All about ski resorts

With 350 ski resorts in France, it is difficult to choose! Indeed, the choice of the resort remains crucial to a successful stay in the mountains. It must meet your criteria and needs.

Photo by Tim Arnold on Unsplash

What does a ski resort consist of?

A ski resort starts with its ski area, with all the slopes for downhill and cross-country skiing, hiking, sledging, snowshoeing and its lifts.

Then there is the accommodation/hotel and catering, the shops, the non-skiing activities and the ski schools. All these facilities are there to make your holiday easier. The aim is to have everything within walking distance so you can enjoy the mountains and get a breath of fresh air. A winter sports resort can also include several sites, for example, the resort of Les Arcs (Arc 1600, Arc 1800, Arc 2000) which corresponds to the altitude of the village resorts. Or many resorts have neighbourhoods, for example Villard de Lans with the Balcon de Villard, the Glovettes and the Bois Barbu. 

A ski resort would be nothing without the different professions that work every day to make your holiday as pleasant and safe as possible (ski instructors, first aiders, technicians, mid-mountain guides, sports equipment salesmen, as well as the hotel, restaurant, tourism, shopping and entertainment professions).

To ensure that the resort where you stay meets your needs, some resorts have labels such as Famille Plus for families. For Nordic resorts, we can differentiate them with the Nordic France label which will give you a selection of destinations that respect certain commitments. And finally, the Flocon vert label guarantees the sustainable and responsible commitment of these mountain destinations.

The meaning of the colours on the ski slopes

Here are some explanations about the signage on the ski slopes.

In French ski resorts, ski runs are classified into 4 categories:

Green runs, which indicate that the descent is easy. They are perfect for children and beginners. If you are looking for a little more difficulty to improve your level, the blue runs are perfect for you! A little steeper, these runs are still accessible to most people. Intermediate to advanced skiers. You can then go to the red runs. With a higher level of difficulty, these runs are still accessible with practice. Finally, the black runs are the most difficult. Steep and often ungroomed, these runs generally have very steep slopes and bumps carved out by the numerous passages. They are therefore intended for those who have a good command and technique of skiing. 

Finding your way around the ski area

Now that you know the colours and their level of difficulty, you can find the markers. A marker is a round panel in the colour of the piste (its level of difficulty) on which the name of the piste is indicated. It also has a number on it which decreases as you go down. So you know how far you can expect to go: the higher the starting number, the longer the track.

And finally, each track is marked with stakes to allow you to precisely delimit the edges of the tracks. Outside the stakes, you will be "off-track". Like the markers, the stakes along the edge of the trail are coloured to match the trail. They are particularly useful on days with low visibility, as they serve as a reference.

To help you make the right choice for your mountain holiday, we have decided to answer the most frequently asked questions about ski resorts in France!