heading off in the car on Thursday night to arrive in the Alps Friday morning.

haven’t yet booked anywhere, but will be doing the camping option.

never been to the Alps yet (Afan is about as dramatic as I get).

was going to camp at that mormettes place in morzine (need to call them before we leave to ensure they have space), but looking at the trail maps, it seems to les gets is the centre of it all. I have seen reference to a campsite called le grange au frene which I think is up the hill outside of les gets.

any pointers…. where best to go?

we’re planning to ride fri, sat and sun and then drive home on Monday.

cheers

Stayed in morzine twice now, from the top of the pleney lift it’s easy to get to les gets, so I don’t think it makes that much difference,

Was there last week.

Les gets is drier, if that helps. The trails are more ‘trail centre-ish’ with less in the woods.

Morzine is still pretty muddy (the blues in particular are 3 inch deep slop in places)

It takes 10 mins from the top of the Pleney to get to les gets and the Red run round the back from Les gets to Morzine is great (only a small uphill)

So my advice is…

If you like trail centres then head to Les gets. If you like more natural riding (and more to do off the bike) then head to Morzine.

Either way you’ll have a blast.

cool… les gets sounds like a good option then.

any tips on campsites over and above the one I have mentioned (I have visions of driving 12hrs to be told that there is no room at the inn.. lol)

what is the nightlife like during the summer? will I need to remortgage the house to buy a beer?… are there decent local carrefours? etc

to a campsite called le grange au frene which I think is up the hill outside of les gets.

Correct, turn left just before you hit Les Gets proper from the other side from Morzine, its a nice campsite, stayed there a couple of times, views of Mont Blanc in the evening sunset are really good, i think you can ride to it from the top of one of the lifts otherwise its a 20min ride up the road to it.

what is the nightlife like during the summer? will I need to remortgage the house to buy a beer?… are there decent local carrefours? etc

If its beers you want that campsite is the wrong one, it’s well away from everything, thats why i like it though…..

Camping Le pré in Montriond is very good. Decent ground that drains well if it rains, decent showers and only about a 10 min gentle pedal to the Morzine lifts and downhill on the way home. Run by a mad French lady, she’s lovely but speaks no English.

Personally, having just come back from the Alps, I’d skip Morzine given how wet it’s been and camp at Bourg Saint Maurice and spend three days riding Les Arcs.

Really great trails, some bike-park’y type stuff, some really natural feeling, hardly any other riders, and everything was dry and dusty last week. Different ground type so drains better than Morzine when it does rain. Lift pass for the whole area is 22€ per day and covers a huge area. Trails are really well signposted and everything from full-length blacks to enduro and XC stuff too.

I’d go back today if I could..

Not sure what map you are looking at that puts les gets in the middle of things. It is right at one end, but it is handy for les gets trails which are riding well at the moment. Its a pain to get to other areas though as it is a bit of hike and up hill to get home. Morzine is nice and central and downhill to get home from most areas. You can ride chatel and les gets and do some nice linking up.