Cauterets - France
Cauterets (Corter-ray) is easily accessible via Pau and Toulouse airports and once there the town has everything you need for a great skiing holiday on the doorstep. This resort offers a very different ski experience to the more established resorts in the Alps with uncrowded slopes, a genuine friendly French feel to the town and ‘more for your money’ prices, making it an ideal location for a great value skiing holiday. To that end, don’t come here expecting stereotypical French apres ski.
Recent investment has given the resort a high speed cable car linking the town centre with the slopes as well as better snow making facilities and improved piste signage and information. The ski season generally runs December to April, with heavy snow fall in March and April in recent years. The main bowl retains good snow conditions far longer than the majority of the neighbouring resorts and has skiing up to 2415m, making Cauterets the best bet in the French Pyrenees.
At a glance
| Resort altitude | 2500m - 2500m |
|---|---|
| Highest lift | 2500m |
| Lowest lift | 1300m |
| kms of piste | 110km² |
| Black pistes | 5% |
| Red pistes | 40% |
| Blue pistes | 40% |
| Green pistes | 20% |
| Snow parks | 1 |
| Glacier | No |
| Snowmaking | No |
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Five to try
- picnicking on the top of the Cretes run at Cirque de Lys with breathtaking views of the surrounding Pyrenean mountains.
- hiring a guide and learning to cross-country ski in the winter wonderland forests and valleys of the Pont d'Espagne National Park.
- strapping on the snow shoes and trekking up to the Reine Hortense Hostelerie with fantastic aerial views of the town and good value French cuisine cooked on the open fire.
- enjoying an indulgent myrtle tourte at tea time - a local speciality patisserie - by the wood burning stove at the cost Salon de The
- treating yourself to a hydrojet massage at the local Victorian thermal spa to unwind and soothe aching muscles at the end of a hard day skiing
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Planning your trip
Cauterets is conveniently situated near to Pau airport and is also within easy reach of Toulouse, Carsassone and Biarritz airports. All four of these are served by either Ryanair or Easyjet from several UK airports and then it is just a case of hiring a car, taking a taxi or travelling by public train or bus service to more...
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Where to stay
There is a wide and expanding range of accommodation to suit all tastes and budgets in Cauterets and recent investment into the town has led to increasing standards and level of comfort on offer. There are a wide range of hotels from the Victorian era to the modern for all budgets. There are good supermarkets, restaurants and more...
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Food and drink
Cauterets has a wide range of restaurants, most of which are based in the town centre, offering enough different cuisines to suit everybody's tastes. Set menus are popular and even in the more expensive restaurants you can always find a good value meal. The restaurants in the two main ski areas cater for more...
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Things to do
There are a good range of other things to do on and off the mountain, check with the Tourist Office for more information and more...
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On the piste
Cirque du Lys is the most extensive area for downhill skiing and boarding whilst Pont d’Espagne has more of a bias towards cross-country skiing and snowshoeing. The large East-facing bowl of Cirque de Lys is best suited to intermediates with cruisy blues and more challenging reds, but advanced skiers will find more...
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MadDogView
Easy skiing in the quiet Pyrenees offers a refreshing change from the Alps.
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Map
- Download piste map
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Our favourites
Reine Hortense Hostelrie
For a truly memorable experience, strap on the snow shoes and trek up to this historic restaurant, with fantastic aerial view of the town and good value French cuisine. -
Useful stuff
