Choose the day before the destination

Where should you ski?

First lessons, a family trip or blue-run laps? Find a starting base you can picture using, with a plan for the way back.

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Start with your kind of day

Find the right place to ski.

Choose the skiing you enjoy. See where to start, how to get back and where to stay nearby.

1 · What kind of trip?
2 · Narrow it down, if you like

A lift ride down may still mean skiing to a chairlift and riding up first. Check the full way back.

Cruising on blues · France & Switzerland

8 places to consider.

See all our suggestions for this kind of trip.

Change choices ↑

You’ll need to turn and stop with control on blues. Watch the run and check the lifts and way back before choosing. These are separate from first-day practice slopes.

Finance · preview the run here, then check the lift and way back below.

France

Saint-Gervais · Le Bettex

Tree-lined laps from one base

Start here
Saint-Gervais / Le Bettex
Finish the day
Finance returns to Le Bettex. Take the gondola for another lap, or finish there.
Getting there & what to check

Finance gives your day a simple rhythm: gondola up, a blue through the trees and a finish back at Le Bettex. A good choice when you want enjoyable repeats rather than a big cross-resort journey.

Getting there. By rail, arrive at Le Fayet, then take Le Valléen to town and L’Alpin to Le Bettex. Bettex–Mont d’Arbois gondola → follow the blue Finance signs.

Before you go. Stay on Finance at the Crête junction: La Crête is red. Le Bettex is above town and Le Fayet station.

Maps & local information
Skiers descending the tree-lined lower Arpette run towards the buildings at Plagne Bellecôte

Lower Arpette, coming into Plagne Bellecôte · April 2017

France

La Plagne · Plagne Bellecôte

A repeatable blue day in a large ski area

Start here
Plagne Bellecôte / Arpette
Finish the day
Follow blue Belle Plagne back to Plagne Bellecôte and the Arpette chair.
Getting there & what to check

Start with Arpette instead of trying to cover all of Paradiski. Its chair leaves the Bellecôte snow front, and the blue return keeps this first outing tied to the same village.

Getting there. Arpette chair from Plagne Bellecôte → blue Arpette towards Belle Plagne.

Before you go. The Funslope is a separate route with features. By train, use Aime-la-Plagne and the onward village bus.

Maps & local information

Mont Blanc · preview the run here, then check the lift and way back below.

France

Les Arcs · Arc 1600

Forest skiing with a rail-friendly base

Start here
Arc 1600 / Mont-Blanc
Finish the day
Continue on blue Pierre blanche 2 and Arpette 1, following Arc 1600 signs back to the village lifts.
Getting there & what to check

Choose Mont Blanc for a forest run and a clear Arc 1600 starting point. Bourg-Saint-Maurice’s funicular makes this an appealing base to investigate for a holiday by train.

Getting there. Arrive by train at Bourg-Saint-Maurice and take the funicular to Arc 1600. From the upper station, continue through the village to your accommodation or Mont-Blanc chair. Mont-Blanc chair from Arc 1600 → follow the blue Mont Blanc signs.

Before you go. The tourist office specifies parallel-turn ability. Cachette is red and Malgovert is black; stay with the blue return.

Maps & local information

Mont de la Chambre · preview the run here, then check the lift and way back below.

France

Les Menuires · Les Bruyères

Open mountain views and a longer blue

Start here
Les Menuires / Les Bruyères
Finish the day
Repeat on Mont de la Chambre chair. To finish at Les Bruyères, use the blue Bruyères continuation below the gondola midstation.
Getting there & what to check

Mont de la Chambre is the open-mountain choice once you already control your turns on blues. There is room to enjoy the landscape and a chairlift for repeating the upper lap.

Getting there. Bruyères 1 → Bruyères 2 → blue Mont de la Chambre on the Les Menuires side.

Before you go. Choose clear visibility for the open terrain. Black Léo Lacroix and red David Douillet Haut leave the same col.

Maps & local information

Wasserwendi (2) · preview the run here, then check the lift and way back below.

Switzerland

Wengen · Männlichen

Blue laps, big views and a cable-car finish

Start here
Wengen / Männlichen cable car
Finish the day
Ride Männlichen chair back up, then take the cable car down to Wengen.
Getting there & what to check

Base yourself in car-free Wengen for a day built around blue 2 Wasserwendi. Repeat on the chairlift, then ride the cable car home instead of adding a valley ski descent.

Getting there. Wengen is car-free. Travel via Interlaken Ost and Lauterbrunnen, then take the train up to Wengen. If driving, park in Lauterbrunnen and continue by train. Wengen–Männlichen cable car → follow blue 2 Wasserwendi to the Männlichen chair.

Before you go. Blue 2 faces the Grindelwald side. Red 3 heads that way, away from Wengen. The Slow-Slope label is not a first-lesson rating.

Maps & local information

Anémone run preview. Open the local plan for all approach and return connections.

France

Tignes · Le Lac · Palafour

Lys → Anémone → Gentiane to the village

Start here
Palafour chairlift
Finish the day
Follow blue Lys → Anémone → Gentiane. At the lower split below the Chardonnet drag, keep the Gentiane line towards Le Lac rather than taking the separate Almes branch. Finish at the Le Lac snow front, then repeat Palafour or remove skis for your property's pedestrian route. The slalom stadium is separate.
Getting there & what to check

Lys → Anémone → Gentiane to the village. Start at Palafour chairlift and keep the named village return in your plan.

Getting there. Board Palafour at Le Lac. The current piste panorama shows blue Lys → Anémone, then the lower blue Gentiane connection to the Le Lac snow front. This is a mountain chairlift outing, separate from the village practice lifts.

Before you go. Read the Lys / Anémone signs above the stadium and the Gentiane signs at the lower split; the complete village return includes that named connector. The video is an edited preview of the named piste, not evidence that every branch has the same feel or that today's snow will match it.

Maps & local information

Grattalu run preview. Open the local plan for all approach and return connections.

France

Tignes · Val Claret · Tichot / Grattalu

Carline alone, or add the upper Grattalu lap

Start here
Tichot chairlift
Finish the day
Blue Carline is the lower continuation back to Val Claret and Tichot's departure area. A Grattalu lap therefore includes another named blue before reaching the village. Stay on the piste rather than entering the snowpark or the red Le Mur / Merles branches.
Getting there & what to check

Carline alone, or add the upper Grattalu lap. Start at Tichot chairlift and keep the named village return in your plan.

Getting there. Take Tichot from Val Claret. For the upper outing, use the short signed connection to Grattalu chair, then ski blue Grattalu. For the shorter alternative, take blue Carline from the Tichot sector without adding Grattalu chair.

Before you go. The adjacent snowpark has jumps and rails; it is optional. Le Mur and Merles are separate red pistes. Check the Carline continuation before starting the upper lap. This is the lower part of the Grattalu outing, so do not count the two films as two disconnected ski areas. Review its finish as well as the upper piste when deciding whether the whole lap suits you.

Maps & local information

Henri run preview. Open the local plan for all approach and return connections.

France

Tignes · Val Claret Centre · Tufs / Henri

A Tovière descent that finishes in Val Claret

Start here
Tufs chairlift
Finish the day
Use the signed blue Henri bypass at the top, then stay on Henri towards Val Claret and the Tufs departure area. Crocus is a separate harder shortcut. Do not follow Johan Clarey or Combe Folle towards Le Lac. This plan relies on the blue ski descent; it does not promise that Tufs carries skiers downhill.
Getting there & what to check

A Tovière descent that finishes in Val Claret. Start at Tufs chairlift and keep the named village return in your plan.

Getting there. Take Tufs chair from Val Claret Centre to Tovière. The current map and the municipality's slope-planning report identify the blue Henri route from this lift back to Val Claret.

Before you go. The top has several destinations and harder branches. Identify Henri before leaving the lift and keep the blue bypass. A creator's calm descent is not a beginner rating or a guarantee about visibility, grooming or traffic on your day.

Maps & local information
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