Alpi francesi

Updated October 2026 · Sources: tourist offices of Chamonix, Courchevel, Montgenèvre, Tignes, Val d'Isère, Méribel, Megève, Alpe d'Huez, Serre Chevalier; Les 3 Vallées; Vialattea; Parc national des Écrins; ATMB; SNCF

Find a place to stay in the French Alps

The French Alps run from Lake Geneva down to the Mediterranean and hold the highest peak in the Alps: Mont Blanc, 4,805.59 metres according to the latest published survey, from 2023. Here you’ll find huge linked ski areas such as Les 3 Vallées, with 600 km of pistes, and two national parks, the Vanoise and the Écrins. Access is easy: Chamonix is 88 km from Geneva airport, Courchevel 176 km from Lyon airport, and Montgenèvre about 100 km from Turin.

To find your way around, split the French Alps into four areas. In the north, Haute-Savoie, with Chamonix, Mont Blanc and Megève: high mountains, glaciers, real towns. In the middle, Savoie, with the Tarentaise valley and the big purpose-built resorts: Courchevel, Méribel, Val Thorens, Tignes, Val d’Isère. Further south, Isère, with Alpe d’Huez and Les 2 Alpes, then the Hautes-Alpes, with Briançon, Serre Chevalier and Montgenèvre on the Italian border.

In winter you get high-altitude snow and plenty of ski-in/ski-out lodging. In summer the same valleys become one of Europe’s most complete playgrounds for hiking, mountaineering, road cycling and mountain biking. This page covers the resorts we have written full guides for, the other big names, how to choose and how to get there.

Chamonix-Mont-BlancMont BlancCourchevelMontgenevreLa ThuileCourmayeur

First the resorts with a full guide on our site, then the other major resorts.

Chamonix-Mont-Blanc

Chamonix sits below the French side of Mont Blanc in Haute-Savoie, with its centre at 1,035 metres. It’s famous for the Aiguille du Midi cable car, up to 3,842 metres (booking required), and the Montenvers rack railway to the Mer de Glace. Choose it for real high mountains: mountaineering, off-piste, glacier-view hikes, plus a lively town with a railway. Everything else is in our Chamonix guide.

Mont Blanc

Mont Blanc stands on the Italy–France border: 4,805.59 metres in the 2023 survey, repeated every two years. You can experience it from two sides: from Chamonix with the Aiguille du Midi, and from Courmayeur with the Skyway to Punta Helbronner, 3,466 metres. In summer the Panoramic Mont-Blanc links the two. To climb the French normal route you must book a hut. Read our Mont Blanc guide to see what non-climbers can do.

On the Italian side, about 20 km through the tunnel, Courmayeur (1,224 m) is a good base if you fly into Turin or Milan and want to visit both sides of the massif.

Courchevel

Courchevel is in Savoie, above Moûtiers in the Tarentaise valley. It’s six villages rather than one, from about 1,100 metres at Saint-Bon up to Courchevel 1850, all linked on skis. It has 150 km of its own pistes and is a gateway to Les 3 Vallées (600 km). It’s known for the luxury of 1850, but Le Praz, Courchevel Village and La Tania are quieter and family-friendly. Full guide: Courchevel.

Montgenèvre

Montgenèvre sits on the pass at 1,860 metres, about 2 km from the Italian border and about 12 km from Briançon. The French area has 95 km of pistes and 24 lifts, linked with the Monti della Luna and the rest of the Via Lattea (400 km). The pass is open all year. A good pick for families and for lots of mileage at a fair price. See our Montgenèvre guide.

La Rosière, with La Thuile

La Rosière sits below the Little St Bernard Pass and is linked on skis with La Thuile in Italy’s Aosta Valley: together they form the Espace San Bernardo, 156 km of pistes and 37 lifts. The cross-border link usually runs from mid-December to mid-April. For the Italian side, read our La Thuile guide.

The other big resorts don’t have a full guide on our site yet. Here’s what you need to know to choose.

Val d’Isère and Tignes

At the head of the Tarentaise, Val d’Isère and Tignes share more than 300 km of pistes, rising to 3,456 metres. Tignes’ villages lie between about 1,550 and over 2,100 metres: reliable snow and a long season. In 2026/27 Tignes opens on 21 November and Val d’Isère on 28 November; both close on 2 May 2027. This is the place for strong skiers and off-piste. In summer you can ski on the Grande Motte glacier: check dates with the resort.

Méribel and Val Thorens

Together with Courchevel, they are the heart of Les 3 Vallées. Méribel spreads from about 1,100 metres (Les Allues) to 1,750 metres (Mottaret), with the centre at 1,450 metres; from Courchevel it’s two lifts via the Col de la Loze. Val Thorens is among the first to open: 21 November 2026, with Orelle. Méribel suits families and groups; Val Thorens suits anyone who wants to ski from November to April.

Megève

Megève, in Haute-Savoie near Mont Blanc, is a real village with cobbled streets, squares and chalets; the tourist office quotes 400 km of pistes across the Megève ski areas. The choice for an elegant resort with proper village life.

Alpe d’Huez

Alpe d’Huez, in Isère, sits at 1,860 metres on a sunny plateau, with over 250 km of pistes and a top station at the Pic Blanc, 3,330 metres. From there the Sarenne runs 16 km: the resort calls it the longest black run in the world. In summer it’s all about the Tour de France climb: 13.8 km at an average 8.1% with 21 numbered hairpins.

Les 2 Alpes

Also in Isère, Les 2 Alpes claims the highest ski area in France: up to 3,600 metres on the glacier, with a 2,300-metre vertical down to 1,300 metres. Good for high-altitude skiing and late-season snow.

Serre Chevalier and Briançon

In the Hautes-Alpes, Serre Chevalier has four sectors: Briançon, Chantemerle, Villeneuve (1,420 m) and Le Monêtier-les-Bains, home of the Grands Bains thermal spa. The 2026/27 season runs from 5 December to 18 April (Briançon sector 12 December to 4 April). Briançon, at 1,326 metres, has Vauban fortifications on the UNESCO list since 2008 and a night train from Paris.

France’s big resorts are joined into huge linked areas. The main ones:

• Les 3 Vallées (Courchevel, Méribel, Val Thorens and others): 600 km of pistes, 155 lifts. 2026/27 6-day adult pass: €421 from 19 December 2026. Courchevel’s season: 4 December 2026 to 18 April 2027.
• Tignes – Val d’Isère: over 300 km, up to 3,456 metres, season to 2 May 2027.
• Via Lattea with Montgenèvre: 400 km across France and Italy. Vialattea Internazionale day pass: €69. Montgenèvre: 28 November 2026 to 17 April 2027.
• Espace San Bernardo (La Rosière – La Thuile): 156 km, 83 runs, 37 lifts.
• Chamonix valley: separate areas (Brévent-Flégère, Grands Montets, Balme-Vallorcine, Les Houches) on one pass; the Mont Blanc Unlimited pass adds Courmayeur and the Skyway. A new gondola from Argentière to the Grands Montets is announced for December 2026.
• Alpe d’Huez (over 250 km) and Les 2 Alpes (up to 3,600 m) in Isère.

How to choose: for mileage, Les 3 Vallées or Tignes – Val d’Isère. For snow at the start and end of the season, resorts above 2,000 metres (Val Thorens, Tignes, Les 2 Alpes). For high-mountain off-piste, Chamonix, with the Vallée Blanche done with a guide. Before buying your pass online, check when the links between resorts open: they often start a few days after the individual resorts.

• Mont Blanc up high: Aiguille du Midi (3,842 m), Montenvers and the Mer de Glace, Lac Blanc above Chamonix. High-altitude hiking is usually possible from late June to mid-September.
• The Tour du Mont Blanc: about 170 km through three countries. From spring 2027 French towns plan compulsory accommodation bookings and a ban on wild bivouacking: plan early.
• National parks: the Vanoise, with the Lacs Merlet above Courchevel, and the Écrins, created in 1973, with the Barre des Écrins (4,102 m) and the Meije (3,983 m).
• Cycling cols: the Col de la Loze (2,304 m) between Courchevel and Méribel on a bikes-only road; the 21 hairpins of Alpe d’Huez; the Little St Bernard Pass (2,188 m).
• Easy lakes: Lac des Anges and Lac Gignoux from Montgenèvre, using the summer lifts.
• Forts and heritage: Vauban’s Briançon, the forts above Montgenèvre, the Chaberton (3,131 m).
• Mountain biking: bike parks at Montgenèvre, Méribel, La Rosière – La Thuile and many other resorts.

Summer lifts usually run from late June to late August or early September: check each resort’s dates.

• Families: Montgenèvre (Famille Plus label), the lower villages of Courchevel such as La Tania and Le Praz, Méribel.
• Expert skiers: Tignes – Val d’Isère, Alpe d’Huez and the Sarenne, the Grands Montets and the Vallée Blanche at Chamonix.
• No car: Chamonix (Mont-Blanc Express and buses), Courchevel (train to Moûtiers, then bus), Briançon (night train), Montgenèvre (bus from Oulx or Briançon).
• Budget: Montgenèvre on the Via Lattea pass, or La Thuile on the Italian side, skiing over to La Rosière.
• Luxury: Courchevel 1850 and Megève.
• Nature and quiet: the Écrins valleys, the Vanoise in summer, the Italian side of Mont Blanc with Courmayeur as a base.

Torn between France and Switzerland? Switzerland wins on trains and car-free villages, France on huge linked ski areas and ski-in/ski-out lodging. Compare with our guide to the Swiss mountains.

France has five main mountain regions: the Alps, the Pyrenees, the Jura, the Massif Central and the Vosges. Only the Alps have large glaciers and peaks over 4,000 metres.

• Mont Blanc massif (Haute-Savoie): Mont Blanc 4,805.59 m, Aiguille du Midi, Mer de Glace.
• Vanoise (Savoie): between the Tarentaise and the Maurienne, with its national park; Les 3 Vallées and Tignes – Val d’Isère sit on its edges.
• Écrins (Isère and Hautes-Alpes): Barre des Écrins 4,102 m, Meije 3,983 m, national park since 1973.
• Cottian Alps: Montgenèvre and the Chaberton, on the border with Italy’s Susa Valley.
• Pre-Alps such as the Chartreuse and Vercors, and further south the Maritime Alps, down to the sea.

• Ski-in/ski-out: Courchevel 1850 and Moriond, Méribel-Mottaret, Val Thorens, Tignes. Mostly apartments in residences and chalets, often Saturday to Saturday.
• Real towns, summer and winter: Chamonix, Megève, Briançon. Shops, restaurants and trains; bus or lift to the slopes.
• Families: quieter, lower villages such as La Tania, Le Praz or Méribel Village, or Montgenèvre with the pistes on the doorstep.
• No car: Chamonix and the villages on the Mont-Blanc Express; with the Carte d’hôte from your accommodation the train is free between Servoz and Vallorcine.
• Budget: Moûtiers and the valley villages for Les 3 Vallées, Briançon for Serre Chevalier, or the Italian side (Claviere, Cesana, La Thuile, Courmayeur).

Prices rise sharply during French school holidays: book early or go in January or March.

By plane

Geneva (88 km to Chamonix, 179 km to Courchevel), Lyon-Saint-Exupéry (176 km to Courchevel, 220 km to Chamonix) and Turin-Caselle (171 km to Chamonix), also handy for Montgenèvre and the Via Lattea. From the airports you’ll find shared and private transfers; for Courchevel, Altibus also runs coaches from Geneva, Lyon and Chambéry.

By train

For Chamonix, TGV or TER to Saint-Gervais-Le Fayet, then the Mont-Blanc Express. For Courchevel, Moûtiers station, then Altibus coaches (about 30 minutes). From London, the Eurostar Snow runs to Moûtiers on Saturdays from 19 December 2026 to 20 February 2027, changing at Lille. For Briançon, the night train from Paris. TGV inOui and Frecciarossa trains Paris – Lyon – Chambéry – Modane – Oulx – Milan stop at Oulx, where the ZOU! 76 bus reaches Montgenèvre in 25 minutes.

By car

• From Geneva: Chamonix is 88 km from the airport.
• From Lyon and Chambéry: motorway to Albertville and Moûtiers for the Tarentaise (Courchevel is 95 km from Chambéry).
• From Italy: Mont Blanc Tunnel (11.6 km) Courmayeur – Chamonix, with only night closures in autumn 2026 and long closures announced for 2027 and 2028 (check dates); Fréjus Tunnel (about 12.9 km) Bardonecchia – Modane; Col de Montgenèvre, open all year; Little St Bernard Pass (2,188 m), closed in winter.

In winter, winter equipment is compulsory in French mountain areas: carry snow tyres or chains.