What's New in Morzine for Winter 2012-2013?

The major news in resort is that the 50 year old Prodains cable car is going to be replaced with a super-spangly-swishy rapido one! The Prodains links Morzine to Avoriaz and as a result works very hard over the course of a winter and the new lift is going to vastly improve the capacity, speed and overall efficiency of the current system. The new lift - known as 3S - has been designed using three cables to combine the benefits of a cable car and a gondola and will have the ability to transport 2,000 - 2,400 people per hour. An infinite improvement on the old Prodains’ uplift capacity of just 450 people an hour! The journey time from Morzine to Avoriaz will now take just 4 minutes and the lift will run all winter from 07.00 - 23.00 - now all we need is it to actually open which it is not set to do until mid-February - boo....

Another development for the 2012-2013 winter season in Morzine is that the rather ancient Des Troncs chairlift is being replaced with a high speed six person lift. The Des Troncs is a seriously important lift in the overall scheme of the Portes du Soleil as it transports skiers/riders returning from Les Gets to Morzine via the Nyon area. The old lift was a 3 man chair dating back to 1983 so it really was due an upgrade.

Further improvements around the resort include the widening of the skiers boulevard in Avoriaz and work on the Crot piste to make it more accessible for beginners. There is also a plan to preserve an interesting area for good skiers in the hope that the Portes du Soleil may be able to host some high level ski competitions in the future.

Snowmaking facilities around Morzine and Avoriaz have also being improved this year - a water reserve of 80,000m² is currently being constructed in the Chavanette area enabling the link to Avoriaz to be in the best possible condition no matter what the snow coverage. 30 extra cannons are also going to be installed around the area so 70% of the Morzine ski area will now be covered by snow making equipment. 

The Portes du Soleil are dedicated to prioritising the safety and enjoyment of families in the area and another example of this is that they have created 2 sledging pistes at the base of the Pleney in Morzine - one for kids aged 3 - 6 and the other for older children and adults. Both areas will be marked, groomed and secured particularly for sledging as it is forbidden on the pistes for safety reasons.

Away from the pistes, the other big news in the area is the opening of Aquariaz up in Avoriaz. Although it’s not actually in Morzine itself, the new 2,000m² waterpark deserves a mention as it’s within easy reach of the town and really worth making the trip up the hill. With quarter pipes, half pipes, slides, rapids and tropical plants, the new €200m Aquariaz is a real addition to the Portes du Soleil as a whole.

It’s exciting times here in Morzine and we’re all keeping our fingers crossed that this winter will be the best season ever. Time to buy those ski passes asap.....