Here is a potted history of the beginnings of the after-ski activity “Apres”. In 1969 the Folie Douce was born in a snowy mountain village filled with Savoyard folklore and Marmottes. The name Luc Reversade brings up the associations straight to La Folie Douce but nothing predestined Luc for such a fate. Born in Charente, he grew up in the teacher’s family where his mother was holding a summer camp in Autrans during the school holidays. The Olympic games of Grenoble brought him closer to the mountains when his mother opened her summer camp as an international Nordic ski centre. What was supposed to be temporary was transformed into a business that brought the whole family to Autrans. Luc grew up in a mountain world, where he was practicing skiing and he became a ski instructor during his studies. Luc was attending the School of Hospitality in Grenoble, his parents sent him there to temper a little bit his character and to learn the art of cooking. He became a kitchen clerk at Paul Bocuse and made his first dishes there. A few years later the man of 100 ideas per minute quickly realised that he wanted to be in front of the kitchen rather than behind it.
In 1974 Luc, his mother, and his aunt opened a refuge at the top of La Daille Gondola in Val D’Isere. Six years later, La Petite Cuisine was created, a place to enjoy family cooking in a modern style. La Fruitiere Restaurant opened in 1994. Back in the day skiing was all day long… first lifts, intense skiing, a quick lunch, raclette and then bed! Then Luc had an idea… can we bring Ibiza to the mountains? In 2007, apres-ski was set up with a large terrace welcoming up to 2000 skiers with the folie atmosphere in the mountains. The apres ski was joined a little later by the cabaret, The combination of great food and Luc’s eye for big entertainment quickly became very successful and the rest of the story is the stuff of legend, now with 6 Folie Douce venues and a Folie hotel in Chamonix
The Folie Douce brand is the most famous après ski brand, probably anywhere, but certainly in the Alps. So popular is the après party style at La Folie Douce, that many British skiers and boarders select their skiing resorts because it has a La Folie Douce.
The après parties kick off at Folie Douce at around 2;30pm every day with a mash-up of house, Techno, Jazz Funk, and cabaret. The Folie Douce unique party atmosphere of DJ’s, professional bar/rooftop dancers and live musicians have made the 6 Folie Douce bars the place to be seen in the 6 resorts that have a Folie Douce.
It never takes the adoring crowd long to climb on a high wood table in their ski boots to dance.
All 6 of these brilliant Folie Douce après ski bars are located on the homeward slopes, in most cases, there is a lift down, in case you overdo it on the tabletops.
La Folie Douce guests have been enjoying the proverbial high life for nearly thirty years, and the concept has cemented its reputation as one that brings quality, glam and colour to the après ski experience. And it’s not just about the parties. La Folie Douce prides itself on its fine dining menus and providing the best possible service; that’s no mean feat for a mountain restaurant. While La Folie Douce has been franchised to other carefully selected resorts in the French Alps, there remains only a handful, making the experience that much more unique and the resorts that home them that much more exciting.
Folie Douce stands for ‘Sheer madness’ {noun} douce. c’est de la folie douce. it’s sheer madness, a great name to describe this outstanding mountain activity brand.
There are two Folie Douce in The Three Valleys, one situated above Meribel and the other in Val Thorens. It really is an atmosphere like no other, particularly when the sun is shining.
Val Thorens Folie Douce is located on the piste just under the Plein Sud chairlift. It’s one of the most popular pistes in Val Thorens, because it gets sunshine for a large part of the day, and the Folie Douce sits at the top of the piste. It’s also a route to Val Thorens from the other valleys. High and snow-sure, Val Thorens is Europe’s highest ski resort, part of the fantastic Three Valleys ski area, with 650km of pistes and a whole lot more off-piste too. If you stay in The Three Valleys, there is another Folie Douce in Meribel, in the next valley and on the same ski pass.
Once the party finishes there’s the option of skiing down to Val Thorens and then along to Les Menuires either on blue runs or on the local ski bus.
La Folie Douce Méribel-Courchevel is located in the Méribel valley. It is only accessible from the Courchevel aVlley on skis (which requires a 3 Valleys lift pass), or via the Saulire Express lift for pedestrians with 3 Valleys pedestrian lift pass. Meribel is located in the middle of the Three Valleys, so ideally placed to ski in either St Martin de Belleville, Courchevel or Val Thorens. Located at 2100 meters high , at the Saulire’s intermediate station, La Folie Douce welcomes you every day from 9 am to 5 pm during the winter. Just before getting off the Saulire Express cable car in Meribel, you’ll catch a glimpse of a huge, sunny terrace with brightly-coloured cushions scattered about, the Folie Douce Meribel is tucked behind a lip just under the cable car station. Turn left when coming out and then ski a sharp left for about 200 metres
… and party !
