European Ski Resorts A-Z

Les Menuires, France

Resort height:

 1800m

 

Slopes:

 1400-2850m

  (1260-3230m - 3 Valleys)

Pistes:

 160km

  (600km - 3 Valleys) 

 

General snow cover

 

4/5

 

Snow quality (upper)

 

4/5

 

Snow quality (lower)

 

3/5

 

Resort level snow

 

4/5

 

Powder potential

 

4/5

The main slopes above Les Menuires face west and can be icy or slushy despite (or perhaps because of) extensive snow-making.

 

Higher up, good snow is more assured, especially on La Masse which faces north.

 

Access to the super-reliable slopes of Val Thorens is straightforward, and of great benefit if conditions lower down are less than perfect.

Where to ski in bad weather:

There isn’t much you can do if the visibility is really bad in Les Menuires, other than stay as low as possible. You could try and get over to Méribel, but there will be lots of open exposed terrain on the way.

Where to head in poor snow conditions:

Locally the best snow is often on the under-used La Masse sector, particularly the top half.

 

You could also head to neighbouring Val Thorens, the highest ski resort in Europe, with slopes in excess of 3000m and two small glaciers.