Alpe d'Huez Apres Ski Report: 21st April 2011

There seem to be more bars and cafes open in Alpe d'Huez at present then there are people, but that isn't to say the atmosphere around town is any worse for it.

Last Thursday was the closing party of the resort's Irish bar, O'Sharkeys. Resort favourites John and Morse played the music and rolled out all of their classics. There was drinking long into the night before everyone made the trip down to the Igloo discothèque.

As most of the tour operators said goodbye to their guests last weekend, the late night atmosphere has been a mixture of excitement and relief as the chalet hosts and hotel workers have been able to let their hair down and not had to worry about early wakeups to make breakfasts and clean rooms.

Sunday was my day off, so I decided to take in a few venues that I haven't had time to frequent too often. I began my evening at Sphere bar to meet the rest of “Sunday Club” and for a quick game of one of my favourite bar pastimes – Babyfoot. After comprehensively beating Jack and making him drink a nasty shot as a forfeit we headed round the corner to the Dahu Grill for some dinner. I haven't been there this season yet, mainly because it is uphill from my flat, but I do know the owner quite well. Rudolph is possibly one the most famous residents of Alpe d'Huez due to his big personality, practical jokes and also because he is the captain of this years 5-a-side championship winning team Olympique Huez. We got a very warm welcome on our arrival and the atmosphere inside was buzzing with a group of about 20 French people celebrating something or other, but fortunately we were in no mood for a sedate evening and promptly ordered a nice bottle of red wine to join in the festivities. When in Rome!

Being in the French mood I opted for the escargots to start or as you may know them better snails. They came in a nice garlic sauce and served in their shells. If you haven't tried them before I can strongly recommend it, they look a lot less creepy once cooked and are quite delicious. For main course I went for a steak cooked ‘Dahu' style, normally I'd go for it cooked rare, but being in a French restaurant, I asked for medium-rare. I'm no food connoisseur, and the limits of my culinary skills don't go much further then an omelette, but I can say one thing in confidence. It was perfect.

After a humongous profiterole desert and another bottle of red wine between the three of us we retired to the bar for some of Rudi's home made Genepi and bid him farewell to head off into the Alpe d'Huez night. The Dahu Grill gets big thumbs up from me, and I don't hesitate in recommending it.

We'd decided to end our evening at The Underground where John & Morse were playing but on route we stopped off at the Fun Café to decide who was buying the first drinks. We tried to out-dance a computer and then took the basketball challenge to find out that we were all useless, but fortunately for me, Jack was the most useless.

We popped upstairs into Le Sporting for a quick very overpriced demi (15 euros for three half-lagers) and then headed to our destination.

The boys provided played a brilliant set and the slammers flowed freely as the night descended into chaos and I went home thoroughly prepared for the inevitable hangover.

Monday was the Underground closing party which every year goes down in Alpe d'Huez' folklore as one of the biggest parties of the season, however with my fuzzy head still ranging from the night before I took one for the team and held down the Smithy's fort so my colleagues could go and enjoy themselves. The Fat City Rockers as always were the band up for the challenge of playing the party and I wish I could post some photos from the night, but if anyone was foolish enough to take a camera into the bar, it certainly won't be working anymore as the night spiralled into a water fight.

So that is it for the Après reports this year, there has been plenty of good times and I'm sure my memory has missed a few. Alpe d'Huez remains the party capital of the Southern Alps and I'm sure next year will be even bigger. We have hundreds of bars, clubs, restaurants and activities in this great resort and I wish I had time to try them all.

My thanks go out to all the crazy characters I have met along the way, and everyone who has made my season.

Remember, we were not here for a long time; we were here for a good time!

Pete

Editor's note: So, that's it for winter 2010/2011 then! We hope you've enjoyed reading our reports as much as we've enjoyed writing them and we look forward to bringing you more up-to-date info next season.

You can read all of our reports from this season and previous ones by using the “Archived Reports” box in the top right-hand corner. In the meantime, be sure to check back during the summer as we will be bringing you occasional updates on local events and activities.

Alpedhueznet.com is one of the Skinets.com ski resort websites; we are looking for enthusiastic and reliable reporters who will be in the Alps all season to produce written reports and/or present video reports. If you are planning on spending next winter in one of the following resorts and are interested in working for us please send an email to alison@skinets.com.

Alpe d'Huez – Avoriaz – Chamonix – Courchevel - La Plagne - Les Arcs - Les 2 Alpes – Meribel – Morzine – Tignes - Val d'Isere - Val Thorens - Verbier

For a full list of this week's events, check out our What's On Calendar. You can also find full Bar and Restaurant listings in the Dining and Going Out section of the site.