Where to learn to ski? The resorts for beginners
For a first ski holiday, what matters is not the size of the ski area but the room given to green and blue pistes: gentle, wide slopes where you can string descents together without ending up stuck above a red. We counted the pistes of each level on the OpenStreetMap map of every resort, and kept those with at least 5 green pistes and two-thirds easy runs.
The ranking puts the share of green pistes first — the best sign of a resort built for learning. The 60 resorts selected break down as follows: Northern Alps (24), Southern Alps (13), Massif Central (7), Pyrenees (7), Vosges (6), Jura (2), Corsica (1). The village altitude is shown: lower down is often less cold and less expensive, but the snow is less reliable early in the season.
The day pass price is the one on the resort’s official price list, where we have read it. As a beginner you do not need the whole ski area: many resorts sell a cheaper “beginner” or “nursery slope” pass, to ask for on the spot.
Click a column heading to sort. Resorts with no reading stay at the bottom.
| # | Resort | Range | Green pistes | Easy pistes | Pistes | Village | Day pass |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | La Stèle | Massif Central | 12 (86%) | 100% | 3 km | 1,250 m | — |
| 2 | Combelouvière Le Grand Domaine | Northern Alps | 13 (76%) | 100% | 12 km | 1,255 m | €59.70 |
| 3 | Chambon-des-Neiges | Massif Central | 21 (66%) | 91% | 18 km | 1,157 m | — |
| 4 | Le Freney-d'Oisans Alpe d'Huez Grand Domaine Ski | Northern Alps | 33 (63%) | 83% | 32 km | 871 m | — |
| 5 | Les Rousses | Jura | 12 (63%) | 89% | 5 km | 1,105 m | — |
| 6 | Les Estables | Massif Central | 10 (63%) | 88% | 6 km | — | — |
| 7 | La Garde Alpe d'Huez Grand Domaine Ski | Northern Alps | 60 (61%) | 80% | 72 km | 715 m | — |
| 8 | Brameloup | Massif Central | 6 (60%) | 80% | 14 km | 1,268 m | — |
| 9 | Morillon Grand Massif | Northern Alps | 31 (60%) | 79% | 75 km | 2,046 m | — |
| 10 | Font d'Urle | Southern Alps | 29 (59%) | 80% | 16 km | 1,389 m | — |
| 11 | Les Orres | Southern Alps | 28 (58%) | 69% | 25 km | 1,198 m | — |
| 12 | Le Grand-Bornand Aravis | Northern Alps | 22 (58%) | 89% | 21 km | 892 m | — |
| 13 | Selonnet | Southern Alps | 24 (56%) | 70% | 21 km | 846 m | — |
| 14 | Le Mourtis | Pyrenees | 15 (56%) | 74% | 14 km | 1,411 m | — |
| 15 | Brides-les-Bains Les 3 Vallées | Northern Alps | 6 (55%) | 91% | 6 km | 556 m | — |
| 16 | Le Cambre d'Aze | Pyrenees | 26 (53%) | 71% | 26 km | 1,640 m | — |
| 17 | Semnoz | Northern Alps | 11 (52%) | 71% | 16 km | 1,475 m | €18.50 |
| 18 | Auris-en-Oisans Alpe d'Huez Grand Domaine Ski | Northern Alps | 25 (52%) | 79% | 39 km | 1,600 m | — |
| 19 | Alpe d'Huez Alpe d'Huez Grand Domaine Ski | Northern Alps | 81 (51%) | 72% | 136 km | 1,860 m | — |
| 20 | Saint-Léger-les-Mélèzes | Southern Alps | 32 (51%) | 83% | 31 km | 1,076 m | — |
| 21 | Hautacam | Pyrenees | 7 (50%) | 93% | 12 km | 1,500 m | — |
| 22 | La Stass' | Northern Alps | 7 (50%) | 79% | 5 km | 1,598 m | — |
| 23 | Le Planolet | Northern Alps | 7 (50%) | 79% | 5 km | 1,085 m | — |
| 24 | Thollon-les-Mémises | Northern Alps | 31 (49%) | 73% | 22 km | 1,622 m | — |
| 25 | Gérardmer | Vosges | 19 (49%) | 67% | 28 km | 846 m | — |
| 26 | La Mauselaine | Vosges | 19 (49%) | 67% | 28 km | 1,017 m | — |
| 27 | Poli | Vosges | 19 (49%) | 67% | 28 km | 850 m | — |
| 28 | Chastreix-Sancy Le Grand Sancy | Massif Central | 33 (48%) | 75% | 38 km | — | €26.30 |
| 29 | Risoul La Forêt Blanche | Southern Alps | 10 (48%) | 95% | 15 km | 872 m | — |
| 30 | Le Chinaillon | Northern Alps | 36 (47%) | 78% | 61 km | 1,300 m | — |
| 31 | Chaillol 1600 | Southern Alps | 12 (46%) | 81% | 11 km | 1,600 m | — |
| 32 | Saint-Michel-de-Chaillol | Southern Alps | 12 (46%) | 81% | 11 km | 1,220 m | — |
| 33 | Ax 3 Domaines | Pyrenees | 23 (46%) | 84% | 48 km | 1,387 m | — |
| 34 | Bolquère - Pyrénées 2000 | Pyrenees | 21 (46%) | 87% | 21 km | 1,732 m | — |
| 35 | La Croix de Bauzon | Massif Central | 5 (45%) | 91% | 10 km | 1,364 m | — |
| 36 | Plaine Joux | Northern Alps | 9 (45%) | 75% | 11 km | 1,360 m | €25.50 |
| 37 | Les Deux Alpes | Northern Alps | 59 (44%) | 76% | 109 km | 1,650 m | — |
| 38 | Saint-Jean-d’Arves Les Sybelles | Northern Alps | 31 (44%) | 79% | 54 km | 1,555 m | — |
| 39 | Courchevel Le Praz Les 3 Vallées | Northern Alps | 117 (44%) | 73% | 184 km | 1,264 m | — |
| 40 | Monts Jura | Jura | 14 (44%) | 75% | 21 km | 1,182 m | — |
| 41 | Prat Peyrot | Massif Central | 7 (44%) | 75% | 9 km | 1,420 m | €26 |
| 42 | Frère-Joseph | Vosges | 14 (44%) | 72% | 12 km | 871 m | — |
| 43 | Larcenaire | Vosges | 14 (44%) | 72% | 12 km | 820 m | — |
| 44 | Ventron | Vosges | 14 (44%) | 72% | 12 km | 860 m | — |
| 45 | Courchevel Saint-Bon Les 3 Vallées | Northern Alps | 121 (44%) | 75% | 186 km | 1,105 m | — |
| 46 | Font Romeu Pyrénées 2000 | Pyrenees | 34 (44%) | 74% | 35 km | 1,851 m | — |
| 47 | Font-Romeu | Pyrenees | 33 (43%) | 75% | 34 km | 1,775 m | — |
| 48 | Serre Chevalier Serre Chevalier | Southern Alps | 66 (43%) | 82% | 191 km | 2,491 m | — |
| 49 | Sainte-Anne-la-Condamine | Southern Alps | 6 (43%) | 79% | 17 km | 1,824 m | €26.50 |
| 50 | Saint-Jean-de-Sixt Aravis | Northern Alps | 17 (43%) | 85% | 25 km | 828 m | — |
| 51 | Villeneuve Serre Chevalier | Southern Alps | 67 (42%) | 82% | 202 km | 1,394 m | — |
| 52 | Les Bottières Les Sybelles | Northern Alps | 22 (42%) | 77% | 25 km | 1,259 m | — |
| 53 | Col du Rousset | Southern Alps | 11 (42%) | 69% | 16 km | 1,247 m | — |
| 54 | Saint-François-Longchamp Le Grand Domaine | Northern Alps | 29 (41%) | 77% | 96 km | 808 m | — |
| 55 | Oz-en-Oisans Alpe d'Huez Grand Domaine Ski | Northern Alps | 53 (41%) | 67% | 112 km | 1,350 m | — |
| 56 | Chantemerle Serre Chevalier | Southern Alps | 68 (41%) | 77% | 203 km | 1,357 m | — |
| 57 | Courchevel Village Les 3 Vallées | Northern Alps | 144 (40%) | 73% | 244 km | 1,469 m | — |
| 58 | Ghisoni-Capannelle | Corsica | 6 (40%) | 80% | 3 km | 1,670 m | — |
| 59 | Molines-en-Queyras | Southern Alps | 14 (40%) | 69% | 23 km | 1,625 m | — |
| 60 | Méribel-Les Allues Les 3 Vallées | Northern Alps | 21 (40%) | 85% | 48 km | 1,140 m | — |
Frequently asked questions
Which resort should I choose to learn to ski?
Those with many green pistes and an easy ski area: La Stèle (12 green), Combelouvière (13 green), Chambon-des-Neiges (21 green), Le Freney-d'Oisans (33 green), Les Rousses (12 green). All of them have at least 5 green pistes and two-thirds easy runs.
Do you need a big resort to learn?
No. A beginner skis on a handful of pistes; what matters is that they are gentle and wide. Among the easiest resorts, 46 have less than 50 km of pistes, and often cost far less.
How much is a lift pass in a beginner-friendly resort?
The cheapest adult day pass recorded in this selection is €18.50 (Semnoz). Most resorts also sell a beginner pass limited to the easy pistes.