Perfect skiing destination 2017: Winging it gives you a lift in Val Thorens

I would usually blame my awkward skiing technique for this but for once, my stance is okay and my turns are smooth. Only my outfit, a bizarre, bright orange and white cape, fastened with straps around my neck, wrists and ankles, is worth a second glance.

I’m in the French resort of Val Thorens and I’ve been persuaded to try out “wing jumping”, a new ski fad that promises to help expert skiers leap longer and higher.

The idea is that as you speed downwards, the wingsuit billows out behind you like a miniature parachute, lifting your weight upwards. I am feeling a little like a superhero.

Its makers say the fibre cloak reduces a skier’s effective weight by 30 per cent and helps them jump 50 per cent further.

However, the real object is not to get experts airborne but to help teetering learners improve, boosting stability by supporting their weight. After a two-hour trial, I can vouch for the suit’s credentials. My Superman-style cape gave me the power to zig-zag gracefully down blue and red runs on perfectly parallel skis.

My balance improved so much that I could glide along, standing, crouching, tilting left or right, shifting weight and changing direction without losing control. It is this season’s newest and most coveted piece of kit and comes in three designs, from beginners to advanced.

Another new trend, monoskiing, is attempting to replace two slender skis with a single one, thick enough to accommodate both feet. 

However, those with modest talents like myself, should possibly pass on this, if only to avoid writhing around in the snow after a fall. It is no wonder Val Thorens sees itself as forward-thinking and funky. And after being crowned Best Ski Resort in the World for the third time in four years, it has a point.

Located at the tip of France’s “Les Trois Vallées” skiing wonderland, the town has extraordinary views in every direction.

Because it is Europe’s highest resort, with pistes stretching above 10,500ft, it offers plenty of snow from November to May. But quality also comes in quantity and variety. Val Thorens has 82 ski runs – 11 green, 33 blue, 29 red and nine black – which cover an impressive 90 miles. Since it is part of the “Trois”, you can ski to neighbouring Meribel and Courchevel, giving you 400 miles of slopes to explore.

Novelties include the newly revamped snowpark with ramps, jumps and obstacles to suit all, a four-mile toboggan run and a zipwire ride from the top of a chair lift.

The resort’s magnates pride themselves on being pioneers and a £700million 10-year plan is throwing up big new developments

Among six top hotels to open in as many years is the four-star Fahrenheit Seven where I’m staying. Like most new ventures, it has gone for a slick, modern, metropolitan style over the traditional, rustic feel of many ski hotels.

You won’t find stuffed marmots or cow bells, just minimalist décor dotted with quirky reminders of Val Thorens’ 1970s beginnings. There are mustard-coloured retro table telephones and standard lamps in the rooms and its matt walls are hung with black-and-white snaps of skiing stars from 40 years ago.

Convenience being the watchword, Fahrenheit Seven has its own ski shop, with ski-in, ski-out access to the slopes and a handy little bar next to the locker rooms.

It boasts a wonderful sun terrace where you can sip on a beer or a creamy coffee as you gaze out onto the glistening slopes.

Comfy sofas welcome you back to a hip, spotlit bar following a hard day’s skiing – and if the aches and pains linger on there is a spa with a full pampering menu.

Its restaurant, La Rotisserie, has trendy young things in denim, flat caps and yellow dickie bows serving up international and traditional cuisine.

Nearby, Hotel Pashmina Le Refuge does five-star sophistication with quirky tributes to its mountain heritage including wooden sleds that double as coffee tables.

Main courses at its two restaurants, Le Base Camp and Les Explorateurs, range from Arctic Char with Nori seaweed to Asian risotto with coconut milk. But you don’t have to leave the slopes to enjoy fine dining. La Folie Douce does gourmet food 8,500ft up at the top of a red run.

With mains starting at £18, prices are reasonable. I dined al fresco under a scorching sun – yes, even in November – on a delicious trout fillet with ravioli and fennel.

For those keen to get back to the snow the restaurant has opened a takeaway truck, the Food Ratrack, alongside the main building, which does suitably posh burgers.

Elsewhere on the slopes Jean Sulpice is – at 7,500ft – the highest Michelin-star restaurant in Europe, its fixed menus starting at £73 for fancy dishes like John Dory and Guinea fowl. M Sulpice, an ambitious young French chef, stresses the relaxed feel to his establishment, inviting diners to “lunch in your ski attire” with a pair of borrowed “comfy slippers”.

Fair enough! But to avoid nasty accidents, I’d recommend leaving the wingsuit at the door.

THE KNOWLEDGE

Inghams (01483 791 114/inghams.co.uk) offers seven nights in Val Thorens from £1,649pp (two sharing), half board.

Price includes accommodation at the Hotel Fahrenheit Seven and return flights from London Gatwick to Chambery and transfers.

Val Thorens tourism: valthorens.com