise and is also home to the resort’s extensive cross-country skiing tracks. The village is regarded locally as the gateway to the Vanoise National Park and is worth a visit in itself for its dramatic scenery.
Superslalom – March 30th
The world’s longest slalom race returns for its third year to La Plagne on March 30th 2019. After the success of the first two years, expect a stellar entry list with some of France’s top ski talent on show. Last year’s event saw world-class slalom, downhill, freestyle and biathlon competitors try their hand at the giant course. The Superslalom is open to all and takes place on a challenging course starting above Plagne Centre, near the top of the Becoin chair at 2340m. The course roughly follows the Pavane blue to Aime 2000 before dropping onto the significantly steeper Emile Allais red down into La Roche at 1555m. Between top and bottom lie 320 slalom gates spread over a mammoth 4km course with an elevation drop of almost 800m. A normal slalom track has just 55-75 gates over a vertical drop of around 200m. Clearly, this is no ordinary slalom track. If you’d like to give the Superslalom a go, registration is now open.
Sublicimes – April 10-18th
After (we hope) a long and very snowy winter, La Plagne will again kick back in April for a week of chilled activities with the annual Sublicimes event. Sublicimes features a range of themed zones held on the five main peaks of La Plagne – L’Arpette (above Bellecôte/Montchavin), Roche de Mio (top of the main area), La Rossa (above Champagny), Grande Rochette (above Plagne Centre) and Le Fornelet (above Plagne Montalbert). All but the La Rossa peak at Champagny are accessible to non-skiers. This year's theme is the Five Senses, with various activities and facilities to suit.
Season close – April 27th
With the hordes long gone and the quietest pistes imaginable, La Plagne’s season will end on Saturday, April 27th 2019. For the more studious amongst you, that amounts to 134 days in which to get your ski or snowboard fix on the slopes of La Plagne/Paradiski this year. We look forward to seeing you there!
More inspiration...
Whether you like to party hard or push your physical endurance to the limit, La Plagne is sure to have an event to match. Keep an eye on our events calendar and news page to get the most from your winter trip.
