The ski station of le Grand Puy near to Gap may not be that well known but the mountains opposite are the site of the German Wings tragedy in 2015. They had been planning to open on the 21st December. Located on the North-East side of the Grand Puy mountain the bottom of the 24km of ski runs are at 1375 meters altitude. Not a bad site for a small, family ski area where a day's skiing would set an adult back a modest 21 €.
Le Grand Puy, mid February 2024
A local referendum held on the 6th October voted by a majority of 71.3% to close the station from the 1st of November 2024. The ski area has cost the local community 2 million € over the last 8 years and lost 350 K€ last season. Turnover is down 60%. The mayor felt it was better to make the decision sooner and on their own terms rather than be forced into drastic action in a few years time.
The turnout was nearly 58%, enough to make the referendum binding. The ski lifts were upgraded in 2016 including a new four seater chair at a cost of 3.3 M€. The local council hopes to sell the lift infrastructure for around 1.6 M€ although opinions are divided about whether this is realistic. The Grand Puy is the oldest ski area in the region having started operations in 1959.
=== Update ===
The small ski arear of Notre Dame du Pre near la Plagne will also not open this winter due to the costs of running the lifts. We passed through the area last Christmas and it was running but with limited snow at 1350 meters.