In 2027 Easter comes early: Sunday 28 March, a week before the first French school-holiday zone breaks up for the spring holidays. Skiing “at Easter” therefore covers two quite separate moments: the Easter weekend at the end of March, and the spring holidays, which run from 3 April to 3 May. During those holidays, from 4 April to 2 May, the resorts close one after another. Here is where you can still ski, week by week.
Spring 2027 at a glance
- Easter: Sunday 28 March 2027, with Easter Monday a public holiday on 29 March.
- Spring holidays: zone C from 3 to 19 April, zone A from 10 to 26 April, zone B from 17 April to 3 May 2027.
- Last to close: Val Thorens and Orelle, Tignes, Val d’Isère and the Grands Montets, on 2 May 2027. At Les 2 Alpes the winter season ends the same day, then high-altitude skiing carries on until 30 May.
- All these dates are subject to snow conditions.
Easter comes before the holidays
Over the Easter weekend, from Saturday 27 to Monday 29 March, no French zone is on holiday. All the major resorts of the Northern Alps are still open, including Megève, which closes on 4 April. Families from Flanders, Geneva and Vaud, on the other hand, are on holiday. In England and Wales, Good Friday and Easter Monday are public holidays, and schools in several London boroughs are off for Easter until 9 April.
The end of March has its own events. La Clusaz hosts the Radio Meuh Circus Festival from 25 to 28 March, running up to Easter Sunday. The week before, from 20 to 27 March, Alpe d’Huez welcomes Tomorrowland Winter. Megève, for its part, offers a spring rate on its lift passes from 20 March to 4 April.
The spring holidays, zone by zone
According to the official calendar of the Éducation nationale, the French education ministry, classes stop on the Saturday and resume on the Monday morning:
- Zone C, which includes Paris, the whole of Île-de-France, Toulouse and Montpellier: Saturday 3 to Monday 19 April 2027.
- Zone A, which includes Lyon, Grenoble and Bordeaux: Saturday 10 to Monday 26 April 2027. Corsica follows the same dates.
- Zone B, which includes Lille, Marseille, Nantes and Strasbourg: Saturday 17 April to Monday 3 May 2027.
The three zones overlap only on the weekend of 17 and 18 April. And zone B is the last to go, just as most ski areas are closing.
Who is still open, week by week
| 2027 dates | Zones on holiday | What closes, what stays open |
|---|---|---|
| 27 to 29 March (Easter) | None | All the major resorts open |
| 3 to 9 April | C | Megève and Les Houches close on 4 April |
| 10 to 18 April | A and C, plus B on 17 and 18 April | Les Gets, La Flégère and Balme close on 11 April; the Paradiski link stops on 17 April; Courchevel, Méribel, Les Menuires, Saint-Martin-de-Belleville, Avoriaz, Serre Chevalier and Le Brévent close on 18 April |
| 19 to 25 April | A and B | Les Arcs and Plagne Altitude until 24 April; Alpe d’Huez and La Clusaz until 25 April |
| 26 April to 2 May | B | Val Thorens and Orelle, Tignes, Val d’Isère and the Grands Montets until 2 May; Les 2 Alpes beyond that |
In Les 3 Vallées, the links between valleys run until Sunday 18 April. After that, only Val Thorens and Orelle stay open, with no link to Méribel or Courchevel. In Chamonix, the link between Le Brévent and La Flégère goes after 11 April; for the end of the season, that leaves the Grands Montets, whose summit is closed this winter. On the Tignes-Val d’Isère ski area, Tignes and Val d’Isère both give 2 May as their closing date, though Tignes refers to a breakdown of what will be open in the final week, which has not yet been published.
AEC tip. For the zone B holidays, choose a resort that stays open until 2 May: Val Thorens, Tignes, Val d’Isère or Les 2 Alpes. For zone C, and for zone A up to 18 April, the large Savoie ski areas remain open, Les 3 Vallées included.
In spring, altitude matters
No one can promise snow on a given date. Météo-France points out that snow cover, in the words of Marie Dumont, director of the Centre d’études de la neige, “arrives later, leaves earlier, and below a certain altitude it becomes more and more unpredictable”. The organisation also stresses “wide disparities depending on altitude, geography and the aspect of the slopes”.
The resorts that close latest are also among the highest. Val Thorens sits at 2300m, and according to its tourist office 99% of its ski area lies above 2000m. The villages of Tignes rise from 1550m to 2150m, and the Grande Motte cable car climbs to 3456m. The Tignes-Val d’Isère ski area runs from 1550m to over 3400m. At Les 2 Alpes, the ski area tops out at 3600m. Val d’Isère describes spring as a season of snow “that gradually softens by mid-morning”, with “quieter pistes and very little waiting at the lifts”.
Spring has its risks too: according to Météo-France, spring avalanches on sunny slopes are the classic example of wet-snow avalanches. Away from the marked pistes, only venture out with a high-mountain guide.
What’s on in the resorts in spring
At the time of writing, none of the tourist offices we consulted has published an Easter 2027 programme. Several spring events, however, already have dates:
- Tignes: the Spring Break, from 17 April to 2 May, the last two weeks of the season, with concerts and DJ sets on the terraces, according to the tourist office.
- Val d’Isère: the 30th Festival international du film aventure et découverte, from 12 to 15 April.
- Les Arcs: the Winter Festislack, from 9 to 11 April.
- La Clusaz: the Défi Foly on 17 and 18 April, then the Der des Ders on 25 April, closing day.
Where to stay
For the end of the season, our chalets and apartments in Val Thorens, Tignes and Val d’Isère are the best placed for skiing right to the end: all three resorts close on 2 May. Our comparison, Val d’Isère or Tignes, will help you choose between the two, and our guide to the resorts of Les 3 Vallées sets Val Thorens against its neighbours.
The simplest thing is to write to us: give us your spring dates and the number of people in your party, and our agents will suggest a selection in a resort that is still open on those days. For the rest of the winter, see our guides to ski resort opening dates and February ski holidays.
In spring the day finds a different rhythm: skiing in the morning, lunch in the sun, and light that lingers long on the peaks.
Frequently asked questions
When is Easter 2027?
Sunday 28 March 2027. Easter Monday, a public holiday, falls on 29 March.
What are the French spring school holiday dates for 2027?
According to the official calendar: zone C from Saturday 3 to Monday 19 April, zone A from Saturday 10 to Monday 26 April, zone B from Saturday 17 April to Monday 3 May 2027. Corsica follows zone A.
Do the French spring holidays fall at Easter in 2027?
No. Easter falls on 28 March, and the first zone, zone C, does not break up until Saturday 3 April. No French zone is on holiday over the Easter weekend.
Which ski resorts are still open at the end of April 2027?
Val Thorens and Orelle, Tignes, Val d’Isère and the Grands Montets until 2 May, and Les 2 Alpes beyond that, with high-altitude skiing until 30 May; Les Arcs and Plagne Altitude until 24 April; Alpe d’Huez and La Clusaz until 25 April. These dates remain subject to snow conditions.
Can you ski in Les 3 Vallées during the French spring holidays?
Yes, until Sunday 18 April 2027: Courchevel, Méribel, Les Menuires and Saint-Martin-de-Belleville close that day, along with the links. After that, only Val Thorens and Orelle stay open, until 2 May.
Where can you ski during the zone B school holidays?
Zone B breaks up on Saturday 17 April. On the first weekend the large ski areas are still running; from 26 April to 2 May, that leaves Val Thorens and Orelle, Tignes, Val d’Isère, Les 2 Alpes and the Grands Montets.
Is the snow good for skiing in spring?
No one can promise it. According to Météo-France, snow cover disappears earlier and becomes unpredictable below a certain altitude, with wide disparities depending on altitude and aspect. The resorts open latest are also among the highest, such as Val Thorens, at 2300m.
