 Mountain Biking in Les Gets:
Les Gets is arguably the best location in the world for mountain biking. Les Gets is well known for outstanding mountain biking in france and also for mountain biking in the French alps.
To ensure you get the best from your summer mountain bike holiday, they put hooks on the ski lifts so they can take mountain bikes, this means you can mountain bike in the Les Gets area and get to areas you would not be able to get to without this help.
The les gets mountain bike lifts are a few minutes from the chalet, scenery is beautiful and there are routes suitable for all standards, from family cross country to world class downhill championship. Around Les Gets are 650km of marked mountain bike tracks and 24 ski lifts open all summer long, there are 13 interconnected mountain resorts including the near by resorts of Avoriaz and Morzine. You can even ride in two countries in one day by taking the lifts
Family Mountain biking in Les Gets:
We have maps showing all the local mountain bike routes - these are well marked and graded according to ability - there is something for every-one - from 5 year olds upwards. There are many shops in the village where you can hire bikes and if you would like a guide - we can help arrange that too.
Cross Country Mountain Biking in Les Gets:
There are routes which take you mountain biking from France, to Italy and Switzerland, the Portues du Soleil route takes you through three countries in one day. We have ridden this route many times, you need to start at around 09.00 and usually you are back at around 5.00 - after lunch in Switzerland.
Downhill biking in Les Gets:
Les Gets was the location of the World Championship for Down hill mountain biking a few years - our opinion is that it is the best location in the world. The routes are sepate from the cross country routes. You can hire quality downhill bikes in the village (to buy these typically costs around £3000).
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Mountain biking in France in the Alps
The centre for mountain biking in France is Morzine and Les Gets, other areas do have mountain biking, but Morzine and Les Gets are recognised as the best areas. We have mountain biked in many areas in the world and we believe that this area is in fact the best there is:
You can be on the lifts to a high area, or on beautiful trails, within 5 minutes of leaving your chalet.
- The scenery is beautiful
- There is a very wide range of trails, from easy family oriented routes, through challenging cross country mountain bike trails which take you to Italy and Switzerland, to world class downhill championship tracks
- You can get to Les Gets, from the UK, in an evening ( you can get a 7.30 flight from Geneva and be in your apartment before midnight easily ).
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Tour de France
On Sunday 11th July, Stage 8 of The Tour goes from Station des Rousses and finishes at the mountain top of Morzine-Avoriaz, it will go through the village of Les Gets.
 The following day is a rest day and many of the pros are expected to be out training.
On Tuesday 13th July, The Tour will be leaving Avoriaz -Stage 9 - for La Toussuire.
You can watch the tour either by walking into the village - around a 20 minutes walk, or if you prefer you could get to the finish point in Avoriaz early in the morning.
The rest day is expected to be quite exciting with so many pros out training.
On the day of the mountain top finish, the leader is expected to finish at around 5.00, Les Prodains Ski Lift will be running from 09.00 to 20.00 hrs, as the car parks are expected to be full in Avoriaz early, the best way to get there is expected to take the Les Prodains lift in the morning and park at the bottom. If you want a restaurant, we advise advance booking!
I (Mark) have ridden from the Chalet, down into Morzine and then up to Aviriaz many times - the climb is very much like Alp d'Huez - only around two thirds the height - and there are pleanty of coffee shops at the top!
Some of the famous Hors and Cat 1 local climbs include:
Col de Joux Plane
Col de la Colombiere
Col de Joux Verte
Col de Corbier
The following are three suggested routes for a day's cycling:
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Read more... [Tour de France]
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The pictures above show part of the Time Megeve Mont Blanc Cyclosportive - held every year - the start us less than an hour's drive from Hastings.
The region around Les Gets has some of the best road cycling in the world. It is made famous by the many stages of the Tour de France held in the area. The routes have wonderful scenery and can be ridden as a hard training ride.
If you enjoy something less strenuous, you can cycle slowly, enjoying the scenery and stopping for espressos at the many cafés. Morzine is just 10 minutes' cycle ride downhill. This is the village regularly used at the start or end of many stages of the Tour de France. By staying at Les Gets, there are enough one day routes for two weeks of good cycling.
Some of the famous climbs in the area include:
Col de Joux Plane – Hors Cat - from Samoens to Morzine – a hors category climb – this will take the average cyclist around one hour fifteen minutes – however, it does have may coffee shops on the way! 1997 Tour winner Marco Pantani got up in 33 minutes! It was the final climb on stage 16 of the 2000 Tour de France on the stage from Couchevel to Morzine and also on the 2007 Tour. In 2000 Lance Armstrong cracked on the climb and Jan Ullrich took over a minute out of the American. Armstrong had already done the work to win the Tour de France but described the stage as 'the hardest day of my cycling life'. All the way up you see the name ‘Halgand’ painted on the road every few yards; Patrice Halgand is a French climber for the Jean Delatour team and he won Stage 10 of Le Tour in 2002.
Col de Joux Verte – Cat 1. I particularly like the route from Morzine to Avoriaz – this is a typical alpine climb, with 20 hairpin bends and one where you can maintain a constant speed. The climb to Avoriaz was was used as the final climb in the 1994 Tour de France mountain time-trial when Piotr Ugrumov won the stage. You can descend through Les Linderets – where there are goats wandering over the road. However, I prefer to descend the 20 hairpin bends as the route through Les Linderets is rather steep and the road surface not ideal. This climb will take the average cyclist around 45 minutes.
Other famous local climbs are:
Col de la Colombiere – Hors Cat
Col de L’Encranaz - Cat 2
Col de Ramaz Cat 2?
Col du Grand Taillet Cat 4
Col de Jambaz Cat 3
Plaine Joux Cat 2
Col de Cou Cat 4
Col du fue Cat 3
We would be pleased to give advice on routes for anyone staying at the Hastings. |
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Les Gets is arguably the best location in the world for mountain biking. The lifts are a few minutes from the chalet, scenery is beautiful and there are routes suitable for all standards, from family cross country to world class downhill championship. Around Les Gets are 650km of marked tracks and 24 ski lifts open all summer long, there are 13 interconnected mountain resorts. You can even ride in two countries in one day.
At Hastings we offer:
• Spacious self catering accommodation at reasonable prices, we have 2, 3 and 4 bedroom chalets and apartments
• On site staff who can provide meals and packed lunches if required
• Safe bike storage (your own insurance recommended)
• Advice and help to ensure your holiday is a success - we have been mountain biking in Les Gets for 6 years.
More details can be seen on the official web site click here.
  
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It would not be unreasonable to expect a spectacular course in the mountains, however, the Les Gets course can be said to go beyond that. That in the winter, the snow covered course becomes a major attraction for walkers in snow shoes and cross-country skis, and in the summer the area attracts walkers of all types on a path that circumnavigates the ondulating landscape.
The golfer awaits his fate on a course which excites the golfers inner core, but is also very capable of severely damaging his or her ego.
The first hole is not long, at some 340 metres, but the green is somewhat raised from the sloping fairway, and overshooting can bring nasty results. A steep climb to the second tee reveals a short par 3 with a large green; the tee shot is simple and pleasant, but the green is not as it slopes and bends its way, seemingly conniving to eliminate any arrogance of a good first drive.
By the third tee, the splendid beauty of the course really comes into its own, and a fairly tight fairway does permit a logical par 4. However, after another steep climb to the 4th tee, and another sloping fairway greets the long drive neccessary to have any chance of a par 4 - hazards abound, and the walkers on the pathway will do well to keep their heads down. On the 5th the newcomer is rapidly adjusting to the course, and by now will be reducing liberties and be concentrating on avoiding water - the shot to the green offers a choice between water, trees, and perfection. Ecstasy or a lost ball.
The 6th is another par 3, simple enough if you hit the green at the front - all other options are distinctly less favourable, as the middle can lead to an overshoot and lost ball, and the fairway.....well, there is no fairway, except a few trees and a narrow slope.
And so it goes on. Challenging is the word, impossible it isn't. Accuracy is much more important than power, and once the course is known, then it will radically change your approach. I have played the course many times, and rarely felt that it should have been tennis that day. It is tiring, but this can be dealt with by hiring a 4 wheel drive Kawasaki buggy.
The cost?? A round varies according to the season from £14/€21 to £25/€38, however there are significant reductions for under 18s, and over 65's, and best of all, anyone staying at our chalets of Chalet Hastings will receive a discount of 50% in July and August, and 50% plus 2 free green fees in May (if open), June, September and October. Numbers are limited, so please forewarn us if you are numerous or expect to be playing during your stay.
Click here for a link to the Les Gets golf course site.
Other courses
During your stay, you can try the delightful, albeit flatter, course at Chamonix, and also the beautiful Royal Evian course overlooking Lac Leman. Further afield the courses at Flaine and Annecy will also keep you interested.
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