Les 3 Vallées: Choosing a Base in the World's Largest Linked Ski Area
Courchevel, Méribel and Val Thorens share one lift pass and one ski area, which means the skiing is broadly the same wherever you sleep. What differs is altitude, price and what your evenings feel like — and those are the only things worth choosing on.
Because the lift pass and the terrain are shared, "which resort has better skiing" is close to the wrong question inside Les 3 Vallées. The useful questions are how high you want to sleep, how much you want to pay, and whether you want a village or a purpose-built resort.
The scale is the reason to come and the reason to be careful. Six hundred kilometres across seven resorts sounds like a week of variety, and it is — but the four sectors each run to roughly 150 km on their own, which is more than most people ski in a week anyway. Choosing Courchevel specifically in order to reach Val Thorens is a plan that many visitors never actually execute.
The altitude spread is the widest of any linked area here, running from Le Praz at 1,300 m to lifts at 3,230 m. That is the practical argument for the domain: when a warm week strips the lower slopes, the pass you already hold reaches terrain that still works. No single-resort pass in Savoie gives you that much vertical insurance.
Money is where the sectors genuinely diverge. The lift pass costs the same wherever you sleep, so the entire price difference sits in the bed. Saint-Martin and Les Menuires sell the identical 600 km for a fraction of what Courchevel 1850 charges, and the compromise is the evening rather than the skiing.
Worth knowing before you book
- The 600 km is a rounded figure
- Add the published sectors and you get about 610 km — Courchevel 150, Méribel 150, Val Thorens 150, the Belleville valley 160. Nobody is inflating anything; it simply is not an addition.
- The pass is the same price everywhere
- A 6-day adult pass is EUR 421 for 2026-27, sold at the 5-day price from 19 December. It does not get cheaper by sleeping lower, so the bed is the only variable you control.
- Seven resorts, and the site covers five
- Courchevel, Méribel, Val Thorens, Les Menuires and Saint-Martin are covered. Orelle and Brides-les-Bains are members of the domain and are not yet, which is a gap worth knowing about rather than hiding.
- Domain season is not resort season
- The lift pass window runs 5 December 2026 to 18 April 2027. Individual resorts differ — Val Thorens usually opens earlier and closes later — so check the resort, not just the domain.
Who this area is wrong for
If you ski three or four days a year and stay on blues, this domain is oversized for you and you are paying for it twice — once in the pass and once in the bed. A smaller area with the same beginner terrain costs meaningfully less, and the 600 km you are not using does not improve the week.
It is also the wrong choice for a first family trip with small children. The sectors are linked by long lift chains, and a wrong turn at 15:30 with a tired six-year-old means a bus back rather than a run home. Stay inside one valley until everyone can ski a red without negotiation.
Compare the bases
| Destination | Village altitude | Piste in resort | From Geneva (GVA) | Best for | Check availability |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Courchevel | 1100 m | 150 km | 133 min | luxury, three valleys | Check availability |
| Méribel | 1450 m | 150 km | 119 min | central, chalet style | Check availability |
| Val Thorens | 2300 m | 150 km | 138 min | high altitude, snow sure | Check availability |
| Les Menuires | 1850 m | — | 136 min | value, three valleys | Check availability |
| Saint-Martin-de-Belleville | 1450 m | — | 123 min | traditional, village | Check availability |
Destinations in this area
Frequently asked questions
Can you really ski all three valleys in a day?
Physically yes, and it is a recognised outing. But it is a transit day rather than a skiing day — you spend it covering ground on lifts rather than choosing runs, and you must watch the clock to get home. Do it once, not weekly.
Which base gives the best value?
Saint-Martin-de-Belleville and Les Menuires, by a clear margin. Same pass, same 600 km, materially lower beds. Saint-Martin also keeps the old-village character that Les Menuires trades away for slopeside convenience.