Luz-Ardiden
Luz Ardiden is a ski resort in the Pyrenees. It is situated in the Hautes-Pyrénées department, in the Occitanie Region. The ski resort lies at a height of 1,720 m (5,640 ft) and was opened on 16 January 1975. In recent years the road to Luz Ardiden has served as an occasional stage finish for the Tour de France and the Vuelta a España.
Introduction from the English Wikipedia article (CC BY-SA).
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?3.5 / 5
Top of the ski area: 2,485 m · Bottom of the pistes: 1,694 m · Days above 30 cm per winter, measured: 105 days · Days above 30 cm, December to March, model: 69%
- Ski areaIs there enough to ski all week?2.5 / 5
Km of pistes at the resort: 26 km · Km of pistes across the linked area: 26 km · Lifts: 9 · Balance between piste levels: 70%
- 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?1.5 / 5
Share of green and blue pistes: 25% · Magic carpets: 1 · Sledging runs: 0 · ESF ski school · Ice rink, pool, rail sledge…: 0
- AccessIs it easy to get to?2 / 5
Average drive time from 20 major cities: 7 hr 34 · Nearest railway station: 46 min · Station-to-resort shuttles per day: 0 · Nearest airport: 1 hr 00
- Atmosphere and après-skiIs there life in the evening and off the slopes?1.5 / 5
Bars and pubs: 0 · Nightclubs: 0 · Restaurants: 2 · Upcoming events: 2 · Collective tourist beds: 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 (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.
Right now at the LAC D'ARDIDEN-NIVOSE station (2,445 m)
Avalanche danger
7-day forecast
Village 1,720 m · top 2,485 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
Reliable snow mainly in March; more irregular the rest of the winter.
☀️ Average daily sunshine : Nov 6.3 h · Dec 5.7 h · Jan 5.8 h · Feb 7.3 h · Mar 8.1 h · Apr 9.1 h — 24 bright days in April (Open-Meteo estimate, 2015-2025).
- November—no record
- December36 cmInsufficient · 49%
- January49 cmVariable · 61%
- February71 cmVariable · 76%
- March78 cmGood skiing · 90%
- April—no record
- 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
14 complete winters measured, from 1992-1993 to 2021-2022 — on average 105 days a winter with at least 30 cm on the ground.
- 1-15 Dec54 cmVariable · 71 %
- 16-31 Dec52 cmVariable · 78 %
- 1-15 Jan57 cmVariable · 78 %
- 16-31 Jan76 cmGood skiing · 91 %
- 1-15 Feb96 cmGood skiing · 87 %
- 16-29 Feb93 cmGood skiing · 88 %
- 1-15 Mar94 cmGood skiing · 82 %
- 16-31 Mar73 cmVariable · 74 %
- 1-15 Apr59 cmVariable · 65 %
- Best winter of the series
- 2013-2014 — 133 days at 30 cm or more
- Worst winter of the series
- 1992-1993 — 36 days at 30 cm or more
How much snow actually falls — 536 cm a winter on average, spread over 58 days of snowfall. Measured over 13 complete winters, from 1995-1996 to 2021-2022.
- Biggest 24-hour snowfall
- 99 cm — 2012-2013
- Snowiest winter
- 2012-2013 — 985 cm
- Leanest winter
- 1996-1997 — 342 cm
The ski area
Compare with another resort →63 pistes, by level — 26 km
- Skiable vertical
- 791 m (1,694 m → 2,485 m)
- Lifts
- 6 chairlifts, 1 drag lift, 1 magic carpet
- Cross-country skiing
- 1 named trail — 1.4 km of marked loops, 1.2 km from the resortOpenStreetMap, lengths measured on the geometry, surveyed on 12 September 2026. A trail with no difficulty tag is shown as "n/a" — never guessed.
See the trails(1)
Trail Level Length Route de Bederet very easy 1.4 km - Snowpark
- Yes
- Without skis
- 3 km of snowshoe and walking trails
- Piste aspect
- N 30% · E 61% · S 5% · W 3% (descent direction of 50 OSM pistes, terrain model)
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.
The ski area in figures
Measured on 9 September 2026Measured 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 Luz-Ardiden only (“LUZ ARDIDEN”), magic carpets included.
Staying and hiring gear in Luz-Ardiden
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 (5) →Official players of the resort, live image.
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 Luz-Ardiden
From Paris: 9 hr 26 (868 km) by road.
By road
- From Pau: 1 hr 32 · 81 km
- From Toulouse: 2 hr 48 · 218 km
- From Bordeaux: 3 hr 33 · 291 km
- From Perpignan: 4 hr 38 · 413 km
- From Montpellier: 5 hr 06 · 448 km
From other major cities (15)
- From Clermont-Ferrand: 6 hr 41 · 587 km
- From Marseille: 6 hr 46 · 611 km
- From Valence: 6 hr 56 · 646 km
- From Grenoble: 7 hr 53 · 738 km
- From Lyon: 8 hr 03 · 745 km
- From Saint-Étienne: 8 hr 06 · 625 km
- From Nice: 8 hr 24 · 769 km
- From Chambéry: 8 hr 38 · 796 km
- From Annecy: 9 hr 03 · 855 km
- From Paris: 9 hr 26 · 868 km
- From Genève: 9 hr 33 · 893 km
- From Dijon: 9 hr 36 · 883 km
- From Besançon: 10 hr 12 · 941 km
- From Nancy: 11 hr 43 · 1094 km
- From Strasbourg: 12 hr 35 · 1179 km
Excluding traffic and winter conditions; passes closed in winter are avoided.
By train
Lourdes station
main station, high-speed trains · then 46 min drive (41 km)
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
- Tarbes-Lourdes-Pyrénées (LDE): 1 hr 00 by road · 53 km
- Pau-Pyrénées (PUF): 1 hr 38 by road · 90 km
Take me there
These links open the app with Luz-Ardiden 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 September 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 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.
Ski touring routes described
Resorts for ski touring →12 ski touring routes documented within 10 km of Luz-Ardiden — up to 1,400 m of climb.
| Summit and route | Ski grade | Climb | Altitude | Aspect | From resort |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Méchérin · Depuis la station Luz-Ardiden Aulian | n/a · PD- | 880 m | 1,730 → 2,610 m | n/a | 0.1 km |
| Soum des Aulhères · Depuis Bédéret | 1.3 · E1 · F | 530 m | 1,680 → 2,168 m | NE · E | 1.1 km |
| Soum d'Eres Blanques · Couloir NW | 4.3 · E2 · D+ | 580 m | 1,730 → 2,300 m | NW | 1.2 km |
| Soum d'Arriou Né · Depuis la station de Luz Ardiden | 2.1 · PD- | 850 m | 1,734 → 2,577 m | N | 1.3 km |
| Soum d'Eres Blanques · Couloir de la Brèche en coin | 4.1 · E2 · D- | 670 m | 1,730 → 2,375 m | N · NE · E | 1.4 km |
| Soum d'Eres Blanques · Face N | n/a | 650 m | 1,730 → 2,375 m | N · NE | 1.4 km |
| Soum d'Eres Blanques · Couloir à Pierrot | 4.3 · E2 · D+ | 650 m | 1,730 → 2,356 m | N · NE | 1.4 km |
| Soum d'Eres Blanques · Couloir du KL | 5.1 · E2 · TD- | 520 m | 1,730 → 2,250 m | NE · N | 1.4 km |
| Soum d'Arriou Né · Par Bernazau | n/a · E1 · F | 1,400 m | 1,200 → 2,577 m | E | 1.5 km |
| Tuc des Arribans · Depuis Bédéret | 1.1 · E1 · F | 460 m | 1,680 → 2,088 m | S | 1.6 km |
| Plateau de Peyre Haute · Depuis Aulian | 3.2 · E2 · PD- | 1,165 m | 1,650 → 2,411 m | SW | 1.8 km |
| Pic d'Aulian Oriental · Couloir NE Central | 5.1 · E3 · TD- | 800 m | 250 m | NE · E | 1.8 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 ↗
Practical information
Tourist office
Information
Ski school
ESF Luz Ardiden
33 instructors
🇬🇧 5 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 Luz-Ardiden
All events →-
29 September 2026 · 09:00
IMPACT : le tour de France des solutions RSE
Forum de Luz-Saint-Sauveur · Luz-Saint-Sauveur
Événement La French Tech
Source: OpenAgenda, agenda “La French Tech Pyrénées Adour” · View on OpenAgenda ↗
-
27 November 2026 · 09:00
INNOV'ADOUR#5 - Le forum annuel de l'innovation et des transitions
Casino de Cauterets · Cauterets
Événement La French Tech
Source: OpenAgenda, agenda “La French Tech Pyrénées Adour” · View on OpenAgenda ↗
Also near: Cauterets (0.2 km)
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 Luz-Ardiden?
Luz-Ardiden sits at 1,720 m at village level, and its ski area rises to 2,485 m.
How many kilometres of pistes does Luz-Ardiden have?
Luz-Ardiden has 26 km of pistes served by 9 lifts (OpenStreetMap survey).
What is the longest piste in Luz-Ardiden?
The longest single descent: 3 km (blue run), for 427 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 Luz-Ardiden?
The highest lift, Cloze (chairlift), tops out at 2,484 m. Source: STRMTG, French national register of mechanical lifts (CAIRN database), file dated 1 January 2025.
How many lifts does Luz-Ardiden have, and what is their capacity?
The French national register of mechanical lifts records 11 installations at Luz-Ardiden (6 chairlifts, 2 drag lifts, 3 magic carpets), for an authorised capacity of 12,392 people per hour, of which 2,160 for Baby alone. The fleet spans 1975 to 2024, an average age of 28 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 Luz-Ardiden?
By road, Luz-Ardiden is 1 hr 32 from Pau (81 km), excluding traffic and winter conditions. By train, the nearest station is Lourdes (main station, high-speed trains), 46 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 Tarbes-Lourdes-Pyrénées, 1 hr 00 away.
How long is the drive from Paris to Luz-Ardiden?
9 hr 26 for 868 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 Luz-Ardiden?
Yes: good snow in the core of the winter according to twenty winters of Météo-France measurements; in season the daily report prevails.
Is Luz-Ardiden good for beginners and families?
25% of the pistes are green or blue: a rather technical area.
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