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Stay Safe on your Trip to Alpe d'Huez

Some words of advice and tips to take note of while you're in Alpe d'Huez

featured in News & reviews Author Ellie Mahoney, Alpe d'Huez Editor Updated

Due to a number of different incidents that have already happened across the Alps this winter, we thought it would be a good idea to share some tips with you to help you stay safe and enjoy your time in Alpe d'Huez. 

Some of these suggestions will be second nature to a lot of you, but it's worth reiterating some basic safety advice both on and off the mountain.

Off the slopes, back in resort

  • Make sure you stay together and go home together, don't let anyone in your party head home alone, especially when drunk
  • Don't leave drinks unattended
  • Don't carry excess cash on you
  • Make sure friends don't wander off into the night alone and become lost, especially not without a jacket suitable to the weather conditions
  • Check that people have arrived home safely - send a text or call
  • Keep your jackets and personal possessions within view wherever possible
  • Report any suspicious activity to the Gendarmerie as soon as possible (the more information they have the better they can deal with the situation) - Call 17 from any phone, 112 for emergency services or 15 for ambulances and emergency medical care.

On the mountain & On the pistes

  • Don't drink and ski or snowboard
  • Never go off piste by yourself
  • Always carry a phone with you, and make sure the battery is charged
  • If you are going off piste, make use you have a transceiver, shovel, probe & most importantly know how to use them
  • Watch your speed and don't ski or snowboard too close together
  • Always make sure at least one other person knows your plans, where you intend to go and what time you intend to come back, or if you change your plans part way through the day
  • If you're heading onto a glacier wear a harness and have the correct safety equipment with you, or go with a guiding company who will lend you the necessary equipment (and know how to use them)
  • Make sure you have adequate insurance for the activities you intend to take part in
  • Wear a helmet wherever possible
  • Adapt your speed and behaviour to suit your personal abilities as well as the general ground and weather conditions, the state of the snow and the density of the traffic
  • After stopping, or where pistes cross, make sure to look uphill and downhill, checking that you can start off without endangering yourself or others
  • Avoid standing or sitting in passages which are narrow or where there is no visibility, don't stay in the lading zone of a kicker or park feature; in the event of a fall, you must get off the piste as quickly as possible (if you're able to)
  • Pedestrians must use the edge of the piste, taking care that neither they nor their equipment are a danger to others
  • Take notice of information about weather conditions and about the state of the pistes and snow. Respect all markings, barriers and signs
  • Anyone witnessing or involved in an accident must give assistance in the first instance by raising the alarm. If need be, and at the request of the first-aid people, put yourself at their disposal