02 January 2026

2026 New Year Ski Trip

The year has turned and thoughts gravitate towards snowy adventures. This year we had booked a chalet in Les Curtiletes - a small hamlet above the north of Beaufort. The forecast was for cold but clear days until the end of the week, however there had not been any real snowfall for a month.

Steph came down to us on New Years day so we were ready for a trip to Dover on the 2nd. We were on the 12 noon crossing to Dunkirque, then a charge across the top of France and down to an Ibis Budget new Bourg en Bresse - actually this was in the autoroute service station called Poulet de Bresse. The journey down was relatively good, with just a lot of salt spray and eventually freezing drizzle.

The room was the usual double with bunk, however these had the ensuite facilities. The other difference was that breakfast was int he service station and came from the baguette stall - not sure I would do this again as there was only one cup per person, and one piece of bread and one pastry. so no filling up first thing.

We made good time later on Saturday (thankful for going against the grain of the traffic) and arrived in Areches (beyond Beaufort) to collect the key - we were a little early and had to stop for a coffee first.
Everything was a little green - the bottom of the lift stood out, but in the shadows there was a lot of frost.

Back down the hill and up the other side gained us access to the chalet via a private single road down the side of the mountain and across a field.

The chalet was 5 bedrooms (one downstairs kind of detached, but full of beds). A large open sitting/ dining room and a small kitchen.

The weather was cold and the snow rock hard for most of the week, which limited the activities undertaken.