A few of us are taking the plunge this year so before I start looking around I thought I'd ask on here. We're not too bothered about board or extras etc. Just looking for something reasonably priced/located and comfy where we can get our heads down for four nights. Any experiences?
Are you looking for in AdH itself ?
camping in allemont for me
We haven't decided re location. Would be grateful for any advice if AdH isn't the best place to stay.
No its a good place to stay, there is just so many options in the valley depending how far away you want to be and how cheap you want to be.
We stayed in Oz Station which was quiet (perhaps too quiet) and cheap. Favoured by some of the pros apparently.
Camping at Allemont looks like it has the most laid-back atmosphere and means you finish every day with a monster descent, though having to get the bus up to the top in the morning seems a bit of a hassle. I don't think we queued at all for any of the lifts out of Oz.
Staying in Alpe d'Huez means you're handy for registration, bike shops and of course the medical centre. 😉
sorry for hijack, but I want to do it this year but could only make it out for the weekend - is this possible?
Qualifying is Friday, so possibly not.
DO NOT camp directly under a lift station. Much sleeplessness. 👿
I've boarded in Alpe D'Huez, going again in a month 🙂 and stay at http://www.chaletribot.com/.
Its run by an awesome English couple who are both totally laid back, love mountain biking, have bike storage available and best of all, amazing chefs! Dan (the host) also race's Mega himself.
I cant recommend them enough.
Richie
Camping-piscine.com in bourg was great for us last year, handy if you've got a car to drives ip to adh every day, but would be a bit of a gaff if you had to take the bus every day.
You can of course finish a day with a flat out Tarmac blast down the 14km of alpine hairpins which was fun 🙂
wish I was doing it again this year!
camping in allememont is good, there are 2 campsites-one full of brits one quieter one, or look at 'la douce montagne' which is a dutch hostel by the main camp site.
Staying in Oz is relaxing and very good for the qualify day, not so great for race day, but does have some excellent riding.
avoid Alp d'huez unless you are into loud, shit bars full of gnarly dudes!
Bourg d'oisens is pretty and laid back but can be tricky to get back to if you are tired/drunk!
have fun and ride as fast as you can, because there will be 199 people trying to knock you off a mountain-mwah hahaha
There are a number of options, listed below in decreasing amount of pikeyness:
Camp under the lift in ADH. Free to do, can use the showers/toilets in the building next door. A lot of people do this so there's quite a good atmosphere too.
Camp in Allemont - Campsite is pretty cheap and you get to finish every day riding the end of the mega course. It's warmer at the bottomw of the valley but facilities in the town are limited. There's a small shop, bakery and a restaurant/bar. The downside of being down here is if you don't have your own transport getting up to oz en oisans at the start of the day for riding can be a pain. There are buses with trailers but they can be very busy and a bit of a scrum. It's a great place to be if you have your own transport though.
Apartment in ADH - Call the local tourist office and they'll be able to sort you out with whatever size and quality you want. We had one right opposite the main lift for four for a week. Cost us about £350 in total i think. ADH has decent shops and places to eat so living is fairly easy. The town is pretty quiet in the summer but the event has some evening things on to keep you entertained.
Hotel in ADH - Again tourist office will give you any number of options, prices etc (they speak english too).
Something that hasn't been mentioned is the PR events organised in AdH in the week before the MA. There's a Trade Fair, Film Night and, of course, the parties.
We stayed in Oz en Oisan which was at the end of a lot of runs and very pleasant. However, we didn't get to see any of the events in AdH. Next time I do the event I'll stay in AdH.
Haha.
Just booked up for my 3rd sortie. Im staying in Oz.
Def a black op this one as the missus has said no.
Looking forward to it already.....
We stayed in Alpe D Huez - was fine and pretty cheap. This is quite a handy general guide to what to expect.
http://www.mtbrider.com/mtbr/showthread.php?t=23051
What's the situation après booze if you camp in Allemont, is it far from AdH to hitch/taxi/whatever? Also anyone recommend which campsite is quiet, and which full of Brits? Cheers all.
Have stayed at Les Bergers in Alpe D'Huez...was cheap and chearful, had a pool, basic kitchen stuff and we could keep the bikes on the balcony.
Where ever you go keep an eye on your bike...bike theft is pretty big in mega week.
Rock plough
I'm running a trip to the mega this summer, we will be going to Verbier for 4 days and then on to the Megs for 4 days. I have some space left if you are interested. Transport there and back is included. Drop me a line at trailhunters@googlemail.com if you want any info. Chris
Thanks for the input all. Chris, that trip sounds great but we're not planning for that long. Will keep your outfit in mind in future though.