Where to eat and things to do
Food scene
• EATING OUT IN SERRE CHEVALIER:
Here are our favourite restaurants in Serre Chevalier as things stood in 2019/ early 2020. We have no idea of what has made it through the COVID crisis and what has not, so this is just a very rough guide. Do let us know any updates you have….
The restaurant up at St Catherines in Puy St Pierre is fantastic and amazing value for money in my opinion - www.maisondecatherine.net
The restaurant right at the top of the Col D’Izoard has the best view in the valley. In the winter they only serve dinner. You can walk up and toboggan back down after dinner, for 40 mins or thereabouts. The restaurant has a massive stack of taboggans waiting for people who want to indulge – and you just leave it at the bottom for them to pick up (Le Laus). SO much fun! You’ll need a good headtorch and make sure you stick to the snow covered road – there are drops on either side!! https://www.refuge-napoleon-col-izoard.fr/
There is a small restaurant Auberge L’arpelin at Le Laus which usually serves a splendid plat du jour – a shoulder of lamb cooked over an open fire. VERY nice food although sometimes the waitress is a bit grumpy
Other favourites include:
BRIANCON
Les Tables – (wood fired oven for pizza and great poke/budda bowl) - https://restaurant-briancon-les-tables.fr
Chez Maria * Website
L’Etage * Website
La Gavroche * Website
Le Jasmin (Thai) * Website
Le Péché Gourmand – Michelin star restaurant - www.peche-gourmand.com
Le Pied de la Gargouille *
Le Plaisir Ambré * Website
Mamma Mia (Italian) Website
Au Pekin (Chinese) https://au-pekin.business.site
* these restaurants are in the magnificent medieval (old walled town) of Briançon
MONETIER LES BAINS
Auberge du Choucas Website
Chez Finette (Le Casset village) Tel: +33 (0)4 92 24 43 27
L’Aquisana Tel: +33 (0)4 92 24 10 10 Website
La Belotte Website
La Brasera Tel: +33 (0)4 92 52 25 46 Website
Le Montagn’art Website
La Maison Alliey Website
Le Chazal – Michelin Star restaurant - (Les Guibertes village) Website
Le Kawa Website
La Cagette Website
VILLENEUVE LA SALLE
Eau Petit Pont Website
La Marrotte
Le Chazelay Website
Le Frog Website
CHANTEMERLE
Bruno’s (Hotel Plein Sud) Website
La Cabassa
L’Estable Website
Le Loup Blanc Website
Le Petit Chalet
Le Triptyque
• IS THERE A NEARBY SUPERMARKET?:
If you have a car, you have a superb choice for food shopping.
The weekly market is on Wednesday mornings and is situated at Place de I’Europe in the centre of town. You can’t miss it, drive to the bottom of our hill and it will be the first thing you see. Parking can be a pain so get there early.
Geant Casino is at the entrance to Briançon from Chantemerle, located on the large roundabout. There is lots of parking and it also houses a caféteria (great lunch deals for adults and kids alike), a sports shop, bakery, opticians, pharmacy and an electronics shop. If staying in the old town of Briançon (Cité Vauban) this the most convenient shopping centre in terms of location.
Carrefour City is in the middle of Briançon, a convenience store with fresh fruit and vegetables. There are a small amount of parking spaces in front of the store but if you drive alongside the store you will find that you can park underneath the shop and many people don’t know this! Any accommodation based in the centre of Briançon will find this store has everything you need for your holiday.
L’Eclerc has opened a convenience store in Briançon recently. It is a refreshing change for the locals and has lots of underground parking which is fantastic in winter and the height of summer.
Carrefourmarket is a large hypermarché on the outskirts of Briançon, in the ‘centre d’activités du Sud’ (head in the direction of Gap from Briançon and turn left). It also has electronics, homeware and some clothing.
Dia is a budget store located near Carrefourmarket. Great fruit and vegetables at excellent prices.
Aldi is on the main ‘Route Nationale’ direction Grenoble, on the right when leaving Briançon. It also has a bakery on site.
There are two ‘bio’ (organic) stores in Briançon. One is located right next to Carrefourmarket. The other is Panier Bio and is in the centre of the main town. Follow signs for La Schappe (a fabulous park with a small lake, great for children) and you can park up nearby.
33 Recomendado por los habitantes de la zona
Serre Chevalier
Route de Pré-Long• EATING OUT IN SERRE CHEVALIER:
Here are our favourite restaurants in Serre Chevalier as things stood in 2019/ early 2020. We have no idea of what has made it through the COVID crisis and what has not, so this is just a very rough guide. Do let us know any updates you have….
The restaurant up at St Catherines in Puy St Pierre is fantastic and amazing value for money in my opinion - www.maisondecatherine.net
The restaurant right at the top of the Col D’Izoard has the best view in the valley. In the winter they only serve dinner. You can walk up and toboggan back down after dinner, for 40 mins or thereabouts. The restaurant has a massive stack of taboggans waiting for people who want to indulge – and you just leave it at the bottom for them to pick up (Le Laus). SO much fun! You’ll need a good headtorch and make sure you stick to the snow covered road – there are drops on either side!! https://www.refuge-napoleon-col-izoard.fr/
There is a small restaurant Auberge L’arpelin at Le Laus which usually serves a splendid plat du jour – a shoulder of lamb cooked over an open fire. VERY nice food although sometimes the waitress is a bit grumpy
Other favourites include:
BRIANCON
Les Tables – (wood fired oven for pizza and great poke/budda bowl) - https://restaurant-briancon-les-tables.fr
Chez Maria * Website
L’Etage * Website
La Gavroche * Website
Le Jasmin (Thai) * Website
Le Péché Gourmand – Michelin star restaurant - www.peche-gourmand.com
Le Pied de la Gargouille *
Le Plaisir Ambré * Website
Mamma Mia (Italian) Website
Au Pekin (Chinese) https://au-pekin.business.site
* these restaurants are in the magnificent medieval (old walled town) of Briançon
MONETIER LES BAINS
Auberge du Choucas Website
Chez Finette (Le Casset village) Tel: +33 (0)4 92 24 43 27
L’Aquisana Tel: +33 (0)4 92 24 10 10 Website
La Belotte Website
La Brasera Tel: +33 (0)4 92 52 25 46 Website
Le Montagn’art Website
La Maison Alliey Website
Le Chazal – Michelin Star restaurant - (Les Guibertes village) Website
Le Kawa Website
La Cagette Website
VILLENEUVE LA SALLE
Eau Petit Pont Website
La Marrotte
Le Chazelay Website
Le Frog Website
CHANTEMERLE
Bruno’s (Hotel Plein Sud) Website
La Cabassa
L’Estable Website
Le Loup Blanc Website
Le Petit Chalet
Le Triptyque
• IS THERE A NEARBY SUPERMARKET?:
If you have a car, you have a superb choice for food shopping.
The weekly market is on Wednesday mornings and is situated at Place de I’Europe in the centre of town. You can’t miss it, drive to the bottom of our hill and it will be the first thing you see. Parking can be a pain so get there early.
Geant Casino is at the entrance to Briançon from Chantemerle, located on the large roundabout. There is lots of parking and it also houses a caféteria (great lunch deals for adults and kids alike), a sports shop, bakery, opticians, pharmacy and an electronics shop. If staying in the old town of Briançon (Cité Vauban) this the most convenient shopping centre in terms of location.
Carrefour City is in the middle of Briançon, a convenience store with fresh fruit and vegetables. There are a small amount of parking spaces in front of the store but if you drive alongside the store you will find that you can park underneath the shop and many people don’t know this! Any accommodation based in the centre of Briançon will find this store has everything you need for your holiday.
L’Eclerc has opened a convenience store in Briançon recently. It is a refreshing change for the locals and has lots of underground parking which is fantastic in winter and the height of summer.
Carrefourmarket is a large hypermarché on the outskirts of Briançon, in the ‘centre d’activités du Sud’ (head in the direction of Gap from Briançon and turn left). It also has electronics, homeware and some clothing.
Dia is a budget store located near Carrefourmarket. Great fruit and vegetables at excellent prices.
Aldi is on the main ‘Route Nationale’ direction Grenoble, on the right when leaving Briançon. It also has a bakery on site.
There are two ‘bio’ (organic) stores in Briançon. One is located right next to Carrefourmarket. The other is Panier Bio and is in the centre of the main town. Follow signs for La Schappe (a fabulous park with a small lake, great for children) and you can park up nearby.
Sightseeing
• RELAX AND UNWIND AT THE THERMAL SPA:
What is Les Grands Bains?
Les Grands Bains is Serre Chevalier’s thermal spa – one of Europe’s largest thermal baths – and is just 200 metres from the bottom ski lifts in the village of Le Monêtier les Bains (Serre Chevalier 1500). The complex was built in 2008 and attracts visitors from all over France and further afield. From outside and in, you’ll enjoy the views of Monêtier’s very own glacier and North-facing mountains.
Take a stroll through the village of Le Monêtier les Bains and you will come across narrow canals of thermal water flowing around the village, and warm fountains too!
Espace Grands Bains
300m2 interior pool with underwater massage jets
Jacuzzi
Tepidarium – warm water room
Caldarium- hot plunge bath
Frigidarium – cold water pool
Hammam – Turkish bath/steam room
Musical grotto
300m2 outdoor pool with water jets and bubbling recliners
Espace Beauté
Like any spa retreat, Les Grands Bains offers private beauty and wellbeing treatments that are quite something! This area offers a multitude of services, all of which must be booked in advance. The beauty ‘menu’ is extensive – one-off treatments, a half-day session and even the pure indulgence of five half-days of pampering can be enjoyed. The various formulas include access to the Grands Bains pools and Espace Romano-Irlandais, making the treatments great value for money.
Restaurant
Dine at Les Grands Bains from midday every day (worth checking seasonal opening times on the website however). The indoor restaurant provides a relaxed café-style atmosphere, and the outdoor terrace overlooking the external pool, lake and mountains make for a more romantic setting.
Boutique
The shop sells swimwear, oils and massage creams used by the beauticians, ValVital products, towels, kimonos, souvenir gifts e.g. t-shirts, and newspapers/books.
What should we wear & do we need to bring towels?
Usual swimwear is fine, although please note that swimming shorts, whether long or short, are not allowed. There are lots of sports shops in the valley where swimwear can be bought and you can even buy suitable swimwear at Les Grands Bains’ boutique if you’re caught short (or long in this case!)
Bring your own towel unless you would like to hire at TBC € per towel.
99 Recomendado por los habitantes de la zona
Les Grands Bains du Monêtier
Route des Bains• RELAX AND UNWIND AT THE THERMAL SPA:
What is Les Grands Bains?
Les Grands Bains is Serre Chevalier’s thermal spa – one of Europe’s largest thermal baths – and is just 200 metres from the bottom ski lifts in the village of Le Monêtier les Bains (Serre Chevalier 1500). The complex was built in 2008 and attracts visitors from all over France and further afield. From outside and in, you’ll enjoy the views of Monêtier’s very own glacier and North-facing mountains.
Take a stroll through the village of Le Monêtier les Bains and you will come across narrow canals of thermal water flowing around the village, and warm fountains too!
Espace Grands Bains
300m2 interior pool with underwater massage jets
Jacuzzi
Tepidarium – warm water room
Caldarium- hot plunge bath
Frigidarium – cold water pool
Hammam – Turkish bath/steam room
Musical grotto
300m2 outdoor pool with water jets and bubbling recliners
Espace Beauté
Like any spa retreat, Les Grands Bains offers private beauty and wellbeing treatments that are quite something! This area offers a multitude of services, all of which must be booked in advance. The beauty ‘menu’ is extensive – one-off treatments, a half-day session and even the pure indulgence of five half-days of pampering can be enjoyed. The various formulas include access to the Grands Bains pools and Espace Romano-Irlandais, making the treatments great value for money.
Restaurant
Dine at Les Grands Bains from midday every day (worth checking seasonal opening times on the website however). The indoor restaurant provides a relaxed café-style atmosphere, and the outdoor terrace overlooking the external pool, lake and mountains make for a more romantic setting.
Boutique
The shop sells swimwear, oils and massage creams used by the beauticians, ValVital products, towels, kimonos, souvenir gifts e.g. t-shirts, and newspapers/books.
What should we wear & do we need to bring towels?
Usual swimwear is fine, although please note that swimming shorts, whether long or short, are not allowed. There are lots of sports shops in the valley where swimwear can be bought and you can even buy suitable swimwear at Les Grands Bains’ boutique if you’re caught short (or long in this case!)
Bring your own towel unless you would like to hire at TBC € per towel.
• SKI SCHOOLS:
The house is situated 0.9 miles from Serre Chevalier Briançon Ski School, 4.3 miles from Serre Chevalier Chantemerle Ski School and 1 mile from Prorel Ski Lift. It sits in 250km of pistes, larch-forest tree skiing and off-piste terrain. It is about 7/8 mins drive from the house to Prorel, the nearest Ski Lift, with easy parking available next to the lift.
The largest ski schools in the valley are ESF – Ecole Ski Français. They are particularly well equipped for taking the youngest of children i.e. those who are just two or three years old, and for a minimum of 2.5 hours and sometimes all day with lunch included. Each sector in Serre Chevalier has a dedicated Jardin de Neige run by the ESF schools, making learning to ski fun.
Two options other options we favour are Gavin Cosby and Darren Turner. Gavin (who taught us all to ski) www.skinewgen.com/ski-schools/serre-chevalier and his wife Melanie run the New Gen ski school in the valley. Mel's email is melanie@eurekaski.com.
And Darren Turner - www.insightski.com - is a very well-known instructor who often puts footage of his lessons on YouTube (worth a look).
Both are English, both excellent and offer individual lessons. You need to ask for them to meet you on the mountain in Briancon (Prorel) or Villeneuve or even Chantemerle. We often ski from Monetier at the other end of the valley.
In terms of equipment hire you would be best to go to www.melquiondsports.com in Chantemerle as the equipment is really good quality. There are several shops in Briancon of course, these are at the base of the chair lift. The equipment is perfectly okay. It depends how you feel - my husband gets very picky about these things!
www.skiset.com/station-ski/briancon/
www.intersport-rent.fr
www.krakatoa.fr
• SKI IN MONTGENEVE:
In the unlikely event you tire of Serre Chevalier you can drive 20 mins up the mountain to Montgeneve. It is at the end of the big cross border the Milky Way – 400km of pistes which link across a variety of resorts either side of the French/Italian border. Often a good option if the weather is super cold (Montgeneve gets a lot of sunshine) and is you have little ones with you (lots of nursery slopes with café’s facing them!).
Montgeneve is 2 km from the Italian border and has quite a different feel to Serre Chevalier.
There is a lift pass agreement between the two locations, so your Serre Chevalier pass will work there. But do check at the lift pass office if you are not sure.
You will find more information about other places to ski near us on the Maison Anneliece website - https://www.serrechevalier-maison.com/
Mont Prorel
• SKI SCHOOLS:
The house is situated 0.9 miles from Serre Chevalier Briançon Ski School, 4.3 miles from Serre Chevalier Chantemerle Ski School and 1 mile from Prorel Ski Lift. It sits in 250km of pistes, larch-forest tree skiing and off-piste terrain. It is about 7/8 mins drive from the house to Prorel, the nearest Ski Lift, with easy parking available next to the lift.
The largest ski schools in the valley are ESF – Ecole Ski Français. They are particularly well equipped for taking the youngest of children i.e. those who are just two or three years old, and for a minimum of 2.5 hours and sometimes all day with lunch included. Each sector in Serre Chevalier has a dedicated Jardin de Neige run by the ESF schools, making learning to ski fun.
Two options other options we favour are Gavin Cosby and Darren Turner. Gavin (who taught us all to ski) www.skinewgen.com/ski-schools/serre-chevalier and his wife Melanie run the New Gen ski school in the valley. Mel's email is melanie@eurekaski.com.
And Darren Turner - www.insightski.com - is a very well-known instructor who often puts footage of his lessons on YouTube (worth a look).
Both are English, both excellent and offer individual lessons. You need to ask for them to meet you on the mountain in Briancon (Prorel) or Villeneuve or even Chantemerle. We often ski from Monetier at the other end of the valley.
In terms of equipment hire you would be best to go to www.melquiondsports.com in Chantemerle as the equipment is really good quality. There are several shops in Briancon of course, these are at the base of the chair lift. The equipment is perfectly okay. It depends how you feel - my husband gets very picky about these things!
www.skiset.com/station-ski/briancon/
www.intersport-rent.fr
www.krakatoa.fr
• SKI IN MONTGENEVE:
In the unlikely event you tire of Serre Chevalier you can drive 20 mins up the mountain to Montgeneve. It is at the end of the big cross border the Milky Way – 400km of pistes which link across a variety of resorts either side of the French/Italian border. Often a good option if the weather is super cold (Montgeneve gets a lot of sunshine) and is you have little ones with you (lots of nursery slopes with café’s facing them!).
Montgeneve is 2 km from the Italian border and has quite a different feel to Serre Chevalier.
There is a lift pass agreement between the two locations, so your Serre Chevalier pass will work there. But do check at the lift pass office if you are not sure.
You will find more information about other places to ski near us on the Maison Anneliece website - https://www.serrechevalier-maison.com/
Consejos para la ciudad
Facilidad para moverse por la casa
You will need a car
You can walk into town, it probably takes 10/15 mins. But it's downhill, you couldn't walk it in the winter with skis. We recommend you have a car - and one with all weather or snow tyres in winter. You can hire a car in Briancon itself - or at one of the airports, depending how you travel.
There is a train from Paris to Briancon - it's a sleeper train so you travel through the night.