A young Scottish skiing enthusiast has been found dead in a stream at a French Alpine resort after a night out.

Louis Robertson, 26, from Glasgow, is thought to have fallen in the freezing conditions as he tried to find his way in the dark after leaving a bar in La Plagne.

His body was found yesterday morning following a major search across the valley. He is said to have arrived at the resort on Sunday with two friends for a week's holiday.

Mr Roberston left Scotty's bar in the resort at around 11pm on Wednesday and went missing on his way back to his accommodation two-and-a-half miles away.

A resort official said: "It appears he wanted to take a short cut to save time but he wasn't able to find his way again."

But other reports said Mr Robertson had made contact with his girlfriend during the walk back to say he was helping someone push a car, while it was also suggested alcohol may have contributed to the accident, with suggestions he had been trying to find his way to another bar.

A police spokesman said: "It appears to have been an unfortunate accident. He wanted to take a short cut and, in the cold and dark, met his death."

He said "cold and too much alcohol" were probably factors in Mr Robertson getting lost and ending up in the stream.

Reports said the route he would have been walking was dark with no pavements, and that some stretches of the road had sheer drops with no barriers.

It was also snowing quite heavily on the evening he went missing.

A missing persons alert was issued on Thursday at 4pm, although a search was postponed until yesterday due to heavy snow.

Inquiries by French police were continuing last night.

La Plagne ski area is in the Tarentaise Valley in the heart of the Alps, located in the Savoy region. The area is hugely popular with young skiers and snowboarders.

There have been previous warnings about the dangers of holidaymakers drinking too much. Last year a holiday representative died after he crashed while skiing in nearby Val D'Isere while under the influence of alcohol.

In 2009, British ambassador to France Sir Peter Westmacott said: "Over the past years, we've noticed a rise in accidents in resorts linked to alcohol consumption, particularly accidents on the slopes, mostly among young people.

"We are telling our compatriots to be careful. When you consume too much alcohol at an altitude and it's cold, the danger is greater."

A Foreign Office spokesman said: "We are aware of the death of a British national in France. We are providing consular assistance to the family at this difficult time."

A spokeswoman for the resort said: "It would seem he had left one bar to go to another and was trying to take a short cut through the snow.

"In his state of drunkenness and cold, he could not climb back up to the main road."