Chamonix-Mont-Blanc, more commonly known simply as Chamonix (Chamôni), is a commune in the Haute-Savoie department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in Southeastern France. It was the site of the first Winter Olympics, held in 1924. In 2020, it had a population of 8,644.
Les Portes du Soleil is a major skisports destination in the Alps, encompassing thirteen resorts between Mont Blanc in France and Lake Geneva in Switzerland. With more than 650 km of marked pistes and about 200 lifts in total, spread over 14 valleys and about 1,036 square kilometres (400 sq mi), Portes du Soleil ranks among the two largest ski areas in the world. Almost all of the pistes are connected by lifts – a few marginal towns can be reached only by the free bus services in the area. The highest elevation accessible on skis is 2260 m and the lowest is 930 m. As with many other Alpine ski resorts, the lower slopes of the Portes du Soleil have snow-making facilities to extend the ski season by keeping the lower slopes open during the warmer months.
Megève is a commune in the Haute-Savoie department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in Southeastern France with a population of more than 3,000 residents. The town is well known as a ski resort near Mont Blanc in the French Alps. Conceived in the 1920s as a French alternative to St. Moritz by the Rothschilds, it was the first purpose-built resort in the Alps. Originally it was a prime destination for the French aristocracy; it remains one of the most famous and affluent ski resorts in the world.
Les Houches is an alpine commune in the Haute-Savoie department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in Southeastern France. It is located just west of Chamonix-Mont-Blanc, in the larger canton of Le Mont-Blanc.
Verbier is a village located in south-western Switzerland in the canton of Valais. It is a holiday resort and ski area in the Swiss Alps and is recognised as one of the premier off-piste resorts in the world. Some areas are covered with snow all year. Skiers have settled in the Verbier area in order to take advantage of the steep slopes, varied conditions, and resort culture.
Les Gets is a commune in the Haute-Savoie department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in south-eastern France.
Les Contamines-Montjoie is a commune in the Haute-Savoie department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in south-eastern France.
Les Arcs is a ski resort located in Savoie, France, in the Tarentaise Valley town of Bourg-Saint-Maurice. Initially created by Robert Blanc and Roger Godino, it is a part of the huge Paradiski system which is under ownership by Compagnie des Alpes, a French-listed company owning several other ski resorts as well as theme parks.
Les 2 Alpes is a ski resort in the French department of Isère, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. The village sits at 1,650 m (5,413 ft) and lifts run to 3,600 m (11,811 ft). It has the largest skiable glacier in Europe and is France's second oldest ski resort behind Chamonix. It has the longest, normally open full on-piste vertical available in the world. It is a 71 km (44 mi) drive southeast of Grenoble.
Les Menuires is a ski resort in the Belleville valley of Les Trois Vallées between Saint-Martin-de-Belleville and Val Thorens. Owned and operated by Compagnie des Alpes, it is in the Savoie département of France.
Candanchú is a ski resort situated near the town of Canfranc in the High Aragon of the western Pyrenees. The name of the area is an adaptation of French "Camp d'Anjou" as this was originally the site of a military camp of the French Angevin dynasty. This is also located near the road on the historical Camino de Santiago. The ski resort of Candanchú is located in the Aragonese Pyrenees. It is 1 km from Puerto del Somport the border with France. Neighbor Astún ski resort, is located 27 km north of the city of Jaca. On the right bank of the river Arago, near the bridge of Santa Cristina, are the ruins of the Hospital of Santa Cristina of Somport, a hospice for pilgrims on the Camino de Santiago.
Avoriaz is a French mountain resort in the heart of the Portes du Soleil. It is located in the territory of the commune of Morzine. It is easily accessible from either Thonon at Lake Geneva or Cluses station on the A40 motorway between Geneva and Chamonix. Either way one follows the D902, Route des Grandes Alpes, to Morzine and then the D338 running from Morzine to Avoriaz. Snow chains are often necessary. Avoriaz is built on a shelf high above the town of Morzine, which is among the pioneering towns of skiing with its first lifts dating back to the early 1930s. Today Avoriaz is one of the major French ski destinations catering for all standards of skiing and ranks among the top snowboarding destinations of the world. Apart from snow-based pursuits, Avoriaz is also a centre for trekking, golf, VTT and other outdoor activities during the summer. Cars are forbidden in Avoriaz. The resort is designed to be fully skiable. Other transport around the resort includes horse-drawn sleighs and snowcats during winter.
La Tzoumaz is a ski resort in the Swiss Alps, in the canton of Valais. It is part of the "Four Valleys" ski area, which consists of various ski resorts, including Verbier, Nendaz, Veysonnaz, La Tzoumaz, and Thyon. As such it has direct access to over 400 km of runs. Named after the word "tzoumer", meaning taking a break, La Tzoumaz nestles against the same mountain as Verbier, Mont Savolyres, and is at the same altitude (1500m). However, unlike Verbier, it is situated on north-facing slopes and hence enjoys a longer ski-season, lasting from early December all the way through to late-April. The resort has splendid views over the Rhone valley from the side of a small sunny valley on the north side of Verbier.
Saint-Gervais-les-Bains is a commune in the Haute-Savoie department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, southeastern France. The village is best known for tourism and has been a popular holiday destination since the early 1900s. It has 445 km (277 mi) of pistes, the third largest domain exclusively in France, and is one of the least busy ski areas of its size. In 1892, two hundred people were killed when a water pocket in a glacier above the town suddenly burst open and caused flooding.
Montgenèvre is a commune on the Italian border in the Hautes-Alpes department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in Southeastern France. In 2018, it had a population of 456.
Val Cenis is a ski and mountain resort situated in the Haute-Maurienne region of the French Alps, close to the Italian border. It is composed of five villages; Lanslebourg, Lanslevillard, Termignon, Sollières-Sardières and Bramans. The villages sit between 1200m and 1500m, respectively, and lifts climb to a maximum altitude of 2740m. The resort is not very well known due to its location at the end of a valley and difficulty of access and attracts a mainly French, Italian, Belgian and Dutch contingent each winter. It is a lot quieter than larger ski resorts in the French Alps and does not normally suffer from long lift queues. It is ideally located in the Maurienne region with good transport links in and out of Modane, Lyon, Geneva and Chambery.
Sixt-Fer-à-Cheval is a commune in the Haute-Savoie department within the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in southeastern France. It is located at the end of the Giffre Valley.
Thyon is a purpose-built ski resort in the Swiss Alps, located in the canton of Valais. The resort is situated in the central part of the canton, in the region of Sion, and is associated with the village of Les Collons. It forms part of the "4 Valleys" interlinked ski area, which together includes Thyon, Veysonnaz, Haute-Nendaz, Verbier and La Tzoumaz. The ski pistes from Thyon and Veysonnaz effectively constitute a large, single integrated ski area, and connect with the rest of the "4 Valleys" area.
Praz de Lys - Sommand is a twinned ski resort starting at a high altitude and composed of Sommand resort and Praz de Lys resort both linked by ski trails and chair lifts over and around their dividing mountains. Sommand sits high above its village of Mieussy and Praz de Lys sits above Taninges. The ski resort of Les Gets is also nearby Praz de Lys, about 15 minutes drive. It was opened in approximately 1978.
: 18% Beginner
: 82% Intermediate