Bad Gastein or Le Grand-Bornand: level at the door, not on the hill
The Ski Snug teamUpdated 12 October 20266 min read
On paper these two start level. Both villages are at 1,000 metres. Both have 37 percent of the piste we measure steeper than one in four, joint eighth of the 55 resorts we cover, against 26 at a typical resort we cover. We class both as traditional, both run December to April, and our matching puts each second on the other's list of closest resorts anywhere.
Above the village they part. Bad Gastein is a spa town of faded belle époque grandeur, with skiing that climbs a long way. Le Grand-Bornand is a rural, friendly farming village, quiet and family minded, with more green and blue and steeper reds. So the question is what kind of week you want, and how much the height of the skiing matters to you. The numbers first.
The numbers, side by side
| Figure | Bad Gastein | Le Grand-Bornand |
|---|---|---|
| Village altitude | 1,000 m | 1,000 m |
| Top of the skiing, measured | 2,644 m | 2,458 m at the top of a lift; the highest piste we measure is 2,362 m |
| Ski area and lift pass | Its own area is 83 km. Ski amadé pass, 760 km across five regions, not all joined | The Aravis, shared with La Clusaz; its size is not yet classified by us |
| Piste we measure around the village | 106.6 km | 85.4 km |
| Green and blue | 41 km blue and easier, 39% of the piste | 52 km, 61% of the piste, 17.4 km of it green |
| Black | 8.2 km | 11.3 km |
| Marked off piste itinerary | 1.5 km | None in our data |
| Piste steeper than one in four | 37% | 37% |
| Piste gentler than 15% | 29% | 32% |
| Piste at or above 1,800 m | 50% | 15% |
| Season | December to April | December to April |
| Nearest airport | Salzburg | Geneva |
The village and the steep share are level. Le Grand-Bornand takes the easy rows and the black. Bad Gastein takes the top and the share of piste above 1,800 metres, and that is the biggest gap on the table.
Altitude: level at the door, far apart on the hill
Bad Gastein's skiing tops out on piste, at 2,644 metres by our measurement, the fifth highest of the 13 Austrian resorts we cover. At Le Grand-Bornand the highest piste we measure is at 2,362 metres, 282 lower. There is a lift top at 2,458, but that is exactly La Clusaz's measured top too, so it may well be the same lift, and we would not rely on it.
The middle of the mountain is where the gap shows. Half the piste we measure at Bad Gastein sits above 1,799 metres; at Le Grand-Bornand, half sits above 1,482, 317 metres lower. At or above 1,800 metres the share is 50 percent at Bad Gastein and 15 percent at Le Grand-Bornand, joint 49th of the 55 resorts we cover. Above 2,000 metres it is 27 percent against 6.
Our snow sure test wants more than half the piste at or above 1,800 metres and skiing that reaches 2,500. Neither resort passes. Bad Gastein's top clears the 2,500 mark, and it falls short only because its share is half rather than more than half. Le Grand-Bornand is short on both. Nobody can promise snow at either, but if the winter is thin, more of Bad Gastein's piste sits well up the hill.
Size: close, once you count Bad Gastein's own area
We measure 106.6 kilometres of piste around Bad Gastein and 85.4 around Le Grand-Bornand. Bad Gastein's figure is more than its own area's 83 kilometres, so our measurement probably takes in some of the neighbouring skiing down the valley. On the 83, the two are close, with Le Grand-Bornand just the larger.
Beyond the home mountain, Bad Gastein's Ski amadé pass is quoted at 760 kilometres, across five regions that are not all joined; its own area is one of four separate areas down the valley. Le Grand-Bornand shares the Aravis with La Clusaz, an area we have not yet classified, so we quote no total for it.
41 km blue and easier 39%57 km red 54%8 km black 8%
52 km blue and easier 61%22 km red 26%11 km black 13%
Marked off piste itinerary, kept out of the piste totals: Bad Gastein 1.5 km.
Le Grand-Bornand has more at the easy end, and the green is properly mapped: 17.4 kilometres of green, within 52 kilometres of green and blue, 61 percent of the piste. Bad Gastein has 41 kilometres of blue and easier, 39 percent. But the blues run the other way. Le Grand-Bornand's average 17.4 percent, steeper than a typical French blue at 16.2; Bad Gastein's average 14.9, gentler than a typical Austrian blue at 16.4.
At the steep end, Le Grand-Bornand is sharper. Its reds average 28.1 percent, the third steepest of the 55 resorts we cover, against 24.3 for a typical French red. Its blacks average 34.3, the seventh steepest of the 55 resorts we cover, and there are 11.3 kilometres of them. Bad Gastein's reds average 25.0 percent, the fourth steepest of the 13 Austrian resorts we cover, its blacks 32.6, and it has 8.2 kilometres of black.
What Bad Gastein has is red mileage: 57.1 kilometres of it, 54 percent of the piste, against 21.8 at Le Grand-Bornand. It also has the only marked off piste itinerary of the two, a 1.5 kilometre route with 269 metres of vertical.
Who each one actually suits
Bad Gastein suits anyone who wants some grandeur with the skiing. The belle époque, the spa and the scenery are what it does best by our read, and we call it grand and characterful. On the hill it suits confident intermediates who want a week of reds, improvers on gentle blues, and anyone who would rather have more of the skiing high up. You fly to Salzburg.
Le Grand-Bornand suits families, which top its list, and people who want a quiet, authentic village. It suits a first week on skis best of all, with 17.4 kilometres of green, and strong skiers who like a steep red. You fly to Geneva.
The bit nobody tells you
Our own line on Le Grand-Bornand is a farming village that keeps things gentle. The village may, and the green runs do. The reds do not. Averaging 28.1 percent, they are the third steepest of the 55 resorts we cover, close to a typical French black at 29.6, and even the blues are steeper than a typical French blue.
So a family that moves up quickly will feel the step from green to red here. At Bad Gastein the first steps are kinder: blues averaging 14.9 percent, reds 25.0, and plenty of red to practise on. If your children are past the green runs, that matters more than the label.
So, which one
you want more of the skiing high on the hill, half of it at or above 1,800 metres against 15 percent, a lot of red, gentle blues for the improvers and a spa town to come back to. Also if Salzburg suits your flights.
it is a first week on skis and the green runs matter most, you want a quiet, rural village rather than a grand one, or your strongest skiers like a steep red. Also if Geneva is your airport.
The villages and the steep share are level, so the difference is what sits above them: 50 percent of the piste at or above 1,800 metres against 15, piste that reaches 282 metres higher, and kinder blues for anyone moving up. Le Grand-Bornand is the right answer for a quiet family week built around beginners on green runs.