Montchavin
Montchavin is a ski resort in the Northern Alps (Savoie), in the commune of La Plagne Tarentaise. The village sits at 1,200 m and the ski area rises to 1,989 m, a skiable vertical of 679 m.
The area offers 137 km of alpine pistes, 146 marked pistes (15 green, 101 blue, 25 red, 5 black), 41 ski lifts, plus a snowpark. Green and blue runs dominate: terrain suited to beginners and families.
Montchavin belongs to the linked Paradiski area: one lift pass covers the neighbouring resorts.
Measured on the OpenStreetMap map: the longest piste runs 6 km (Pierres Blanches) and the highest lift tops out at 3,201 m.
The resort holds the Famille Plus and Station classée de tourisme labels.
Access: 1 h 26 by road from Chambéry and 9 min from Landry railway station.
12 official webcams show the pistes live (on the French page).
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?2.5 / 5
Top of the ski area: 1,989 m · Bottom of the pistes: 1,310 m · Days above 30 cm per winter, measured: 44 days · Days above 30 cm, December to March, model: 99%
- Ski areaIs there enough to ski all week?4 / 5
Km of pistes at the resort: 137 km · Km of pistes across the linked area: 337 km · Lifts: 41 · Balance between piste levels: 65%
- ValueIs the lift pass reasonable for what you get?2.5 / 5
Adult day pass: €76 · Day pass price per km of pistes: €0.23/km · Adult 6-day pass: €401 · Price read at a neighbouring resort of the same area
- Families and beginnersIs it right for children and beginners?4.5 / 5
Share of green and blue pistes: 79% · Magic carpets: 10 · Sledging runs: 2 · Special prices out of 4 (beginner, child, family, free age): 3 · ESF ski school · Ice rink, pool, rail sledge…: 3 · Famille Plus label
- AccessIs it easy to get to?3.5 / 5
Average drive time from 20 major cities: 4 hr 51 · Nearest railway station: 9 min · Nearest airport: 1 hr 37
- Atmosphere and après-skiIs there life in the evening and off the slopes?4 / 5
Bars and pubs: 5 · Nightclubs: 0 · Restaurants: 29 · Upcoming events: 21 · Collective tourist beds: 11,577 — index: what the map and the listings publish
- Luxury and comfortHow upmarket is the resort?1.5 / 5
5-star hotels: 0 · 4-star hotels: 0 · Share of hotel rooms in 4 and 5 stars: 12% · Spas and saunas: 0 · Jewellers, watchmakers, fashion boutiques: 0 · Adult day pass: €76 — 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).
The domain is due to open on 12 December 2026 and close on 17 April 2027. Open pistes and lifts will appear here as soon as the resort publishes its daily report.
Right now at the LA PLAGNE_SAPC station (2,120 m)
Avalanche danger
7-day forecast
Village 1,200 m · top 1,989 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 May: a long, reliable season.
☀️ Average daily sunshine : Nov 6.3 h · Dec 5.5 h · Jan 5.9 h · Feb 7 h · Mar 8 h · Apr 9.9 h — 25 bright days in April (Open-Meteo estimate, 2015-2025).
- November30 cmInsufficient · 45%
- December94 cmGood skiing · 96%
- January144 cmGood skiing · 100%
- February169 cmGood skiing · 100%
- March186 cmGood skiing · 100%
- April164 cmGood skiing · 100%
- May109 cmGood skiing · 90%
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
63 complete winters measured, from 1959-1960 to 2021-2022 — on average 44 days a winter with at least 30 cm on the ground.
- 1-15 Dec13 cmInsufficient · 14 %
- 16-31 Dec22 cmInsufficient · 26 %
- 1-15 Jan28 cmInsufficient · 39 %
- 16-31 Jan35 cmVariable · 51 %
- 1-15 Feb39 cmVariable · 58 %
- 16-29 Feb35 cmVariable · 57 %
- 1-15 Mar22 cmInsufficient · 31 %
- 16-31 Mar10 cmInsufficient · 12 %
- 1-15 Apr5 cmInsufficient · 6 %
- Best winter of the series
- 1962-1963 — 119 days at 30 cm or more
- Worst winter of the series
- 1963-1964 — 0 day at 30 cm or more
How much snow actually falls — 252 cm a winter on average, spread over 33 days of snowfall. Measured over 64 complete winters, from 1959-1960 to 2022-2023.
- Biggest 24-hour snowfall
- 90 cm — 1970-1971
- Snowiest winter
- 1969-1970 — 504 cm
- Leanest winter
- 1963-1964 — 51 cm
The ski area
Compare with another resort →146 pistes, by level — 137 km
- Skiable vertical
- 679 m (1,310 m → 1,989 m)
- Lifts
- 3 cable cars, 7 gondolas, 11 chairlifts, 10 drag lifts, 10 magic carpets
- Cross-country skiing
- 10 named trails — 26 km of marked loops (17 km of distinct track: the loops overlap), 4.6 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(10)
Trail Level Length La Gouille blue 12 km Les Dzirpes easy 3.4 km Le Mône difficult 3.4 km L'Epinerie expert 1.9 km Le Vigerand intermediate 1.8 km L’Eau Salée very easy 0.9 km Le Cassinet difficult 0.8 km Le Tumelet blue 0.7 km La Culaz expert 0.7 km Beaupraz intermediate 0.7 km - Snowpark
- Yes
- Night skiing
- 3 floodlit pistes (OSM)
- Without skis
- 3 km of snowshoe and walking trails · 2 sledging runs
- Piste aspect
- N 43% · E 7% · S 6% · W 44% (descent direction of 103 OSM pistes, terrain model)
- Mountain restaurants
- Les Pierres Blanches (2117 m) · Le Chalet du Plan Bois (1825 m) · La Fruitière (1814 m) · Le Plein Soleil (1812 m) · Le Faitout (1726 m) · Le Choucas (1718 m) · Le Petit Savoyard (1718 m) · Le Melting-Pot (1717 m)
- Season 2026-2027
- opens on 12 December 2026, closes on 17 April 2027 (declared by the resort, ANMSM)
- Tourist office
- La Plagne Montchavin-Les Coches · 3 Rue des Pommiers / Montchavin / Bellentre, 73210 · 04 79 07 82 82 · [email protected] (declared by the resort, ANMSM)
- Piste map (PDF)
- PlanPistesParadiski2024-LaPlagne-LesArcs-Peisey-Vallandry (declared by the resort, ANMSM)
- Shuttle timetable (PDF)
- AURA S72 - 2025-2026 (declared by the resort, ANMSM)
- Resort app
- Android (declared by the resort, ANMSM)
- Famille Plus
- The resort’s family page (declared by the resort, ANMSM)
Resort data: declared by La Plagne Montchavin-Les Coches and distributed by ANMSM · read on 18 September
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 →
| Adult pass | Price |
|---|---|
| 1 day | €76 |
| 6 days | €401 |
| Child, 1 day | €61 |
| Beginner, 1 day | €45 |
| Free | Free under 5 · free from 75 years |
Read on the official price list, full price, excluding promotions. Price list of the linked area, read on Arc 1950. Official price list ↗
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.
Staying and hiring gear in Montchavin
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 (12) →Official players of the resort, live image. Checked on 18 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 Montchavin
From Paris: 7 hr 13 (675 km) by road.
By road
- From Chambéry: 1 hr 26 · 106 km
- From Annecy: 1 hr 41 · 99 km
- From Grenoble: 1 hr 42 · 135 km
- From Genève: 2 hr 23 · 146 km
- From Lyon: 2 hr 36 · 204 km
From other major cities (15)
- From Valence: 2 hr 46 · 228 km
- From Saint-Étienne: 3 hr 10 · 253 km
- From Dijon: 4 hr 28 · 405 km
- From Clermont-Ferrand: 4 hr 29 · 373 km
- From Besançon: 4 hr 43 · 318 km
- From Montpellier: 4 hr 53 · 432 km
- From Marseille: 4 hr 58 · 442 km
- From Perpignan: 6 hr 14 · 580 km
- From Nice: 6 hr 19 · 519 km
- From Nancy: 6 hr 35 · 616 km
- From Strasbourg: 6 hr 38 · 535 km
- From Toulouse: 7 hr 10 · 666 km
- From Paris: 7 hr 13 · 675 km
- From Bordeaux: 8 hr 27 · 759 km
- From Pau: 9 hr 05 · 856 km
Excluding traffic and winter conditions; passes closed in winter are avoided.
By train
Landry station
halt · then 9 min drive (8 km)
Nearest main station: Chambéry - Challes-les-Eaux, 1 hr 24 by road.
Shuttles and buses from the station: see the resort’s official website.
By plane
- Chambéry-Savoie (CMF): 1 hr 37 by road · 113 km
- Grenoble-Alpes-Isère (GNB): 2 hr 15 by road · 181 km
Take me there
These links open the app with Montchavin as the destination. Your starting point is never sent by us — the app asks you for it, if you agree.
Charging an electric car
2 charging stations within 2 km
6 charging points · up to 125 kW
- LA PLAGNE - Station Montchavin · TotalEnergies Charging Services · 4 points · 125 kW · 0.1 km
- LANDRY - Passage Lucas Curton · EASYCHARGE · 2 points · 24 kW · 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: Les Pelées · Esselet · Écureuils
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 Montchavin — up to 1,440 m of climb.
| Summit and route | Ski grade | Climb | Altitude | Aspect | From resort |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TS du Grizzly, Pt 2287m · par les Verdaches, depuis Plan Peisey | n/a · F | 660 m | 1,645 → 2,287 m | n/a | 4.3 km |
| Dôme de Vaugelaz · Versant SE | 2.1 · E1 · F | 905 m | 1,320 → 2,225 m | SE | 4.8 km |
| Mont Saint-Jacques · Couloir N | 3.2 · E1 · D+ | 800 m | 1,600 → 2,457 m | N | 5.1 km |
| Aiguille Grive · depuis Nancroix la Chénarie | n/a · E2 · PD | 1,235 m | 1,497 → 2,732 m | S | 5.4 km |
| Aiguille Grive · Col d’Entreporte | 3.2 · E2 · AD+ | 200 m | 2,540 → 2,732 m | SW | 5.4 km |
| Aiguille Grive · Les Lanches | 2.3 · E1 · AD- | 200 m | 2,540 → 2,732 m | S | 5.4 km |
| Pointe de Friolin · depuis Peisey Le Moulin | 2.1 · E1 · PD | 1,440 m | 1,264 → 2,707 m | SW | 5.5 km |
| Pointe de Friolin · Couloir et face N | 4.3 · E2 · TD- | n/a | n/a | N | 5.5 km |
| Pointe de Friolin · Couloir des crasses du moulin | 5.1 · E2 · TD- | 1,400 m | 1,400 → 2,960 m | E | 5.6 km |
| Grand Châtelet - Sommet S · Crête S par le Versant S du Dôme de Vaugelaz | 2.1 · E1 · F | 1,230 m | 1,230 → 2,461 m | S | 5.8 km |
| Grand Châtelet - Sommet S · Crête S par le Versant SE du Dôme de Vaugelaz | 2.1 · E1 · F | 1,141 m | 1,320 → 2,461 m | SE | 5.8 km |
| Dôme de Vaugelaz · Versant W | 1.3 · E1 · F+ | 820 m | 1,400 → 2,217 m | W | 6 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 Montchavin
Ice rink
- Patinoire · La Plagne Tarentaise · 0.9 km away
- Patinoire de Plagne Centre · La Plagne Tarentaise · 7.7 km away
Swimming pool
- LA PISCINE · Bourg-Saint-Maurice · 3.6 km away
- Centre nautique · Bourg-Saint-Maurice · 7.7 km away
Spa and thermal baths
- La Piscine - Bien-être à Arc 1800 · Bourg-Saint-Maurice · 3.6 km away
- Spa Bellecôte · La Plagne Tarentaise · 6 km away
Paragliding
- Benjamin Raisson Parapente · Landry · 1.3 km away
- Peisey Mountain Fly Parapente · Peisey-Nancroix · 2.1 km away
- Ecole de Parapente des Arcs · Bourg-Saint-Maurice · 3.5 km away
- Les Arcs Parapente · Bourg-Saint-Maurice · 3.8 km away
Museum
- Muséum des Animaux de Montagne · Landry · 4.1 km away
- Coopérative Laitière de Haute Tarentaise - Exposition permanente · Bourg-Saint-Maurice · 7.2 km away
- Espace Saint-Eloi · Séez · 8.5 km away
Cinema
- Cinéma Montchavin-Les Coches · La Plagne Tarentaise · 0.1 km away
- Cinéma l'Eterlou · Bourg-Saint-Maurice · 2 km away
- Salle de spectacle et de cinéma · Aime-la-Plagne · 6.7 km away
- Cinéma Coeur d'Or · Bourg-Saint-Maurice · 7.6 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
11,577 bed spaces in tourist residences, holiday villages and hostels
- 8 hotels · 386 rooms (1 × 4★, 4 × 3★)
- 4 holiday villages and family centres · 1,977 bed spaces
- 24 tourist residences and apartment hotels · 8,898 bed spaces
- 2 youth hostels and sports centres · 702 bed spaces
- 2 campsites · 74 pitches
Commune: La Plagne Tarentaise · 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
📍 1 Montée des Tsavanias, 73210 La Plagne-Tarentaise
Ski school
ESF Montchavin-Les Coches
68 instructors
🇬🇧 57 English-speaking instructors — lessons in English available
🗓️ This school sells its lessons online — book ↗
Source: esf.net
Days without skiing
- Cinema · Cinéma Montchavin-Les Coches
- Ice rink · Patinoire
- Cinema · L’Éterlou
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 Montchavin
All 21 upcoming events →-
18 September 2026 – 26 September 2026
Exposition "Médaillons" : aquarelles d'Antoine Belmère
Médialudothèque de Bourg Saint Maurice · Bourg-Saint-Maurice
Le point de départ de l'exposition, c'est le "médaillon", aussi bien son usage en sculpture qu'en peinture. On peut en découvrir un exemple sur la façade de la Maison des Têtes à Bourg Saint Maurice.
Source: OpenAgenda, agenda “Les Evènements en Haute Tarentaise” · View on OpenAgenda ↗
Also near: Bourg Saint Maurice (0.6 km), Arc 1600 (3.1 km), Arc 1800 (4.9 km), La Rosière (6.5 km)
-
18 September 2026 · 18:30
voyage à vélo
Maison d'Emilien - Médiathèque de Séez · Séez
A vélo Bruxelles - Amsterdam
Source: OpenAgenda, agenda “Les Evènements en Haute Tarentaise” · View on OpenAgenda ↗
Also near: Bourg Saint Maurice (2.2 km), Arc 1600 (3.1 km), La Rosière (3.9 km), Arc 1800 (5.8 km)
-
19 September 2026 – 26 September 2026
Conte, jeu et bricolage : au pays des gnomes
Médialudothèque de Bourg Saint Maurice · Bourg-Saint-Maurice
Conte, jeu et bricolage en deux séances pour le séchage de l'argile.
Source: OpenAgenda, agenda “Les Evènements en Haute Tarentaise” · View on OpenAgenda ↗
Also near: Bourg Saint Maurice (0.6 km), Arc 1600 (3.1 km), Arc 1800 (4.9 km), La Rosière (6.5 km)
-
24 September 2026 · 10:15
Animation 0 - 3 ans
Maison d'Emilien - Médiathèque de Séez · Séez
animation jeunesse lecture d'albums
Source: OpenAgenda, agenda “Les Evènements en Haute Tarentaise” · View on OpenAgenda ↗
Also near: Bourg Saint Maurice (2.2 km), Arc 1600 (3.1 km), La Rosière (3.9 km), Arc 1800 (5.8 km)
-
25 September 2026 · 18:30
Rencontre autrice / Expo / Vernissage
Maison d'Emilien - Médiathèque de Séez · Séez
Rencontre autrice / Dédicaces / Expo / Vernissage
Source: OpenAgenda, agenda “Les Evènements en Haute Tarentaise” · View on OpenAgenda ↗
Also near: Bourg Saint Maurice (2.2 km), Arc 1600 (3.1 km), La Rosière (3.9 km), Arc 1800 (5.8 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 Montchavin?
Montchavin sits at 1,200 m at village level, and its ski area rises to 1,989 m.
How many kilometres of pistes does Montchavin have?
Montchavin has 137 km of pistes served by 41 lifts, within the linked Paradiski area (OpenStreetMap survey).
What is the longest piste in Montchavin?
The longest piste is Pierres Blanches: 6 km (blue run), for 338 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 Montchavin?
The highest lift, Aiguille Rouge, tops out at 3,201 m (IGN RGE ALTI terrain model). The 68 lifts mapped on OpenStreetMap total 63 km.
How much is a lift pass in Montchavin?
The adult day pass costs €76 and the 6-day pass €401 (current season, read on the official price list, shared with Arc 1950).
How do I get to Montchavin?
By road, Montchavin is 1 hr 26 from Chambéry (106 km), excluding traffic and winter conditions. By train, the nearest station is Landry, 9 min by road from the resort. The nearest airport is Chambéry-Savoie, 1 hr 37 away.
How long is the drive from Paris to Montchavin?
7 hr 13 for 675 km from central Paris, excluding traffic and winter conditions. Computed on the real road network (OpenStreetMap): allow more on a school-holiday Saturday.
When does Montchavin open?
According to the dates declared by the resort (ANMSM feed), the resort opens on 12 December 2026 and closes on 17 April 2027 (2026-2027 season).
Is the snow reliable in Montchavin?
Yes: good snow through most of the winter according to ten winters of reanalysis (estimate); in season the daily report prevails.
Is Montchavin good for beginners and families?
79% of the pistes are green or blue: a very accessible area. The resort holds the Famille Plus family label.
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