A Guide to Samoëns
Samoëns is a traditional mountain village in the Haute-Savoie area in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region. It is located in the pretty Vallée du Giffre which leads up to the famous rock wall of the Fer-à Cheval at Sixt. Samoëns is just off the A40 motorway towards Genève/Chamonix, if you exit at junction 18 it is easily accessible and signed all the way there. The closest airports to the resort are Geneva and Lyon which are 1 hour and 2 hours’ drive respectively. The village is at an altitude of 700 metres with an extension of the village at 1600 metres.
Property for sale in Samoëns
Private chalets and apartments are available for rent and for sale. As the resort is a year-round alpine village the property is a mix of traditional village houses, chalets and newer apartment residences. Prices are reasonable and range from €4,500 to 5,500 for newbuild apartments and up to €7,000 per sqm for new freehold apartments in a residence with swimming pool. Most newbuild apartments come with the option to recover VAT on purchase via an approved rental scheme.
The Samoëns Ski Area
The ski area is part of the 265km of pisted slopes of the Grand Massif, which has a large variety of skiing with suitability for all levels. The resort is linked with 4 other areas in the Grand Massif ski area - Flaine, Morillon, Les Carroz and Sixt-Fer-à-Cheval. The highest point of the Grand Massif area is at an altitude of 2480m, with 139 different slopes to choose from with the majority being green, blue and red and 13 black runs. There are 62 lifts and 1800m total vertical variation. The longest continuous run is a thigh burning 14 km long. 551 snow cannons ensure perfect snow conditions throughout the season. There are two cross country ski areas, one at 1700m altitude around the Col de Joux Plane and the other in the Giffre Valley which offers 43km of pistes.
Eating Out and Après ski in Samoëns
Within the resort there is a fine selection of restaurants such as 8M des Monts, Mezzanine and La Reposette. There is no shortage of bars for après ski and partying well into the night with, of course an Irish pub Coveys, Bar Le Savoie and The Place to Be to name just a few.
Summer in Samoëns
Samoëns is packed full of different activities throughout the resort in the summer. These include hiking in the mountains, parapenting, running routes, white water rafting and canyoning, hydrospeeding, rock climbing, road cycling, mountain biking and Quad biking on mountain trails, tennis, golf at nearby courses, swimming and horse riding.