Valloire (; frp, Valouère, ) is a

commune A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to: Administrative-territorial entities * Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township ** Communes of ...

in the

Savoie Savoie (; Arpitan: ''Savouè'' or ''Savouè-d'Avâl''; English: ''Savoy'' ) is a department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, Southeastern France. Located in the French Alps, its prefecture is Chambéry. In 2019, Savoie had a population of ...

department Department may refer to: * Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility Government and military *Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...

in the

Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes (ARA; ; frp, Ôvèrgne-Rôno-Ârpes; oc, Auvèrnhe Ròse Aups; it, Alvernia-Rodano-Alpi) is a region in southeast-central France created by the 2014 territorial reform of French regions; it resulted from the merger of Au ...

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and the interaction of humanity and t ...

in south-eastern

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. The

ski resort A ski resort is a resort developed for skiing, snowboarding, and other winter sports. In Europe, most ski resorts are towns or villages in or adjacent to a ski area – a mountainous area with pistes (ski trails) and a ski lift system. In North ...

Valloire-Galibier is located in the commune, at the foot of the

Col du Télégraphe Col du Télégraphe is a mountain pass in the French Alps situated above the Maurienne valley between the eastern end of the massif d'Arvan-Villards and the massif des Cerces. The pass links Saint-Michel-de-Maurienne to the north and Valloire t ...

and next to the ski resort of

Valmeinier Valmeinier (; frp, Vàrmêniél) is a commune in the Savoie department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in south-eastern France. Valmeinier, located at the foot of the Mont Thabor, 3207 meters, is a medium size ski resort (about 10,000 be ...

, (the

alps The Alps () ; german: Alpen ; it, Alpi ; rm, Alps ; sl, Alpe . are the highest and most extensive mountain range system that lies entirely in Europe, stretching approximately across seven Alpine countries (from west to east): France, Sw ...

)

. 70% of the Valloire/Valmeinier ski area is above . It offers over 150 km of slopes, 33 lifts 2 gondolas, 17 chairlift & 14 drag lifts), and 85 slopes, (21 Green, 25 Blue, 31 Red and 6 Black). There is also a considerable amount of

backcountry skiing Backcountry skiing ( US), also called off-piste (Europe), alpine touring, or out-of-area, is skiing in the backcountry on unmarked or unpatrolled areas either inside or outside a ski resort's boundaries. This contrasts with alpine skiing, which i ...

available. Valloire has two main skiing areas which can be accessed by lifts from the village. They are the Sétaz and the Crey du Quart. From the Crey du Quart you can ski across to Valmeinier,http://www.valloire.co.uk which is included in the ski pass. The Crey du Quart also houses a large

snowpark A terrain park or snow park is an outdoor recreation area containing terrain that allows skiers, snowboarders and snowbikers to perform tricks. Terrain parks have their roots in skateparks and many of the features are common to both. From their ...

(with a dedicated daily ticket only for this park) which is designed to offer something to people of all skill levels. In the Arva Parc on the Sétaz one can learn how to rescue avalanche victims. The French Foreign Legion has a mountain outpost at Valloire Les Verneys and teaches beginning legionnaires on the slopes. Jaime Salazar dedicated a chapter in his 2005 Foreign Legion memoir '' Legion of the Lost'' to the severe mountain course in Valloire. It is a traditional village known for its après-ski and restaurants. The resort includes two ski schools ''École du Ski Français'', which is the largest ski school company in France and "Ecole du Ski Internationale". It is ideally located in the

region with good transport links in and out of

Modane Modane (; ) is a Communes of France, commune in the Savoie Departments of France, department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Regions of France, region in southeastern France. The commune is in the Maurienne Valley, and it also belongs to the Vanoise ...

Lyon Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of t ...

Geneva Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaki ...

and Chambery. Valloire is known as an art resort. Since 1984, it has been organizing the International Competition of Ice Sculptures and Snow Sculptures around January 18 each year. The resort located at the foot of the mythical Col du Galibier is also an essential part of the Tour de France: stage town on 3 occasions (1972, 1975 and 2019) and arrival in 2011 at the top of the Col du Galibier;

History

During the early 1930s, Valloire was a simple village, void of tourism. In 1935–36, the first ski club arrived; "Le Ski club de Paris". New hotels and an

ice skating Ice skating is the self-propulsion and gliding of a person across an ice surface, using metal-bladed ice skates. People skate for various reasons, including recreation (fun), exercise, competitive sports, and commuting. Ice skating may be per ...

rink were opened. In the next two years, Valloire constructed its first ski lift. By 1945, it had added another 5 lifts. In 1970 Valloire expanded from the Sétaz and began developing the Crey du Quart. Four years later, Valloire and Valmeinier joined together to form one ski resort. In 1989 the first snow cannons were unveiled, allowing for a more lengthy tourism season. Similar progress was made until 2007, when Valloire switched from conventional ski passes to "hands-free" ones, imbedded with a chip. Valloire has recently gained fame as the home of

Jean-Baptiste Grange Jean-Baptiste Grange (born 10 October 1984) is a French retired World Cup alpine ski racer. He competed primarily in slalom and earlier also in giant slalom and combined. Born in Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne, Savoie, Grange grew up in Valloire, ...

, a slalom World Cup winner.

Geography

Climate

Valloire has a

humid continental climate A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and freezing ...

(

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...

''Dfb'') closely bordering on a

oceanic climate An oceanic climate, also known as a marine climate, is the humid temperate climate sub-type in Köppen classification ''Cfb'', typical of west coasts in higher middle latitudes of continents, generally featuring cool summers and mild winters ( ...

(''Cfb''). The average annual temperature in Valloire is . The average annual rainfall is with November as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in July, at around , and lowest in January, at around . The highest temperature ever recorded in Valloire was on 28 July 2013; the coldest temperature ever recorded was on 5 February 2012.

History

Geography

Climate

See also