Valmorel
Valmorel is a ski resort in the Tarentaise Valley, located in the communes of Les Avanchers-Valmorel and La Léchère, in the Savoie department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region.
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
Top of the ski area: 1,824 m · Bottom of the pistes: 1,823 m · Days above 30 cm per winter, measured: 61 days · Days above 30 cm, December to March, model: 57%
- Ski areaIs there enough to ski all week?3.5 / 5
Km of pistes at the resort: 123 km · Km of pistes across the linked area: 123 km · Lifts: 36 · Balance between piste levels: 70%
- ValueIs the lift pass reasonable for what you get?2.5 / 5
Adult day pass: €59.7 · Day pass price per km of pistes: €0.49/km · Adult 6-day pass: €299.9 · Price read at a neighbouring resort of the same area
- Families and beginnersIs it right for children and beginners?4 / 5
Share of green and blue pistes: 89% · Magic carpets: 9 · Sledging runs: 2 · Special prices out of 4 (beginner, child, family, free age): 3 · ESF ski school · Ice rink, pool, rail sledge…: 1
- AccessIs it easy to get to?3.5 / 5
Average drive time from 20 major cities: 4 hr 35 · Nearest railway station: 19 min · Station-to-resort shuttles per day: 0 · Nearest airport: 1 hr 22
- Atmosphere and après-skiIs there life in the evening and off the slopes?4 / 5
Bars and pubs: 6 · Nightclubs: 1 · Restaurants: 20 · Upcoming events: 0 · Collective tourist beds: 2,922 — 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 · Adult day pass: €59.7 — 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 19 December 2026 and close on 10 April 2027. Open pistes and lifts will appear here as soon as the resort publishes its daily report.
Right now at the ST-JEAN DE BELLEVILLE station (1,150 m)
Avalanche danger
7-day forecast
Village 1,350 m · top 1,824 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
Snow cover varies from one winter to the next.
☀️ Average daily sunshine : Nov 6.4 h · Dec 5.7 h · Jan 6.1 h · Feb 7.3 h · Mar 8.4 h · Apr 10 h — 25 bright days in April (Open-Meteo estimate, 2015-2025).
- November—no record
- December29 cmInsufficient · 36%
- January43 cmVariable · 64%
- February52 cmVariable · 69%
- March43 cmVariable · 58%
- April19 cmInsufficient · 25%
- 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
63 complete winters measured, from 1959-1960 to 2025-2026 — on average 61 days a winter with at least 30 cm on the ground.
- 1-15 Dec20 cmInsufficient · 27 %
- 16-31 Dec28 cmInsufficient · 38 %
- 1-15 Jan36 cmInsufficient · 47 %
- 16-31 Jan45 cmVariable · 62 %
- 1-15 Feb49 cmVariable · 68 %
- 16-29 Feb48 cmVariable · 70 %
- 1-15 Mar37 cmVariable · 54 %
- 16-31 Mar21 cmInsufficient · 30 %
- 1-15 Apr9 cmInsufficient · 9 %
- Best winter of the series
- 1981-1982 — 128 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 — 297 cm a winter on average, spread over 37 days of snowfall. Measured over 59 complete winters, from 1959-1960 to 2020-2021.
- Biggest 24-hour snowfall
- 72 cm — 1970-1971
- Snowiest winter
- 1969-1970 — 532 cm
- Leanest winter
- 1963-1964 — 93 cm
The ski area
Compare with another resort →140 pistes, by level — 123 km
- Skiable vertical
- 0 m (1,823 m → 1,824 m)
- Lifts
- 1 cable car, 4 gondolas, 5 chairlifts, 16 drag lifts, 9 magic carpets
- Cross-country skiing
- 9 named trails — 47 km of marked loops (16 km of distinct track: the loops overlap) · Espace Nordique du Grand Coin area, 12 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(9)
Trail Level Length Le Grand Tour · Espace Nordique du Grand Coin difficult 10 km La Colonne · Espace Nordique du Grand Coin intermediate 7.9 km Bergein · Espace Nordique du Grand Coin intermediate 6.9 km Les Mottes · Espace Nordique du Grand Coin easy 5.9 km Le Replat · Espace Nordique du Grand Coin easy 5.3 km Liaison Bonvillard - Col du Chaussy · Espace Nordique du Grand Coin easy 3.6 km Les Rieux · Espace Nordique du Grand Coin very easy 3.4 km Tovachet · Espace Nordique du Grand Coin easy 2.5 km Libertour · Espace Nordique du Grand Coin very easy 1.5 km - Snowpark
- 1 mapped zone, 2 km from the resort — Boardercross des Charmettes (easy)
OpenStreetMap, surveyed on 12 September 2026. OpenStreetMap does not map individual features (kickers, rails): what is counted here are the named zones. - Without skis
- 4 km of snowshoe and walking trails · 2 sledging runs
- Piste aspect
- N 62% · E 21% · S 3% · W 14% (descent direction of 74 OSM pistes, terrain model)
- Mountain restaurants
- Les Voiles du Nant (1916 m)
- Season 2026-2027
- opens on 19 December 2026, closes on 10 April 2027 (declared by the resort, ANMSM)
- Tourist office
- Office de Tourisme de Valmorel et Vallées d'Aigueblanche · Bourg Morel, 73260 · 04.79.09.85.55 · [email protected] (declared by the resort, ANMSM)
- Piste map (PDF)
- Carte Valmorel 2025-HD (declared by the resort, ANMSM)
- Shuttle timetable (PDF)
- Horaires-ligne-S62.VALMORELpdf (declared by the resort, ANMSM)
- Resort app
- Android (declared by the resort, ANMSM)
Resort data: declared by Office de Tourisme de Valmorel et Vallées d'Aigueblanche 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 (2026-2027) detail →
| Adult pass | Price |
|---|---|
| 1 day | €59.70 |
| 6 days | €299.90 |
| Season | €825 |
| Child, 1 day | €48.90 |
| Beginner, 1 day | €37.70 |
| Pedestrian, 1 day | €18.90 |
| 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 Combelouvière. 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.
Source: national register of mechanical lifts (STRMTG, CAIRN), fleet as of 1 January 2025 — lifts attributed to Valmorel only (“VALMOREL”), magic carpets included.
Staying and hiring gear in Valmorel
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 (8) →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 Valmorel
From Paris: 6 hr 58 (656 km) by road.
By road
- From Chambéry: 1 hr 11 · 87 km
- From Annecy: 1 hr 26 · 81 km
- From Grenoble: 1 hr 27 · 117 km
- From Genève: 2 hr 08 · 127 km
- From Lyon: 2 hr 21 · 186 km
From other major cities (15)
- From Valence: 2 hr 30 · 209 km
- From Saint-Étienne: 2 hr 54 · 234 km
- From Dijon: 4 hr 13 · 387 km
- From Clermont-Ferrand: 4 hr 14 · 354 km
- From Besançon: 4 hr 27 · 299 km
- From Montpellier: 4 hr 37 · 414 km
- From Marseille: 4 hr 42 · 423 km
- From Perpignan: 5 hr 59 · 562 km
- From Nice: 6 hr 03 · 501 km
- From Nancy: 6 hr 20 · 597 km
- From Strasbourg: 6 hr 22 · 517 km
- From Toulouse: 6 hr 55 · 648 km
- From Paris: 6 hr 58 · 656 km
- From Bordeaux: 8 hr 12 · 741 km
- From Pau: 8 hr 49 · 838 km
Excluding traffic and winter conditions; passes closed in winter are avoided.
By train
Moûtiers - Salins - Brides-les-Bains station
regional station · then 19 min drive (16 km)
Nearest main station: Chambéry - Challes-les-Eaux, 1 hr 09 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
- Chambéry-Savoie (CMF): 1 hr 22 by road · 95 km
- Grenoble-Alpes-Isère (GNB): 2 hr 00 by road · 162 km
Take me there
These links open the app with Valmorel 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 50 kW
- L'OXYGENE · CAR2PLUG · 2 points · 22 kW · 0.1 km
- Les Avanchers-Valmorel - Parking du bourg · EASYCHARGE · 4 points · 50 kW · 0.1 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: Free Ride du Mottet · Free ride du Riondet · Free ride du Gollet · Freeride du Mottet
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 Valmorel — up to 1,470 m of climb.
| Summit and route | Ski grade | Climb | Altitude | Aspect | From resort |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crève Tête · Antécime N | 2.1 · E1 · PD- | 1,112 m | 1,060 → 2,172 m | N | 1.5 km |
| Col du Gollet · Versant E | 2.1 · PD- | n/a | 1,380 → 1,971 m | n/a | 1.9 km |
| Chalet Bachal (Pierre Larron) · Par les Avanchers | 1.3 · E1 · F | 680 m | 1,160 → 1,830 m | NW | 2.6 km |
| La Roche (Celliers) · Couloir E | 4.3 · E2 · TD- | 570 m | 1,380 → 1,951 m | E · NE | 3.6 km |
| Pic du Rognolet · Versant SE par la Combe des Plans | 2.2 · E1 · PD | 1,300 m | 1,350 → 2,659 m | SE | 4 km |
| Grand Pic de la Lauzière · Versant N par la Combe de la Valette | 2.1 · E1 · PD | 1,470 m | 1,360 → 2,829 m | NE | 4.1 km |
| Coup de Sabre de la Balme · Versant E | 3.2 · E1 · AD- | 1,240 m | 1,360 → 2,600 m | E | 4.1 km |
| Rocher du Pays · Versant SE | 3.1 · E1 · PD | 1,215 m | 1,360 → 2,576 m | SE | 4.1 km |
| L'Homme de Beurre · Versant E | 2.2 · E1 · PD- | 900 m | 1,368 → 2,268 m | NW | 4.1 km |
| Pic du Rognolet · Couloir N de l'antécime N | 5.1 · E2 · TD | 1,300 m | 1,360 → 2,659 m | N | 4.2 km |
| Pointe du Mottet · par le Col de Roche Blanche | 2.1 · E1 · PD- | 1,200 m | 1,375 → 2,575 m | N | 4.2 km |
| Combelouvière · par Saint Oyen | 1.2 · E1 · PD- | 594 m | 630 → 1,230 m | NE | 4.2 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 Valmorel
Swimming pool
- Espace aquatique de Valmorel - Kanopé · Les Avanchers-Valmorel · 0.1 km away
- Piscine de Doucy · La Léchère · 4.1 km away
- Piscine publique · Brides-les-Bains · 9.8 km away
Spa and thermal baths
- Thermes de La Léchère · La Léchère · 6.8 km away
- Le Grand Spa Thermal · Brides-les-Bains · 9.8 km away
- Les Thermes de Brides-Les-Bains · Brides-les-Bains · 9.8 km away
Paragliding
- Aire de décollage parapente des Lanchettes · Les Avanchers-Valmorel · 1.5 km away
- Aire de décollage parapente de Crève-Tête · Les Avanchers-Valmorel · 1.5 km away
- Aire de décollage parapente du Gollet · Les Avanchers-Valmorel · 2 km away
- Aire de décollage parapente des Bachals · Les Avanchers-Valmorel · 2.3 km away
Museum
- Musée d'antan de Raclaz · La Léchère · 4 km away
- Galerie d'exposition / Patio au Centre Culturel Marius Hudry · Moûtiers · 7.4 km away
- Centre Culturel Marius Hudry · Moûtiers · 7.4 km away
- Musée des Traditions Populaires · Moûtiers · 7.4 km away
Cinema
- Le Studio - cinéma · Les Avanchers-Valmorel · 0.1 km away
- Cinéma "Le Rex" · Moûtiers · 7 km away
- Cinéma Le Doron · Brides-les-Bains · 9.7 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.
Practical information
Collective accommodation
2,922 bed spaces in tourist residences, holiday villages and hostels
- 3 hotels · 69 rooms (2 × 3★)
- 3 holiday villages and family centres · 1,416 bed spaces
- 4 tourist residences and apartment hotels · 1,506 bed spaces
Commune: Les Avanchers-Valmorel · 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 Valmorel
142 instructors
🇬🇧 123 English-speaking instructors — lessons in English available
🗓️ This school sells its lessons online — book ↗
Source: esf.net
Days without skiing
- Cinema · Cinéma
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 Valmorel?
Valmorel sits at 1,350 m at village level, and its ski area rises to 1,824 m.
How many kilometres of pistes does Valmorel have?
Valmorel has 123 km of pistes served by 36 lifts, within the linked Le Grand Domaine area (OpenStreetMap survey).
What is the longest piste in Valmorel?
The longest piste is Le Marquis: 7 km (blue run), for 420 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 Valmorel?
The highest lift, Mottet (detachable chairlift), tops out at 2,403 m. Source: STRMTG, French national register of mechanical lifts (CAIRN database), file dated 1 January 2025.
How many lifts does Valmorel have, and what is their capacity?
The French national register of mechanical lifts records 41 installations at Valmorel (4 gondolas, 7 chairlifts, 20 drag lifts, 10 magic carpets), for an authorised capacity of 42,920 people per hour, of which 3,560 for Planchamp alone. The fleet spans 1963 to 2024, an average age of 24 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 Valmorel?
The adult day pass costs €59.70 and the 6-day pass €299.90 (2026-2027, read on the official price list, shared with Combelouvière).
How do I get to Valmorel?
By road, Valmorel is 1 hr 11 from Chambéry (87 km), excluding traffic and winter conditions. By train, the nearest station is Moûtiers - Salins - Brides-les-Bains, 19 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 Chambéry-Savoie, 1 hr 22 away.
How long is the drive from Paris to Valmorel?
6 hr 58 for 656 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 Valmorel open?
According to the dates declared by the resort (ANMSM feed), the resort opens on 19 December 2026 and closes on 10 April 2027 (2026-2027 season).
Is the snow reliable in Valmorel?
It varies from one winter to the next according to twenty winters of Météo-France measurements; in season the daily report prevails.
Is Valmorel good for beginners and families?
89% of the pistes are green or blue: a very accessible area.
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