Sign up and receive fun family activity ideas, recipes, wellness tips. You will also be informed of our latest promotions and news
Stay updatedFrance is without doubt a popular destination for skiers. Whether you are looking for a mega resort with miles of pistes or a cosy little village with Alpine charm, France really does offer something for everyone.
Fresh croissants and baguettes to start the day, cheese fondue and vin chaud for apres-ski – skiing in France is about the finer things in life, so it is no wonder skiers from all over the world flood to the French Alps year after year.
So why is it so popular? What is the appeal of a French ski resort? Is it because the French Alps offer so much variety?
With both the Pyrenees and the mighty Alps to choose from there are no shortage of options when it comes to Ski resorts in France. Some of the most popular destinations include the highest at Chamonix on top of Mont Blanc and the location of the very first Winter Olympics. Val d'Isere is classy ski holidays personified and a place to go to be seen in your best designer goggles. La Rosiere is small and intimate but beautifully set in the midst of the Savoie valley. Les Menuires does everything well and can offer good value for families. However, we have chosen the ski resorts in France we think are simply unbeatable based on a number of criteria.
The top reason for choosing a ski resort, quoted in the Ski Club research, is guaranteed snow, followed by the size of the ski area, how busy the slopes are, price and quality of accommodation. All of which France’s skiing destinations offer in buckets.
Chris Gill, editor of the new guidebook Where To Ski In France (and former co-editor of Where to Ski and Snowboard, known as “The Skier’s Bible”) agrees: “The appeal of France remains essentially unchanged: big ski areas (including the world’s biggest) at high altitude, where you can expect or at least hope for good snow conditions, and plenty of resort villages with ski in/ski out lodgings.”
There have been many changes to the mega-resorts that were once stark, uninteresting villages set high in the mountains. Val Thorens is one case in point, where huge improvements have been made to the buildings in recent years and the centre (and sports centre) is due for redevelopment.
“Many purpose-built resorts have been improved in atmosphere and appearance over the last decade or three, partly by expanding them in a more appealing style and partly by retro-fitting traditional elements such as pitched roofs and stone/wood cladding,” adds Chris.
French ski destinations constantly keep ahead of the curve, offering impressive facilities and slopes for all levels of skiers and snowboarders, whether you are a first-timer looking for easy-access nursery slopes or a seasoned pro wanting challenging black runs and off-piste.
French ski resorts are constantly updating their infrastructure – new faster, covered lifts, more snow cannons to guarantee good snow conditions all season long, and updating restaurants, hotels and bars as well as family facilities. For example Val d’Isere recently opened the new family-friendly area and base at the top of Solaise, and Les Arcs opened the Mille8 leisure area with tubing, sledging, a restaurant and specific beginner facilities.
Although Austria and Switzerland are lively, France truly wears the crown when it comes to après-ski activities – whether you’re looking for sledging, tubing, sleigh or husky rides, ski-joring or hard partying. There is always going to be at least one or two throbbing bars in most French ski resorts, and some have more than a few! The Folie Douce chain now has open-air nightclubs that get going at lunchtime up in the mountains across Meribel-Courchevel, Val Thorens, Megeve-Saint Gervais, and Alpe d’Huez.
France offers such a huge variety of ski resorts, says Cat Weakley, deputy ski editor at The Telegraph (UK), who part-owns a chalet in Sainte-Foy, a small ski resort close to Val d’Isere in the Tarentaise Valley. “France is justifiably loved and popular for its snow-sure high altitude resorts and huge ski areas – Val d'Isere, Courchevel, Meribel, Les Arcs to name a few – where it's possible to stay for a week and barely go on the same run twice. But what really makes it special for me is the variety of its ski resorts. Even within the big ski areas there are lower altitude traditional villages that make atmospheric places to stay where smaller, traditional bases can be found.”
Examples include St Martin de Belleville in the Three Valleys (incorporating Val Thorens, Meribel and Courchevel, with 600km of pistes), Peisey-Vallandry in the Paradiski (incorporating La Plagne and Les Arcs and 425km of pistes) or Chatel in the Portes du Soleil.
Cat continues: “And for those that want to strike out, so many smaller, lesser-known ski resorts exist where there's a taste of real rural France to be found in their base villages, with farms to visit and cheese to see being made. Plus, I usually find there’s less competition for first tracks off-piste!” These include ski areas such as Serre-Chevalier, Valloire or Valmorel in the Maurienne Valley. Club Med offers a huge range of all-inclusive resorts in the French Alps, bringing you the best of the snow and all-inclusive luxury.
Have you considered chalet life for your next ski holiday in France? There is something special about having your own cabin with a roaring fire, room to stretch out and often almost immediate access to the slopes.
At Club Med, we add extra luxury to that special experience with chalets suitable for everyone from couples to large families. Not only will you enjoy authentic mountain life but you will also have access to every all-inclusive luxury enjoyed by those who stay in the hotel as well as being able to choose to have meals prepared in your chalet or hiring your own personal butler. Libraries, jacuzzis and all mod cons are also available. Find out more about how you could enjoy your ski holiday in France with the added pleasure of chalet living and everything you need to know about ski chalet holidays here.
When planning long days on the slopes, you want to be looked after one you are relaxing without your skis on. An all-inclusive ski holiday means everything is taken care of including transport and accomodation. With Club Med, ski passes are already registered, lessons are included, Kids Clubs are free and you’ll be able to enjoy delicious food and pure pleasure in our spas and swimming pools. All-inclusive can make a brilliant ski holiday even more magical so find out more and try it for yourself.
