If there’s one thing guaranteed to make or break your festival season, it’s the weather. So when Company arrived in Avoriaz in the French Alps, to discover a light slush rather than a dumping of fresh powder, there was a fear this could turn into Glastonbury 2007. But with sunshine threatening to ruin the fun instead of rain.
Organised in association with The French Music Office, The Go Wild Outdoor Music Festival, otherwise known as the Festival des Concerts Sauvages, is a rare chance to discover what France has to offer your playlist. From rising stars like Madalena, a beat-tapping popette, to more established acts like blues-funk singer and guitarist Keziah Jones and Muse-alikes BB Brunes. The line up is the perfect way to broaden your musical knowledge and check out new talent. The best bit? You can only access the gigs by ski, so 30-minutes before show time, you’ll receive a text with details of the secret pop-up gig so you can ski or snowboard straight there. Awesome.
Thankfully for us, despite the early arrival of summertime and hence, the distinctly slushy pistes, Avoriaz 1800, as part of the Portes du Soleil, boasts 650km of slopes, connecting 14 resorts in France and Switzerland, three snowparks (you MUST hit The Stash for big thrills) and a super pipe. That makes Avoriaz, in our opinion, one of the most versatile places to ski or board in the Alps. It’s not short of pit-stops, bars and cafes for some serious après ski action either. The architecture, horse-drawn carriages and car-free centre (no exhaust fumes here!) make it quaintly authentic, so there’s none of that nasty ‘ski resort by numbers’ kit-built vibe. The buildings are designed to fit the landscape and nothing looks like it doesn’t belong here.
What’s more, Avoriaz has the music calendar nailed. Go Wild is just one of many festivals planned for the 2011/12 ski season. We’ve already booked our tickets for Avo Nights Parties (28 Jan-4 Feb) - 60 parties in one week - so basically, Ibiza in the snow! If that’s not your thing, the Jazz Festival or Winter Kick Off, which starts this December are worth it for music diversity and atmosphere alone. With cheap Easyjet flights from the UK to Geneva, it’s also a bargain.
By day five, as the sun beat down at midday, there was a distinct feeling that we were snowboarding not on fresh powder, but through a pamplemousse smoothie (that’s French for grapefruit, FYI). Still, the height of the resort meant there was still a great selection of slopes open for this late time of year, and the sun did bring one added bonus, as well as a tan: Topless male snowboarders. And really, what’s not to love about that?
For more information on Avoriaz and the 2011/12 festival season, visit www.avoriaz-events.com - see you on the slopes next year!
