Les 3 Vallées is made up of three valleys in Savoie, those of Courchevel, Les Allues and Les Belleville, plus Orelle, over on the other side in the Maurienne. All of them are linked by ridges above 2000m. Seven resorts share 600km of pistes, and a single lift pass opens up every one of them. So the real question is not where you will ski the most, but where you come home to in the evening: the altitude of the chalet, the feel of the village, the drive from the train station. Courchevel, Méribel and Val Thorens are the three names most often weighed against each other; the Belleville villages, Brides-les-Bains and Orelle have a case to make too.
Les 3 Vallées in practice
- Seven resorts: Courchevel, Méribel, Brides-les-Bains, Saint-Martin-de-Belleville, Les Menuires, Val Thorens and Orelle.
- Ski area: 600km of pistes, links along ridges above 2000m, and a highest point of 3230m at the Pointe du Bouchet.
- 2026-2027 season: the links are open from 5 December 2026 to 18 April 2027; Val Thorens and Orelle are skiing from 21 November until 2 May.
- Getting there: Moûtiers train station, from a 10-minute drive for Brides-les-Bains to an hour for Val Thorens; Orelle is reached through the Maurienne.
Three valleys, seven resorts, one lift pass
Les 3 Vallées bills itself as “the largest ski area in the world”. What strikes you once you are there is how seamless it all is: you leave Courchevel in the morning, have lunch in Méribel, push on to Val Thorens and come back without taking your skis off, except to step into a cabin. In the middle, the Saulire, at 2740m, is the turntable between Courchevel and Méribel; Les 3 Vallées calls it “the hub of Les 3 Vallées”. Further south, the col de la Chambre, at 2850m, links Méribel with Val Thorens.
Choosing a resort, then, really means choosing a base camp. The quotations in the descriptions below come from the official 3 Vallées website and from each resort’s tourist office.
Courchevel: six villages under one name
Courchevel climbs the slope in six villages, from Saint-Bon at 1100m up to Courchevel 1850, which Les 3 Vallées nicknames “the pioneer”. In between, Moriond, “the sunny one”, Courchevel Village and Le Praz each have a character of their own. Courchevel’s own ski area has 150km of pistes, and you cross over to Méribel via the Saulire or the col de la Loze, at 2304m. Moûtiers train station is 30 minutes away, and the resort has held the Famille Plus family-friendly label since 2010.
To compare the villages one by one, our guide Courchevel 1850, 1650 or 1550: which village to choose? goes into the detail.
Méribel: at the centre of everything
According to Les 3 Vallées, Méribel is “right in the centre of the ski area”. Founded in the 1930s, it grew up under a “strict and coherent architectural charter”, as its tourist office puts it: wood and stone, snow-laden roofs, chalets that look alike without copying one another. Its districts step up from Les Allues at 1100m to Méribel Village (1400m), the centre (1450m) and Mottaret (1750m).
You can read its central position straight off the piste map. According to the tourist office, the Saulire Express or the Pas du Lac take you towards Courchevel, the Côte Brune gondola towards Val Thorens and the Tougnète chairlift towards Les Menuires. Moûtiers train station is 20 minutes away. If you want to range across the whole area without giving it a second thought, this is the simplest choice.
AEC tip. If your group mixes confident skiers with beginners, Méribel spares you the compromises: the first head off to Courchevel or Val Thorens, the second stay on the pistes in the valley, and everyone meets up again for lunch.
Val Thorens: snow at altitude
Set at 2300m, Val Thorens describes itself as “the highest ski resort in Europe”. Its ski area, “99% above 2000m” and overlooked by six glaciers according to the tourist office, allows it to open earlier and close later than most resorts in Les 3 Vallées: from 21 November 2026 to 2 May 2027, like Orelle. The tourist office describes a resort that is “relaxed, lively and gourmet”. It is also where the Funitel was born, invented in 1990 by the Val Thorens lift company.
The price of all that altitude is the road: allow an hour from Moûtiers train station. Val Thorens holds the Famille Plus label, and its tourist office points out that skiers voted it “best ski resort in the world” at the 2025 World Ski Awards, for the tenth time in twelve years.
Les Menuires and Saint-Martin-de-Belleville: the other side of Les Belleville
Built in 1964 under the French government’s Plan Neige, Les Menuires makes no apology for its “modernist architecture” around La Croisette, the heart of the resort, at 1850m. Its tourist office presents it as “the safe bet of Les 3 Vallées”, and it has held the Famille Plus label since 2006.
Further down the valley, Saint-Martin-de-Belleville strikes a different note. A village at 1450m built in the Savoyard style, with twenty-two hamlets, it describes itself as “a subtle blend of tradition and discreet luxury, a charming village”. Two lifts are all it takes to reach the col de la Tougnète, at 2437m, and from there Méribel or Les Menuires. Its pistes open on 12 December this season.
Brides-les-Bains and Orelle: the quiet gateways
Brides-les-Bains, a “spa village on a human scale”, sees itself as a “true base camp”: the Olympe gondola rises to Méribel, and the tourist office puts Les 3 Vallées 22 minutes away. Moûtiers train station is 10 minutes by car.
Over on the other side of the mountain, in the Maurienne, Orelle spreads across ten hamlets between 880m and 1200m. Les 3 Vallées calls it “the secret gateway to Val Thorens”: its gondola reaches the ski area in 13 minutes, and the Pointe du Bouchet, the highest point in Les 3 Vallées, is close by. You arrive via Saint-Michel-Valloire train station, 6km away.
Courchevel, Méribel or Val Thorens: side by side
| Resort | Altitude | What the official websites say | Links | From Moûtiers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Courchevel | 1100m to 1850m | “the pioneer” (1850) | Méribel via the Saulire or the col de la Loze | 30 minutes |
| Méribel | 1100m to 1750m | “right in the centre of the ski area” | Courchevel, Val Thorens, Les Menuires | 20 minutes |
| Val Thorens | 2300m | “relaxed, lively and gourmet” | Méribel, Les Menuires, Orelle | one hour |
| Les Menuires | 1850m | “the safe bet of Les 3 Vallées” | Méribel, Val Thorens | 27km |
| Saint-Martin-de-Belleville | 1450m | “a charming village” | Méribel, Les Menuires | 30 minutes |
In short: Courchevel for the name and a choice of six villages, Méribel for reaching every corner of the ski area, Val Thorens for snow at altitude and a season that runs on into May. Les Menuires and Saint-Martin-de-Belleville round off the Belleville valley, the first practical and family-minded, the second a proper village.
Where to stay
We have chalets and apartments in each of these resorts: Courchevel, Méribel, Val Thorens and Les Menuires. If you want to leave and come back on your skis, our selections of ski-in ski-out chalets in Courchevel and Méribel get straight to the point. To pick your part of Méribel, our guide Méribel Mottaret or Méribel centre compares the options. For season dates, resort by resort, see our guide to ski resort opening dates. For life once you are there, see our guides to what to do in Courchevel in winter and what to do in Méribel in winter.
The simplest thing is to write to us: tell us your dates and how many of you are travelling, and our agents will send you a selection in the resort that suits you.
The rest you can decide up there, at the top of the Saulire, when all three valleys suddenly open out beneath your skis.
Frequently asked questions
Courchevel or Méribel: what is the difference?
Courchevel climbs the slope in six villages, from Saint-Bon to Courchevel 1850, with 150km of pistes in its own ski area alone. Méribel, in the centre of Les 3 Vallées, runs from Les Allues up to Mottaret and reaches out towards Courchevel, Val Thorens and Les Menuires. The two are linked via the Saulire and the col de la Loze.
Méribel or Val Thorens: which should I choose?
Méribel, between 1100m and 1750m, is the most central and lies 20 minutes from Moûtiers train station. Val Thorens, at 2300m, has a ski area almost entirely above 2000m and a season running from 21 November 2026 to 2 May 2027, but it is an hour’s drive from Moûtiers.
Which resorts are in Les 3 Vallées?
Seven resorts: Courchevel, Méribel, Brides-les-Bains, Saint-Martin-de-Belleville, Les Menuires, Val Thorens and Orelle. Between them they share 600km of pistes, linked by ridges above 2000m.
What is the highest resort in Les 3 Vallées?
Val Thorens, at 2300m, which describes itself as the highest resort in Europe. The highest point of the ski area is the Pointe du Bouchet, at 3230m, above Orelle.
When does Les 3 Vallées open this winter?
The links between the valleys are open from 5 December 2026 to 18 April 2027. Val Thorens and Orelle are skiing from 21 November 2026 until 2 May 2027; Courchevel opens on 4 December and Saint-Martin-de-Belleville on 12 December.
Can you ski the whole of Les 3 Vallées from Méribel?
Yes. According to its tourist office, the Saulire Express or the Pas du Lac take you towards Courchevel, the Côte Brune gondola towards Val Thorens and the Tougnète chairlift towards Les Menuires.
Which 3 Vallées resorts have the Famille Plus label?
Courchevel (since 2010), Les Menuires (since 2006) and Val Thorens appear on the label’s official map. For the other resorts, it is best to check with their tourist office.
