On The Road Again

The Lake of Annecy

My first time skiing into spring! As always, we arrive by Geneva and the beautiful Lake Annecy under a lovely light. The weather is hot that I wonder if there will be enough snow to ski. 

When we arrive in Val Thorens, I am reassured! The ski resort has benefited from exceptional snow this year: 10 meters of cumulatived snow (photo below). And it’s always a great pleasure to come back to Val Tho!

Pashmina Le Refuge

View of the Slopes

I am back to the Pashmina Le Refuge hotel, still so comfortable and pleasant! The balcony of my (Triple XL / 45 sqm) room offers a spectacular 180 degree view of snow-capped peaks and slopes.

Euphoric feeling of total plenitude! On one of the bedside tables, I discovered the notebook of the My Serenity anti-stress and well-being program. During this long weekend, I will relearn to listen to my inner me.

Heathy Breakfast

At The Base Camp Restaurant

Some doctors consider breakfast to be our most important meal of the day, others not. In short as always, there are several contradictory opinions! To be honest, I only take breakfast when I’m really hungry.

And I don’t take it when the night before, I ate too much at the restaurant. In addition to My Serenity program, the Base Camp restaurant offers a breakfast buffet with a wellness corner and a plant milk bar. Awesome!

Pashmina Spa By L’Occitane 

Before and After Skiing

The first day: early morning I go to the spa to swim and gently wake up my numb muscles, before joining the small team for an intense day of skiing (including Alpin ski and ski touring)!

The second day: after a morning of skiing, I spend the afternoon at the spa with two friends. I start with a back massage with l’Occitane cosmetics I like a lot. Then hammam and outdoor jacuzzi with direct views of the slopes!

Ski Touring

My First Time On Ski Touring

First we ski to Chez Pepe Nicolas restaurant, where we have lunch (photo editing below: 2). Still as good! Then we put the climbing skin (in synthetic fibers) under our super light skis. Strange feeling on the trail at the beginning.

We are all very excited about this first ski touring experience with Caroline Vincent. This instructor has the originality to add a Qigong session while ski touring.

The climb to Lake Lou is gradual without real difficulty. It is a question of well stick one’s breath with the effort and to remain constant, pure cardio. Moreover, as often I found the descent much more difficult to manage (perhaps because of muscle fatigue). We went back to the car exhausted!

Although close to the ski resort, the landscape is spectacular and gives the impression of being at the end of the world (photos above and below). I also took the opportunity to test my new Osprey backpack (1): very comfortable and practical, despite the fact that it is a little big for a half day trip. And my first neon pink Hydro Flask thermos that matches to my ski jacket (sooooooooo girly!).  

Skiing at 2600 Meters

The following day, part of the small band skied solo, another preferred to stay in the station, while with Henriette, a Dutch blogger friend (with the same glorious level of eternal ski beginners, lol), we have preferred to take a ski lesson with an ESF instructor. 

After he checked our ski level, we take the chairlift which stops because of the big wind. Honestly, it’s pretty scary when you are (yes yourself) in the chairlift, to reach a blue slope at 2600 meters. Once arrived: strong gusts of wind and very poor visibility. Wow! No choice, we have to ski on the icy snow to get down to the resort. 

Thankfully the weather is very fast changing in the mountains. A little further down, the snow is powdery. And all my stress left! Once more, we take the chairlift. But this time the descent is much more pleasant! The wind has stopped blowing and I’m really having fun!

The Hype

The Apen Art

It’s not the good restaurants that are lacking in Val Thorens! This time my favourite goes to the Alpen Art that I’ve just discovered! A tea room and restaurant super welcoming, with an urban decor, works of young artists and a very friendly and professional team.

The food is great, I recommend the scallops and the homemade cake collection is to die for! Especially the chocolate cake (lol)! What else? Happiness! 

Photos : © Mademoiselle Le K – Tous droits réservés

Informations  

Val Thorens Tourist Office, Pashmina Le Refuge, Spa By l’Occitane au Pashmina, Alpen Art, ESF Val Thorens

Related posts : DESTINATIONS & HOTEL REVIEWS

Many thanks to the Val Thorens Tourist Office for this lovely invitation. Many thanks to the team of Pashmina Le refuge, Alpen Art and ESF Val Thorens too. As always, these are my opinons (it gets boring to have to specify it, lol!).