Châtel Bikepark MTB Guide: Vink Line, Lifts & Portes du Soleil

Châtel sits on the French side of the Portes du Soleil, twenty minutes from the Swiss border. Its bikepark at Pré-la-Joux is built around a hand-shaped jump line by Nico Vink and twenty graded descents off two chairlifts.

By the IMPT Travel desk · Published 2026-05-30

The first thing a rider notices stepping off the Pierre Longue chairlift at Pré-la-Joux is the soundtrack: the metallic clack of rear hubs above the treeline and, further down the hill, the dull thump of tyres landing on shaped dirt. Châtel sits at 1,200 metres in the Chablais Alps of Haute-Savoie, twenty minutes from the Swiss border, and its bikepark has spent the past decade quietly becoming one of the most respected jump-trail destinations in Europe. Twenty graded descents drop off two chairlifts into the Plaine Dranse valley, with the wider Portes du Soleil network — twelve linked resorts, twenty-two summer lifts, around 600 kilometres of marked trail — opening up from the same lift pass.

The signature trail: Nico Vink's line

Most riders come for one trail. The Vink Line, shaped by Belgian freerider Nico Vink and his Ride Creations team, runs the length of the bikepark in three stacked sections. The upper section is rated black and reserved for confident jumpers — long tables, deep berms, and a rhythm that rewards commitment rather than brakes. The middle is red, the lower section blue, and a parallel green variant lets less-experienced riders roll the same shapes. It is rare to find a sanctioned public trail with this much air time built into it, which is why Vincent Tupin and a steady stream of pro POV edits keep returning here.

Beyond the Vink Line, the park's character runs harder than its marketing suggests. Air Voltage, Black Shore, Coup d'Fouet and Dré dans l'Pentu are all rated very difficult — steep, loamy and root-laced in the upper woods. Eterlou, Haute Tension and Vorachatak sit a notch easier on red, and Fluid, Panoramic and Serpentine give intermediates flowing blues to build on. Two slopestyle zones (one pro-spec, one amateur), a shore zone for younger riders and a pump track round out the lift-served terrain.

How the bikepark is structured

The lift-served zone sits entirely at Pré-la-Joux, a seven-kilometre drive from the village centre. Two chairlifts — Pierre Longue and Les Rochassons — service the descents and load bikes in vertical racks. A free bike wash sits at the base between the ticket office and the Pierre Longue loading station. Beyond the park, Châtel claims around 90 kilometres of marked mountain bike itineraries across the wider commune, mixing forest road, singletrack and cross-country loops graded for tour riding rather than pure descent.

The Portes du Soleil pass extends the riding considerably. From the top of the Linga lift, riders can transit toward Avoriaz and Morzine on the French side, or drop into Champéry, Les Crosets and Morgins in Switzerland. Châtel itself has hosted the UCI Enduro World Cup, including the inaugural E-Enduro round, and stages the freeride contest Châtel Mountain Style. The French DHI Championships are scheduled at the park in early September 2026.

Getting there without a car

Châtel is one of the more accessible Alpine bikeparks for travellers willing to swap a hire car for the train. The nearest railway station is Thonon-les-Bains, around 45 minutes north by road. From Geneva Airport, the Léman Express runs to Thonon in roughly two hours with one change at Genève or Chêne-Bourg. Altibus line 12 connects Thonon's Pôle des Arts bus station to Châtel village throughout the summer season. Door-to-lift travel from a UK or central-European train hub is realistic in a single day, and arrives within walking distance of the village shuttle stop that runs out to Pré-la-Joux.

When to ride: season and conditions

The lift season is short and worth planning around. In 2026 the park runs pre-opening weekends on 13–14 June and 19–21 June, then opens daily from 26 June through 13 September. Friday evenings between 10 July and 21 August carry extended hours, with Pierre Longue spinning until 19:15 for after-work laps. The Portes du Soleil cross-border lift links open from 26 June.

• Late June and early July: trails are at their freshest, weekday lift queues short, alpine wildflowers still in.
• Mid-July to mid-August: peak crowds, peak heat, peak event calendar — book accommodation early.
• Late August to mid-September: cooler temperatures, drier dirt, and the season's most consistent grip; arguably the best window for riders chasing the Vink Line at speed.

Staying in the village

Châtel itself is a working farming village rather than a purpose-built ski station, which keeps prices and atmosphere a notch more honest than its neighbours. Most riders base themselves either in the village centre — close to bike shops, restaurants and the free shuttle — or up at Pré-la-Joux for ski-in-style access to the lifts. Chalets and small hotels dominate the inventory; a handful of dedicated bike lodges run weekly packages with shuttles, guiding and uplift to Morzine and Les Gets on rest days. For travellers weighing footprint against laps, the rail-and-bus route from Geneva carries a meaningfully smaller carbon load than driving from northern Europe, and the village's compact layout makes a car genuinely unnecessary for the duration of a stay.

A full run down Nico Vink's signature jump line at Châtel — the bikepark's calling card and the reason most riders book the trip.