Five things to do in Morzine!
This is a guest blog from Guide2Morzine who provide all the information you need about Morzine and surrounding areas.
Morzine in the Haute-Savoie region of the French Alps is where I call home. In my opinion Morzine is a ski resort like no other. Rather than being a purpose built ski village with no life outside of the snowy months, it is a thriving market town with a large year round population and a summer season nearly as busy as the winter. Starting out as a farming and slate mining community, Morzine began to be developed as a ski resort in 1920. The original Pleney lift opened in 1934. This year (2013) this lift is being replaced with a brand new state of the art gondola. Over recent years, Morzine and it’s neighbouring ski station of Avoriaz have seen huge development. They are now connected to 11 other resorts to create the enormous Portes du Soleil ski area. The Portes du Soleil is arguably the largest connected ski area in the World with over 650km of groomed pistes, 10 snow parks, 2 half pipes and 4 boarder cross areas. Morzine has become one of the most popular French resorts for snowboarders and here you will find much more equality between the two disciplines than in other areas.
It isn’t just about the skiing and snowboarding here though. During the summer months the lifts re-open for walkers and mountain bikers. Bikers flock here from all over the World to take on the challenging tracks of the Portes du Soleil and the area plays summer home to many mountain bike teams. There are literally hundreds of kilometers of walking and hiking trails including the famous GR5 which runs right through the mountains surrounding Morzine. The area is also popular for road cyclists with many large cycle races coming through during June, July and August. The Tour de France comes through every few years too and Morzine is home to one side of the famous Col de Joux Plane which has been known to break many a cyclist. There are so many other sports on offer that I couldn’t name them all but a few include; climbing, white water rafting, canyoning, tennis, swimming, ice hockey and so many more. Of course if you want to relax summer or winter then you can. There are loads of luxury hotels and chalets, many with there own spas on offer. You can enjoy the beautiful new Morzine swimming pool (Espace Aquatique) with it’s saunas and hammams or have a massage with one of the many therapists based here. In the summer the weather is lovely and hot and there are plenty of outside spaces to just soak up the sunshine.
To see why I love it here so much you will need to check it out for yourself. For those interested in coming to work and live in Morzine there is a huge international population here during the winter months. There are always thousands of jobs on offer and a lot of seasonal accommodation too.
5 Things not to miss in Morzine
1) Ski the Swiss wall
The Chavanette run which takes you from the top of Avoriaz down into Les Crosets in Switzerland is said to have the largest moguls in the World and is one of the steepest runs too. This one is not for the faint hearted!
2) See an Ice hockey match at the Skoda Arena
Watch ‘Les Pingouins’ HCMAG (Hockey Club Morzine Avoriaz les Gets) in action at the Skoda Arena in the centre of town. The local team are in the top Ice hockey league in France and watching them is always an exciting night out.
3) Jump from the top of a mountain!
Parapenting is such a fantastic way to get a birds eye view over the mountains and town. There are many pilots who can take you on a tandem parapente in Morzine, just ask at the tourist office or your accommodation when you arrive.
4) A walk around Lac Montriond
Summer or winter, Lake Montriond is stunningly beautiful. In the winter it is frozen solid with snow on top and there is a path which is cleared around the edge of the lake. In summer you can swim, kayak or just sunbath at this lovely spot which is a favourite with locals and visitors alike.
5) Take in the view of Mont Blanc from the top of la Rosta in Les Gets
Mont Blanc, the highest mountain in the Alps, is just a few kilometers away at Chamonix. From the top of many of the peaks in the Portes du Soleil you can see this majestic giant. However the view from the top of la Rosta in Les Gets is unbeatable.