If you’re considering a ski holiday in the Three Valleys, a supersized ski area in France, there’s a lot of ground to cover. Around half of Mr & Mrs Smith’s French ski hotels can be found in this snowy pocket of Savoie — testament to the quality of lodges and ski chalets you’ll discover here — but finding your perfect mountain break in the French Alps is about so much more than the right hotel: it’s about your winter wishlist, too.
While the powder fiends are eyeing the couloirs from the top of the Saulire, your priorities could be anything from an excellent spa to Michelin-starred dining, or more genteel pursuits such as cross-country skiing, dog-sledding or snowshoeing. Here’s our guide to the Three Valleys’ assortment of adventures, so that you can find yours.
THE THREE VALLEYS RESORTS
Let’s start with the geography. From Moûtiers, three valleys fan south, rising into the French Alps. The most easterly tranche, Courchevel, comprises six villages: the resort began with a hotel opening in Saint-Bon in 1908, then it adopted Le Praz and La Tania along the way, but is mostly thought of in terms of its stacked ski stations, Courchevel Village (at 1,550 metres), Courchevel Moriond (at 1,650 metres) and Courchevel 1850.
At the heart of the Three Valleys ski area, the middle valley is home to its namesake resort, Méribel, and is prized for its sunny slopes and smattering of fine-dining spots. To the west, the Belleville Valley is where you’ll find Saint-Martin-de-Belleville’s clutch of hamlets, Les Menuires, Orelle, and its highest enclave, Val Thorens. The area’s seventh resort is Brides-les-Bains, a smaller outpost at the foot of the valleys, which is linked by lifts to Méribel.
SNOW REPORT
To ski between these stellar stations, you’re going to need some snow. Luckily, the Three Valleys has a snow guarantee, thanks in part to an army of more than 2,700 snow cannons ready to pump out more of the cold stuff to keep pistes blanketed in white, but also because 85% of the valley’s terrain lies above 1,850 metres, giving the best chances of snowy conditions. All of this ensures that the six villages of Courchevel, plus Belleville Valley’s resorts, remain connected by skiable trails (and lifts) with Méribel, at the centre of the ski area.
WHAT TO DO
When you’re not perfecting your turns, there’s so much else to do. Tobogganing, ice-skating and dog-sledding are now commonplace across the Continent, but the Three Valleys in particular has good networks of cross-country ski trails, especially in Courchevel (which has 67 kilometres of tracks), and winter walking routes that you can hike or snowshoe.
Take a hot-air balloon ride for eagle’s eye views of the slopes; set out on a fat bike or try snowmobiling. Six Senses Residences Courchevel ups the ante with the chance to get behind the wheel of a piste basher (a more muscular take on the snowmobile, which we’re tempted to upgrade to).
The good news for your piste-weary muscles is that every Smith hotel here has a spa — from the consummate hallmark complex of Six Senses, with a sauna and steam rooms, a grand pool and outdoor hot tubs, to Le Coucou’s Tata Harper sanctuary, to Holidermie facials and Kalmar body treatments at Le Fitz Roy in Val Thorens.
WHERE TO EAT
As sure as the pistes are covered in snow, there are top-notch restaurants to be found. Angela Hartnett’s Alpine outpost, Cucina Angelina at Portetta in Courchevel Moriond, deserves a mention for its accomplished Italian fare, but the two main standout resorts are Saint-Martin-de-Belleville and Courchevel 1850.
Courchevel’s highest resort has an equally lofty selection of Michelin-starred restaurants (six, including Stéphane Buron at Le Chabichou, and Yannick Alléno’s exclusive Le 1947 à Cheval Blanc). Other notables include Sumosan at Six Senses Residences, which elevates contemporary Japanese cuisine into work-of-art plates with equally admirable cocktails; and expect superb sushi, sashimi, Wagyu beef, ramen and more at Nama, courtesy of Aman Le Mélézin.
Saint-Martin-de-Belleville is where culinary alchemists René and Maxime Meilleur (chef father and son) have two restaurants — La Bouitte and their bistro, Simple et Meilleur. And convivial La Table du M at M Lodge has polished, Mediterranean-skewed set menus and a selection of tapas through the day.
WHERE TO STAY
Le Coucou in Méribel is a classic lodge hotel with five-star frills, an outpost of Riccardo Giraudi’s Beefbar, and chalet options that are great for bringing the whole clan together. On the Bellecôte piste in Courchevel 1850, Aman Le Mélézin has had a recent, sparkling overhaul of its rooms, suites and apartments; and its spa spans two floors. Self-contained lodgings take centre stage at both Six Senses Residences in Courchevel 1850 and Ultima Courchevel Bélvèdere in Courchevel Moriond: at both hotels, apartment-like stays come with optional butler, chef and concierge services. Courchevel Moriond is also where you’ll find Portetta, the French-mountain outpost of the UK’s popular Pig hotels.
In high-altitude Val Thorens, choose between retro-chic interiors at family-friendly Le Val Thorens or the smaller-scale chalet cosiness of Le Fitz Roy. And near-the-lifts M Lodge in Saint-Martin-de-Belleville is a designer-outfitted mountain stay with strong family appeal but also spa and restaurant credentials enough to suit couples too.
Three Valleys, in common with most ski areas, likes to dazzle you with stats — seven resorts, more than 600 kilometres of runs — and is as fond of a superlative (‘the world’s largest ski area’) as any other travel destination. But if there’s one huge miscalculation, it’s in its name, Three Valleys. It’s such an oversimplification for what is in reality tens of villages, multitudes of altitudes, dozens of fine-dining spots and an Olympics-worth of mountain activities to try — a true smorgasbord of winter treats, ready to be snaffled.
For more mountain escapes with a certain je-ne-sais-quoi, discover Smith-approved luxury ski resorts and lodges in France, or browse our complete collection of worldwide ski hotels
Photography by Holly Saxton.