Tignes Family Holidays and Breaks

Overview

Facts at a glance
Ski area: Espace Killy (linking to neighbouring Val d'Isère)
Altitude range of ski area: 1,550–3,450m
Km of piste: 300
Blue/green/red/black runs: 67/21/41/29
Minimum age for ski lessons: 3 years

Together with Val d'Isère, Tignes provides a huge variety of terrain for both skiers and snowboarders. Although gentle, wide nursery slopes make it a fine spot for beginners, it really comes into its own for advanced and intermediate skiers, with the highlight the magnificent Grande Motte glacier with its long red and blue pistes dropping down into the resort.

Things to do with kids in Tignes

• Ski. There’s more than enough skiing here for a week for all abilities, and it’s great for snowboarders too. The ski season runs mid-Dec to mid-April, although Tignes and Val d'Isère each have a glacier and experts can ski at an altitude of nearly 3,500m year-round. There are around 100 lifts, including two funicular railways, to whisk you around the ski areas of Tignes and Val d'Isère. Beginners will quickly be able to master the blue runs on the Aiguille Percée side of the valley, and there are easy slopes in the Marmottes bowl on the Val d'Isère side. If you're more accomplished, head for the glaciers and high-altitude unpisted open bowls.

'This is the less fashionable (and cheaper) sister resort of Val d’Isère, with better children’s slopes.' Nick Dalton, family ski expert

• Enjoy off-the-slope options including pony rides, husky-sledding, bowling, ice-diving, ski joering (being pulled on skis by a horse!), snowmobiling and helicopter sightseeing flights.

• Unless your accommodation provides a crèche, kids' club and baby-listening, take advantage of the local private nanny services.

• In summer, enjoy a variety of outdoor pursuits in Tignes and the surrounding Tarentaise Valley, including mountain biking, hiking along deep forest trails and lake canoeing and SUP paddleboarding.

Andy Parent