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France

France is a popular ski destination for the UK skier, with 1 in 3 skiers from the UK travelling to France for their annual dose of snow.  It’s easy to see why – 800km of pistes and over 300 resorts with high altitude, guaranteed snow, a variety of mountains and efficient lift networks.

Austria has better nightlife, Switzerland has more charm and Italy has great mountain restaurants, but France is an all rounder in our opinion with something for everyone.  It has four large linked ski areas; Three Valleys, Espace Killy, Paradski and the Portes de Soleil, with Chamonix and La Grave for the off piste delights.

France can be split into three main ski resort areas; the Northern Alps with the resorts of Portes de Soleil, which has 14 major resorts from Mont Blanc in France to Lake Geneva in Switzerland. Of the resorts Avoriaz is best for guaranteed snow as many of the others are at lower altitude, which is also very popular with snowboarders.  The second area is the Tarentaise Valley; this are is known for its ski resorts and encompasses the three major areas of Three Valleys, Espace Killy and Paradski.  This includes  all the popular resorts of Tignes, Val d’Isere, Meribel, Les Arcs and many others.  The main train station is Bourg-Saint-Maurice, which is just below Les Arcs.  Thirdly, there is a cluster of resorts around Chamonix, in the Rhône-Alpes region in south-eastern France.  Chamonix consists of 16 villages and hamlets which unlike many French resorts have a traditional and historic charm to them.

The Southern Alps and north of the Col de Lautaret dividing the north and south contain the lively resort of Les Deux Alpes, large family resort of Alpe d’Huez and the non-piste adventurous resort of La Grave.

Top ski resorts in France

Tignes

Beginners ✻ ✻ ✻
Intermediates ✻ ✻ ✻ ✻ ✻
Experts ✻ ✻ ✻ ✻ ✻
Snowboarding ✻ ✻ ✻ ✻ ✻
Après Ski ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪

✔ Experts

✔ Snowboarders

Les Arcs

Beginners ✻ ✻ ✻ ✻ ✻
Intermediates ✻ ✻ ✻ ✻
Experts ✻ ✻ ✻ ✻
Snowboarding ✻ ✻ ✻ ✻ ✻
Après Ski ♪ ♪

✔ Beginners

✔ Families

Chamonix

Beginners ✻ ✻ ✻
Intermediates ✻ ✻ ✻ ✻
Experts ✻ ✻ ✻ ✻
Snowboarding ✻ ✻ ✻ ✻ ✻
Après Ski ♪♪♪♪

✔ Lively

✔ Experts

Val d’Isere

Beginners ✻ ✻ ✻
Intermediates ✻ ✻ ✻ ✻ ✻
Experts ✻ ✻ ✻ ✻ ✻
Snowboarding ✻ ✻ ✻ ✻ ✻
Après Ski ♪♪♪♪♪

✔ Lively

✔ Experts

Alpe d’Heuz

Beginners ✻ ✻ ✻ ✻
Intermediates ✻ ✻ ✻ ✻ ✻
Experts ✻ ✻ ✻ ✻
Snowboarding ✻ ✻ ✻ ✻ ✻
Après Ski ♪♪♪♪

✔ Families

✔ Beginners

Megeve

Beginners ✻ ✻ ✻
Intermediates ✻ ✻
Experts ✻ ✻ ✻ ✻
Snowboarding ✻ ✻ ✻
Après Ski ♪♪♪♪♪

✔ Lively

✔ Beginners

France Ski holidays

 

Airports in France for skiing

Use our ski resort guide for ski resorts near Geneva, ski resorts near Chambery.

Travelling to France by coach