Montgenèvre Three new lifts
Winter 2026–27: goodbye wooden seats, hello another run into Italy.
Two new gondolas and a new Italian chairlift are planned for winter 2026–27. For those of us who know Montgenèvre’s older lifts rather too well, there’s plenty to look forward to.
By Ralph Johnson | Ski Miquel
I’ve spent many a ride on the old Chalvet two-seat chairlift freezing my socks off and wondering who thought hard wooden slats were a good idea. They seemed designed to find the hardest part of your bum and press firmly against it for the entire journey.
And yet, I kept getting back on.
The skiing at the top was always worth it. That big, flowing Chalvet red run could make you feel like a ski racer, linking turns and convincing yourself you looked considerably better than you probably did.
So the news that Montgenèvre is getting two new gondolas, along with a new chairlift on the Italian side, has my attention. Especially the bit about replacing that chair.
Chalvet: a quicker start from the village
The first change is the new 10-seat Chalvet gondola, replacing the old six-person cabins.
The journey will take around four minutes, half the previous travelling time. That means a quicker start to the day on this side of the mountain, with more room to settle in and enjoy the view.
At the top, a shared station building will bring together the arrival of Chalvet and the departure of the new Fournéous gondola. The nearby piste crossings are also being redesigned to help people move through the area more easily.
Pedestrians will still be able to ride up to Les Terrasses restaurant and the Monty Express mountain coaster, which is getting an upgrade of its own.
Useful improvements, certainly. But it’s the next lift that will get the biggest cheer from me.
Artist’s impression of the new ten-seat Chalvet gondola. Image supplied by RARM Montgenèvre.
Fournéous: my backside says thank you
The new 10-seat Fournéous gondola replaces the old Chalvet two-seat chairlift. The Trois Fournéous drag lift has also been removed as part of the changes.
The promised journey time is five minutes, about a third of the old chairlift ride. Five minutes, sitting inside a cabin, sheltered from the wind. Anyone who has sat on those wooden slats on a bitter day will understand why that sounds so appealing.
I’ll miss the old chair in the way you miss an uncomfortable pair of ski boots: plenty of shared history, very little desire to put them back on.
What I’m looking forward to is getting back to the skiing. The long, sweeping turns on the Chalvet side. The views. Another run when previously you might have looked at the slow chair and decided to head elsewhere.
The new gondola will make access to the panoramic Combe du Loup and the more demanding Fournéous run quicker too.
And that’s before we get into the tales of skiing off-piste down the back of Montgenèvre. Those deserve a story of their own. You’ll have to wait for that one in full—or come on holiday with us and hear it from me.
Artist’s impression of the Fournéous gondola replacing the old two-seat Chalvet chairlift. Image supplied by RARM Montgenèvre.
Colletto Verde: the return lift we’ve been waiting for
Across on the Italian side, the third project is the Gimont–Colletto Verde detachable four-seat chairlift.
This is the new high-altitude return towards the French border near Rocher de l’Aigle—Eagle’s Rock—that will make a real difference to our enjoyment of this side of the mountain.
We’ve so often wanted to lap the Colletto Verde descent into Italy. You finish a run like that and want to go straight back up for another. Instead, we’ve had to take the long way round to get another go—about three lifts, if you’re counting.
The new chair should make those repeat runs much more practical, bringing skiers back towards the border while staying high in the mountains.
That’s the prospect I like: a few more goes at a favourite descent before finally agreeing it’s time to stop for a bombardino. Italy’s warm, creamy mountain drink seems to work anytime from around 10am on a ski holiday, but it can wait for one more run.
Artist’s impression of the Colletto Verde chairlift and its high-altitude connection. Image supplied by RARM Montgenèvre.
Err when?
The Chalvet and Fournéous gondolas are scheduled to open for the Christmas holidays in 2026. The Gimont–Colletto Verde chairlift is scheduled to open during winter 2026–27, with its exact opening date still to be confirmed.
The two gondolas represent a €32 million investment, which the resort describes as the largest in its history. Replacing the older installations also reduces the number of lift pylons across the project from 42 to 17.
For me, the appeal is simpler: less time getting cold on the way up, more time on the runs I keep coming back for.
I suspect I’ll still be saying “one more” rather a lot.
