Le Fornet sits at the furthest end of the valley from Val d'Isère. You can reach it directly on skis from the main village via Solaise and the "Up and Over" (Lessières) chair or, if you're feeling brave and the 3000 drag lift is open, ski through the tunnel to the other side of the ridge at the top. Hold on tight though - this lift is steep, steep, steep!
Alternatively, if you're staying in either Le Laisinant or Le Fornet, there are direct lifts from both villages. They're also a great way to avoid the queues in the town centre during the busiest weeks of the season.
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Le Fornet has always been something of an insiders' favourite. The pistes are usually much quieter than elsewhere in the resort, the West-facing slopes are out of direct sun for most of the season so the snow is always and the scenery is spectacular.
Most of the skiing is open and relatively easy, making it an ideal area for “better” beginners and intermediates. There are plenty of wide, gentle blue runs leading from the top of the bubble and the bottom of the "Up and Over" across to the base of the glacier in one direction and the mid-station at the Signal restaurant in the other.
For more advanced skiers, the pistes themselves may not keep you entertained for too long, but Le Fornet is the gateway to some of Val d'Isère's best off-piste, especially Point Pers, Col Pers and Vallonets in the spring.
From the mid-station, take the Pyramides and then Signal and ski the famous "Sunny Bowl". Or jump on the Cascade chair, then the Montets drag to the top of the Fornet glacier, the highest point in the Val d'Isère ski area. From here you can hit much of Le Fornet's fabled off-piste and can even ski all the way down to Bonneval on the Italian border, then grab a helicopter ride back up. If there are a few of you, it's not even that expensive.
Heading back down from the mid-station, there are a few options. There's a pretty gnarly ungroomed black dropping right underneath the cable car. It can get quite bare and icy, so it's worth checking the snow cover before you commit.
Alternatively, there's an easy blue road all the way down through the woods to Le Fornet, with a couple of slightly more challenging options if you drop off the road a little further on.
You can also head back towards Val d'Isère via the "Up and Over" chair, and it's worth going that way for the view alone. The panorama from the ridge at the top is one of the best in the resort, so don't forget your camera!
