Ski holidays in Val Thorens, France

Val Thorens is Europe's highest ski resort and the heart of Les 3 Vallées, the world's largest interconnected ski area with 600km of pistes. The village sits at an impressive 2,300 metres and gives direct access to skiing all the way up to 3,230 metres. Val Thorens is the natural choice if you prioritise snow-sure conditions and want an enormous range of pistes right outside your door.

The ski area in Val Thorens offers 150km of its own pistes with a clear profile aimed at intermediate and advanced skiers. The long, demanding descents from Cime de Caron (3,195 metres) and Pointe du Bouchet offer fantastic vertical drops and unforgettable runs with views over the French Alpine landscape. With the Les 3 Vallées lift pass you can also reach Méribel, Courchevel and La Tania.

The après-ski scene in Val Thorens is among the liveliest in the French Alps. The bar La Folie Douce has become legendary, with dance floors and live music starting as early as the afternoon, and in the evenings the party continues in the village's many bars and clubs. The atmosphere is international and youthful.

Thanks to its extreme altitude, Val Thorens has one of the longest seasons in the Alps, running from late November to early May. Glacier skiing on the Peclet glacier ensures snow even in the mildest winters. The modern lift system, with high-capacity gondolas, keeps waiting times down.

5 tips about Val Thorens

1. Travel outside the school holidays With a season running from late November to early May, you can find considerably lower prices on accommodation with a lift pass if you avoid the school holidays and go in December or April.
2. Make the most of all of Les 3 Vallées The 3 Vallées lift pass gives you access to a total of 600 km of pistes and more than 160 lifts, so treat yourself to a day trip over to Méribel or Courchevel for a change of scene.
3. Head up to Cime de Caron The gondola to Cime de Caron takes you up to 3,195 metres, one of the highest points in the network, with long, demanding descents and sweeping views across the Alpine landscape.
4. The glacier as a back-up Skiing on the Peclet glacier delivers reliable snow even in mild winters, making it a good option early or late in the season if the weather has let you down at lower altitudes.
5. Expect demanding pistes The piste map in Val Thorens is dominated by red and black runs, so beginners are best off sticking to the most accessible sections close to the village and taking it easy for the first few days.

Pistes and lifts in Val Thorens

Val Thorens' own 150km of pistes are served by 31 lifts and stretch from the village at 2,300 metres up to 3,230 metres. The piste distribution leans towards red and black runs, making the resort especially appealing to sporty skiers. The Cime de Caron gondola takes you up to 3,195 metres, from where several long descents begin. With the Les 3 Vallées pass you get access to a total of 600km of pistes and over 160 lifts in the interconnected system.

Piste map for Val Thorens

Download the piste map See all piste maps

The map downloads as an image file. On your iPhone it lands in the Files app. Tap the icon at the bottom of the address bar to open the map straight away.On your iPad it lands in the Files app. Tap the icon at the top right of the address bar to open the map straight away.On your phone it lands in the Downloads folder. Tap the download notification that appears to open the map straight away.The file lands in the Downloads folder. You can also look for the icon at the top right of the screen and open the map from there.

Snow reliability in Val Thorens

Val Thorens sits at an altitude of 2,300 metres with skiing up to 3,230 metres, making it the highest ski resort in Europe. That extreme altitude provides excellent conditions for natural snow throughout the season, which runs from late November to early May.

For extra reassurance, there is skiing on the Peclet glacier, which delivers reliable snow cover even in unusually mild winters. The combination of a high-altitude village and glacier terrain makes Val Thorens one of the most snow-sure choices in the entire Alps.

Best time to travel to Val Thorens

December to April offers excellent conditions thanks to the resort's high altitude. January and February bring the most snow and the lowest temperatures. March and April offer sunny spring skiing with still reliable snow depths. Val Thorens often stays open into May.

Will there be lift queues in Val Thorens?

Val Thorens is part of Les 3 Vallées, and the lift system there carries 290,342 people an hour across 159 lifts. 90 of the 159 lifts are gondolas or high-speed chairlifts and 12 are drag lifts, which take longer to get through when it is busy. The fastest lifts carry up to 4,000 people an hour, for example Menuires. Per kilometre of piste there is more lift capacity than at an average resort on this site, and you notice it: queues clear quickly. The queue you actually notice is almost always down in the valley between eight and half past nine. If you are on the lift before eight you avoid it.

When is Val Thorens busiest?

How busy the slopes get is not decided by the English half term but by when the local families and the neighbouring countries are on holiday. These are the weeks that fill Val Thorens in the 2026/2027 season.

• France: The French winter holidays roll through three zones and together cover 6 February to 8 March. All three zones head for the same valleys, so the whole period is busy.
  6 to 22 February: zone C, including Paris and Toulouse
  13 February to 1 March: zone A, including Lyon and Bordeaux
  20 February to 8 March: zone B, including Marseille and Strasbourg
• England: The English February half term is 15 to 19 February 2027 for most councils, with a few areas breaking up a week earlier. The Easter holidays run from 26 March to 9 April.
  8 to 12 February: half term in a few council areas, for example Hull
  15 to 19 February: half term in most of England, including London, the Midlands and the North
  26 March to 9 April: Easter holidays for most English schools
• Easter holidays: Easter 2027 is early, on 28 March. Austria and Germany take their holidays around the weekend, while the French holidays fall after Easter, in April.
  20 to 29 March: the whole of Austria, all states at the same time
  22 March to 3 April: most German states, including Bavaria, Hesse and North Rhine-Westphalia
  3 April to 3 May: the French zones, which fall after Easter 2027 and only affect the highest resorts
• Long weekends: Long weekends fill the slopes with day visitors from the nearest cities, even when no schools are on holiday.
  26 December to 3 January: Christmas and New Year, the most expensive period of the year
  6 January: Epiphany, a public holiday in Austria, Italy and parts of Switzerland
  27 to 29 March: the Easter weekend. Easter Monday is a public holiday across the Alps, but Good Friday is a working day in Austria, Italy and France
  1 to 2 May: May Day, a public holiday across the Alps

The weeks before 6 February and after 8 March are noticeably quieter and cheaper. January is the best time for anyone who wants the pistes to themselves.

Snow right now. There is no snow cover in the valley or at the top right now. The figures are modelled by Open-Meteo, not measured by the lift company, and were fetched 14 October 2026 at 20:24.

The lift pass included. The stay comes with the Val Thorens-Orelle lift pass, which covers 150 km of piste. The pass is worth around €355.

How to get to Val Thorens

Last-minute deals in Val Thorens

Last-minute offers, that is late dates the operator still wants to fill, appear from January onwards. Once the season is under way we will show them here on this page.

Val Thorens is suitable for

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Frequently asked questions about Val Thorens