La Grave
1,500 mBottom of the pistes
3,532 mTop of the ski area
55 kmAlpine pistes
3Ski lifts
Not published by any source: adult day pass.
La Grave is a French commune located in the département of Hautes-Alpes in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Its territory is mostly located in high mountains and it includes several protected natural areas, part of which is in the parc national des Écrins. This commune is particularly renowned for its natural areas, the practice of mountaineering, off-piste skiing in the vallons de la Meije, several sporting events and cultural festivals such as the Messiaen au pays de la Meije contemporary music festival. The main village and the hamlets have retained a traditional village character. Road access to La Grave is via the route départementale 1091 (former route nationale 91), which connects it in particular to Grenoble (département of Isère) to the west and to Briançon to the east. It is thus a stopover on a busy route connecting the départements of Isère and Hautes-Alpes, the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes and Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur regions, and providing the link between France and Italy via access to the col du Montgenèvre located to the east of Briançon.
Live webcams
All webcams (4) →1500mSkaping
2400mSkaping
3200mSkaping
Each player is the camera operator’s own, loaded only when you ask for it — it may set its own trackers.
Official players of the resort, live image. Checked on 12 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 LA MEIJE-NIVOSE station (3,093 m)
Source: Météo-France, LA MEIJE-NIVOSE weather station, 4.9 km away. Hourly measurement — not the resort’s own snow report.
Avalanche danger
Snow cover varies from one winter to the next — the best time runs from mid-January to late February. 52 days a winter at 30 cm or more on average, and 272 cm of fresh snow, measured over 18 winters at the Météo-France “BESSE” station. Fortnight by fortnight, over 18 measured winters →
3-day forecast
Village 1,500 m · top 3,532 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?4 / 5
Top of the ski area: 3,532 m · Bottom of the pistes: 1,500 m · Days above 30 cm per winter, measured: 52 days · Days above 30 cm, December to March, model: 100% · Glacier skiing
- Ski areaIs there enough to ski all week?3 / 5
Km of pistes at the resort: 55 km · Lifts: 3 · Balance between piste levels: 85%
- 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?3 / 5
Share of green and blue pistes: 78% · Magic carpets: 0 · Sledging runs: 1 · ESF ski school · Ice rink, pool, rail sledge…: 0
- AccessIs it easy to get to?3 / 5
Average drive time from 20 major cities: 4 hr 47 · Nearest railway station: 43 min · Station-to-resort shuttles per day: 5 · Nearest airport: 1 hr 47
- Atmosphere and après-skiIs there life in the evening and off the slopes?3 / 5
Bars and pubs: 8 · Nightclubs: 0 · Restaurants: 14 · Upcoming events: 0 · Collective tourist beds: 149 — 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 · Share of hotel rooms in 4 and 5 stars: 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).
37 pistes, by level
12 green17 blue6 red2 black
- Skiable vertical
- 2,032 m
- Cross-country skiing
- 3 named trails — 36 km of marked loops (9.7 km of distinct track: the loops overlap) · Domaine Nordique du Pays de La Meije area, 2.6 km from the resort
Ski-area figures — bottom, km of pistes, pistes by level: OpenStreetMap (1 Oct); top, lifts: STRMTG — French national lift register (1 Jan) .
The ski area in figures
Measured on 7 October 20261 kmLongest piste — Chevreuil (blue), 97 m of vertical
97 mBiggest vertical without changing piste — 1,756 → 1,659 m, 1 km
3,532 mHighest lift top — Dome (drag lift), national lift register
1,375Total lift capacity, people per hour — 3 installations: 2 aerial tramways, 1 drag lift
44 yrsAverage age of the lift fleet — oldest 1976, newest 1989
475Biggest lift, people per hour — Dome (drag lift, 1989)
8 kmTotal length of lifts — 8 lifts mapped
1,091 haSki area boundary (OSM)
479Inhabitants — La Grave (INSEE 05063)
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.
Source: national register of mechanical lifts (STRMTG, CAIRN), fleet as of 1 January 2025 — lifts attributed to La Grave only (“GRAVE (LA)”), magic carpets included.
Staying and hiring gear in La Grave
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.
Collective accommodation
149 bed spaces in tourist residences, holiday villages and hostels
- 3 hotels · 58 rooms (2 × 3★, 1 × 2★)
- 1 holiday village or family centre · 48 bed spaces
- 1 tourist residence or apartment hotel · 101 bed spaces
- 2 campsites · 100 pitches
Commune: La Grave · INSEE tourist accommodation survey, 2026, read on 12 September 2026. Collective accommodation only — privately let flats and second homes are not counted. INSEE dataset ↗
Stay & accommodation
Holidu
Holiday-rental comparison site.
Ski hire
Skiset UK
Skiset’s UK site: ski hire in the resort shops, booked in English, paid in pounds.
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 La Grave
Without skis on — 2 km of snowshoe and walking trails · 1 sledging run
Paragliding
- Confident'Ciel - Ecole de Parapente · La Grave · 0.2 km away
Museum
- Le Moulin à grains de Villar d'Arène · Villar-d'Arêne · 3.7 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.
Ski schools and practical information
Ski school
ESF La Grave
19 instructors
🇬🇧 9 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.
Off the pistes: off-piste and ski touring
The resorts for off-piste skiing → 4 Marked off-piste itineraries · 44 km
— Ski touring routes
Named itineraries: Les Vallons de la Meije · La Grave
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
12 ski touring routes documented within 10 km of La Grave — up to 2,170 m of climb.
| Summit and route | Ski grade | Climb | Altitude | Aspect | From resort |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Signal de la Grave · Versant S | n/a · PD+ | 670 m | 1,770 → 2,446 m | S | 1.6 km |
| Clot de la Cala · Depuis La Grave par le "Vallon de la Meije" | 2.1 · E1 · F | 1,040 m | 1,410 → 2,450 m | N | 2 km |
| Refuge du Goléon · Par le lac du Pontet et l'Aiguillon | n/a | 1,000 m | 1,600 → 2,464 m | S | 2.2 km |
| Refuge de l'Aigle · Par le Glacier du Tabuchet | 3.1 · E2 · AD- | 1,800 m | 1,650 → 3,450 m | N | 2.3 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 La Grave
From Paris: 7 hr 10 (650 km) by road.
By road
- From Grenoble: 1 hr 21 · 78 km
- From Chambéry: 2 hr 00 · 136 km · avoids Col du Galibier, closed in winter
- From Valence: 2 hr 17 · 167 km
- From Lyon: 2 hr 33 · 180 km
- From Saint-Étienne: 3 hr 06 · 229 km
From other major cities (14)
- From Annecy: 3 hr 25 · 249 km · via Briançon station
- From Genève: 3 hr 55 · 287 km · via Briançon station
- From Marseille: 4 hr 08 · 298 km
- From Montpellier: 4 hr 24 · 371 km
- From Dijon: 4 hr 25 · 381 km
- From Clermont-Ferrand: 4 hr 26 · 346 km
- From Besançon: 4 hr 44 · 410 km
- From Perpignan: 5 hr 46 · 519 km
- From Nancy: 6 hr 32 · 592 km
- From Toulouse: 6 hr 42 · 605 km
- From Strasbourg: 7 hr 07 · 648 km
- From Paris: 7 hr 10 · 650 km
- From Bordeaux: 8 hr 24 · 735 km
- From Pau: 8 hr 36 · 795 km
Excluding traffic and winter conditions; passes closed in winter are avoided.
By train
Briançon station
regional station · then 43 min drive (40 km)
Nearest main station: Grenoble, 1 hr 21 by road.
- From Briançon station (stop “Briançon - Gare SNCF”): line 55 — 55 _ BRIANCON - GRENOBLE via SERRE CHEVALIER (ZOU ! Express Bus), 1 hr 33 to the “Mairie” stop — 4 departures a day on weekdays · first 08:45, last 15:45 · timetable from 15 December 2026 to 7 April 2027 · official timetable ↗
- From Briançon station (stop “BRIANCON- COLLEGE LES GARCINS”): line S26 — S26 LA GRAVE - BRIANCON CLG LES GARCINS (ALTIGO), 58 min to the “LA GRAVE LA MEIJE- MAIRIE” stop — 1 departure a day on weekdays · first 12:10, last 17:05 · timetable from 15 December 2026 to 15 April 2027 · official timetable ↗
Direct journeys read from the official timetable files published on transport.data.gouv.fr — no connections.
By plane
- Grenoble-Alpes-Isère (GNB): 1 hr 47 by road · 120 km
- Chambéry-Savoie (CMF): 2 hr 11 by road · 144 km
Take me there
These links open the app with La Grave 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
3 charging points · up to 50 kW
- LA GRAVE - Salle Polyvalente · EASYCHARGE · 3 points · 50 kW · 0.4 km
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.
Translated from the French Wikipedia article (CC BY-SA), machine translation.
Frequently asked questions
How high is La Grave?
The La Grave pistes start at 1,500 m, and its ski area rises to 3,532 m.
How many kilometres of pistes does La Grave have?
La Grave has 55 km of slopes, 3 lifts.
What is the longest piste in La Grave?
The longest piste is Chevreuil: 1 km (blue run), for 97 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 La Grave?
The highest lift, Dome (drag lift), tops out at 3,532 m. Source: STRMTG, French national register of mechanical lifts (CAIRN database), file dated 1 January 2025.
How many lifts does La Grave have, and what is their capacity?
The French national register of mechanical lifts records 3 installations at La Grave (2 aerial tramways, 1 drag lift), for an authorised capacity of 1,375 people per hour, of which 475 for Dome alone. The fleet spans 1976 to 1989, an average age of 44 years. This count covers the resort itself, magic carpets included, not the whole linked ski area — a resort brochure often announces a different number. Source: STRMTG, French national register of mechanical lifts (CAIRN database), file dated 1 January 2025.
How do I get to La Grave?
By road, La Grave is 1 hr 21 from Grenoble (78 km), excluding traffic and winter conditions. By train, the nearest station is Briançon, 43 min by road from the resort. From Briançon station, line 55 — 55 _ BRIANCON - GRENOBLE via SERRE CHEVALIER (ZOU ! Express Bus) reaches the “Mairie” stop in 1 hr 33, 4 departures a day on weekdays. The nearest airport is Grenoble-Alpes-Isère, 1 hr 47 away.
How long is the drive from Paris to La Grave?
7 hr 10 for 650 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 Grave?
Snow cover varies from one winter to the next — the best time runs from mid-January to late February. 52 days a winter at 30 cm or more on average, and 272 cm of fresh snow, measured over 18 winters at the Météo-France “BESSE” station. This verdict rests on 18 winters of Météo-France measurements (2000-2019); in season the daily report prevails.
Is La Grave 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. La Grave in French →
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