The best family ski resorts in France await your visit

Holiday at the best family ski resorts in France

The level of enthusiasm and competence on the slopes varies in most families. Sometimes parents are forced to cut-short their time on the mountain to fit around children’s needs or ski school times. However, there are some ski resorts that cater wholeheartedly to the family experience.

Stéphane Lerendu, director of Avoriaz tourist office, says, “When it comes to winter sports, perhaps more than for any other type of holiday, one member of the family has to sacrifice themselves for the others.”

A good family ski resort deals with this scenario and makes sure that everyone has a good holiday. This means from the expert skiers to the not-at-all skiers. The key is to choose a resort that has the facilities to match your family profile. What suits teenagers will not likely be much use to littl’uns.

We’re bringing you our pick of the best family ski resorts in France.

Avoriaz

With 16,800 beds and not a single car, Avoriaz has only horse-drawn carriages. The resort boasts of being the place where you can send the kids to fetch the croissants on their own. Given the car-free environment, right from the start Avoriaz earns big points as one of the best family ski resorts in France. For 32 years the Place central has played host to the ‘Village des enfants’.

It is an unusual ski school for teens and youngsters from 3 to 16. Based on the idea of learning through play it has been used as a model in most of the alpine resorts. It also serves as a sheltered spot to entertain the children in a blizzard when the weather is too bad for them to ski.

The school is also a childminding centre and a leisure centre. Here the kids can spend the day and eat their lunch. Lessons are organised so that parents start their own lessons 15 minutes after the children. This avoids the stress of trying to be in two places at the same time and give a bit of time to settle the children into their lessons. A real bonus is the new water park, Aquariaz, developed by Center Parcs, with all the latest aquatic bells and whistles.

La Plagne

La Plagne is 11 resorts rolled into one with a big spread of mountain terrain for all abilities. It is one of the best family ski resorts for varying skiing abilities. Advanced skiers can explore the extensive, high-altitude slopes of the snowsure paradiski area. Beginners and intermediates can practise turns on the many uncrowded blues and greens.

Activity highlights include an artificial frozen waterfall to practice ice climbing. The Jean-Luc Crétier ski stadium is also open for night-time skiing. Or for the fearless, France’s only bobsleigh run is open to members of the public (under supervision). The different resorts are linked by free buses until midnight or by the case Belle Plagne by a cable car.

Les Karellis

One of the best family ski resorts in France if you have very young children. The resort is car-free and the seven holiday villages are next to the ski lifts. Equipment for children is provided free, including cots, high chairs and baby baths. You can also hire a special sledge for babies and toddlers ‘une luge-pousette’ for getting around the resort. Children are accepted at the ‘halte garderie’ child minding centre and clubs without extra charge from the age of 3 months.

There are special events for teenagers during the day and a disco night (without parents). Children can start in ski school at age 4. If you are out on the slopes when your child’s lesson comes to an end, they will be taken to ‘jardin des neiges’ for you. Or if you want to stay together as a family, there is a snow play area open to parents and children in the centre of the resort. There are events and activities every night for parents and children throughout the school holidays.

Megève

Megève is one of the oldest and most beautiful resorts in the Alps. It has managed to retain its pretty village character. The village combines charming cobbled-stone streets with a modern, fashionable ski resort. The slopes offer varied runs for beginners and intermediates. It is a resort where ‘l’art de vivre’ is at the heart of things. Nothing seems to disturb the calm of the fine wooden chalets and the après-ski is highly developed with some great restaurants. Megeve has a stunning outdoor ice rink to match. From a family point of view the resort is well known for the high standard of childcare. For better or for worse it has a McDonalds – with which the French have a love-hate relationship. If you want one of the best family ski resorts in France with great dollops of charm, then this is the place for you.

Serre Chevalier

This ‘best family ski resort in France’ is an alliance of three villages: Chantemerle, Villeneuve la Salle and Monêtier les Bains. Together they make up a huge ski area for all abilities with many tree-lined runs through the forest. On the boundary between the Northern and Southern Alps, it has a micro climate. This means big snowfalls and 300 days of sunshine a year. There are all sorts of facilities especially for children. Including the Club Piou-Piou, a snow garden at Monêtier and childminding facilities. There are a number of easy green slopes for child and adult beginners. The countryside in the Parc des Ecrins is magnificent. Serre Che is far enough south for the après-ski to have a flavour of the Midi.

Isola 2000

Isola was built on the frontier in a valley ceded by Italy to France at the end of the war. Because of the high altitude Isola has the best snow conditions in the area. Not everybody loves the architecture but it has a fine and varied ski area. There’s also the possibility of alternating snow and beach at the end of the season. Nice and Menton are within two hours’ drive. Night skiing is possible twice a week during the French school holidays. There is a Club Piou-Piou for 3-6 year olds as well as a Les Pichtouns for children above 6. This ‘best family ski resort in France’ is perhaps better for teens than very small children. For disabled skiers, it is possible to hire a ‘tandem ski’ and ski with the rest of the family.

Font Romeu 

The resort of Font Romeu is a superb family ski resort with the largest snowmaking system in the Pyrenees. There is a wide range of activities on offer. This includes the nearby thermal springs, ski touring, snowshoeing, ice climbing, dog sledding, winter canyoning, and telemark skiing. In the village, there is a child-minding service, ice rink, bowling alley and swimming pool. Other activities include a cinema, casino, tennis, badminton and a gym to keep the entire family entertained.

Valberg

Valberg is perched on a plateau surrounded by open alpine grazing and larch forests. It’s an hour and a half from the Cote d’Azur. Valberg’s ski lifts start from the main street in the village and there’s a small, but popular ice rink. The resort has a child minding ‘halte-garderie’ for 14 months to 6 years. There’s also a special children’s area the Parc des Ourson where children start to learn to ski from 3 years old. Despite being so far south, its 308 snow canons cover 85 percent of its ski runs just in case there’s a shortage.

St Lary Soulan

St Lary, also in the Pyrenees, is known for its big and varied snow fields. But it’s also known for its superb open-air thermal water centre built in 2005. Here you’ll find saunas, waterfalls and caves. The village is entirely built in stone. The resort boasts 183 snow canons to make sure there is enough snow throughout the season. Ski slopes are designed to suit everyone and features a mogul park and a snowpark with a halfpipe. At St Lary 1700 Pla d’Adet there is an area reserved for families with snow play areas, two toboggan runs and a kids’ park recreation area. Off the slopes there is dog sledding, snowshoeing, a disco, cinema, ice rink, a tree park and paragliding.