Make the most of your winter season! Search for an instructor course, performance camp or accommodation and start your adventure!
Val d'Isere - France's Premier Resort
Ski Area - Coaching - Qualifications - Town - Accommodation - Upgrades - Support Team - Photos - Course Diaries - Intranet Support - Equipment - Travel Info - How To Book
Val d'Isere is a world leading resort in the heart of the Savoie region of southeast France. It's most famous run is the "Face du Bellevarde" which hosted the Men's Downhill in the 1992 Olympics.
Val d'Isere is linked to Tignes via the Espace Killy which offers some of the most accessable backcountry in Europe. My day it is one of Europe's more chique ski towns with a vibrant and cosmopolitan feel.
Val d'Isere - Our Pick of the Best!
Val d'Isere at a glance |
|
| Annual Snowfall |
750cm |
| Highest Peak |
3450m |
| Village Height |
1850m |
| Vertical |
1900m |
| Ski Area |
11000 ha off-piste
|
| Lifts |
100 |
| Runs |
300km |
| Park & Pipe |
2+ |
- First lift up the Grand Motte on a powder day - unadulterated bliss all the way down...
- Tree runs in Le Fornet, when all other snow is tracked.
- Drinks and dancing ski-boot style in the Folie Douce on the way down to La Daille.
- Pizza and pastis for lunch down in Tignes Le Breviere.
- Table-football show-downs and long island ice teas in The Saloon .
- Hit the snowpark equipped with tables, rails, half-pipes and the only double bowl in France .
- The bumps under the Tommeuses if you don’t mind a vocal audience...
SKI AREA
Powder Alert - Snow Report - Webcam - Ski Map
ESPACE KILLY
Named after Jean Claude Killy, local hero and winner of 3 Olympic Golds in the 1968 Olympics, Espace Killy covers over 11, 000 hectares of snow fields and 300km of groomed runs.
Val d'Isere has long been France’s most popular ski resort, and with good reason: not only does the Espace Killy offer a direct connection to snow-sure Tignes, but the back-country terrain that is accessible from lift-serviced pistes is out of this world!
It also has two parks equipped with half pipes, the only double bowl in France, big air kickers, hips, hand rails, boarder cross, and a multitude of small and medium tables. Val D’Isere hosts the first FIS European Downhill of each season and regularly boasts between 6 and 10 meters of snow each winter.
On-piste, Val d’Isere boasts some superb and technically challenging skiing. Famous runs include La Face, Orange and OK from the top of Bellvarde. Powder and vertical are never far way, particularly if you venture through the tree runs up at Le Fornet or down the steep couloirs of Le Grande Motte, making Val D’Isere one of the most all round resorts in Europe.
COACHING
- French & British coaching offering an open-minded international approach to snowsports
- Includes ski school experience, tactical and psychological sessions, freeride and freestyle
- 5 full days per week with 1-to-1 coaching, video analysis and formal feedback reports.
- That's over 300 hours trainingon an 11 week course, 5 times more than a BASI Gap course as it includes 6 weeks that are predominantly shadowing.
Snow Fun Ski School
Snow Fun was the first international ski school in Val d’Isere and has over 25 years of experience teaching skiing and snowboarding in Espace Killy. It employs some of Europe's best ski & snowboard instructors and is renowned for its personal, fun and professional service.
You will develop an understanding of the French performance-based approach to instructing, as well as the British teaching-based approach to skiing and snowboarding. On the Val d'Isere course you will be taught to ski or snowboard on all types of terrain and how to use a wide range of technical skills in your descent.
Snow Fun's long experience in instructing makes lessons fun and challenging, and they specialise in providing expert coaching in all disciplines of skiing and snowboarding. They know Espace Killy like the back of their hands making sure you experience the best areas in the best conditions throughout the season.
Julien Palmeira
Julien has been living in Val d’Isere since 1998 but has skied since he was 2 and a half years old. For him, it is the challenging ‘difficulty’ of the Espace Killy that sees him back for more each season.
His motivation and experience have made him integral to our programmes and he says that coaching Base Camp last season was the highlight of his career!
Philippe Calvin
Philippe has skied since he was 11 and now coaches French juniors as well as Base Camp students.
He loves making the most of the hugely varied terrain of the Espace Killy and thinks that the area has “the best snow conditions in Europe”, having moved there 25 years ago from the warmer climes of Aix en Provence.
BASS, The Development Centre & Alliance Snowboard School
All the British instructors we work with are BASI Trainers and also BASI examiners. Steve Rickets heads up BASS, Colin Tanner heads up The Development Centre, and Neil McNair (Director of Snowboarding for BASI) heads up Alliance Snowboard School.
Between them they have a wealth of knowledge and a record that is unparalleled in training people for their BASI instructor qualifications.
BASS, TDC & Alliance are ideal ski/snowboard schools to provide a focused and knowledge based instructor course. Whether it is preparing you for your BASI exams or developing your technique in your personal skiing, the personal attention and the ability to communicate to each individual client is unique.
Colin Tanner
Colin is fully qualified through the BASI and the New Zealand systems, and before starting The Development Centre, taught for Evolution 2 in Val d’isère for four years.
Colin is a BASI ISTD instructor with full French equivalence. He has been a BASI Trainer for the last 4 years and an examiner for the NZSIA for 7 years.
Renelle Mortimer
Renelle is one of few women to be recruited onto the BASI Snowboard training team. Her snowboarding beginnings in Thredbo Australia had her completely hooked and since then her snowboarding career developed rapidly.
With a contagious love for nature and the outdoors, her unique qualities of patience coupled with natural teaching skills suit Base Camp down to the ground.
QUALIFICATIONS
- Base Camp is a BASI Associate Business Partner
- BASI Associate Membership Fees & BASI Level 1
- First Aid
- Ski School Experience Sign Off
- BASI Child Protection Module
- All BASI Manuals & Course materials
- BASI Level 2 (please note BASI Level 2 is not included in the price giving you the flexibility of choosing when to take it following your Level 1 results).
The Eurogroup Countries
In order to be fully qualified to instruct skiing in Europe you have to pass the Eurotest (a timed GS race) in addition to having your ISIA license (for BASI instructors this is the Ski Teacher or 'BASI ISTD'). This usually takes a year or two to achieve but you can instruct with your 'BASI 2' in the meantime whilst you train.
BASI
The British Association of Snowsport Instructors is the national governing body for ski and snowboard instructing in the UK.
BASI is a member of the ISIA and Eurogroup and it's ski & snowboard qualifications are the most widely accepted in Europe. The BASI system is split up into 4 levels (1 being the easiest), each becoming progressively more difficult. To become a ski or snowboard instructor you need to pass two examination courses: a 5 day Level 1 Course and a 10 day Level 2 Course.
Both courses are included in our European instructor programmes and develop an understanding of BASI's Central Theme, the structure of snowsports in the UK, the principles of teaching and the technical elements of skiing or snowboarding.
For more information on BASI please click here.
TOWN
Town Map - Clubs, Bars & Cafes
Val d'Isere
Val d’Isere is practically perfect. Not only does it have brilliant mountains, but the town itself is cosmopolitan, relaxed and vibrant.
Located 3 hours from Geneva, Val d’Isere attracts Europeans from across the continent. There is a wide variety of entertainment facilities and activities, and a great mix of people to meet from all backgrounds and all of whom are there to enjoy the area both on and off hill.
Val D’Isere is well known as one of the liveliest resorts in the world for après-ski entertainment. Bars such as Bananas, Cafe Face and Petit Danois fill up as soon as skiers start coming off the mountain and the legendary night club Dicks T-bar stays open late into the following morning.
There are also restaurants to suit most tastes and budgets, and a free regular shuttle bus service means that nothing is ever out of reach, even late at night! If you enjoy shopping, then Val D’Isere has everything from haute couture and art galleries to technical clothing and the latest equipment. It also has a local market, outdoor ice rink, cinema and gym to make your season as enjoyable as possible.
FOOD & ACCOMMODATION
- Central apartments in Val 2 minutes from the slopes and high street (not in la Daille which is 30 mins walk away)
- Upgrades available to 3 per apartment or 3* Apartments with private rooms, en-suite bathrooms etc
- Breakfast delivered to your door and hearty evening meals in a choice of 3 local restaurants or take away option
Accommodation
Our 2* Studio apartments are located in the centre of Val d'Isere 2 minutes walk to the slopes and high street. All our apartments are 2* Studio style apartments, although an upgrade to a 3* Apartment is always an option.
The apartments are comfortable, private and secure. They all have their own entrances within a larger residence that also provides ski lockers, a communal area and staffed entrance foyer. Apartments are fully equipped and furnished and have self-catering facilities.
Apartments typically sleep 4, with 2 sleeping on sofa beds in the studio lounge area and 2 in a bedroom or walk-through bedroom. The kitchenette opens onto the lounge where there are dining and seating facilities and there is a large balcony or sun-terrace in each apartment.
Bathrooms have a shower/bath, sink and toilet and there are cupboards and shelves for storage. Water, heating and electricity bills are included as are sheets and bedding.
Food
In the mornings a hearty continental breakfast is delivered to your door. Evening meals are taken in Le Petit Danois - a well known and respected local restaurant serving good hearty mountain food and classic dishes in huge portions, guaranteed to restore your energy levels before hitting the town later on. The atmosphere is always lively and friendly and is a great way to catch up post ski and swap stories.
ACTIVITIES (11 week only) & SOCIAL EVENTS
- First Aid, Avalanche Course & Equipment Tuning Clinics
- Discounts available to Base Camp clients in local shops and bars
- Help at the international renowned X - Box Big Day Out freestyle event
- Social Events
Thanks to the local expertise of our Resort Manager, we can provide a full and lively social programme for you do dip in and out of as you wish.
We organise pub crawls, the huge End Of Course Party, ice skating, live music nights, torch lit skiing, fancy dress days and more! Put that together with 10 - 20% discounts in local ski/board shops and a Dick's T Bar local's card, and you are all set up to make the most of your time at Base Camp!
- French Class
Our French language teachers have been teaching English to French instructors for years, and French to foreign instructors for Clubmed, Ucpa, and various ski schools.
Our program is adapted to practical needs only and allows students to get straight to the point, using conversation and multimedia tools, in a relaxed atmosphere with groups no larger than 12 and based on one and a half hours of lessons a week
- 3 Valleys Trip
The 3 Valleys encompasses over 11 resorts including Meribel, Courchavel and Val Thorensand 200 chairlifts. Why not take on the Ladies Olympic Downhill or the infamous bumps on Les Suisses while you spend a day exploring what the area has to offer!
- Paradiski Trip
Explore the expanse of Les Arcs and La Plagne ski areas and challenge yourself on the renowned Face Nord of Bellecote and the world renowned Superpipe in La Plagne.
- Meribel v Val d'Isere Cup
Test yourself against the best! Our Meribel and Val d'Isere courses have a day of competitions against each other each year. Previous years have included Skiercross, GS, Freestyle and Parallel Slalom competitions, which are always highly competitive!
Ski Area - Coaching - Qualifications - Town - Accommodation - Upgrades - Support Team
Photos - Course Diaries - Intranet Support - Equipment - Travel Info - How To Book
Make the most of your wint season! Search for an instructor course, performance camp or accommodation and start your adventure!
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