Where to ski in Les Arcs: from Aiguille Rouge to the tree-lined pistes

With skiing from 3,226m down through wide-open bowls and into tree-lined pistes, Les Arcs is a resort made for exploring.

But with Arc 1600, Arc 1800, Arc 1950 and Arc 2000, Peisey-Vallandry and the Vanoise Express linking you across to La Plagne, there's a lot of mountain to get to know.

The good news is that Les Arcs is brilliantly connected. And staying at Bear Lodge in Arc 1950 puts you in a pretty enviable position to explore it.

So, where should you ski first?

There's no need to rush off to the furthest corner of the piste map on your first morning.

Bear Lodge is right on the piste in Arc 1950, so you can step out of the ski room, click into your skis and start exploring. Arc 1950 itself was designed around ski-in, ski-out access, and you can even ski through the pedestrianised village.

Spend a little time getting your bearings around Arc 1950 and neighbouring Arc 2000 and you'll soon start to understand how the wider mountain fits together.

And if you'd rather someone else did the navigating, guests at Bear Lodge can join our complimentary ski guiding with ESF on the first two mornings of their holiday. It's not a lesson, but a chance for confident skiers and snowboarders to discover the mountain with someone who knows it inside out.

On a clear day, this is the direction to go.

At 3,226m, Aiguille Rouge is the highest point in Les Arcs and delivers the sort of panoramic Alpine views that deserve a pause before you set off downhill. Strong skiers can continue on the famous long descent towards Villaroger, dropping from high-altitude terrain all the way towards the trees below.

It's one of those runs that's as much about the journey as the skiing itself, so pick a good-weather day and give yourself time to enjoy it.

If your idea of a great ski day is covering plenty of miles on blues and reds, you'll find lots to enjoy around Arc 1800.

Les Arcs is particularly good for intermediate skiers, with plenty of wide, confidence-building pistes and enough variety to keep moving without constantly consulting the map.

If you're starting to progress from blues to reds, Belette above Arc 1800 is one of our favourites – a lovely red through the trees towards the Derby lift.

It's also an area worth remembering when the weather changes.

It's easy to think of Peisey-Vallandry simply as somewhere you pass through on your way to the Vanoise Express and La Plagne.

Don't.

The wooded pistes here have a very different feel from the high-altitude slopes around Arc 1950 and Arc 2000. There are some lovely long runs through the trees, and on snowy or flat-light days the extra definition can make skiing much more enjoyable. Give yourself a morning or afternoon to explore rather than racing through to somewhere else.

Aiguille Rouge might be the obvious target when you first look at the piste map, but higher isn't always better.

When it's windy, snowing or visibility is poor, the exposed upper mountain can feel very different. That's when the lower slopes around Arc 1800, Arc 1600 and Peisey-Vallandry really come into their own.

The trees provide definition when everything higher up starts looking rather white, and a day you thought might be a write-off can turn into a very good one indeed.

There's something rather satisfying about skiing to another resort for the day.

The double-decker Vanoise Express links Les Arcs with La Plagne, giving you access to the full 425km Paradiski area. But don't mistake an easy connection for a quick detour. La Plagne is a huge ski area in its own right, so if you want to cross over, set off reasonably early and make a day of it.

Choose an area to explore rather than trying to cover the whole map, keep an eye on lift times and leave yourself plenty of time to get back to Les Arcs.

Sometimes the best ski days are the ones where you don't have to think about where you're going next. That's one reason we offer complimentary ski guiding to Bear Lodge guests on the first two mornings of the holiday, in partnership with ESF. For confident skiers and snowboarders, it's a sociable way to get your bearings, discover a few favourite runs and understand how Arc 1950, Arc 2000, Arc 1800 and Peisey-Vallandry all fit together. You'll probably also pick up a few local favourites that aren't immediately obvious from studying the piste map.

After a day exploring Les Arcs, there's a lot to be said for not having to think about a bus home. Just work your way back towards Arc 1950 and ski straight back to Bear Lodge.

Skis off, boots off, and the bar, pool, sauna, steam room and hot tub are waiting.

Not a bad way to end the day.

The beauty of Les Arcs is just how different one ski day can feel from the next. You can be high above the clouds on Aiguille Rouge one morning, weaving through the trees of Peisey-Vallandry the next, cruising the pistes around Arc 1800 or crossing the valley for a day in La Plagne.

You don't need to tick off every piste on the map. Pick an area, explore it properly and save something new for tomorrow.