Skiing: More is less in Les Deux Alpes Those advantages still apply, of course - though irritatingly, if you want to fly with BA or Swiss from the UK you'll have to go via Lyon - but in the decade since my last visit, Les Deux Alpes has undergone a makeover. A great deal of money has been spent cladding some of the uglier apartment buildings in wood, while the accommodation within has been renovated and enlarged. There are more mid-market hotels and restaurants, one of which, Le P'tit Polyte at the Chalet Mounier, even has a Michelin star. It's never going to have the charm of a traditional French village, but at least it looks more 'Alpine" these days, particularly when it's knee-deep in snow, as it is at the moment. Value for money, though, is still its USP. You know you're in a reasonably priced resort when you get change from a €5 note for a hot chocolate. In Les Deux Alpes, throw in another euro and you can have two. That hour's journey from Grenoble airport costs just €22/£18 return (see "Getting There," right). And while the lift pass, which gives access to 225km of pistes, 92 runs and 56 lifts, is not particularly cheap at €204/£169 for six days, it also entitles you to one free entry to the swimming pool or ice rink per day, two days in nearby Alpe d'Huez, Oz or Vaujany and one day in Serre Chevalier, Puy St Vincent, Montgenèvre Voie Lactée and Sestriere. Throw in a complimentary weekly workshop for freeriders, and you've got some of the best value in the French Alps. Accommodation is reasonable, too. The smartest hotel in town is the four-star Chalet Mounier, where doubles cost from €190/£160 per night. We are staying at the Souleil'Or - a plain but comfortable three-star hotel, with a small spa, where doubles are from €130/£109 per night, but you could lower your budget without ending up over a nightclub: the pretty, two-star Côte Brune would be my recommendation. With a great location, right at the bottom of the slopes, it costs from €104/£87 per night for two. This is not a resort for swanning from sun terrace to designer shop. The reason almost everybody comes here is to ski, which you can do on slopes either side of the village, but the glacier side, rising to 3,200m, offers the most choice of runs. It's a long, fairly narrow ski area and in general the higher you go, the gentler the slopes, with some easy runs on the glacier itself. It's one of the most family-friendly resorts in the Alps, with three snow parks: one for very young children, one for those aged 8-10 and a superb snow park that teenagers will enjoy. I found the classification of some of the runs a bit misleading: more than once a blue I was pottering along snarled into a red, while one red became more like a black. It's possible to ski back to the resort but as four out of the five runs down are blacks, most skiers play it safe and take the lift. But my favourite run is a vicious black called super diable (super devil). None of us attempt it, but from the sunny restaurant terrace below, we watch some inspiring skiing - and some spectacular wipeouts. It is here, too, that we learn our moonlight ski is off. So while we are super déçus, at least we have the spectacle of the super diable and a bubbling tartiflette to console us. The Jandri lift, which goes up to Toura at 2,600m, is very busy first thing in the morning. Either arrive promptly to get to the front of the queue or have a more leisurely breakfast and let the crowds get ahead of you. "Let's hit the Avalanche" could mean a trip to the Avalanche club on the main street or a session on the resort's avalanche simulator, the Robocoaster. Best to avoid confusing the two. EasyJet (0905 821 0905; easyjet.com) flies from Gatwick to Grenoble from £35.99 one way. Transfers from €22/£18 (grenoble.altitude.com). UK operators offering packages include Crystal (0871 231 2256; crystalski.co.uk), Neilson (0844 879 8155; neilson.co.uk) and Erna Low (0845 863 0525; ernalow.co.uk). Lift pass, €204/£169 for six days. Ski/boot hire from Chalvin Sports (chalvinsports.com), from €70/£59 for six days. Six three-hour group lessons with European Ski & Snowboard School (europeanskiandsnowboardschool.com), €160/£133 per person. Further information and details of the Soirées Plein Lune at les2alpes.com. Côte Brune ££ A charming, Alpine-style two-star with 18 rooms, including three family rooms, with a cosy bar and restaurant. Great location at the foot of the east slopes (0033 4 7680 5489; hotel-cotebrune.com; double b & b from £87). Le Souleil'Or £££ A simple three-star hotel with 42 chalet-style rooms, most with balconies. Quiet position just off the main street. Bathrooms are tiny but serviceable; there is also a small spa with hammam (4 7679 3469; le-souleil-or.fr; double b & b from £108). Chalet Mounier ££££ Chic and comfortable, this four-star in the resort's "old town" would surely be a five-star in other resorts. The main hotel restaurant is served by the same kitchen as the Michelin-star restaurant, so half board is a bargain (4 7680 5690; chalet-mounier.com; double b & b from £159). Le Cellier £ A traditional restaurant in former stables, with stone walls, tiled floors and an open fire; the terrace is a sun trap. Galettes from €10.50 (£8.80) are a speciality (14 avenue Henri Barbusse; 4 7679 0879). Le Raisin d'Ours £££ Chef Fabian Poirot - who runs this cosy restaurant with his wife - used to work at Le P'tit Polyte so expect Michelin-star standard food at reasonable prices. Entrées from around €24/£20 (98 avenue de la Muzelle; 4 7679 2956; leraisindours.fr). Le P'tit Polyte ££££ Michelin-star restaurant with a chic mountain theme, though the delicate gourmet cuisine is about as far from hefty mountain food as you can get. "Discover" menu from €56/£47 (see "Chalet Mounier," above).