Normally we go on a family snowboarding holiday in December and maybe in the beginning of the year. However, this year we discovered Tignes France, where the snowboarding and skiing season lasts until the end of April. With much luck and a bit of planning, we were able to travel to Tignes for a last minute getaway with the toddler.
Getting to Tignes France
Flying to Tignes France
(image courtesy of Tignesnet.com )
As you can see from the image, there are four airports surrounding Tignes France. Which one you choose is really up to you. From all of them, you can rent a car or find a shuttle bus to get you the rest of the way to your resort. There are also many resorts that will help you arrange transportation from the airport.
We chose to fly into Geneva and rent a car from there. Geneva was a cheap flight from Amsterdam and so it made the most sense for us. While we could have chosen to take public transportation or a shuttle bus to our hotel, we opted not to do so for a couple of reasons. And anyone traveling with a toddler to Tignes France like we did, might just do the same.
Reasons we rented a car
- Price - It was way cheaper to rent a car than to get a shuttle bus (even with the toll roads)
- Convenience - You can go at your own pace when you rent a car vs. taking public transportation. That means when the toddler needs to stop, for whatever reason, you can.
- Ease of travel - Traveling with a toddler means wrangling not only the family luggage but also a very active and mobile tiny human. Not having to switch from a train to a bus or any other vehicle was highly convenient.
However, if you decide to choose not to rent a car you can still arrive in Tignes France for your holiday easily. During peak season there seems to be no shortage of shuttle buses from the four closest airports. And if you'd rather do public transportation, you can take a train to Bourg St Maurice.
What to do with a Toddler in Tignes
I've found traveling with a child under the age of 3 takes some extra planning. With a winter sports holiday, Lee and I both wanted to snowboard. This meant that we needed to find a resort that offered some sort of childcare or babysitting service. (While we'd love to have her on the slopes with us, that will have to wait until she is old enough to safely take snowboarding lessons.)
It seems that the major hotel booking websites don't easily allow to search for hotels which have baby clubs. Or if hotels do advertise that they have a baby club, they almost never give the ages (baby can mean all sorts of different things to different people I've learned from experience.) There is also the reality that sometimes a hotel advertises that they have a baby club, but they only offer it during peak times during the season. Couple this with things getting lost in translation and planning a holiday can become a logistical nightmare.
Luckily we found a fantastic hotel that offers a baby club (starting at 18 months of age) that is also all-inclusive. Hôtel Club MMV Les Brévières was a fantastic find for our family holiday. There were tons of children running around, the food was very kid friendly, and right below the resort was a lovely children's playground next to the water. Stay tuned to next week's blog post all about our stay there! While this isn't the only Tignes creche, it was certainly convenient to have it on site.
Tignes France was a fantastic place to spend a family holiday with our toddler. Easy to reach from Geneva airport, and with a season that lasts until the end of April, we are certain to visit again. Hopefully for much longer next time!
