BELOW: A view of
Courmayeur; a
wooden scultpture of
an alpine sportsman
in the Courmayeur
hotel; Cave Mont
Blanc Morgex.Helbronner, also serving as the starting point
for the Valle Blanche off piste. There’s talk of
gentle snow beginning to fall and we immediately
hustle to the 360 degrees circular terrace off ering
the best possible view of Mont Blanc. Perhaps
it’s the avalanche of selfi es and Instagram-
breaking fl ashes, but I don’t feel any loss of
breath or dizziness associated with thin air. After
frolicking with snowfl akes and getting a free
ice facial, I wander the pretty botanical garden,
crystals museum and lunch on chicken curry and
eggplant bruschetta at the house restaurant.A MARVELOUS FORT
On my last day in the valley, I go to the little town
of Bard and take the effi cient elevator up its
famous fortress. Rock solid walls with wide archesWONDER CAR TO PARADISE
The Skyway Monte Bianco is a good way of
reaching heaven without skiing your way down
a deadly off -piste slope towards it. Positioned as
the eighth wonder of the world, this 360 degrees
rotating cable car was under construction for
over four years at a cost of €110 million. The
entire ride is divided into two sections. At the
fi rst station, the swanky aerodynamic-styled
Pontal d’ Entrèves, I glide into the fi rst cable car
with over 20 enthusiastic guests. It feels light
and zips up the cable like a dollop of butter, but
is no mean feat; the monster funivie (cable car)
hauls 800 people an hour. At the second station,
Pavillon du Mont Fréty, we change to another
gondola that takes us up—via stunning views of
Val Ferret—to the third and last station, Punta
POSITIONED AS THE EIGHTH WONDER OF THE WORLD, THIS 360 DEGREES ROTATING CABLE
CAR WAS UNDER CONSTRUCTION FOR OVER FOUR YEARS AT A COST OF €110 MILLION