the 3 valleys
The Trois Vallées (Three Valleys) boasts over 600km of well connect groomed pistes. It's an amazing ski domain which contains 3 well connected valleys (plus a small 4th valley) giving a real variation in skiable areas. Meribel lies in the centre of the domain which makes it the perfect location for access to the other two valleys, Courchevel and Belleville.

At one end of the ski area, sits chic Courchevel 1850, with its less-smart satellites of Courchevel 1650, Courchevel 1550 and Le Praz, with pleasant budget-priced La Tania beneath it (the base for our flexi-days). At the other end, the Belleville Valley is dominated by functional Val Thorens and Les Menuires. In the middle is cosmopolitan Méribel. (home to Snow Trip catered chalets)

The skiing in the Trois Vallées (Three Valleys) is reached by two winding mountain roads from Moûtiers or by a gondola from Brides-les-Bains. (This is where our ski weekends are situated)

The Three Valleys lift system is considered to be the most efficient overall lift system in France and also has some of the finest snowmaking technology in the world. (Even during the high number of weeks in 2001–2 when natural cover was minimal, some 85 per cent of the area not only stayed open but also managed to offer more-than-adequate piste-skiing). It has 200 lifts in total, all of them linked by well in excess of 600km of prepared slopes and uncounted hectares of off-piste terrain.

There is no hands free lift pass system like Les Portes du Soleil but the lift capacity is so high that large queues are rare.

The resort has excellent facilities and options for the beginner and the more advanced, both boarder and skier:

Beginners
Facilities for beginners are good in all the major resorts. The runs surrounding the altiports at Courchevel and Méribel are ideal beginner areas with enough length to help build confidence. Val Thorens and Les Menuires also have dedicated learning areas, as does La Tania. Once the basics have been conquered, the area is brilliant for easy exploration. There are loads of blue runs which can be challenging and fullfilling to take you on to the next step in enjoyable skiing/boarding.

Intermediates
The Trois Vallées constitutes what many skiers/boarders rightly regard as the greatest intermediate playground in the world: a seemingly endless network of moderately graded runs that provide a challenge to all levels of skier. The Combe de Vallon is a magnificent cruise of 1,100m vertical from the top of Mont du Vallon all the way down to Méribel-Mottaret.
The Cime de Caron above Val Thorens is more famous for its Combe du Caron black descent, but there is also a red variation around the shoulder, as well as the scenic Itinéraire du Lou. The blue Arondiaz from the top of Courchevel 1650 back down to the resort is a great last run of the day, and its north-facing aspect usually ensures good snow cover.

Advanced
With a maximum gradient of about 38 degrees, the couloirs of Courchevel are among the most radical black runs marked on any piste map in the world, although two of them – Télépherique and Emile Allais – have now been regraded as off-piste itineraries. Take the 160-person cable-car up from the Courchevel side of Saulire, exercising special care on the entry route, which can be dangerously icy. In most conditions, the runs are by no means as difficult as they look from below, but as one reader put it: ‘actually getting to them is a life-threatening experience’.
The Courchevel side of Saulire is the starting point for a magnificent descent of 1,400m vertical to Le Praz. It is tiring rather than technically difficult, apart from the black Jockeys piste on the final section where snow cover at this low altitude is often reduced to patches of scraped ice. La Masse above Les Menuires boasts Les Enverses and the usually icy La Dame Blanche.

Off piste
The guided off-piste opportunities are outstanding, and one of the coolest things about the Trois Vallées is that after a major snowfall the best powder runs are some of the most accessible. The long runs down to Les Menuires from the Méribel ridge are exhilarating. During a heavy snowfall, the tree-lined slopes above La Tania provide some of the most enjoyable powder skiing in the whole of the Trois Vallées, yet are always underused.

Snowboarding
There is a terrain park above Arpasson on the Tougnète side of Mottaret and a designated snowboard area below the second Plattières station above Mottaret. At Courchevel impossibly high moguls are interspersed with steep canyons on the Verdons piste for the use of skiers as well as snowboarders. Plantrey boasts a terrain park with an obstacle course as well as a dedicated trick space and a giant half-pipe. A third terrain park has been created at Biolley. The park at Les Menuires is described as ‘wild, with lots of jumps ’n’ stuff’. In Val Thorens the park is situated on the Deux Lacs pistes with a 110m half-pipe as well as tables, hips, hand-rail and a boardercross course.

Snow Trip are offering 3 options in the 3 valleys this season

Snow Trip catered chalets in Meribel and Meribel Les Allues	Snow Flexidays	Snow Weekends