La Bresse Hohneck reviews - World Snowboard Guide

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Driveable from SE England in a weekend

Mon 8 March 2004 Playdreamer
Being in the Vosges rather than the Alps, La Bresse-Honeck is beneath the radar of most UK riders but despite its limited 450m of vertical it offers quite an extensive 220 hectares of terrain. Most significantly, however, it is perfectly feasible to drive there and back from the south east of England in a weekend.

The ski area is a few kilometres up the valley from the spa town of La Bresse and there is not much there in the way of facilities or accommodation except the resort owned rental shop, lift ticket office, restaurant and ESF office. It is more in the style of a US day lodge than an Alpine resort. There is also a big car (and caravan) park which gets very full at weekends.

The runs are an even mix of cruising blues and carving reds with one challenging steep black and a couple of green cat tracks. The lift system is well organised with some new 4 man chairs but you will need to ride drag lifts to use the entire area. There is a medium sized park served by its own drag lift with a few kickers, tabletops, rails and a pipe. The pipe, although a good size, left something to be desired when I visited as there was effectively no vert just a tranny that would throw you straight out!

Accommodation and nightlife is in the nearby town of La Bresse and is basic but does the job.

I have given the resort a rating of 6/10 to reflect the fact that, while it cannot compete with bigger and better known Alpine resorts, it is a very respectable and well organised ski area with enough terrain to keep most people occupied for a weekend.

For my more detailed trip report and travel info respectively visit:

http://www.snowgo.com/archives/2004/03/02/vosges_report.php

http://www.snowgo.com/archives/2004/02/18/i_love_it_when_a_plan_comes_together.php

For more info about skiing in the Vosges including other resorts visit:

http://www.pistehors.com/resorts/vosges/index.htm