Val Cenis seems to have gone under the radar a bit, which is great news for those who do visit as the slopes remain fairly quiet and the area unspoilt.
Although it does have most of the elements of a great resort for anyone, families and mixed ability groups in particular can't go wrong here. With the main area offering descent options from green to black with dozens of variations of the route down, all levels of skier are catered for.
In terms of extent, most skiers will be happy spending a week here, although the bus links to nearby resorts such as Valfrejus and La Norma give you a bit of variety if you're hungry for piste miles.
The main sector of Val Cenis offers 3 or 4 spines of lifts linking up to high points, with a bewildering choice of routes down to the bottom from here, all intercepted by cat-track pistes allowing you to move around the area very easily.
The lift-linked Termignon sector is much smaller, and has been less attractive due to slow and outdated lifts, although this is starting to change with a fast chair going in this year. The top two long drag lifts here serve a fantastic area of multiple slopes, and when this finally gets a fast chair put in will become an amazing area for lapping.
For beginners and families, the very long green Escargot offers an excellent experience, graded consistently gently and served by the fast Ramasses chair. For earlier beginners, the extensive network of green runs linking the base villages at the bottom give real variety and choice, with plenty of cafes and restaurants dotted around and a friendly feeling.
Intermediates can go pretty much anywhere, with blue and red options for most descents. Timid intermediates will enjoy the fact that most pistes are intercepted by the green Escargot multiple times, so an easy escape can be made if you've bitten off more than you can chew.
Avalanche risk holds the resort back from being a top off-piste destination, but there are plenty of shorter options, particularly in the trees, for those with sharp eyes.
Pistes to avoid include Arcelle which is often icy and busy, and the sector-linking Traverse which is incredibly long and flat (just take the Turra lift down when linking).
Recommended pistes include MJ St Genix, Chamois, Napoleon and Tomba as they're usually much quieter. Bois de Coqs/Forester and all of the top slopes in Termignon are all great spot.
All the restaurants are pretty good but Chalet la Fema at the top of Vieux Moulin gets a strong mention.
