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For: A metropolitan take on the mountains
This French resort’s après scene is as vast and varied as its terrain—and a magnet for serious skiers who are led by guides on epic backcountry adventures. Mountain restaurant menus are geared towards thigh-busting skiing, with hearty fondue and tartiflettes. Chamonix’s après can lift to party levels by 3 p.m., and La Folie Douce is for high altitude cabaret on the lower green’s Brevent run.
Skiers energized after a full day on the slopes spill onto Marmottons’s terrace (at the very bottom of the Argentière home run) for panachés and indie performers. At the north end of town, Chambre Neuf is the classic hangout, where cool beer and live music coalesce in sticky, sweaty rapture—often on tables with chanting. Just opposite, ski guides and real-deal mountaineers debrief the day’s adventures at brasserie-style Elevation 1904, which also switches into bar mode, much like L’Alibi in the town center, whose laid-back tapas, wine, and whisky scene drags on (happily) until two in the morning.
Peering over the river, La Terrasse is a pink deco building synonymous with Chamonix’s après, a live music hot spot for skiers, many of them British. Meanwhile, most of L’Amnesia‘s clientele have skied home to power nap and spruce up for a long night of international DJs, cocktail rounds, and scantily-clad performances.
Where to stay in Chamonix, France:
