France ski vacationfamily favourites for UK skiersFrance ski vacation choices for families are plentiful. It's very popular with UK skiers because there's something for everyone.
If you’re looking for something in particular from your family ski vacations, there is such a wide variety of resorts. Large or small, high or low altitude, village or town, old village or purpose built block resort - you're bound to find the best family ski resort to suit you. If you and your family haven't skied here before, take a look at our tips when first skiing in France. You can visit some of the largest linked ski areas in the world. For clocking up family skiing miles, try Les Trois Vallees (The Three Valleys), Paradiski, Les Portes du Soleil, or L’Espace Killy. Or you can find a hidden gem – quieter, off the package holiday trail like Les Contamines, Puy St Vincent, Pra Loup or Chamrousse. Is the snow reliable in France?Ski vacation favourites include some high altitude resorts with good snow cover throughout a long season. Resorts with glaciers are a good choice even during early and late season. Try Les Deux Alpes, Alpe d’Huez, Val Thorens, Tignes / Val d'Isere, La Plagne, Les Arcs or Chamonix if you’re looking for snow-sure resorts.Is there a variety of accommodation?The usual large tour operators feature France ski vacation options heavily in their winter programmes, so you can find family ski accommodation to suit your taste and budget. If you're a fan of the chalet holiday, then you'll find the widest choice in France.If you're able to make your own travel arrangements, you can get great value booking direct with a resort, or with one of the numerous small winter holiday firms offering vacation packages in France. These are good value if you want in-house ski childcare.
Saulire in Courchevel, Savoie, France There are some areas that are very popular with the UK market such as Meribel and Courchevel but that does mean there's a good choice to cater for a range of budgets. If you want to take the family skiing in France with a small owner-run ski company, then you’ll find the widest choice compared to other European resorts. Why is this? Probably because of the popularity of French ski resorts with the UK market. For the most part these are located in the popular Alpine resorts – but search carefully and you can find brilliant companies catering for families that deliberately operate in smaller resorts, or 'satelite' villages linked into large areas. Ski school in FranceSki vacation tuition here is readily available. All French ski resorts will have a branch of L’Ecole de Ski Francais (ESF), and many will have a choice of several ski schools.If you're looking for beginner ski instruction in English you’ll find it readily. We’re all for speaking as much of the language when we visit another country - but - we learnt through experience that it’s no fun for a five-year-old to be in a class when he doesn’t understand what’s being said to him. Travelling from the UK to FranceSki vacation here if you like to choose how you travel from the UK. If you’re flying, flights to Lyon, Grenoble, Chambery and Geneva take on around 1 ½ hours from London and many regional airports offer direct flights during the season.Taking the high speed Eurostar train from London is another option if you’re planning to visit resorts in the Savoie region. The train goes direct to Moutiers and Bourg St Maurice, so is perfect for places like the Three Valleys and Espace Killy. From the main port of Calais we allow anywhere between 9 and 12 hours driving to get to resort – depending on where you’re going and how many stops you make along the way. Go on, try France for a ski vacation . |
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Thanks for the great website - very handy. We are planning our first ski trip for us and our 5 kids!Chrisna
Skiing tips for families. Written by an English couple who love to ski and play in the snow with their children.
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