French Alps travel guide, written from the valley
Visiting France covers the ski resorts, valley towns and practical travel of the French Alps. It is written by Mark73, who lives in the Tarentaise valley in Savoie, below the Three Valleys.
Every guide gives the facts you need to plan: how to get there, what it costs, when to go, and where to stay. Prices and dates are checked with the resorts and lift companies each season.
The three big ski areas
Three Valleys
Courchevel, Méribel, Val Thorens and Les Menuires on one lift pass. Access from Moûtiers.
Paradiski
La Plagne and Les Arcs, with a funicular from Bourg-Saint-Maurice station.
Tignes-Val d’Isère
High altitude and a glacier. The most reliable snow at each end of the season.
See every resort in the French Alps guide
Start here
- Getting to the French Alps by train: 2026/27 ski trains from Paris, London, Brussels and Amsterdam.
- Airports and transfers: Chambéry, Geneva and Lyon compared.
- Lift pass prices: every ski area side by side.
- When to ski: snow, crowds and French school holidays.
- Driving in winter: the winter tyre law in Savoie.
Resort guides
Méribel
The centre of the Three Valleys. Intermediates and families.
Val Thorens
Europe’s highest ski resort. Snow from November to May.
Courchevel
Four villages, from luxury 1850 to good-value Le Praz.
Les Menuires
The budget way into the whole Three Valleys.
Moûtiers
The gateway town: trains, buses and 2,000 years of history.
Plan your trip
Visas, money, transport and safety for travel in France.
About this guide
Written by Mark, who has lived in the Tarentaise for about 20 years. He did a couple of winter seasons in Méribel, still skis mostly in the Three Valleys, and hikes and mountain bikes the valley in summer. More about Visiting France.
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