Arrive in style on the ski train...
Enjoy extra days on the slopes and no surcharge for skis or boards with Eurostar Direct Ski Trains.
Book now!
Self-drive ski holidays in France
Travel to France by ferry and some of the best self drive skiing in the world. Enjoy the freedom of taking unlimited baggage and up to 9 people per car via .
Book your journey with P&O Ferries
Find a hotel
Booking a hotel has never been easier with accorhotels.com, Europe's largest hotel group.
Why pay for your skis?
Experience complete comfort on SWISS flights to Geneva and enjoy the added bonus of taking your skis at no extra cost.
Pick up and ski this winter
Forget about queuing for a bus at the airport, low cost car hire - with a ski rack if necessary, will get you to where you want to go with a minimum of fuss. See the
Great deals to ski destinations
Flights from Southwest England, Birmingham and the Isle of Man to Chambery or Geneva opens up a wealth of ski opportunities in the northern Alps.
Book with Flybe now!
Winter & Ski Home
Winter Activities
The Best Ski Resorts near Geneva
Skier above Flaine, Grand Massif
During the winter months Geneva airport becomes one of the major hubs for skiers travelling to the French Alps. With so much skiing so easily accessible from Geneva, it is becoming more and more common for people to squeeze in a long ski weekend or short break.
For the independent skier flights to Geneva are easy, regular and cheap to sort out from most major UK cities. Once you touch down things are just as easy, with a choice of transfer companies and chalets ready to whisk you off to any one of a number of fantastic nearby ski resorts. Over a long ski weekend or short break you'll want to spend as much time in the mountains as possible, and with so much choice within an easy 1¼ hours of the airport, the long 2½ to 3½ hour transfers to the major resorts of the 3 Valleys and Paradiski seem a bit unnecessary. So which resorts are near Geneva, and how do they compare?
La Clusaz village, Haute-Savoie
Attractive, traditional villages
Most of the French ski resorts within easy reach of Geneva are in the Haute Savoie, a region characterised by its attractive traditional villages and year-round communities, a far cry from the more industrial and purpose-built feel of the Savoie ski region. The resorts are dotted along valleys either side of the Autoroute Blanche (White Motorway) which runs from Geneva to Chamonix and then through the Mont-Blanc Tunnel to Italy.
Advertisement
Comparing short break resorts
Having lived in the region for years and skied most of the resorts, we decided to put together a comparison of the most popular areas suitable for people looking for a short ski break in a quality French ski resort. The main things skiers want to know when planning a ski break are how big the ski area is, how long it takes to get there and how much the lift pass is, so we put all that together on one comparison table.
There are a number of smaller resorts we have not included, for the sake of easy comparison of the largest and more popular resorts. There are of course many ski resorts that you might consider to be close to Geneva, but which don't quite make the 1hr 15 minutes cut-off time we set for our comparison. Many of these are however, linked to the main ski domains. The transfer times below are based on what is genuinely realistic during winter, based on our own experience.
Major ski resorts close to Geneva, by transfer time
| Ski Resort | Ski Domain (Linked resorts) | Local Ski Area / Total Ski Domain | Transfer Time | Altitude | Adult Ski Pass (4 day) |
| Le Grand Bornand | Aravis (La Clusaz, Le Grand Bornand) | 95km / 220km | 52 mins | 1000-2100m | €100.50 (Grand Bornand) €121 (Aravis) |
| La Clusaz | Aravis (La Clusaz, Le Grand Bornand) | 125km / 220km | 55 mins | 1100-2400m | €116 (La Clusaz) €121 (Aravis) |
| Les Carroz | Grand Massif (Samoëns, Flaine, Les Carroz, Morillion) | 145km / 265km | 55 mins | 1100m-2500m | €132 (Samoëns/ Morillon/Les Carroz) €156 (Grand Massif) |
| Samoëns | Grand Massif (Samoëns, Flaine, Les Carroz, Morillon) | 145km / 265km | 1hr 05 | 700m-2500m | €132 (Samoëns/ Morillon/Les Carroz) €156 (Grand Massif) |
| Les Houches | Chamonix Mont Blanc (Argentière, Les Houches, Le Tour, Brevent, Flegère) | 47km/ 157km | 1hr 05 | 1000m-3300m | €124 (Les Houches) €181 (Chamonix Mont Blanc + Courmayer, Aiguille de Midi, Verbier!) |
| Saint Gervais | Evasion Mont Blanc (Megève, Les Contamines, Saint Gervais,Combloux, La Giettaz) | 235km / 445km | 1hr 05 | 900m-2350m | €142 (St Gervais/Megève) €137.50 (Evasion Mont Blanc) |
| Les Gets | Portes de Soleil (Avoriaz, Morzine, Les Gets, Châtel, Morgins) | 120km / 650km | 1 hr 10 | 1100m-2450m | €109.5 (Morzine/Les Gets) €151 (Portes de Soleil) |
| Chamonix | Chamonix Mont Blanc (Argentière, Les Houches, Le Tour, Brevent, Flegère) | 157km | 1 hr 10 | 1000m-3300m | €153 (Chamonix Mont Blanc) €181 (Chamonix Mont Blanc + Courmayer, Aiguille de Midi, Verbier!) |
| Megève | Evasion Mont Blanc (Megève, Les Contamines, Saint Gervais, Combloux, La Giettaz) | 325km/445km | 1 hr 10 | 900m-2350m | €144 (Megève, Combloux, La Giettaz) €137.50 (Evasion Mont Blanc) |
| Les Contamines | Evasion Mont Blanc (Megève, Les Contamines, Saint Gervais, Combloux, La Giettaz) | 120km / 445km | 1hr 10 | 1100m-2350m | €134 (Les Contamines) €137.50 (Evasion Mont Blanc) |
| Flaine | Grand Massif (Samoëns, Flaine, Les Carroz, Morillon) | 140km / 265km | 1hr 15 | 1600m-2500m | €140 (Flaine) €156 (Grand Massif) |
| Morzine | Portes de Soleil (Avoriaz, Morzine, Les Gets, Châtel, Morgins) | 120km / 650km | 1hr 15 | 900m-2450m | €109.5 (Morzine/Les Gets) €151 (Portes de Soleil) |
Ski Pass prices for 2011/12 sourced from official resort websites.
Feature ©Ski Weekender
Ski Weekender have been based locally running ski weekends to La Clusaz and Grand Bornand for 10 years. This year they have taken their popular format to offer short ski breaks in Samoëns too. They offer good-value, hassle-free packages with full lift pass, transfers and friendly catered accommodation included. They also offer 3-day mid-week skiing in both resorts, plus Monday to Monday or Thursday to Thursday ski holidays.
Contact Details:
Website: www.skiweekender.com
Email: info@skiweekender.com
Tel: 0845 557 5983 (UK)
La Clusaz Resort Review
Swift transfers from Geneva make La Clusaz one of the most popular family resorts in the northern Alps. Despite a relatively modest altitude, snowfalls tend to be reliable enough to ensure a long season.
Le Grand Bornand Resort Review
A combination of relaxed family skiing and solid value have made it deservedly popular with day visitors from nearby Geneva, while quick flight transfers and easy road access ensure its popularity with UK skiers. Stay in the higher village of Le Chinaillon for near doorstep skiing.
Samoëns
MountainPassions profiles Samoëns in the French Alps - an authentic mountain village linked to the Grand Massif ski domain. Visit our resort review page too.
Les Carroz Resort Review
Highest of the villages in the Grand Massif, Les Carroz retains many traditional Alpine chalets at its heart and still has an authentic mountain atmosphere. Les Carroz and neighbouring Morillon provide safe intermediate territory, and mile-hungry skiers or those seeking steeper terrain can cruise over to Flaine.
Les Gets Resort Review
Les Gets has a reassuringly established feel to it and offers a refreshingly traditional alternative to high-altitude purpose-built resorts. Les Gets’ own pistes are spread across both sides of the village's valley location, but with access to 650 km of slopes, spread across 12 villages in France and Switzerland, the vast Portes du Soleil area offers near-limitless skiing.
