Val Thorens
Val Thorens is a ski resort in Savoie, France. Val Thorens is the highest Alpine Skiing resort in Europe, with the town itself at 2300m above sea level. This also makes it one of the most snow assured in Europe, with the ski season extending to early May. Val Thorens is part of Les Trois Vallées interlinked ski area.
Get in
By plane
Val Thorens is located remotely in the Mountains and does not have a local airport. In ski season there are some airports with seasonal flights: Aéroport de Chambéry-Savoie (CMF IATA) (about 122 km) and Grenoble Isère Airport (GNB IATA) (about 195 km). There is a small airport with mostly private flights in Courchevel which is also part of the skiing area of Les Trois Vallées.
By train
There is no train station in Val Thorens. The nearest train station is about 35 km away in Moutiers, where during the ski season direct high-speed trains (Eurostar, TGV and Thalys) connect directly to Belgium, Germany, Netherlands, United Kingdom and the rest of France. From the Moutiers station there are bus connections to Val Thorens.
By bus
Many visitors arrive by chartered busses.
By car
The only way to get to Val Thorens is by road. The journey from Moutiers takes an hour (or more if in a bus or stuck behind one). Parking in Val Thorens is only possible in (paid) parking and police is checking for parking violations.
Other
It is possible to ski in from Les Menuires, Meribel and Orelle. The pistes from these places are mostly graded as blue or red. The high level lifts required often close in poor weather.
Get around
Cars are officially banned in the resort. Dropping off luggage is allowed, but vehicles must then be parked in one of the Valthoparc car parks. Police will fine or even tow away illegally parked vehicles.
See
The viewpoint at the top of the Cime Caron cable car is at 3200m above sea level. It is possible to see Mont Blanc from there. It is accessible to pedestrians as well as skiers, using the Cairn, Caron and Cime Caron cable cars. There is a restaurant at the top.
Do
Apart from (obviously) Alpine Skiing, mountain biking, walking, hiking, microlight, paragliding, fishing and quad biking are on offer in the summer months.
Sleep