Megève
Encyclopedia
Megève is a commune
Communes of France
The commune is the lowest level of administrative division in the French Republic. French communes are roughly equivalent to incorporated municipalities or villages in the United States or Gemeinden in Germany...

 in the Haute-Savoie
Haute-Savoie
Haute-Savoie is a French department in the Rhône-Alpes region of eastern France. It borders both Switzerland and Italy. The capital is Annecy. To the north is Lake Geneva and Switzerland; to the south and southeast are the Mont Blanc and Aravis mountain ranges and the French entrance to the Mont...

 department in the Rhône-Alpes
Rhône-Alpes
Rhône-Alpes is one of the 27 regions of France, located on the eastern border of the country, towards the south. The region was named after the Rhône River and the Alps mountain range. Its capital, Lyon, is the second-largest metropolitan area in France after Paris...

 region
Régions of France
France is divided into 27 administrative regions , 22 of which are in Metropolitan France, and five of which are overseas. Corsica is a territorial collectivity , but is considered a region in mainstream usage, and is even shown as such on the INSEE website...

 in south-eastern France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

.

Megève is a famous ski resort
Ski resort
A ski resort is a resort developed for skiing and other winter sports. In Europe a ski resort is a town or village in a ski area - a mountainous area, where there are ski trails and supporting services such as hotels and other accommodation, restaurants, equipment rental and a ski lift system...

 near the Mont-Blanc in the French Alps
French Alps
The French Alps are those portions of the Alps mountain range which stand within France, located in the Rhône-Alpes and Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur regions....

. Many consider it to be one of the most beautiful resorts in the world.

History

The town started its development as a ski resort in the 1910s when the Rothschild family
Rothschild banking family of France
The Rothschild banking family of France was founded in 1812 in Paris by James Mayer Rothschild . James was sent there from his home in Frankfurt, Germany by his father, Mayer Amschel Rothschild...

 started to spend their winter vacations there after becoming disenchanted with the Swiss resort: St. Moritz
St. Moritz
St. Moritz is a resort town in the Engadine valley in Switzerland. It is a municipality in the district of Maloja in the Swiss canton of Graubünden...

. In 1921, Baronne Noémie de Rothschild opened an important hotel which boosted the resort's development. By the 1950s Megève was one of the most popular ski resorts in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

 and attracted many wealthy individuals and celebrities. Nowadays it is still visited largely by affluent people as is made obvious by the real estate prices.

Winter sports

Megève's Alpine skiing
Alpine skiing
Alpine skiing is the sport of sliding down snow-covered hills on skis with fixed-heel bindings. Alpine skiing can be contrasted with skiing using free-heel bindings: Ski mountaineering and nordic skiing – such as cross-country; ski jumping; and Telemark. In competitive alpine skiing races four...

 area, known as the "Domaine Évasion Montblanc", comprises: Megève itself (Mont d'Arbois, Jaillet, Rochebrune and Côte 2000), Saint-Gervais-les-Bains
Saint-Gervais-les-Bains
Saint-Gervais-les-Bains is a commune in the Haute-Savoie department in the Rhône-Alpes region in south-eastern France.The village is best known for tourism, and has been a popular holiday destination because of its beauty and location since the Early 1900's....

, Combloux
Combloux
Combloux is a commune in the Haute-Savoie department in the Rhône-Alpes region in south-eastern France.It is a mountain village resort in the French Alps.-Geography:Combloux is located from Megève and from Chamonix-Mont-Blanc.-Features:...

, La Giettaz
La Giettaz
La Giettaz is a commune in the Savoie department in the Rhône-Alpes region in south-eastern France.-References:*...

, Les Contamines-Montjoie
Les Contamines-Montjoie
Les Contamines-Montjoie is a commune in the Haute-Savoie department in the Rhône-Alpes region in south-eastern France.-History:The history of Les Contamines :The name of the village originates from ancient local dialect...

 and Saint-Nicolas-de-Véroce. The "Evasion Mont-blanc" range covers approx 445 km and includes some of the best ski slopes in Europe.

On an area of 8 km² there are 111 lifts providing access to 219 slopes totalling 445 km.
  • The slopes are thus divided: (from hardest to easiest) 34 blacks, 82 reds, 65 blues and 38 greens. (See ski trail rating)
  • The lifts: 70 platter lift
    Platter lift
    A platter lift , platter pull or button lift is a surface lift, a mechanized system for pulling skiers and snowboarders uphill, along the surface of the slope. In Europe they are also known as Poma lifts...

    s, 31 chairlift
    Chairlift
    An elevated passenger ropeway, or chairlift, is a type of aerial lift, which consists of a continuously circulating steel cable loop strung between two end terminals and usually over intermediate towers, carrying a series of chairs...

    s and 10 gondola lift
    Gondola lift
    A gondola lift is a type of aerial lift, normally called a cable car, which is supported and propelled by cables from above. It consists of a loop of steel cable that is strung between two stations, sometimes over intermediate supporting towers. The cable is driven by a bullwheel in a terminal,...

    s and aerial tramway
    Aerial tramway
    An aerial tramway , cable car , ropeway or aerial tram is a type of aerial lift which uses one or two stationary ropes for support while a third moving rope provides propulsion...

    s.


In addition, the "Domaine Évasion Mont-Blanc" includes 18 cross-country skiing
Cross-country skiing
Cross-country skiing is a winter sport in which participants propel themselves across snow-covered terrain using skis and poles...

 trails totalling 95 km (59 mi.).

The first three World Junior Figure Skating Championships
World Junior Figure Skating Championships
The World Junior Figure Skating Championships is an annual figure skating competition sanctioned by the International Skating Union in which younger figure skaters compete for the title of World Junior Champion...

 were held in Megève in 1976, 1977, & 1978.

Megève was one of four Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

an World Cup
Alpine skiing World Cup
The FIS Alpine Ski World Cup is the top international circuit of alpine skiing competitions, launched in 1966 by a group of ski racing friends and experts which included French journalist Serge Lang and the alpine ski team directors from France and the USA...

 venues featured in the 1969
1969 in film
The year 1969 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* Last year for prize giving at the Venice Film Festival until it is revived in 1980...

 film Downhill Racer
Downhill Racer
Downhill Racer is a 1969 film and the first to be directed by Michael Ritchie. A drama about ski racing, it stars Robert Redford and Gene Hackman.Tagline: How fast must a man go to get from where he's at?-Plot:...

, starring Robert Redford
Robert Redford
Charles Robert Redford, Jr. , better known as Robert Redford, is an American actor, film director, producer, businessman, environmentalist, philanthropist, and founder of the Sundance Film Festival. He has received two Oscars: one in 1981 for directing Ordinary People, and one for Lifetime...

 and Gene Hackman
Gene Hackman
Eugene Allen "Gene" Hackman is an American actor and novelist.Nominated for five Academy Awards, winning two, Hackman has also won three Golden Globes and two BAFTAs in a career that spanned five decades. He first came to fame in 1967 with his performance as Buck Barrow in Bonnie and Clyde...

.

Other:
  • The "Megève Polo Masters" is an international polo
    Polo
    Polo is a team sport played on horseback in which the objective is to score goals against an opposing team. Sometimes called, "The Sport of Kings", it was highly popularized by the British. Players score by driving a small white plastic or wooden ball into the opposing team's goal using a...

     tournament played on snow.
  • The "Snow Golf Cup" is a unique golf
    Golf
    Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....

     tournament, held on snow on Megève's Mont d'Arbois plateau.

Summer sports

Megève is also a popular summer holiday destination especially renowned for its golf
Golf
Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....

ing opportunities.

Twin towns

Oberstdorf
Oberstdorf
Oberstdorf is a municipality and skiing and hiking town in southwest Germany, located in the Allgäu region of the Bavarian Alps.At the center of Oberstdorf is a church whose tall spire serves as a landmark for navigating around town. The summits of the Nebelhorn and Fellhorn provide...

 in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

 is since 1970 a twin town
Town twinning
Twin towns and sister cities are two of many terms used to describe the cooperative agreements between towns, cities, and even counties in geographically and politically distinct areas to promote cultural and commercial ties.- Terminology :...

 of Megève. It is also located in the mountains and famous for summer and winter holidays.

Media

Megeve is the ski resort in the beginning of the film Charade where Audrey Hepburn's Regina Lampert meets Cary Grant's character. It is also the name of one of the tracks by Henry Mancini on the film's soundtrack.

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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