THE MORNING LIST
The ski monopoly is over. Fun or sporty, gourmet or relaxing, other leisure activities are essential in the French mountains, to appeal to as many people as possible but also to compensate for the lack of snow. Here are five resorts that offer to discover their territories in a different way.
Manigod, gourmet pleasures in Aravis
What if during the winter holidays, we rediscovered the pleasures of the table? In Manigod, a village resort in Haute-Savoie with a taste of eternal mountain – white peaks, wooden chalets – we know the culinary art. In Marc Veyrat’s cradle, his daughter Elise is in charge of my father’s Hameau. We enjoy a sumptuous menu “made with healthy local products” (€130 per menu).
We also eat very well at La Table de Marie-Ange, at the Chalets-Hôtel de la Croix-Fry. Isabelle and Eric manage this address, long embodied by their mother, Marie-Ange Veyrat, the chef’s late sister. In a rustic setting, you can savor local recipes such as reblochon pie, a “signature dish” (€82 per menu for lunch or dinner). Ex-Michelin star, Edouard Loubet, Isabelle’s husband, has become a slope cook. At the Grizzly, facing Mont-Blanc, he concocts “dishes to share”. You can reach the place by snowshoes from the Col de la Croix-Fry, in thirty minutes. Nice appetite!
Not everything is luxurious in Manigod. Since 1963, the Veyrats, again, have led the destiny of Les Sapins. In this restaurant we taste manigodine, a reblochon rimmed with spruce bark. At La Vieille Ferme, we meet local residents. Here, it’s all straight forward. For forty years, Bertrand Basseux has been making reblochon tartiflettes and raclettes. We will take a souvenir from Paccard. In addition to raw milk Reblochon, king of Aravis, this refiner ripens volumes, Beaufort, abundance… The taste of the Alps is also exported at home.
Vallouise-Pelvoux, organic sweetness in the Hautes-Alpes
A fan of slow tourism, this area of the Ecrins National Park plays the health and local reconnection card. From their beautiful Mountivity chalet to the five guest rooms, Marleen Koninckx and Bert Van den Berge, Belgian instructors, focus on sport. They recommend snowshoeing to reach secret valleys. At L’Echo du Riou, Anne-Claire Pascal renovated the family chalet with natural materials (hemp, cork, etc.). The rooms have an earthen wall, partly heated by solar energy. The food is mostly organic and local.
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