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Ski lift developments for Morzine & Les Gets

Plans for the Grande Terche, Mont Chery & Prodains

featured in News & reviews Author Giles Towler, Avoriaz Reporter Updated

New ski lifts are being proposed in Morzine and Les Gets which could open up the ski area as well as providing better links to the Grande Terche and Avoriaz.

Morzine - Avoriaz

Since the 1980's there have been discussions regarding a possible new lift, linking the centre of Morzine with the Prodains area and Avoriaz. Since the 1990's this has progressed further so that now the plan also includes a redevelopment of the entire area around where the proposed lift would be built; with new shops, bars and restaurants to be built around the Rue Du Bourg and below at the start of the Dereches area - around the Carrefour car park.

The proposed lift would begin right in the centre of town and link up with the 3S lift, the new Prodains lift that was completed in 2013. It would follow the valley up to the Prodains area. One of the issues when planning it is how to minimise any environmental impact. With this in mind the proposed lift would have only eight pylons stretched along the valley floor. This lift would vastly reduce the strain on the public transit system during busy periods and speed up access to Avoriaz.

Les Gets

Over in Les Gets plans are continuing for the gondola linking the Chavannes with Mont Chery. The aim of this is to allow easier access to Mont Chery, an area that often gets overlooked. The reception area of the Chavannes would also be redeveloped with this in mind. Budget has been seemingly set aside for this work to be carried out.

Due to poor snow cover at the start of the past couple of seasons means that there are also plans for new reservoirs to be built on Mont Chery to allow for artificial snow production if needed. There are also plans for a new beginner’s area and to potentially replace the Ranfolly chairlift in the future too.

Grande Terche

One very interesting development that is currently still awaiting approval, is a potential link between the Grande Terche ski area and the back of Mont Chery. Currently the only way to ski in Grande Terche is by driving there. A link like this would therefore open up the area for more skiers and offer the potential for an interesting new itinerary, for example skiing from Morzine to Mont Chery and then around the Grand Terche in a day. One potential set back for this proposal, however, is that it might be necessary to cross the Roc D’Enfer nature reserve, although it appears that this has been taken into account with the plans.

Mayor Gerard Berger explains more about some of these plans in an interview which you can read in full in English.