Val Thorens Ski Holidays

Why choose Val Thorens

The skiers who love Val Thorens are the ones who put the skiing first and everything else second. They want a huge area, snow they can count on, and the freedom to rack up serious mileage day after day. If that’s you, few resorts in the Alps compete. In fact, most people find the Three Valleys far bigger than they expected. If you want to ride every piste, you’ll probably need to come back another year.

It’s often confident intermediates who get the most out of Three Valleys, more than the experts. The mountain is full of long, rolling cruising runs and quick modern lifts, so you can cover enormous ground without needing to be brilliant, and the whole 600km-plus of the Three Valleys opens up from here, with Méribel, Courchevel, Les Menuires and Saint-Martin-de-Belleville all skiable in a day.

Beginners can learn here too, with good ski schools, dedicated zones and gentle nursery slopes. But if you’re looking for the gentlest possible first-timer’s week, there are some more natural choices. Some of the green runs double as busy routes back to the lifts, and the high, open altitude is less forgiving than a lower, tree-lined resort. Once you’ve found your feet, though, it’s a brilliant place to progress.

Skiing in Val Thorens

At this altitude the snow mostly takes care of itself, so the thing that really shapes your week here isn’t conditions, it’s scale. The local Val Thorens-Orelle area alone holds more than enough for a week.

Don’t treat the Three Valleys like a normal ski area, because it isn’t. The scale is enormous and route planning matters, especially lift closing times if you’re heading over towards Courchevel or Méribel. Most days you’ll be fine, but on a windy day, the higher lifts can shut.

For stronger skiers and boarders, the Orelle sector is worth highlighting. While most of the crowd streams towards Méribel and Courchevel, Orelle is where the regulars head for quieter pistes, well-preserved snow and some of the best off-piste in the Three Valleys.

Val Thorens live webcam

Ski passes and lessons in Val Thorens

Plenty of visitors reach straight for the full Three Valleys pass, but it isn’t always the right call. If you’re learning, travelling with young children or planning a gentler week, the local Val Thorens-Orelle pass is often more than enough. For confident intermediates and advanced skiers, though, the full Three Valleys pass usually earns its keep, since exploring Méribel and Courchevel is a main attraction.

Val Thorens has an excellent reputation for its ski schools too, from large group lessons through to private tuition and specialist off-piste guiding. When we help you choose accommodation, we can point you to the right spot for where your lessons start and finish, and get them booked up early for you too.

Ski accommodation in Val Thorens

Val Thorens rarely disappoints on the skiing. The accommodation, however, needs some careful thought to avoid disappointment.

One thing Val Thorens does better than almost anywhere is genuine ski-in/ski-out. Because Val Thorens is compact and purpose-built, stepping straight from your door onto the snow and back again at the end of the day is the norm rather than the exception. For families, or anyone who’d rather not carry skis a step further than they have to, that convenience is a big draw.

Ski Line have built a programme of over 50 properties we’re delighted to place our clients in each season, from self-catered apartments and family hotels through to luxury chalets and all-inclusive stays at Club Med Val Thorens Sensations. You can book any of them knowing the quality assurance is already done. Self-catered apartments give the widest choice and remain the most popular option, and hotels on half-board suit couples and families after a more relaxed week. Catered chalets are available too, though in Val Thorens they’re typically a modern apartment within a block rather than a standalone log cabin. The catered experience is the same, the building has a different vibe.

Location matters too. Two properties can both call themselves ski-in/ski-out and still offer completely different mornings, depending on your ability, where your lessons start and how far you’re willing to walk in ski boots. Call us for a chat and we’ll guide you to the right one. 

Regional flights from airports across the UK make Val Thorens one of the easier major French resorts to reach, but once you’re up there you’re largely committed to the resort itself.

Après ski in Val Thorens

Val Thorens has one of the livelier après scenes in France, if a little different in flavour from somewhere like St Anton. La Folie Douce is the famous name and worth doing at least once, but the regulars tend to have their own haunts, like the 360 Bar, Café Snesko and Le Monde.

The crowd skews younger and more energetic than at many traditional French resorts, helped by the sheer number of catered chalets and international visitors. You’ll find a good balance of nightlife and quieter evenings.

Read our ultimate guide to Val Thorens Nightlife for more.

Activities off the slopes in Val Thorens

At this height, the odd wind-bound or white-out day is part of the deal. Luckily there’s plenty running in Val Thorens whatever the weather. The big sports centre has a pool and wellness facilities, there’s one of the longest toboggan runs in France, and, best of the lot, you can go ice diving beneath the frozen surface of the Lac du Lou.

Val Thorens is also one of the best places in the Alps for high-altitude thrills. You can fly side by side down La Bée, 1,800-metre zip-line. Paraglide from 3,000m with Mont Blanc and the Belleville valley laid out beneath you. Test your nerve on Europe’s highest ice-driving circuit at 2,200m. And on Wednesday to Friday evenings there’s the Snow MTB, a guided 6km twilight descent from 3,000m on fat snow tyres.