Skiing in Les Saisies and Espace Diamant

I tested the ski area of Seizures and Diamond Space.

The ski resort of Seizures occupies the space of the pass of the same name which links the upper Val d'Arly (Megève, Flumet) in Haute Savoie with the Beaufortain in Savoy.

The pass is located at 1600 meters above sea level in a region that receives abundant snowfall in winter, due to its proximity to the Mont Blanc Massif and its good exposure to precipitation coming from the Atlantic.

The Saisies ski resort is part of the Espace Diamant, a vast ski area which allows you to enjoy slopes for all levels and magnificent landscapes towards Mont Blanc, the Aravis and the Beaufortain.

Let's discover the resort together Seizures and the Espace Diamant ski area.

The Saisies ski resort

Perched on a hill, facing the afternoon sun, the Saisies ski resort bathed in light. At 1600 meters above sea level, it is already approaching the peaks of the mountains that surround it. Bisanne at 1940 meters to the southwest and La Légette and the Chard du Beurre which face it at a little less than 1900 meters above sea level. So we don't ski very high at Les Saisies, yet the snow is of very good quality from the beginning of the season in mid-December until the end of the season in mid-April. The resort has expanded from the edges of the pass, where there is a church and a stele in memory fighting that was fought in the local maquis with the help of the liberation forces at the end of the Second World War, towards Beaufortain. The other side of the pass has bends that quickly climb up into a beautiful, dense coniferous forest from Notre Dame de Bellecombe.

The houses are built in the neo-mountain style: they look like large chalets, with roofs covered in snow for a good part of the season and wooden balconies to warm up the atmosphere. All the facades of the houses have the same orientation, parallel to the road and facing the afternoon sun. The image is striking from the slopes of Bisanne with the Saisies station which seems to be drawn on the snowy slopes of the mountain opposite, itself surmounted by the Mont Blanc massif, which largely dominates the horizon.

New districts were also gradually built on the Bisanne side, overlooking the Beaufortain, up to Bisanne 1500, an annex station, overlooking Villard sur Doron.

The village of Hauteluce, lower down, at an altitude of 1150 metres, on the descent from the Col des Saisies, on the Beaufortain side, is also part of the Saisies ski resort. A shuttle bus connects the village to the pass and a chairlift takes skiers from Hauteluce directly to the slopes of Espace Diamant, in the Saisies sector. It is a pretty village very typical of Beaufortain. Well exposed to the sun, at the foot of the Col du Joly road, its facades line the main road. It is a very quiet village, which allows you to ski both in the Saisies sector and in the contaminated, but of course with different packages.

Les Saisies is a pleasant, lively resort, very popular with families who find a village atmosphere, easy and very sunny slopes.

The cross country skiers also appreciate the Olympic courses for cross-country skiing. The resort of Les Saisies was one of the host resorts of the Winter Olympic Games in Albertville in 1992, and has kept this reputation thanks to very beautiful Nordic trails in the forest.

Other ski resorts around Les Saisies: Espace Diamant.

When skiing from Les Saisies, you quickly come across the resort of Crest Voland. Very pretty village on a balcony above the Arly valley, with a clear view of Mont Charvin which dominates the Ugine valley in the Aravis, it receives the sun until the evening. Its altitude around 1200 meters allows it to often have snow which resists the ground and on the roofs, which is a little plus for lovers of ski holidays in the mountains. Life revolves around the central street which crosses the village and the group of restaurants which are huddled near the small church. The pretty chalets which make up the village give a real mountain atmosphere to the place. Certainly a good place to spend your holidays and ski on the Espace Diamant area.

Not far from Crest Voland, the district of Cohennoz Le Cernix represents the maximum extension of the ski area towards the South, on this side of the mountain. A short walk allows you to go from one village to another.

From the northernmost part of Crest Voland, towards the church, you can see a little further down on the left, some of the first houses of Notre Dame de Bellecombe.

Our Lady of Bellecombe is a very picturesque village, located at an altitude of about 1100 meters, with the same exposure and the same view as Crest Voland. Its small church and the small streets that surround it give it an additional cachet. The village was on a small plateau halfway up the slope above Flumet, you can walk through several neighborhoods of chalets with beautiful views of the upper Val d'Arly. The road that leads from Notre Dame de Bellecombe to Les Saisies is marked by two hamlets that have been named after Our Lady of Bellecombe 1350 et 1450, depending on the altitude. In reality, the hamlets are called Le Planay and Les Frasses respectively. Each has a ski lift departure point to access the Espace Diamant ski area, a car park and one or more catering points. All around, many chalets are scattered among the meadows in a hilly and peaceful environment.

Continuing on the same road, we end up crossing the one that goes up from Crest Voland, before reaching, after a few short bends, the Saisies Pass.

By road, the distance between Crest Voland or Notre Dame de Bellecombe and Les Saisies is barely more than ten kilometers.

I told you, Notre Dame de Bellecombe is located on a small plateau overlooking Flumet. Flumet is the main centre of the Val d'Arly. This large village formed of houses huddled together along the road that leads from Albertville to the Col de Megève is located at an altitude of 900 metres. Its importance comes from the fact that it occupies a natural crossroads towards which several important roads converge. The road that leads from Sallanches to Albertville via Combloux, Megève, Flumet and Ugine, the road that descends from Aravis pass arriving from Annecy, Thônes, La Clusaz and La Giettaz, the road that descends from the Col des Saisies coming from Beaufortain and finally the road that leads directly to Ugine and Lake Annecy via Saint Nicolas la Chapelle (if you make a small detour) and the Col d'Héry. Despite its position a little on the edge of the ski area, there are two access points to the lifts that lead to the slopes in the immediate vicinity of Flumet: Flumet-Les Seigneurs and Flumet-Les Evettes, halfway between Flumet and Praz sur Arly.

The Saisies and Espace Diamant ski area from Crest Voland

Discovering the ski area obviously depends on your starting point.

So we will choose four starting points :

• Crest Voland,
• The Seizures,
• Our Lady of Bellecombe
• and Praz sur Arly.

Skiers starting from Cernix have the same starting point as those from Crest Voland, and those starting from Flumet find themselves either on the summits of Notre Dame de Bellecombe or on those of Praz sur Arly, from the first climb.

Let's say you start from Crest Voland. The first instinct is to climb very quickly to seek out the sun of Les Saisies. To get there, you will link together a certain number of lifts and slopes, which will allow you to warm up quietly.

First the summit of the Mount Lachat, at 1650 meters. It is a hill crossed by several slopes of all levels. You can stay on Mont Lachat and have fun if the snow is good and you do not necessarily want to move away from Crest Voland, for example if you have time constraints. Otherwise, head to Les Saisies.

From the top of Mont Lachat you have to aim for the Baches trail which takes you into one of the coldest valleys in the area. But the snow holds so well that the branches remain covered in snow well after the last snowfall. At the bottom of the valley, you have to continue with the Nant Rouge chairlift (it is super cold on this chairlift in the shade) which after a short climb will drop you off in view of the departure of the Covetan chairlift, which will take you to the top of the Saisies resort, the Chard du Beurre. A magnificent view of Mont Blanc waiting for you from the top.

Skiing in Les Saisies: the slopes around the village

The best way to get around the area is to schedule as your next step, the climb to Bisanne. Head for the Renards et Sapins trail to dive towards the start of the Bisanne chairlift. We take advantage of the wide blue trails to take a look at the atmosphere of the Col des Saisies, but it is from the top of Bisanne that the panorama becomes truly magnificent. You have to take a short break to enjoy the view 360 degrees. The Arly valley, then the Isère, up to the foothills of the Chartreuse, the Beaufortain, Mont Charvin and the Aravis and especially the Mont Blanc massif which seems to be just behind the Saisies resort.

It is with Mont Blanc in our sights that we will continue our visit of the area. From the summit of Bisanne, we can allow ourselves two or three red runs on the Chamois and Palette lifts, or even go back down to Cernix directly. It is very quiet and very pretty, the route follows a path in the forest.

But the best thing is to continue the discovery in crossing the Saisies station. There are several intersecting runs, but all go down to the resort, at different lift departure points. The leftmost runs take you to the chairlift of Butter Chard and you will end up where you were when you left for Bisanne. The best thing is to go as far to the right as possible and aim for the chairlift Legette. The view of the Beaufortain is crazy! We recognize the valley in which it nestles Beaufort, and we can see the ski slopes of Arêches. Higher up, we can see the characteristic summit of Pierre Menta.

The summit of Legette offers you three directions. You can try the red and black slopes that go back down to Les Saisies (there are also blue ones). And if you get into it, you can play on this slope and that of Bisanne to go back and forth, just like in a giant canyon. This is the playground of vacationers who stay at Les Saisies. And how can you prove them wrong: easy, wide, sunny slopes with superb and clear landscapes.

You can also try the Hauteluce slope. From Légette you take the fast and very sunny red trail of Lanches and Barme. Quiet, more confidential, this sector takes you down towards the Beaufortain to the village of Hauteluce. You then discover, opposite, views of the Roselend dams and the Girotte and the Col du Joly. Wild spaces that are crossed neither by roads nor by ski lifts. Two chairlifts take you back to the starting point, at La Légette.

It is then time to move away from Les Saisies and take the third option, that of the ridges which go towards the Mont Blanc Massif.

Descent by the blue slopes, Frêtes, Vardache and Trolliers to go back up by the Brichou chairlift. Another world awaits you. Quieter, far from the resort centers. For information, the Brichou chairlift can be reached directly from Mont Lachat also for those arriving from Crest Voland, without going through Les Saisies, by the Trolliers slope. From the summit of Brichou, we see a magnificent white valley with several slopes on both sides. A chairlift goes up each of the slopes. We can therefore stay there for a while to test all the slopes. The most beautiful, in my opinion, are the red one which comes down from the summit of Douce, the Péchette slope, and its black variant Bélier, steeper but very pleasant to ski.

Au summit of Douce, we find ourselves at the top of theEspace Diamant at 2069 meters.

From up there you can take a break at the little café on the Bellasta slopes (they are red, but not too difficult). As there are no villages in sight, the landscape is clear, peaceful and magnificent towards the Beaufortain and Mont Blanc.

We can also begin to discover the upper part of the Notre Dame de Bellecombe and Praz sur Arly estate.

Skiing in the Espace Diamant around Notre Dame de Bellecombe and Praz sur Arly

Indeed,The skiers of Notre Dame de Bellecombe, start their ascent to the ski area by gaining height on Mont Rond at 1767 meters. Those who leave from the village must first cross Mont Réguet to reach the chairlift that goes up to the summit of Mont Rond. From there, they can warm up on the slopes that come down from the summit along the Mont Rond or Boulangère chairlifts. Then they go down towards Plan Dessert and reach the top of the area by the Lac chairlift. The valley that they fly over with this chairlift shows them all the red and black slopes (and one blue) that they can go down in the middle of the forests. It is the same choice as those who arrived from Les Saisies or Crest Voland by the Douce chairlift, as we saw in the previous paragraph. These are interesting slopes to do when the snow is good and the ice patches are not too present.

Otherwise, I would tend to advise skiers from Notre Dame de Bellecombe to do the opposite route to those from Les Saisies, according to the previous description.

From the top of the area, you can also follow a very long blue trail which runs along the crest of the mountain before plunging towards the Praz sur Arly area.

Look carefully at your watch because the return to Les Saisies and Crest Voland is a bit long and you don't want to miss the last climb.

However, the skiers of Praz sur Arly and Notre Dame de Bellecombe are on their closest spaces.

From Praz sur Arly, the Crêt du Midi chairlift takes you up to the high altitude area. Small ski lifts serve some of the slopes, and the Ban Rouge chairlift connects you to the rest of the area. From the summit of Ban Rouge, there are also two or three red slopes to try out for good skiers, in the shade, in the forest.

Skiers from Flumet-Les Evettes start their ascent via the Roc des Evettes before going back down to Praz sur Arly via the green and blue Dahu, Bernards and Berouds slopes. On the way back, the Bernards ski lift connects the Praz sur Arly and Roc des Evettes sectors. Once in the Praz sur Arly area, they have access to the rest of the area via the Ban Rouge climb.

It is therefore a very hilly area, with several ski sectors and several orientations. The lifts almost always take you to spectacular panoramic points. This is also the real strong point of the ski area.

The slopes are relatively short, as the vertical drops are never very significant, which makes them ideal for family skiing, with children or beginners. The great athletes have a few slopes to enjoy, but let's be honest, if you've been skiing on black slopes for twenty years, you're going to get bored in this area (apart from the landscapes and the authenticity of the villages).

I come to the Saisies area especially at the start of the season to get my legs going, because it snows very early and the snow is of good quality at the start of the season.

However, it is a large ski area with 192 kilometers of slopes, spread over 158 slopes and served by 82 ski lifts. There’s plenty to have fun with!

The Val d'Arly is an interesting region for skiing on different ski areas for the day. The Espace Diamant brings together all the resorts around Flumet. But there is also the La Giettaz ski area linked to that of Combloux and that of Megève linked to that of Saint Nicolas de Véroce and Demi-Quartier on the opposite slope. The slopes are pleasant, very often in the forest, the landscapes are magnificent with grandiose views of Mont Blanc and the villages are all very typical and very welcoming without any architectural horror.

You might also be interested in these articles: