Courchevel is a highly sought after tourist stop due to its majestic views of the French Alps and luxury resort setting. Courchevel is a general term used to refer to the 5 Alpine villages of Courchevel 1300 (Le Praz), Courchevel 1550, Courchevel 1650 (Moriond), and Courchevel 1850, which are named for their altitudes in meters. Courchevel is also part of Les Trois Vallees, or the three valleys, which includes Courchevel, Méribel, and Belleville.

Together, the three valleys include 600 kilometers of interconnect ski slopes, 330 marked pistes, while operating 180 ski lifts. If you want to ski year round, this is the place for you. The three valleys host 2000 snow canons to fill in any gaps when the weather is not being so cooperative with its plush white goodness falling from the skies. Thus, it made a great setting for the 1992 Winter Olympics with hopes of hosting the 2023 Alpine Ski World Championships. 

Courchevel is home to several hotels that offer ski in/ski out services, luxury spa packages, and 5 star ratings. There is always the option for Air BnB (which we chose) to save money, while having the ability to cook at home. You can find no less than 12 Michelin stars (across 6 restaurants) with many options to choose from when opting for eating out. There is of course a few markets spread throughout the villages where you can buy fresh foods, wines, liquors, and snacks.

While we stayed in the 1850, we were pleasantly surprised at the cost. 1850 is known to be one the more expensive areas due to its location. However, by using Air BnB, shopping at the local Carrefour, and bringing our own ski gear, we were able to save a lot of money. Let this be a warning to visitors, Courchevel does not offer full ski gear rental, unlike Zermatt. You can only rent boots, skis/boards, and polls. So please be sure to bring your own clothing attire, helmet, and goggles. 

When we first arrived at the entry of Courchevel, we drove cautiously through the winding, narrow roads. Be advised, take your time…other cars may be less patient, but do what feels comfortable to you. I drove slower due to the amount of snow and fear of ice, but the streets are well salted and we only had difficulty with parking on the slick pavement. We did see a notice online stating we had to have snow chains on our tires, however, no other car had any. The villages are small and can easily be walked, but you can use the local bus system to go from village to village. We only stayed for a short period of time (2 days), so we decided to stay within the 1850.

I would highly suggest researching each village to see what appeals to you. There are different activities you can engage in with the different villages. My youngest daughter is not a skier so her and her mother spent two days walking around town shopping, ice skating at the olympic ice rink, bowling, and playing games at the arcade. However, the beauty of the mountain called to my youngest daughter enticing her to want to learn snow boarding. We told her next time we go back, she could take snow boarding lessons. Courchevel of courses offers a wide range of pistes from easy to advanced and many ski schools to choose from. Just remember, research in advance. Some places require advanced notice if you hope to get in!

I highly recommend coming here if you are interested in skiing. I highly recommend coming here if you are not interested in skiing. The scenery is breath taking. Simply put, photos can only do so much. Your eyes will be surely be amazed.

The pistes in Courchevel valley do not disappoint! The absolute beauty of the mountains surrounding the various slopes will keep you occupied for days. If you want to ski all 3 valleys, I suggest a week to be able to visit all the slopes if you have the experience level. Even if you are a beginner, Courchevel has many pistes to suit your needs. In total, the 3 valleys ski pass will afford you the opportunity to 338 ski piste! 

January is the slowest month to visit Courchevel which provided me and my daughter Leeloo the opportunity to ski the slopes with very little people on the slopes. When skiing make sure to have your phone with you. If you download the 3 valley app you can view the lifts and pistes for the area. Having the app allows you to also see what lifts are running and what time they will shut down. This will allow you to plan your runs so you don’t get stuck in one of the other valleys!

While Zermatt is technically 242.91 squared km (93.79 sq. Miles), only .8% of that is inhabited! This makes is seem like a small, quant village with a great location nestled at the southern end of the Matter Valley. The city itself dates back to 1495 when it first appeared on a map and then was later mentioned in text in 1546, though its true age is unknown. Zermatt is hidden within the grand Valley of Rhône surround by several mountains including Monte Rosa, the Dom, Liskamm, Wesshorn, and of course, the most infamous Matterhorn!!! Maybe you’ve eaten a Toblerone chocolate and notice a small mountain on its packaging. Turns out, this mountain is not so small at 4,478 m high. 

There are three specific mountain excursions: Gornegrat (3,089 m), Matterhorn glacier paradise (3,883 m), and Rothorn (3,103 m). It is here that you can buy passes to ski in two different countries including (Italy and Switzerland) while also gaining a view of France!! There are 360 km of plush whit skiable ground divided into 148 different slopes of all levels, and a total of 54 ski lifts. I highly suggest downloading a ski map app on your phone as it was quite a challenge navigating the different lifts with the slopes. While Zermatt has plenty of activities across the four seasons including hiking, rock climbing, and swimming in the lake Leisee lake, the ski area in Theodul Glacier is open 365 days a year! If you are beginner skier and you are not comfortable moving to red slopes yet, wait until a little later into the ski season for the lower slopes to be open.

While we didn’t quite make it to Gornergrat this time around (rest assured we have a trip planned to go back this summer 2022), we did take the lifts up to Glacier Paradise to gain an exceptional view of Matterhorn. My oldest daughter and I bought a three day ski pass, two day ski school passes, and rented all of our gear from Intersport. They have everything you need from clothing, helmets, goggles, skis, boots, and ski polls. No need to drag all of your ski gear along. There are also several ski gear storage rentals available so you don’t have to lug everything back and forth.  This was quite handy since there are no cars allowed in Zermatt. Zermatt has its own set of electric vehicles used for deliveries and public transportation.

On that note, be advised that you will have to park your car somewhere and take the train into town. We rented a spot at the Matterhorn Terminal Täsch at a very good price and then purchased round trip tickets for the train into town. The town is small enough to walk anywhere you need to go. Be mindful that is built in the valley of a mountain range and thus some lodging may include a steep walk. We rented an Air BnB and had to do quite a bit of walking to get up a pretty steep hill to our lodging, but it was totally worth it (though my youngest daughter might disagree). However, by getting an apartment with a higher elevation, we had a direct view of the Matterhorn while overlooking the small city.

We quite enjoyed simply walking around town taking in the magnetic scenery of the surrounding mountains, the Matter Vispa river that runs through the center of the city, and the architecture of the small shops, restaurants, and lodging within the city. There are of course over 100 restaurants within this small city. We could not go to Switzerland and not have fondue! I highly recommend visiting any number of restaurants that serve fondue. Be sure to do your research prior to dinner because most places will require a reservation, many of which can be made online.

The iconic Matterhorn can be seen from almost every view point in the valley and up in the mountains. There are many great photography spots depending on your taste of photography. I did not get to my top 5 spots since most of the areas I wanted to visit are up in the mountains on the 5 lakes trail. I was quite impressed of the lower photography spots I found. November travel to Zermatt offered more limited areas I was to visit, however, I was able to capture beauty of fall colors and snow! If you have not traveled to a mountain area for photography, remember sunrise and sunset are different due to higher elevated areas surrounding you. Sunrise (1 hour later) and sunset (1 hour earlier) are about an hour different from where you are pulling your information.

Known as the “Venice of the North,” Amsterdam started as a small fishing village around the year 1275 with the building of the Dam (today known as Dam Square) around the river Amstel to prevent flooding. The residents of this city began digging canals in the Middle Ages to manage the water flooding the city and to serve as defense moats during such treacherous times. Eventually these hand dug canals gained a new use and they were used for transporting goods. And oh boy did they work fabulously. So much so, that Amsterdam became a very popular and very important rated port. Its strategic location and ability to  house massive amounts of goods in warehouses lining the canal caused the city to become the leading center of finance and trade.

With its every expanding popularity, the city commissioned the building of its 3 main canals. After 50 years, the canals and the houses lining the canals was completed around 1660 expanding the city by 4 times its size. The city now hosted worldwide trade, thousands of warehouses, and even specialized floating markets. With its commerce, location, and cultural boom, Amsterdam has been the home of many notable residents throughout history including painters Rembrandt and Van Gogh, the diarist Anne Frank, and philosopher Baruch Spinoza.

Today Amsterdam is home to over 95 museums displays work from across the world and boasts a rich cultural melting-pot evident in its many stores, restaurants, and markets. We easily walked 11 - 15 miles a day around this small city taking in its, albeit tightly condensed, beauty. The whole downtown area of Amsterdam is a UNESCO world heritage site!

Since it was an impromptu visit, we allowed our children to each pick a place they wanted to visit. My oldest daughter (who wants to be a doctor) chose Body Worlds. This is a museum dedicated to the human body, literally. People have donated their bodies to the museum which are then cut up to either remove body parts for display, or their body is literally skinned, positioned, and then displayed to show how the human body functions. BE FOREWARNED of graphic images. My youngest daughter (interested in the macabre) chose to visit the Dungeon of Amsterdam. This was an amazing, fun activity. We purchased tickets online and then went to take a tour of the dark side of Amsterdam’s medieval history. We were placed in groups and then led through the history of Amsterdam’s darkest time to include torture devices, historical events, and legendary events. It was very interactive and the actors were funny, knowledgable, and entertaining. We also visited Rijksmuseum housing 800 years of Dutch history with over 1 million objects of art spread over four floors. It is an all day event! 

Lastly, you can’t go to Amsterdam, the capital of the Netherlands, and not visit a traditional Holland town. We drove Zaanse Schans, where we could visit an old time, traditional Holland village housing multiple windmills. The site was quite breathtaking over the Zaan waterway. The town was closed by the time we showed up, but we were still allowed to walk through the pathways and admire the architecture and farms. 

Things to keep in mind when visiting. While the city houses an abundance of culture, many of the residents do speak English. We met a very nice restaurant owner (best BBQ place in town Jack’s BBQ Shack) who told us that many of the people speak multiple languages due to the city’s energetic commerce structure with English being the number one second language. The number one method of transportation…bicycles. There are bicycles EVERYWHERE!!! The cyclers have the right of way in additional to the trams. I would NOT suggest driving in this city. The roadways were highly congested (with cyclers) and extremely confusing. There were times when we thought we were going in the wrong direction on a one way street, thought we were in a tram lane, didn’t even know if we were on a road or a sidewalk! I highly suggest using a prepaid parking garage and just walk. Do try to plan ahead if you want admission to some of the museums. We are a very artistic family and were so excited about visiting the Van Gogh museum, however were then highly disappointed that there were no tickets available. Due to Covid-19 and measures to maintain social distancing, only a select number of people are given admission to these museums at specified time intervals. So you may not get to go where you want if you don’t plan ahead. The city is quite beautiful and offers a wide range of activities. Be sure to check out the bicycle tours. 

If you want to catch the waterways with a mirror reflection of the downtown structures, I suggest getting up early in the morning before sunrise. Once the city awakes later in the morning, the traffic in the downtown area on the roads and the waterways become congested. If you visit Amsterdam I suggest visiting Sint Olofssteeg, Damrak, bridges at Leidsegracht and Keizersgracht (buildings under construction during visit), and Groenburgwall canal. These are some top photography locations that offer fantastic vantage points for catching mirror reflections off the canals!