Oz en Oisans / Vaujany
Although it's quite low, Oz en Oisans has a long season and a very good snow record, with an average annual snowfall of over 3 metres. A good snowmaking programme, with 660 canons, helps keep things in top condition. From the village of Oz en Oisans, the ski area of Oz/Vaujany is easily reached, lying within the larger Alpe d'Huez ski area. The local area itself has a total of 75km of pistes, with a 1700m vertical reach to a height of 2800m. Around a quarter of the marked runs are for beginners, 37% for intermediates, 30% for advanced skiers, and 10% for experts.
Beginners should use the Poutran lift to get to the nearest green slopes. There are good reds around Oz too, and excellent blue runs at Montfrais, at Vaujany. Snowboarders love the area for its variety of slopes and a very good terrain park at Montfrais. There are two cross-country trails, the 10km Poutran Loup, and the 20km Lakes Loup.
Alpe d'Huez
Access to Alpe d'Huez opens up one of the great Alpine ski areas, where you'll find the longest black run in the world and the greatest vertical in the skiing world. It's easily accessible by cable car from Oz en Oisans. The whole ski area has 80 lifts accessing 250km of pistes divided into 135 pistes. There are 42 greens, 37 blues, 39 reds and 17 black runs. An army of 918 canons help keep the snow in good order, but with a lot of high altitude slopes, Alpe d'Huez is generally snow sure.
That famous vertical drop, will take you all the way back to Oz if you have a spare hour-and-a-half, and good skiing skills. Start at the summit of Pic Blanc at 3,330m, enjoying a view that's said to take in a fifth of France, before shooting down through black, red, blue and back onto the black La Fare piste into L'Enversin d'Oz at 1,125m.
It's not all record breaking plunges though, Alpe d'Huez is a great complement to Oz with a wide variety of pistes that all skiers can enjoy. Alpe d'Huez's beginners' slopes are also very highly rated, and there are 20 greens close to the village. Signal has long, cruising red and blue runs.