Val Thorens
Val Thorens is a ski town in the Tarentaise Valley in the French Alps at an altitude of 2,300 m (7,500 ft). It is located in the commune of Les Belleville in the Savoie department. The resort forms part of the Les Trois Vallées ski area which, with over 600 km of slopes, is one of the largest linked ski areas in the world.
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?4.5 / 5
Top of the ski area: 3,001 m · Bottom of the pistes: 1,718 m · Days above 30 cm per winter, measured: 131 days · Days above 30 cm, December to March, model: 99%
- Ski areaIs there enough to ski all week?4.5 / 5
Km of pistes at the resort: 425 km · Km of pistes across the linked area: 425 km · Lifts: 44 · Balance between piste levels: 79%
- ValueIs the lift pass reasonable for what you get?3 / 5
Adult day pass: €70 · Day pass price per km of pistes: €0.16/km · Adult 6-day pass: €350 · Price read at a neighbouring resort of the same area
- Families and beginnersIs it right for children and beginners?3.5 / 5
Share of green and blue pistes: 72% · Magic carpets: 9 · Sledging runs: 5 · Special prices out of 4 (beginner, child, family, free age): 0 · ESF ski school · Ice rink, pool, rail sledge…: 2 · Famille Plus label
- AccessIs it easy to get to?3 / 5
Average drive time from 20 major cities: 5 hr 01 · Nearest railway station: 40 min · Station-to-resort shuttles per day: 3 · Nearest airport: 1 hr 47
- Atmosphere and après-skiIs there life in the evening and off the slopes?4.5 / 5
Bars and pubs: 12 · Nightclubs: 2 · Restaurants: 49 · Upcoming events: 0 · Collective tourist beds: 16,730 — index: what the map and the listings publish
- Luxury and comfortHow upmarket is the resort?4.5 / 5
5-star hotels: 2 · 4-star hotels: 3 · Share of hotel rooms in 4 and 5 stars: 65% · Spas and saunas: 0 · Jewellers, watchmakers, fashion boutiques: 1 · Adult day pass: €70 — 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 21 November 2026 and close on 2 May 2027. Open pistes and lifts will appear here as soon as the resort publishes its daily report.
Right now at the LA MASSE station (2,800 m)
Avalanche danger
7-day forecast
Village 2,300 m · top 3,001 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 6.4 h · Dec 5.7 h · Jan 6.1 h · Feb 7.3 h · Mar 8.3 h · Apr 9.8 h — 25 bright days in April (Open-Meteo estimate, 2015-2025).
- November—no record
- December82 cmGood skiing · 97%
- January116 cmGood skiing · 100%
- February135 cmGood skiing · 100%
- March153 cmGood skiing · 99%
- April135 cmGood skiing · 100%
- 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
17 complete winters measured, from 1998-1999 to 2022-2023 — on average 131 days a winter with at least 30 cm on the ground.
- 1-15 Dec63 cmGood skiing · 92 %
- 16-31 Dec79 cmGood skiing · 100 %
- 1-15 Jan103 cmGood skiing · 100 %
- 16-31 Jan119 cmGood skiing · 100 %
- 1-15 Feb134 cmGood skiing · 100 %
- 16-29 Feb138 cmGood skiing · 100 %
- 1-15 Mar147 cmGood skiing · 100 %
- 16-31 Mar144 cmGood skiing · 100 %
- 1-15 Apr141 cmGood skiing · 100 %
- Best winter of the series
- 2013-2014 — 136 days at 30 cm or more
- Worst winter of the series
- 2022-2023 — 123 days at 30 cm or more
How much snow actually falls — 526 cm a winter on average, spread over 60 days of snowfall. Measured over 17 complete winters.
- Biggest 24-hour snowfall
- 70 cm — 2003-2004
- Snowiest winter
- 2017-2018 — 766 cm
- Leanest winter
- 2010-2011 — 260 cm
The ski area
Compare with another resort →404 pistes, by level — 425 km
- Skiable vertical
- 1,283 m (1,718 m → 3,001 m)
- Lifts
- 3 cable cars, 10 gondolas, 15 chairlifts, 4 drag lifts, 9 magic carpets
- Cross-country skiing
- 5 named trails — 39 km of marked loops (21 km of distinct track: the loops overlap), 2.9 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(5)
Trail Level Length Au Fil du Doron n/a 25 km Téton n/a 6.6 km Vincent Jay n/a 3.8 km Preyerand n/a 1.9 km Les Roseaux n/a 0.9 km - Snowpark
- 1 mapped zone, 2.1 km from the resort — VT Park
OpenStreetMap, surveyed on 12 September 2026. OpenStreetMap does not map individual features (kickers, rails): what is counted here are the named zones. - Without skis
- 18 km of snowshoe and walking trails · 5 sledging runs
- Piste aspect
- N 38% · E 7% · S 12% · W 43% (descent direction of 181 OSM pistes, terrain model)
- Mountain restaurants
- La Petite Cuisine (2562 m) · La Fruitière (2562 m) · L'Alpage (2469 m)
- Season 2026-2027
- opens on 21 November 2026, closes on 2 May 2027
- Tourist office
- Office de Tourisme de Val Thorens · Maison de Val Thorens, 818 Grande Rue, 73440 · 0479000808 · [email protected] (declared by the resort, ANMSM)
- Piste map (PDF)
- Plan Les 3 Vallées (declared by the resort, ANMSM)
- Shuttle timetable (PDF)
- Navette station gratuite Val Thorens (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 Office de Tourisme de Val Thorens and distributed by ANMSM · read on 18 September
Opening hours lift by lift (6)
| Lift | Type | Opens | Closes | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cime Caron | téléphérique | 09:30 | 15:45 | OpenStreetMap |
| Masse | téléski | 09:15 | 16:50 | OpenStreetMap |
| Grand Fond | télécabine | 09:30 | 16:00 | OpenStreetMap |
| Télécabine d'Orelle-Caron | télécabine | 09:30 | 15:45 | OpenStreetMap |
| Pointe de la Masse | télécabine | 09:05 | 16:35 | OpenStreetMap |
| Télécabine d'Orelle | télécabine | 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 (2026-2027) detail →
| Adult pass | Price |
|---|---|
| 1 day | €70 |
| 6 days | €350 |
Read on the official price list, full price, excluding promotions. Price list of the linked area, read on Les Menuires. Official price list ↗
Official piste map
Open the piste map (PDF, 633 KB) ↗
Link to the resort’s own file — a piste map is a copyrighted artwork, we host no copy.
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 Val Thorens only (“VAL THORENS”), magic carpets included.
Staying and hiring gear in Val Thorens
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 (10) →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 Val Thorens
From Paris: 7 hr 23 (683 km) by road.
By road
- From Chambéry: 1 hr 36 · 114 km
- From Annecy: 1 hr 51 · 107 km
- From Grenoble: 1 hr 52 · 143 km
- From Genève: 2 hr 33 · 154 km
- From Lyon: 2 hr 46 · 212 km
From other major cities (15)
- From Valence: 2 hr 56 · 236 km
- From Saint-Étienne: 3 hr 20 · 261 km
- From Dijon: 4 hr 38 · 413 km
- From Clermont-Ferrand: 4 hr 39 · 381 km
- From Besançon: 4 hr 53 · 326 km
- From Montpellier: 5 hr 02 · 440 km
- From Marseille: 5 hr 08 · 449 km
- From Perpignan: 6 hr 24 · 588 km
- From Nice: 6 hr 29 · 527 km
- From Nancy: 6 hr 45 · 624 km
- From Strasbourg: 6 hr 48 · 543 km
- From Toulouse: 7 hr 20 · 674 km
- From Paris: 7 hr 23 · 683 km
- From Bordeaux: 8 hr 37 · 767 km
- From Pau: 9 hr 15 · 864 km
Excluding traffic and winter conditions; passes closed in winter are avoided.
By train
Moûtiers - Salins - Brides-les-Bains station
regional station · then 40 min drive (38 km)
Nearest main station: Chambéry - Challes-les-Eaux, 1 hr 34 by road.
- From Moûtiers - Salins - Brides-les-Bains station (stop “Gare Routiere”): line S63 — MOUTIERS ↔ LES MENUIRES ↔ VAL THORENS (REGION - cars Région Savoie), 1 hr 13 to the “Val Thorens - UCPA” stop — 3 departures a day on weekdays · first 16:45, last 18:45 · 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
- Chambéry-Savoie (CMF): 1 hr 47 by road · 121 km
- Grenoble-Alpes-Isère (GNB): 2 hr 25 by road · 189 km
Take me there
These links open the app with Val Thorens 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.
Off-piste & ski touring
The resorts for off-piste skiing →Named itineraries: Pylones · Arolles · Léo Lacroix · Cascades · Itinéraire du Mont Vallon · Le Lac de Lou par la Masse
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 Val Thorens — up to 1,800 m of climb.
| Summit and route | Ski grade | Climb | Altitude | Aspect | From resort |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cime de Caron · Versant N | n/a · PD | 1,093 m | 2,102 → 3,195 m | N | 1.8 km |
| Pointe du Borgne · Versant N | 3.2 · AD | 728 m | 2,350 → 3,078 m | W | 1.8 km |
| Roc des Saints Pères · Couloir S | n/a · AD+ | 1,200 m | 2,300 → 3,470 m | S | 1.9 km |
| Roc des Saints Pères · Couloir NE | 4.3 · E2 · D+ | 1,200 m | 2,300 → 3,470 m | NE | 1.9 km |
| Roc des Saints Pères · Traversée S >> W | n/a · D | 1,170 m | 2,300 → 3,470 m | W | 1.9 km |
| Roc des Saints Pères · Couloir W | 4.2 · E2 | 1,100 m | 2,300 → 3,470 m | W | 1.9 km |
| Pointe du Borgne · Col du Borgne en traversée | n/a · D- | 250 m | 3,078 m | N | 2 km |
| Aiguille de Péclet · Petit Tricotage de Gébroulaz | 4.2 · E2 · D+ | 1,800 m | 2,270 → 3,561 m | S | 2.1 km |
| Mont de Gébroulaz · Traversée Col de Thorens → Col du Borgne | n/a · PD | 700 m | 3,114 → 3,511 m | N | 2.2 km |
| Col de Gébroulaz · Traversée Val Thorens → Méribel | n/a · PD- | 320 m | 3,114 → 3,434 m | N | 2.2 km |
| Cime de Caron · La Combe sans Nom | n/a · PD | 1 m | 3,195 → 3,195 m | S | 2.2 km |
| Pointe de Thorens · face NNW | 4.1 · E1 · AD | 1,000 m | 2,276 → 3,262 m | N | 2.3 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 Val Thorens
Swimming pool
- La Bulle des Bruyères - Piscine Aqualudique · Les Belleville · 3.4 km away
Paragliding
- A Parapente · Les Allues · 9.6 km away
Cinema
- Cinéma du Lac Blanc · Les Belleville · 0.3 km away
- Cinéma Méribel-Mottaret · Les Allues · 8.3 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
16,730 bed spaces in tourist residences, holiday villages and hostels
- 29 hotels · 1,512 rooms (6 × 5★, 10 × 4★, 8 × 3★, 1 × 2★, 2 × 1★)
- 3 holiday villages and family centres · 1,862 bed spaces
- 41 tourist residences and apartment hotels · 14,488 bed spaces
- 1 youth hostel or sports centre · 380 bed spaces
- 1 campsite · 56 pitches
Commune: Les Belleville · 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 de Tourisme de Val Thorens
📍 Maison de Val Thorens, 73440 Les Belleville
Ski school
ESF Val Thorens
299 instructors
🇬🇧 218 English-speaking instructors — lessons in English available
🗓️ This school sells its lessons online — book ↗
Source: esf.net
Days without skiing
- Bowling
- Cinema · Le Lac Blanc
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.
Nearby resorts
Frequently asked questions
How high is Val Thorens?
Val Thorens sits at 2,300 m at village level, and its ski area rises to 3,001 m.
How many kilometres of pistes does Val Thorens have?
Val Thorens has 425 km of pistes served by 44 lifts, within the linked Les 3 Vallées area (OpenStreetMap survey).
What is the longest piste in Val Thorens?
The longest piste is Biolley: 7 km (blue run), for 334 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 Val Thorens?
The highest lift, Cime Caron (aerial tramway), tops out at 3,186 m. Source: STRMTG, French national register of mechanical lifts (CAIRN database), file dated 1 January 2025.
How many lifts does Val Thorens have, and what is their capacity?
The French national register of mechanical lifts records 28 installations at Val Thorens (1 aerial tramway, 7 gondolas, 10 chairlifts, 3 drag lifts, 7 magic carpets), for an authorised capacity of 51,709 people per hour, of which 4,000 for Cascades alone. The fleet spans 1982 to 2022, an average age of 18 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 much is a lift pass in Val Thorens?
The adult day pass costs €70 and the 6-day pass €350 (2026-2027, read on the official price list, shared with Les Menuires).
How do I get to Val Thorens?
By road, Val Thorens is 1 hr 36 from Chambéry (114 km), excluding traffic and winter conditions. By train, the nearest station is Moûtiers - Salins - Brides-les-Bains, 40 min by road from the resort. From Moûtiers - Salins - Brides-les-Bains station, line S63 — MOUTIERS ↔ LES MENUIRES ↔ VAL THORENS (REGION - cars Région Savoie) reaches the “Val Thorens - UCPA” stop in 1 hr 13, 3 departures a day on weekdays. The nearest airport is Chambéry-Savoie, 1 hr 47 away.
How long is the drive from Paris to Val Thorens?
7 hr 23 for 683 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 Val Thorens open?
According to the official website, the resort opens on 21 November 2026 and closes on 2 May 2027 (2026-2027 season).
Is the snow reliable in Val Thorens?
Yes: good snow through most of the winter according to twenty winters of Météo-France measurements; in season the daily report prevails.
Is Val Thorens good for beginners and families?
72% of the pistes are green or blue: a rather easy area. The resort holds the Famille Plus family label.
Every figure carries its source and date; a missing figure shows as “—”, never estimated. Embed this widget on your site