Col de Marcieu
1,021 mBottom of the pistes
1,271 mTop of the ski area
3 kmAlpine pistes
3Ski lifts
Not published by any source: adult day pass.
Col de Marcieu is a ski resort in the Northern Alps (Isère), in the commune of Plateau-des-Petites-Roches. The ski area rises to 1,271 m, a skiable vertical of 250 m.
Col de Marcieu webcams
▶ Watch at the operator ↗
Webcams de la stationimages en direct sur la page officielle de la station
Col de Marcieu broadcasts its images on its own page: the link takes you there. Checked on 25 September 2026.
Snow, opening and weather
Snow report →Open pistes and lifts will appear here during the season, as published by the resort. Out of season we show nothing rather than a misleading zero.
Right now at the ENTREMONT LE VIEUX_SAPC station (1,059 m)
Source: Météo-France, ENTREMONT LE VIEUX_SAPC weather station, 9.9 km away. Hourly measurement — not the resort’s own snow report.
Avalanche danger
Natural snow is low on average: skiing depends on snowmaking and good years. 42 days a winter at 30 cm or more on average, and 306 cm of fresh snow, measured over 58 winters at the Météo-France “GRANDE-CHARTREUSE” station. Fortnight by fortnight, over 58 measured winters →
3-day forecast
Village 1,021 m · top 1,271 m
Forecast corrected for altitude; fresh snow = forecast total at the top; UV = peak of the day. Beyond 3 days, check the resort’s own report. Source:Open-Meteo.
Seven criteria rated from 1 to 5 stars, in half-stars, from this page's sourced data. A rating is a rank among the 315 French resorts we cover — 5 stars means “among the best in France on this point”, not “perfect”. Nobody types these in.
- SnowCan you count on the snow?1.5 / 5
Top of the ski area: 1,271 m · Bottom of the pistes: 1,021 m · Days above 30 cm per winter, measured: 42 days · Days above 30 cm, December to March, model: 32%
- Ski areaIs there enough to ski all week?1.5 / 5
Km of pistes at the resort: 3 km · Lifts: 3 · Balance between piste levels: 77%
- ValueIs the lift pass reasonable for what you get?n/a
Not rated: no official price list could be found.
- Families and beginnersIs it right for children and beginners?2.5 / 5
Share of green and blue pistes: 78% · Magic carpets: 0 · Sledging runs: 2 · Ice rink, pool, rail sledge…: 0
- AccessIs it easy to get to?4 / 5
Average drive time from 20 major cities: 4 hr 01 · Nearest railway station: 19 min · Station-to-resort shuttles per day: 0 · Nearest airport: 53 min
- Atmosphere and après-skiIs there life in the evening and off the slopes?1 / 5
Bars and pubs: 0 · Nightclubs: 0 · Restaurants: 2 · Upcoming events: 0 — index: what the map and the listings publish
- Luxury and comfortHow upmarket is the resort?1 / 5
5-star hotels: 0 · 4-star hotels: 0 · Spas and saunas: 0 · Jewellers, watchmakers, fashion boutiques: 0 — index: what the map and the listings publish
“Atmosphere” and “Luxury” are indexes: they count what OpenStreetMap and the event listings publish within 2.5 km (bars, nightclubs, rated hotels, spas, upcoming events), not what you experience there. A zero means “nothing mapped”, not “nothing there”. Sources per criterion: snow (altitudes declared by the resort (ANMSM, official website), STRMTG register, OpenStreetMap; snow depth observed at the Météo-France station, ERA5-Land model) ; ski area (figures declared by the resort (ANMSM, official website), national lift register (STRMTG), OpenStreetMap) ; value (the resort’s official price list) ; families and beginners (OpenStreetMap pistes, price list, ESF ski school, Famille Plus label, OpenStreetMap leisure) ; access (OSRM drive times from 20 cities, SNCF stations, GTFS shuttles, airports) ; atmosphere and après-ski (bars, nightclubs and restaurants within 2.5 km (OpenStreetMap), upcoming events (OpenAgenda), collective tourist beds (INSEE)) ; luxury and comfort (rated hotels within 2.5 km (OpenStreetMap) and by category across the commune (INSEE), spas and boutiques (OpenStreetMap), day pass price).
9 pistes, by level
3 green4 blue2 red0 black
- Skiable vertical
- 250 m
- Lifts
- 3 drag lifts
- Cross-country skiing
- 2 named trails — 11 km of marked loops (7 km of distinct track: the loops overlap) · Espace Ludique du Col de Marcieu area, right by the resort
Ski-area figures — bottom, top, km of pistes, lifts, pistes by level: OpenStreetMap (1 Oct) .
The ski area in figures
Measured on 7 October 20261 kmLongest piste — Les Fontenettes (blue), 219 m of vertical
219 mBiggest vertical without changing piste — 1,271 → 1,053 m, 1 km
1,271 mHighest lift top — Grand Essart (platter lift)
1 kmTotal length of lifts — 3 lifts mapped
262 haSki area boundary (OSM)
2,433Inhabitants — Plateau-des-Petites-Roches (INSEE 38395)
Measured on OpenStreetMap (altitudes: IGN RGE ALTI), not taken from the brochure. The vertical above is that of one piste, not of the whole ski area. Population: INSEE municipal population via geo.api.gouv.fr.
Staying and hiring gear in Col de Marcieu
The partners covering this resort, shown side by side, and the shop to kit out before you leave. Some links earn us a commission — never at the expense of the price or of the data.
Stay & accommodation
Holidu
Holiday-rental comparison site.
Gear & equipment
Absolute Snow
UK ski and snowboard shop — delivers to UK addresses only.
Hardloop
Mountain gear shop: ski touring, avalanche safety, winter clothing.
Beyond skiing at Col de Marcieu
Without skis on — 5 km of snowshoe and walking trails · 2 sledging runs
Source: DATAtourisme (open data), within 10 km of the resort; places in a large town of the valley are left out. Opening times and prices are the operator’s — check before you go.
Ski schools and practical information
In case of accident
112 — the European emergency number, free of charge, triggers mountain rescue. On the pistes, the ski patrol number is printed on the piste map and at lift ticket offices. Piste rescue is charged: check your insurance or take the option sold with the lift pass.
Off the pistes: off-piste and ski touring
The resorts for off-piste skiing →Ski touring routes described
12 ski touring routes documented within 10 km of Col de Marcieu — up to 2,350 m of climb.
| Summit and route | Ski grade | Climb | Altitude | Aspect | From resort |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pas de Ragris · Couloir Rectiligne | 4.2 · E1 · D | 810 m | 1,040 → 1,926 m | E | 0.8 km |
| Passage de l'Aulp du Seuil · Couloir en Virgule | 4.1 · E2 · AD+ | 800 m | 1,065 → 1,864 m | E | 1.8 km |
| Pas de Montbrun · Versant E | 4.3 · E3 · D+ | 876 m | 1,000 → 1,876 m | NE | 2 km |
| Dôme de Bellefont · Tour par l'Aup du Seuil et le Pas de Montbrun - depuis le Col de Marcieu | 4.3 · E3 · D+ | 1,400 m | 1,060 → 1,975 m | E | 2.4 km |
The other 8 routes, with grades and vertical →
Not a piste. Neither marked, nor patrolled, nor secured: transceiver, shovel, probe, the day’s avalanche bulletin and, better still, a guide. Ski grade (1.1–5.6) = steepness and commitment; exposure (E1–E4) = consequence of a fall.
Source: Camptocamp.org topo guide (CC BY-SA), routes starting within 10 km, read on 13 October 2026. Descriptions and photos are on Camptocamp; an empty cell is a field nobody has filled in. Camptocamp ski touring routes ↗
Piste map
Open on OpenSnowMap ↗Official piste map
Pistes coloured by level, lifts as lines. The resort’s official map is the reference in season.
Base map © OpenTopoMap (CC-BY-SA) · pistes © OpenSnowMap (CC-BY-SA) · data ©OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).
Getting to Col de Marcieu
From Paris: 6 hr 29 (607 km) by road.
By road
- From Grenoble: 39 min · 37 km
- From Chambéry: 42 min · 38 km
- From Annecy: 1 hr 11 · 85 km
- From Genève: 1 hr 41 · 123 km
- From Valence: 1 hr 42 · 129 km
From other major cities (15)
- From Lyon: 1 hr 52 · 137 km
- From Saint-Étienne: 2 hr 26 · 186 km
- From Dijon: 3 hr 44 · 338 km
- From Clermont-Ferrand: 3 hr 45 · 303 km
- From Montpellier: 3 hr 49 · 334 km
- From Marseille: 3 hr 54 · 343 km
- From Besançon: 4 hr 00 · 296 km
- From Perpignan: 5 hr 11 · 482 km
- From Nice: 5 hr 32 · 501 km
- From Nancy: 5 hr 51 · 549 km
- From Strasbourg: 5 hr 55 · 513 km
- From Toulouse: 6 hr 07 · 568 km
- From Paris: 6 hr 29 · 607 km
- From Bordeaux: 7 hr 43 · 692 km
- From Pau: 8 hr 01 · 758 km
Excluding traffic and winter conditions; passes closed in winter are avoided.
By train
Goncelin station
regional station · then 19 min drive (18 km)
Nearest main station: Chambéry - Challes-les-Eaux, 40 min by road.
No direct bus line from the station to the resort appears in the open-data timetables (checked on 11 October 2026): ask the resort about a private shuttle or a taxi.
Shuttles and buses from the station: see the resort’s official website.
By plane
- Chambéry-Savoie (CMF): 53 min by road · 46 km
- Grenoble-Alpes-Isère (GNB): 1 hr 12 by road · 82 km
Take me there
These links open the app with Col de Marcieu as the destination. Your starting point is never sent by us — the app asks you for it, if you agree.
Charging an electric car
No freely accessible charge point is declared within 2 km of the resort (checked on 9 October 2026). Covered car parks in the resort may offer chargers reserved for their customers: those are not listed here.
Freely accessible charge points read from the French national EV charging database (data.gouv.fr ↗, operators’ own declarations), checked on 9 October 2026. Check availability before you leave: the database says what is installed, not what is free tonight.
Road conditions
From 1 November to 31 March, snow chains or winter tyres are compulsory in most mountain areas (French “Loi Montagne II”).
Driving times computed on the OpenStreetMap road network (OSRM), SNCF stations (open data), airports (Wikidata). Indicative, not a timetable: allow extra time in snow.
The area offers 3 km of alpine pistes, 9 marked pistes (3 green, 4 blue, 2 red), 3 ski lifts. Green and blue runs dominate: terrain suited to beginners and families.
Measured on the OpenStreetMap map: the longest piste runs 1 km (Les Fontenettes) and the highest lift tops out at 1,271 m.
Access: 39 min by road from Grenoble and 19 min from Goncelin railway station.
1 official webcam shows the pistes live (on the French page).
Frequently asked questions
How high is Col de Marcieu?
The Col de Marcieu pistes start at 1,021 m, and its ski area rises to 1,271 m.
How many kilometres of pistes does Col de Marcieu have?
Col de Marcieu has 3 km of slopes, 3 lifts.
What is the longest piste in Col de Marcieu?
The longest piste is Les Fontenettes: 1 km (blue run), for 219 m of vertical. Measured on the OpenStreetMap map, segments of the same name and level joined end to end, altitudes from the IGN RGE ALTI terrain model — a resort sometimes advertises a longer run by chaining several pistes.
How high do the lifts go in Col de Marcieu?
The highest lift, Grand Essart, tops out at 1,271 m (IGN RGE ALTI terrain model). The 3 lifts mapped on OpenStreetMap total 1 km.
How do I get to Col de Marcieu?
By road, Col de Marcieu is 39 min from Grenoble (37 km), excluding traffic and winter conditions. By train, the nearest station is Goncelin, 19 min by road from the resort. No direct bus line from the station to the resort appears in the open-data timetables. The nearest airport is Chambéry-Savoie, 53 min away.
How long is the drive from Paris to Col de Marcieu?
6 hr 29 for 607 km from central Paris, excluding traffic and winter conditions. Computed on the real road network (OpenStreetMap): allow more on a school-holiday Saturday.
Is the snow reliable in Col de Marcieu?
Natural snow is low on average: skiing depends on snowmaking and good years. 42 days a winter at 30 cm or more on average, and 306 cm of fresh snow, measured over 58 winters at the Météo-France “GRANDE-CHARTREUSE” station. This verdict rests on 58 winters of Météo-France measurements (1959-2022); in season the daily report prevails.
Is Col de Marcieu good for beginners and families?
78% of the pistes are green or blue: a very accessible area.
Nearby resorts
Full page in French. The French page carries the editorial guides and a few extra readings; every figure, webcam and price on this page is the same one. Col de Marcieu in French →
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