YOUNG, FUN BUT LITTLE THAT IS STYLISH

Dick's Tea-Bar, which has been replicated in several other ski resorts, is still going strong and has been redecorated. Out went the old airport lounge style and in came a rustic alpine feel. It functions as a bar during the early part of the evening and is still the most popular nightclub/disco in town (with admission charge) later at night. Across the road is the recently remodelled Cafe Face, a lively lounge-style cocktail bar that is always packed and where the popular transvestite Kelly often presides, singing live as he/she wanders around the room. La Belle Etoile (the co-owner also runs Piggys and Le Tremplin in Courchevel) is a quieter bar for an aperitif or digestif, often with live music.

Of the hotel bars open to the public, by far the finest is the Blizzard bar, presided over by the suave tartan-clad French barman David, who’s the sort of guy who can remember what kind of gin you like from one season to the next. The bar of the Savoyarde has lately been extended and redecorated. Its lounge-style atmosphere makes it a good venue for aperitifs and late-night drinks. There is also a very small dancefloor. The Tsanteleina has a new bar trying to rival its neighbour, the Blizzard and Jack is the bar of the Aigle des Neiges with a very French take on music, perhaps not to everyone's taste. It also serves imaginative tapas.

The Club 21 disco/nightclub is now closed, but Bananas is a basic fun, good-value drinking place for the young, presided over by beaming ski instructor Ricky Girault and his cool manager Hammid. The Pacific Bar is a cavernous underground space that is very popular with young Brits, but be warned that this establishment and others in Val require to see proof of age before allowing admission. The legal age for drinking in France is 18.

Other popular spots with the young are Le Petit Danois or Victor's as well as the Saloon Bar at the Hotel Brussels. The Moris Pub can have good live music - check the listings.

Two other late night spots are Le Graal or the newer, MBC Bar and Club , next to Dick's.