Les Menuires Ski Resort France
Les Menuires ski resort is the most under-rated part of the massive 3 Vallèes in the French Alps, and one of the better family ski destinations in the region. Often viewed as the area's ugliest duckling (partly true!), Les Menuires has the excellent on & off-piste skiing, affordable ski-in ski-out accommodation plus direct lift & piste connections to Meribel, St Martin & Val Thorens that put it firmly in the beautiful swan category. More than enough reasons to check it out for yourself.
Pros & Cons for Les Menuires Ski Resort
Pros
- High elevation snow-sure ski area with most terrain over 1,800m elevation.
- Super modern & efficient lift system.
- Long skiable verticals on all piste trails.
- Perfect piste trails for novices & beginners on the village side of the valley.
- Good diversity of trails for intermediates & advanced riders.
- Awesome off-piste terrain from La Masse summit – amongst the 3 Vallèes best.
- Central location in the Belleville valley provides excellent links to Meribel, St Martin & Val Thorens.
- Ski-in ski-out accommodation is the norm & reasonably affordable.
- Three particularly good value lift pass options.
- Good inter-connections to adjacent 3 Vallees ski resorts, particularly Meribel.
- Nice range of non-ski activities for families.
Cons
- A busy, visually (& mentally) challenging resort village with no true centre.
- Mediocre off-piste alpine terrain on the village side of the valley.
Pro or Con (depending on your perspective!)
- Over 60% of the local trails (in an admittedly huge area) are gentle for novices & beginners.
- Distinctly non-traditional main village with a high-rise suburban feel in some parts, which one either loves or hates (we hated it, but each to their own!);
- Loads of apartments & no 5-star accommodation.
Skiing & Snowboarding, Lifts & Terrain
Unlike its totally high-alpine neighbour, Val Thorens, Les Menuires slightly lower base elevation & inter-connection with St Martin down to 1450m, provides an interesting variety of landscapes to slide through. Spanning both sides of the Vallee des Bellevilles, the Les Menuires skiing & snowboarding terrain is a tale of two parts. On the eastern (village) side of the valley, wide treeless tract of mellow spurs run for up to 1000m vertical above the accommodation, providing mainly beginner ski trails down low, plus a few intermediate & advanced runs up high. The western side of the valley holds real interest for powder hounds, with trees down low & well-pitched slopes for advanced riders all the way down from the wonderful Pointe de la Masse. The resort is lift, trail & pass interlinked with St Martin, the first of three ski areas in the broad, generally treeless, Vallèe des Bellevilles. A brand-new lift from the centre of town sets the perfect standard in resort excellence. Unlike the others, the St Martin ski area extends only on the eastern side of the valley over 1000m vertical, providing some of the longest & mellowest beginner & intermediate piste trails on tree lined slopes down low, plus some pleasurable off-piste from the top.
Check out the ski trail map for Les Menuires - St Martin below.
Off-piste terrain throughout the resort is plentiful & good for all abilities, including anyone just trying their first powder turns. The comparatively gentle slopes above the village are great for powder puppies, with steeper offerings below the Col de la Chambre for seekers of something more demanding. Powder hounds should be keen to head straight for the Pointe de la Masse. Delectable 1,000m verticals on a variety of huge, bowls, steeps & trees are just the thing to make one howl for more.
As with the other resorts in the Belleville Valley, lift infrastructure in Les Menuires area is first class. Lift lines are few & there are multiple lifts to get one out of the village in the morning. Four lifts from the La Masse side of the resort get skiers back into the village at the end of day with a minimum of fuss. Ongoing investment in new lifts is occurring.
As far as integration with the rest of the 3 Vallees, the best of the Meribel off-piste terrain is readily reachable via multiple lifts out of the village via the 2,850m Col de la Chambre plus the slightly lower 3 Marches. Similarly, one can connect with Val Thorens via pistes from the Col de la Chambre. Return from Val Thorens is simple – just keep going down the valley! From Meribel, there are 6 connection points, 4 of which lead directly into the village, the other two require use of a St Martin lift before descending to the village. Mind what time you start heading back to avoid getting trapped in the wrong valley. A ski day at Courchevel from Les Menuires can be a challenge!
See the 3 Vallèes ski trail map.
Lift Passes
Ski lift pass options are many & varied when skiing Les Menuires. The local pass is for the 150km of trails in the Les Menuires-St Martin domain. It is around €10/day cheaper than the full 3 Vallees lift pass which includes Meribel, Courchevel & Val Thorens-Orelle. In between is the Vallèe des Bellevilles lift pass. At €4/day cheaper than a 3 Valleys pass, it includes all the lifts & terrain from top to bottom in the valley; Val Thorens- Orelle, Les Menuires & St Martin de Belleville. The Vallee des Belleville pass is only available as a day pass or season pass. Choose wisely!
For international guests, holders of an Epic Pass or Epic Australia Pass receive seven complimentary, unrestricted, and consecutive days at the entire Les 3 Vallées ski area, including Les Menuires. To receive their complimentary pass, Epic Pass holders must go to one of the ticket offices listed with their Epic Pass and ID. Ticket offices are: COURCHEVEL 1850: La Croisette; COURCHEVEL LE PRAZ: Le Praz gondola; BRIDES-LES-BAINS: Olympe gondola; MÉRIBEL CENTRE: La Chaudanne (under the Tougnète gondola); MÉRIBEL MOTTARET: Next to the Tourist Office; LES MENUIRES: La Croisette (under Roc 1 gondola); SAINT-MARTIN-DE-BELLEVILLE: Saint-Martin 1 gondola; VAL THORENS: Forum Joseph Fontanet and Funitel de Péclet; ORELLE: Francoz.
Where is Les Menuires France?
Les Menuires ski resort is in the Vallèe des Bellevilles, Savoy (Savoie – pronounced Sav-wa) region of the French Alps. By car, it is 210km (2½hr) east of Lyon, 140km (2¼hr) south of Geneva and 28km (35min) drive south of the nearest major town, Moûtiers.
Lyon St Exupery (LYS) and Geneva (GVA) are the main gateway airports, with most visitors heading there via busy GVA. Both airports are connected to Moûtiers by trains, but connections are better from Geneva than Lyon. Rail journeys from the airports to Moutiers can be done in under 4hr. From Paris (Gare de Lyon) the direct TGV train connection to nearby Bourg St Maurice & stops at Moutiers on the way. Taxis, shuttles, or public bus transport are available from the airports & Moûtiers train station. Buses to Les Menuires from Moutiers train station are on the T3 line. They run at least once in the morning, around lunchtime & in the afternoon. Travel time is around 1hr 10min. Buy train tickets to Moutiers via the link below, purchase bus tickets from the driver. At Les Menuires, free buses run regularly to all parts of the village. Also, a free shuttle bus runs 5 times a day between St Martin de Belleville, Les Menuires & Val Thorens for skiers & snowboarders.
Search rail transport options to Les Menuires & book train tickets from Geneva, Paris, or Lyon to Moûtiers.
Alternatively, anyone adverse or contagious to trains & buses (COVID19 et al ) can organise a private transfer direct from a hotel or airport. Search & book all transfers to Les Menuires.
For day visitors arriving by car, there are several convenient car parks on the roadside just near the ski overpass. Head past the main turn off to Les Menuires village for a few hundred metres and you will see them. There is undercover parking available in the village for a fee, but why bother!
Les Menuires Accommodation
Les Menuires is one those ski resort villages that run a not so fine line between crass development, affordability & ski lift/slope connectivity. At 1850m elevation the worst of the village’s five sectors stick out like a proverbial sore thumb in the above-tree-line environment. On closer inspection though, it has some wonderful elements, not the least of which is its almost totally ski-in ski-out convenience. High-rise ugliness in the La Croisette & Preyerand sectors aside (there are loads of affordable apartments here though), the village districts of Les Bruyères & Grand Reberty further up the road toward Val Thorens are beautifully designed & integrated with lifts & pistes. Regular free buses connect all the disparate village sectors together through the day & after hours.
Search & book all Les Menuires ski accommodation.
Down valley from Les Menuires is the traditional village of Saint Martin de Belleville (& Saint Marcel). Situated below the tree line at an elevation of 1450m, its authentic vibe & brand-new gondola extending up from the centre of town make compelling reasons to stay here. The gondola connects with other lifts to Meribel & into Les Menuires.
Search & book all St Martin ski accommodation.
Ski Rentals, Lessons, Guides & Services
Ski rentals are available in the villages of Les Menuires & St Martin de Belleville. Receive a discount when you search & book via our Les Menuires Ski & Snowboard Rental page.
A dizzying array of ski guides & instructors ply their craft in the Les Menuires ski resort & surrounding valleys. An experienced mountain guide can make all the difference to an off-piste powder day in an unfamiliar ski resort on lusty terrain like the backside of La Masse. For more info & options, see our Les Menuires Ski Lessons & Guiding page.
[AdListings Filter="Meribel Ski Rentals Clothing"]
Review
The Powderhounds visited Les Menuires in January 2020 & were suitably impressed by the ski terrain, but suitably bemused by parts of the village. Click on the review link in the left column (or top of the page if on a mobile) to read its inciteful prose!
See how Les Menuires compares to the rest of the French ski resorts on the France ski resort ratings page, or compare to the rest of Europe on the European ski resort ratings page.
Follow Powderhounds Europe on Instagram to see where we are currently skiing. Follow our main Powderhounds page on Facebook to stay in touch with up-to-date info, tours, and discussions.