Tignes is a famous ski resort in French Alps linked to Val D'Isere. Tignes comprises 5 Villages; Val Claret, Tignes le Lac, Le Lavachet, Tignes Les Boisses and Tignes-les-Brévières. The first three are close together at 2100m and Les Boisses and Les Brevieres are further down the valley, above and below the dam respectively. Les Brévières is an old village whereas all the others were created as part of the Dam construction or development of the ski resort. All villages are part of the ski resort known as Tignes.
After the loss of the old village it was decided to develop a ski resort at the higher lake (Le Lac). This was surrounded by a bowl that is ideal for skiing and is headed by the Grand Motte glacier. The resort was developed largely during the 1960s and the building style reflects what was regarded as good building design at that time. In recent years the town has worked hard to improve the look of the new villages with some success.
The lift company STGM are continually investing to improve the quality of lifts in the resort and queues are mostly avoided by the use of fast 6- or 8-person chairs. They have also invested over the past few years in snow making equipment to create good bases for the pistes even in the early season.
PLACE TO VISIT
The bleak architecture in the town has somewhat detracted from the atmosphere in the past, but the situation is now improving. Of course, the views of the Alps from the resort are spectacular. It is partly for this reason that Tignes is not only a winter resort for skiing, but a summer one for hiking, mountain biking , summer skiing on the glacier ; it has won the sporting town of france 2008
WHAT TO DO
Winter Sports - Tignes is in the "Espace Killy" skiing area, which means that just one pass is needed for access to the slopes around Tignes, Val-Claret and Val D'Isere; for the 2006/7 season, a six-day pass will cost €180 (£135; $220).
The resort has some 2300km of pistes, of which 26km are served by snowmaking equipment. 15% are green, 46% blue, 27% red and 12% black. The resort is always renowned for the amount of snow it gets, though - a forecast of "rain up to 2000m" means snow to village level, i.e., fresh snow on all pistes.
Summer Sports - Mountain Biking with two of the main lifts in the resort open for hikers and mountain bikers you have the choice of 8 different marked routes to decend, with a difficulty ranging from easy to difficult, although this would not be a resort for complete beginner mountain bikers.
Hiking - The resort is also much suited to hiking; in summer, the snow at ground level has disappeared and the Sun can actually be quite pleasant.
HOW TO REACH
The nearest train station is Bourg-Saint-Maurice, which is served by TGV and local services. In the winter months, additional services operate; Eurostars direct from London, Thalys trains from Europe, and the ski train sleeper from Paris. This is some 35km away however, so coach services provide the onward connection; the journey takes about 1 hour 15 minutes in good weather.
