Best ski resorts in the French Alps
The French Alps are the beating heart of European skiing: the biggest linked domains on earth, high-altitude snow you can count on, and a resort for every budget and level. Here are the ones worth the trip.
No mountain range packs in more world-class skiing than the French Alps. From the Tarentaise valley, where Val Thorens, Tignes, Val d'Isere, Les Arcs, La Plagne and the Three Valleys stack up altitude and piste kilometres, to the Mont Blanc massif around Chamonix and Megeve, this is where the sport goes big.
Altitude is the trump card. Val Thorens (Europe's highest village at 2300 m), Tignes and Val d'Isere sit high enough to hold cold, dry snow from late November into May, several plugged into a glacier for good measure. Lower down, Morzine, Avoriaz and the Portes du Soleil trade a little snow-sureness for tree-lined runs and cross-border charm.
Size is the other. The Three Valleys, Paradiski and the Espace Killy rank among the largest lift-linked areas in the world, so you can ski a week without repeating a run. Whatever your level, from a first green run to the couloirs of Chamonix, there is a French Alpine resort built for it.
Our picks
Val Thorens
French Alps
Tignes
French Alps
Val d'Isère
French Alps
Les Arcs
French Alps
Orelle
French Alps
Courchevel
French Alps
Les Menuires
French Alps
Les Deux Alpes
French Alps
Méribel
French Alps
La Plagne
French Alps
Chamonix
French Alps
Avoriaz
French Alps
Flaine
French Alps
Saint-Martin-de-Belleville
French Alps
Alpe d'Huez
French Alps
Montgenèvre
French Alps
La Rosière
French Alps
Peisey-Vallandry
French Alps
La Tania
French Alps
Montchavin-Les Coches
French Alps
Serre Chevalier
French Alps
Vaujany
French Alps
Valmorel
French Alps
Bonneval-sur-Arc
French Alps
Frequently asked questions
- Which French Alps resort has the most reliable snow?
- The high Tarentaise resorts, Val Thorens, Tignes and Val d'Isere, sit above 1800 m and hold snow from late November into May, several with glacier skiing on top.
- What is the biggest ski area in the French Alps?
- The Three Valleys, linking Val Thorens, Meribel, Courchevel, Les Menuires and Orelle, is the largest lift-linked ski area in the world, followed by Paradiski (Les Arcs and La Plagne).
- When is the French Alps ski season?
- Roughly early December to late April, with the high-altitude resorts opening in late November and closing in early May. Christmas and the February half-term are the busiest and priciest weeks.