La Forêt Blanche
La Forêt Blanche is a grouping of two winter sports resorts located in France in the département of Hautes-Alpes, classified as "Grand domaine" and "Nouvelle glisse".
Translated from the French Wikipedia article (CC BY-SA), machine translation.
Seven criteria rated from 1 to 5 stars, in half-stars, from this page's sourced data. A rating is a rank among the 322 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?n/a
Not rated: “top of the ski area” is missing from this page.
- Ski areaIs there enough to ski all week?3.5 / 5
Km of pistes at the resort: 71 km · Km of pistes across the linked area: 71 km · Lifts: 18 · Balance between piste levels: 86%
- ValueIs the lift pass reasonable for what you get?n/a
Not rated: “adult day pass” is missing from this page.
- Families and beginnersIs it right for children and beginners?2.5 / 5
Share of green and blue pistes: 70% · Magic carpets: 4 · Sledging runs: 0 · ESF ski school · Ice rink, pool, rail sledge…: 0
- AccessIs it easy to get to?2.5 / 5
Average drive time from 20 major cities: 5 hr 36 · Nearest railway station: 18 min · Station-to-resort shuttles per day: 0 · Nearest airport: 2 hr 15
- Atmosphere and après-skiIs there life in the evening and off the slopes?2 / 5
Bars and pubs: 0 · Nightclubs: 0 · Restaurants: 4 · Upcoming events: 4 · Collective tourist beds: 1,517 — index: what the map and the listings publish
- Luxury and comfortHow upmarket is the resort?2 / 5
5-star hotels: 0 · 4-star hotels: 1 · Share of hotel rooms in 4 and 5 stars: 18% · 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 (OpenStreetMap, Wikidata), snow depth observed at the Météo-France station, ERA5-Land model) ; ski area (OpenStreetMap pistes and lifts, linked area (Wikidata)) ; 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).
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.
Avalanche danger
7-day forecast
Village 1,660 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.
Average snow depth by month
Good snow from December to April: a long, reliable season.
☀️ Average daily sunshine : Nov 7.2 h · Dec 6.8 h · Jan 7.2 h · Feb 8.4 h · Mar 9.6 h · Apr 10.6 h — 26 bright days in April (Open-Meteo estimate, 2015-2025).
- November—no record
- December89 cmGood skiing · 100%
- January92 cmGood skiing · 84%
- February114 cmGood skiing · 100%
- March132 cmGood skiing · 99%
- April101 cmGood skiing · 94%
- May—no record
30 cm on the ground: the benchmark for groomed-piste skiing. Bar = monthly average depth; percentage = share of time above 30 cm.
- Good skiing: 30 cm on more than 8 days in 10
- Variable: 30 cm on 5 to 8 days in 10
- Insufficient: 30 cm less than one day in two
Snow actually measured, winter by winter
33 complete winters measured, from 1992-1993 to 2025-2026 — on average 50 days a winter with at least 30 cm on the ground.
- 1-15 Dec14 cmInsufficient · 16 %
- 16-31 Dec22 cmInsufficient · 30 %
- 1-15 Jan30 cmInsufficient · 48 %
- 16-31 Jan35 cmVariable · 57 %
- 1-15 Feb37 cmVariable · 62 %
- 16-29 Feb33 cmVariable · 56 %
- 1-15 Mar27 cmInsufficient · 41 %
- 16-31 Mar13 cmInsufficient · 17 %
- 1-15 Apr5 cmInsufficient · 6 %
- Best winter of the series
- 2017-2018 — 121 days at 30 cm or more
- Worst winter of the series
- 2006-2007 — 0 day at 30 cm or more
How much snow actually falls — 227 cm a winter on average, spread over 36 days of snowfall. Measured over 34 complete winters.
- Biggest 24-hour snowfall
- 55 cm — 2012-2013
- Snowiest winter
- 2017-2018 — 402 cm
- Leanest winter
- 2004-2005 — 108 cm
The ski area
Compare with another resort →100 pistes, by level — 71 km
- Lifts
- 1 gondola, 10 chairlifts, 3 drag lifts, 4 magic carpets
- Snowpark
- Yes
- Piste aspect
- N 30% · E 46% · S 14% · W 11% (descent direction of 73 OSM pistes, terrain model)
- Mountain restaurants
- Le Flocon (1925 m) · La Zizanie (1891 m) · Le Loy's (1891 m) · L'après Ski (1890 m) · Le Chalet du Torrent (1871 m) · Le Mouton Noir (1855 m) · Rocky Mountain (1848 m) · Au planté de bâton (1848 m)
Opening hours lift by lift (3)
| Lift | Type | Opens | Closes | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sainte-Marie V18 | télésiège | 09:00 | 16:40 | OpenStreetMap |
| Peyrol V16 | télésiège | 09:10 | 16:30 | OpenStreetMap |
| Bois Noir V12 | télésiège | 09:00 | 16:30 | OpenStreetMap |
Hours as published by the source quoted, read on 15 September 2026. A lift missing from this table has no published time — no default is shown.
Pistes and lifts surveyed on OpenStreetMap within 4 km of the resort — for a resort in a linked area, the figure may include neighbouring pistes.
Lift passes detail →
The price list for this resort is being collected: most resorts publish winter prices between September and November.
Staying and hiring gear in La Forêt Blanche
We compare the partners that cover this resort. Some links earn us a commission — never at the expense of the price or of the data.
Stay & accommodation
Live webcams
All webcams (1) →Official players of the resort, live image. Checked on 12 September 2026.
Piste map
Open on OpenSnowMap ↗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 La Forêt Blanche
From Paris: 8 hr 38 (734 km) by road.
By road
- From Grenoble: 2 hr 49 · 161 km
- From Chambéry: 2 hr 59 · 206 km
- From Marseille: 3 hr 11 · 245 km
- From Annecy: 3 hr 28 · 253 km
- From Valence: 3 hr 45 · 250 km
From other major cities (14)
- From Genève: 3 hr 58 · 291 km
- From Lyon: 4 hr 01 · 263 km
- From Montpellier: 4 hr 29 · 367 km
- From Saint-Étienne: 4 hr 34 · 312 km
- From Perpignan: 5 hr 51 · 515 km
- From Dijon: 5 hr 53 · 464 km
- From Clermont-Ferrand: 5 hr 53 · 432 km
- From Besançon: 6 hr 12 · 494 km
- From Toulouse: 6 hr 47 · 602 km
- From Nancy: 8 hr 00 · 675 km
- From Strasbourg: 8 hr 12 · 681 km
- From Paris: 8 hr 38 · 734 km
- From Pau: 8 hr 41 · 792 km
- From Bordeaux: 9 hr 10 · 844 km
Excluding traffic and winter conditions; passes closed in winter are avoided.
By train
Mont-Dauphin - Guillestre station
halt · then 18 min drive (16 km)
Nearest main station: Grenoble, 2 hr 49 by road.
No direct bus line from the station to the resort appears in the open-data timetables (checked on 13 September 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
- Cuneo (CUF): 2 hr 15 by road · 124 km
- Turin-Caselle (TRN): 2 hr 39 by road · 167 km
Take me there
These links open the app with La Forêt Blanche as the destination. Your starting point is never sent by us — the app asks you for it, if you agree.
Charging an electric car
1 charging station within 2 km
2 charging points · up to 22 kW
- VARS - Office de Tourisme · EASYCHARGE · 2 points · 22 kW · 0.2 km
Freely accessible charge points read from the French national EV charging database (data.gouv.fr ↗, operators’ own declarations), checked on 9 September 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.
Off-piste & ski touring
The resorts for off-piste skiing →Named itineraries: Ecureuil · Alpet · Mur du Vallon · Casse · Vautour · Grand Ubac
Itineraries surveyed on OpenStreetMap within a 4 km radius (7 September 2026): “marked” means an itinerary exists on the map, not that it is open or safe on the day.
Ski touring routes described
Resorts for ski touring →12 ski touring routes documented within 10 km of La Forêt Blanche — up to 1,700 m of climb.
| Summit and route | Ski grade | Climb | Altitude | Aspect | From resort |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| La Mayt (Vars) · Versant E | n/a | 950 m | 1,630 → 2,577 m | E | 2.6 km |
| La Mortice S · De Ste Catherine par la Crête des Couniets | 2.3 · E1 · PD | 1,700 m | 1,845 → 3,169 m | SW | 3.5 km |
| La Mortice S · Versant W et traversée N-S du col de Serenne | n/a · PD | 1,370 m | 1,890 → 3,169 m | W | 4.3 km |
| Pic de Chabrières (Vars) · Depuis Risoul 1850 | 2.1 · PD+ | 1,100 m | 1,850 → 2,746 m | n/a | 4.8 km |
| Pic N de la Font Sancte · Couloir W | 3.3 · E2 · AD | 1,600 m | 1,780 → 3,385 m | W | 5 km |
| Pointe d'Escreins · Par la Combe N | n/a · PD+ | 1,220 m | 1,781 → 3,038 m | N | 5 km |
| Tête de Paneyron · Depuis le refuge Napoléon | 2.3 · E1 · PD | 800 m | 1,987 → 2,785 m | W | 5.1 km |
| Pic de Panestrel · Face N - depuis la Rua | 5.3 · E3 · D+ | 1,500 m | 1,780 → 3,254 m | N | 5.3 km |
| Pointe de l'Eyssina · en traversée S-W depuis le Col de Vars | n/a · PD+ | 1,240 m | n/a | n/a | 5.6 km |
| Pointe de l'Eyssina · Face de l'Eyssina | 5.1 · E3 · AD+ | n/a | 1,800 → 2,837 m | NE | 5.6 km |
| Pic S de la Font Sancte · Couloir SW | 5.1 · E2 | 1,591 m | 1,780 → 3,371 m | SW | 5.7 km |
| Pic d'Escreins · depuis l'Ubac de L'Aval | 3.2 · PD+ | 1,300 m | 1,437 → 2,734 m | N · NE | 5.7 km |
Source: Camptocamp.org topo guide (CC BY-SA), routes starting within 10 km, read on 13 September 2026. Descriptions and photos are on Camptocamp; an empty cell is a field nobody has filled in. Camptocamp ski touring routes ↗
Beyond skiing at La Forêt Blanche
Ice rink
- Patinoire · Risoul · 5.3 km away
Swimming pool
- Piscine · Vars · 3 km away
- SKISEO - Centre aqualudique et de détente · Risoul · 5.2 km away
Spa and thermal baths
- Saï mithra · Risoul · 5.5 km away
Dog sledding
- Wild Expériences chiens de traineau · Crévoux · 8.7 km away
Cinema
- Cinéma le RiouBel - Cin' Valley · Guillestre · 8 km away
Source: DATAtourisme (open data), within 10 km of the resort; places in a large town of the valley are left out. Checked on 12 September 2026. Opening times and prices are the operator’s — check before you go.
Practical information
Collective accommodation
1,517 bed spaces in tourist residences, holiday villages and hostels
- 9 hotels · 165 rooms (1 × 4★, 2 × 3★, 2 × 2★, 1 × 1★)
- 1 holiday village or family centre · 271 bed spaces
- 4 tourist residences and apartment hotels · 1,186 bed spaces
- 1 youth hostel or sports centre · 60 bed spaces
Commune: Vars · INSEE tourist accommodation survey, 2026, read on 12 September 2026. Collective accommodation only — privately let flats and second homes are not counted. INSEE dataset ↗
Tourist office
Office du Tourisme
Ski school
ESF Vars
100 instructors
🇬🇧 53 English-speaking instructors — lessons in English available
🗓️ This school sells its lessons online — book ↗
Source: esf.net
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.
What's on around La Forêt Blanche
All events →-
19 September 2026 – 20 September 2026
visite du système défensif et de la lunette d’Arçon
Mont-Dauphin · Mont-Dauphin
Venez remonter le temps pour découvrir l'ambitieux projet de Vauban, les perfectionnements imaginés par le général Le Michaud d'Arçon et explorer les secrets d'une fortification conçue pour être A…
Source: OpenAgenda, agenda “Hautes-Alpes” · View on OpenAgenda ↗
Also near: Risoul (2.7 km)
-
19 September 2026 – 20 September 2026
Little Bighorn par Ousmane Sow
caserne Rochambeau · Mont-Dauphin
À l’occasion des Journées européennes du patrimoine, venez découvrir l’univers monumental d’Ousmane Sow : Little Bighorn, une exposition où l’histoire prend corps au sein des fortifications de…
Source: OpenAgenda, agenda “Hautes-Alpes” · View on OpenAgenda ↗
Also near: Risoul (2.4 km)
-
19 September 2026 – 20 September 2026
Visite d'une place forte inscrite au Patrimoine mondial
Village fortifié de Mont-Dauphin · Mont-Dauphin
Mont-Dauphin vous ouvre ses portes de plus de trois siècles d'histoire. Inscrite sur la liste du Patrimoine Mondial, la place forte imaginée par Vauban vous réserve des surprises. Suivez-nous pour un…
Source: OpenAgenda, agenda “Hautes-Alpes” · View on OpenAgenda ↗
Also near: Risoul (2.7 km)
-
19 September 2026 · 18:00
Les premiers photographes du Queyras
Guillestre, école élémentaire Le Simoust · Guillestre
Des débuts de la photographie sur des plaques de verre au numérique d’aujourd’hui, la technique a bien changé !
Source: OpenAgenda, agenda “Hautes-Alpes” · View on OpenAgenda ↗
Events published on OpenAgenda by the agendas named above, kept when they take place within 10 km of the resort. We organise nothing: times, prices and cancellations are the organiser's.
Nearby resorts
Frequently asked questions
How high is La Forêt Blanche?
La Forêt Blanche sits at 1,660 m at village level.
How many kilometres of pistes does La Forêt Blanche have?
La Forêt Blanche has 71 km of pistes served by 18 lifts (OpenStreetMap survey).
How do I get to La Forêt Blanche?
By road, La Forêt Blanche is 2 hr 49 from Grenoble (161 km), excluding traffic and winter conditions. By train, the nearest station is Mont-Dauphin - Guillestre, 18 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 Cuneo, 2 hr 15 away.
How long is the drive from Paris to La Forêt Blanche?
8 hr 38 for 734 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 La Forêt Blanche?
Yes: good snow through most of the winter according to twenty winters of Météo-France measurements; in season the daily report prevails.
Is La Forêt Blanche good for beginners and families?
70% of the pistes are green or blue: a rather easy area.
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