Montgenèvre Unveils Major Lift Overhaul: Vintage Chalvet Chairlift to Be Replaced by Two Modern Gondolas for Winter 2026–2027

The French border resort of Montgenèvre has announced a massive infrastructure upgrade ahead of the winter 2026–2027 season, targeting one of the oldest bottlenecks in its local ski area.

The resort, a vital French link in the sprawling 400-kilometer cross-border Milky Way (Vialattea) circuit, will dismantle the long-serving Chalvet double chairlift and the lower Chalvet gondola. In their place, Montgenèvre is installing two ultra-modern, high-speed 10-seater gondolas designed to completely transform access to the sunny Chalvet sector.

Retiring a 1985 Classic

The centerpiece of the modernization project is the retirement of the fixed-grip Chalvet Supérieure double chairlift. Operating continuously since 1985, the 41-year-old lift had become an iconic but increasingly uncomfortable relic. During peak holiday seasons, it served as a notorious bottleneck, leaving skiers exposed to the elements on slow ascents from the village area.

By replacing both the aging chairlift and the old lower gondola, the resort aims to completely reimagine how traffic moves up the south-facing side of the valley.

Doubling Up: Two Routes, Zero Bottlenecks

Rather than building a single massive lift, resort officials have designed a dual-route system to split incoming skier crowds and streamline traffic distribution.

The two new state-of-the-art 10-seater gondolas will follow separate lines, dramatically boosting uphill transport capacity to a targeted 2,400 people per hour:

• Optimized Flow: The dual lines will draw skiers smoothly away from the main village base, eliminating early-morning lift lines.

• Speed and Comfort: Equipped with fast-moving, enclosed cabins, the new systems will feature wind-and-weather protection and comfortable seating, cutting the journey time to the Chalvet ridge down to approximately 5 minutes.

• Enhanced Connectivity: The upgrade will drastically improve access to premium high-altitude intermediate cruising pistes, freeride zones, and crucial connection points that lead toward neighbouring Italian terrain in Claviere and beyond.

• Part of a Larger Green Modernization Plan

This double-gondola installation marks the latest phase in Montgenèvre’s multi-million-euro regional regeneration contract. Backed by the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region’s sustainable mountain initiative, the resort is systematically upgrading its aging fleet with high-capacity, ecologically mindful systems.

The project follows the successful winter rollout of the high-speed Rocher de l'Aigle gondola, which slashed border-crossing transit times to Italy down to seven minutes while utilizing half the amount of lift towers to protect local alpine wetlands.

Construction on the new Chalvet sectors is scheduled to progress rapidly over the summer months, ensuring both 10-seater gondolas are fully operational when the first snowfall hits for the winter 2026–2027 season launch.