An increasing number of British skiing enthusiasts are discovering the winter sports delights of Courmayeur, long regarded as one of Italy's top skiing centres, the village is set immediately below the famous Mont Blanc Mountain (Europe's highest) and where cable cars can whisk you to 2755m.
Courmayeur has approximately 100km of piste served by 4 cable cars, 3 gondolas, 8 chairlifts and 3 drag lifts. Skiing suits all grades but there is only one run which can be classed as "black" but the 12 red runs are quite exciting.
The area has a really good snow record but there are more than 250 snow cannons to ensure the slopes just above the resort are covered throughout the season.
Not forgetting the Vallee Blanche with its 20km of glacier and spectacular ice-falls and pinnacles leads down to the French resort of Chamonix. So with a mountain guide, skiers can enjoy a spectacular day out arriving back at Courmayeur by public transport or a mini bus organised via the tourist office.
The town of Courmayeur is a real delight and well worth exploring after a day on the slopes. There are numerous cobbled streets with plenty of bars, shops, restaurants and culinerary delights worth sampling. There are numerous hotels and the ones used by Interski include the popular 3* Hotel Tavernier (located close to the new Dolonne lift; The charming 3* Hotel Crampon and 2* Hotel Scoiattolo (Courmayeur town centre); the 3* Hotel Beau Sejour in the nearby village of Pallesieux and the luxurious 4* Grand Courmaison Hotel which has excellent leisure facilities.
The Editor stayed just outside the town at the "Pilier D'Angle" which is not far from the entrance (Italian side) to the Mont Blanc tunnel. This hotel has a really superb restaurant that attracts "locals" from miles around and was everything it had been recommended for - excellent cuisine and extremely comfortable rooms.(see photo)
Even the 27 mountain restaurants can produce lunch-time dishes to surprise you and why not try the "Bombadino" before setting off for the final run down. It will certainly "refresh" the body!
The Courmayeur sports centre is one of the most fully-equipped and spectacular sports centres in Europe providing an ice rink, curling, 3 squash courts, 3 red clay tennis courts, a volleyball court, body-building gym, indoor golf practice range, sauna and Turkish Bath together with a restaurant and disco bar.