Be it hammering down heart-thumping blacks in the ice-blue shadow of Mont Blanc, ski-touring beneath glistening saw-chiseled peaks or tree skiing through picture-book forests, France sports an unrivaled variety of skiing – for all abilities, styles and budgets.
The winter ski season in the blockbuster French Alps, quieter Pyrenees and low-key Jura Mountains typically runs from mid-December to April. The highest-altitude alpine resorts, such as Val Thorens (Europe’s highest, crowned World’s Best Ski Resort for the 8th time in 11 years at the 2023 World Ski Awards), Tignes and Les Deux Alpes, are the first to open in mid-to-late November, depending on snowfall. Limited downhill skiing on glaciers above 3,000m (9,842ft) in Tignes and Les Deux Alpes guarantees a corduroy fix for a few gold-dust weeks from mid-June until sometime in early August; each year, warmer temperatures and glacial melt shave more days off the already disconcertingly short summer ski season.
Christmas, New Year and February school holidays are peak season: expect sky-high transport and accommodation prices, packed bars and restaurants and queues for ski lifts. Book months in advance to bag your choice of place (old-world alpine hamlet, car-free village, purpose-built resort) and bolt-hole (mountain hut with bunks, family-run hotel, self-catering chalet, luxury cocoon with hot tub and soul-soaring, snowy-peak view).
To reduce carbon, train it to the French Alps and use public transport or local car-sharing services like BlaBlaCar or Morzine Co-Voiturage for the final leg from station to snow. From the UK, ride the overnight snow train TravelSki Express via Lille to Bourg St-Maurice; hop aboard the once-weekly Eurostar Snow Train to Lille and beyond to Chambéry, Albertville, Moûtiers, Brides-les-Bains, Aime-la-Plagne and Bourg-St-Maurice. Or simply pair a regular Eurostar train to Paris or Lille with SNCF TGVs and regional trains. For anyone contemplating trail travel to the Alps, Snowcarbon is the definitive rail planner.
A resort’s ecological footprint is increasingly vital to skiers. Green-thinking Morzine-Avoriaz hits the spot with renewable energy-powered catered-chalet accommodation with Alikats (ingeniously, single room bookings in shared chalets are also available), electric-vehicle transfers and car-sharing, zero-waste initiatives and plant-based dining. Skiers can rent ski clothing in Morzine from Crevasse Clothing, savor artisan cuisine showcasing local produce at Avoriaz’s cool hotel-restaurant hangout MiL8, or tuck into mountain-foraged feasts cooked by private forager-chef Blossom & Weeds. Snow days open with zero-waste coffee roasted in the valley by Cafés Vorlaz and end guzzling craft beer with local eco-riders at
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With mixed amounts of snow across Europe's ski slopes the week before Christmas and with ever decreasing amounts of expected snow, many resorts are pushing for greater climate action and alternative ways to find income, particularly as artificial snow isn't the panacea it was once thought to be.
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