The end of January saw myself, Tom, and couple of colleagues from the ski team head out to France for a sneak peek at our new resorts Courchevel, Grand Massif and Morzine-Avoriaz. Here our top 3 reasons why France works (and works well!) for school groups:
1. Amazing Group Accommodation
Before travelling to France I held the misconception that France just didn’t cater well for school groups when it came to their accommodation offering. I couldn’t have been more wrong! We visited accommodation centres in all three of our new resorts and found them to be absolutely perfect for school groups.
We visited the Lorraine Savoie in Courchevel Village, AEC Les Becchi in Samoëns and Chalet L’Escalade in Morzine. All of these properties had a great standard of accommodation, amazing group spaces and the hospitality afforded to groups staying there at the same time as us, was second to none. The food set-up varied dependent on the size of the accommodation, but all properties really understood what school pupils wanted whilst making sure they still got their greens!
2. Stress-Free Beginner Skier Experience
The pedigree of skiing available at Courchevel, Grand Massif and Morzine-Avoriaz needs no introduction and offers ample opportunity for the improving and advanced skiers, but beginners aren’t left behind in any of these resorts either.
All three resorts offer dedicated beginner slopes, allowing newbies the space and time to become more confident on the snow. Having ski schools that really understand the requirements of schools is integral and the quality of the ESF ski schools in all of our resorts was clear. One of my colleagues sampled the teaching in her own private lesson and was adamant it was the best ski lesson she’d ever had.
3. Ultimate Après Ski
Once the skiing is done we recognise that schools like to keep their pupils busy, so good après ski options are essential to a successful school ski experience. France doesn’t disappoint on this front!
All of our resorts offer the après ski options you would expect on any trip, and more. Courchevel adds in a 2km sledging run and indoor surfing, get ready to face-off in Morzine with live ice-hockey, and you don’t even need to leave the comfort of AEC Les Becchi in Samoëns with ample in-house activities scheduled throughout the season.
I’ve only just started to scratch the surface of what France has to offer school groups and there are so many more reasons why it should be on your list of potential ski destinations. We’ll be launching all of these resorts for the 2020, so keep your eyes peeled for updates on rayburntours.com!