Megève

Megève (French pronunciation: ​[məʒɛv]; Francoprovençal: Megéva) is a commune in the Haute-Savoie department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in southeastern France with a population of more than 3,000 residents. The town is well known as a ski resort near Mont Blanc in the French Alps. Conceived in the 1920s as a French alternative to St. Moritz by the Rothschilds, it was the first purpose-built resort in the Alps. Originally it was a prime destination for the French aristocracy. It remains one of the most famous and fanciest ski resorts in the world.[2]

Megève
Commune
The church square in Megève
Coat of arms
Location of Megève
Megève
Megève
Coordinates: 45°51′28″N 6°37′05″E
CountryFrance
RegionAuvergne-Rhône-Alpes
DepartmentHaute-Savoie
ArrondissementBonneville
CantonSallanches
IntercommunalityPays du Mont-Blanc
Government
 • Mayor (2020–2026) Catherine Jullien-Brèches
Area
1
44.11 km2 (17.03 sq mi)
Population
 (2017-01-01)[1]
3,036
 • Density69/km2 (180/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+01:00 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code
74173 /74120
Elevation1,027–2,485 m (3,369–8,153 ft)
(avg. 1,113 m or 3,652 ft)
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

History

The town started its development as a ski resort in the 1910s, when the Rothschild family began spending their winter vacations there after becoming disenchanted with the Swiss resort St. Moritz. In 1921, Baroness Noémie de Rothschild (1888–1968) opened the Domaine du Mont d'Arbois, a luxury hotel which boosted the resort's development.[3] By the 1950s Megève was one of the most popular ski resorts in Europe and attracted many wealthy individuals and celebrities.[3] Nowadays it is still visited largely by affluent people as is evidenced by the real estate prices.[4]

Development

For the 2015–2016 winter season a six-seater chair opened replacing the two old Mont Joux chairs. Further additions include the latest branch of Folie Douce at the top of Mont Joux, introducing the chain's trademark Austrian-style afternoon party scene, which opened in the 2014–2015 season. This will be the fifth in the Folie Douce chain, which started in Val d’Isère and then spread to Val Thorens, Méribel and Alpe d’Huez.[5]

Sports

Winter sports

Megève's Alpine skiing area, known as the "Domaine Évasion Mont Blanc", comprises Megève itself (Mont d'Arbois, L'Alpette, Rochebrune and Côte 2000); Saint-Gervais-les-Bains; Combloux; La Giettaz; Les Contamines-Montjoie and Saint-Nicolas-de-Véroce. The "Evasion Mont-Blanc" range covers approximately 445 km of the ski slopes.[6]

On an area of 8 km2 (3.1 sq mi) there are 116 lifts providing access to 219 slopes totaling 445 km (277 mi).

In addition, the "Domaine Évasion Mont Blanc" includes 18 cross-country skiing trails totaling 65 km (40 mi).[8]

The first three World Junior Figure Skating Championships were held in Megève in 1976, 1977 and 1978.[9]

The Megève Polo Masters is an international polo tournament played on snow. The Snow Golf Cup is a unique golf tournament held on snow on Megève's Mont d'Arbois plateau.

As well as these winter sports, Megève also hosts winter events including an international curling tournament, a ski cross World Cup and a mogul skiing cup. There is also night skiing in February, a ski cross slope, an open-air ice rink, snowshoeing and dog sledding plus 38 km (24 mi) of Nordic skiing in the region.[10]

Summer sports

Megève is also a popular summer holiday destination and is especially renowned for its golfing opportunities. It was the finishing town for stage 18 and the start town for stage 20 of the 2016 Tour de France.

Twin towns

Oberstdorf in Germany has, since 1970, been a twin town of Megève. It is also located in the mountains and famous for summer and winter holidays.

Honorary citizens

People awarded the honorary citizenship of Megève are:

Date Name Notes
3 April 2017HSH Albert II, Prince of Monaco (1958–Present)Prince of Monaco.[11][12]

Media

Megève is the ski resort featured in the beginning of the 1963 film Charade, where Audrey Hepburn's Regina Lampert meets Cary Grant's character.[13] It is also the title of one of the tracks by composer Henry Mancini on the film's soundtrack.

Megève was one of four World Cup venues in the Alps featured in the 1969 film Downhill Racer, starring Robert Redford and Gene Hackman.[14][15]

Panoramic view of Megève.

See also

References
  1. "Populations légales 2017". INSEE. Retrieved 6 January 2020.
  2. "Megeve Skiing Holidays - Ski Apartments - Peak Retreats". www.peakretreats.co.uk. Retrieved 6 April 2018.
  3. Viguie-Desplaces, Philippe (December 22, 2015). "Chalet du Mont d'Arbois : et Rothschild créa Megève…". Le Figaro. Retrieved June 19, 2016.
  4. Roughly 6900 €/m² on average, according to www.cotation-immobiliere.fr (as of October 2008)
  5. Megève – http://www.skicollection.co.uk/Ski/Megeve.htm
  6. "Evasion Mont-Blanc – Skiing vacations with a nostalgic flair". Ski France. Archived from the original on 25 August 2012. Retrieved 16 July 2012.
  7. "Ski resort Megeve". Bergfex. Retrieved 30 July 2018.
  8. "Ski resort information Megeve". Freedom Snowsports. Retrieved 30 July 2018.
  9. "Junior Figure Skating Championships". CBC Sports. Retrieved 30 July 2018.
  10. Megève Winter Sports - http://www.skicollection.co.uk/Ski/Megeve.htm
  11. https://www.hellomonaco.com/officially-2/from-the-palace-princely-news/top-6-monaco-princely-news-prince-albert-ii-become-an-honorary-citizen-of-megeve/
  12. https://www.ledauphine.com/haute-savoie/2017/03/28/le-prince-albert-ii-de-monaco-va-devenir-citoyen-d-honneur-de-la-commune
  13. Paris, Barry (2001). Audrey Hepburn. p. 184. ISBN 0-75281-540-7.
  14. Lund, Morton (November 1969). "The Sundance Kid: the making of Downhill Racer". SKI. Retrieved January 26, 2014.
  15. McCarthy, Todd (November 17, 2009). "Downhill Racer: Trailblazer". Criterion Collection. (Variety). Retrieved January 26, 2014.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.