Skiing in Alpe d'Huez

Skiing & Snowboarding in Alpe d’Huez

Big mountain, high altitude resort, Alpe d'Huez has some of France's best ski runs

Plan Your Trip

High altitude and snow sure, the Alpe d’Huez village itself is purpose built and lacks charm, but the resort makes up for that with the quality of the skiing. Huge wide pistes, massive vertical drop and the longest black run in the French Alps means there’s skiing here for all abilities.

Freeriding

Freestyle

Pistes

Take on La Sarenne, the world's longest run, with 16 km of pure downhill.

Unattractive resort above the treeline.

Elevation

Summit

3300 m

Vertical Drop

1440 m

Base

1860 m

Lifts

Total

70

Cable cars

12

Chairlifts

23

Drag Lifts

35

The Skiing

Freeriding

Start from the Pic Blanc run down the Clavans with wide slopes and beautiful terrain.

Freestyle

Ride the Alpe d'Huez 1800 snowpark and try the "Big Air" on the bottom section or hit the Montfrais snowpark.

Pistes

The ski area offers 133 ski slopes served by 80 ski lifts. Fast lifts whisk you quickly up to the 3330 m Pic Blanc to admire the view.

Beginner Pistes

42

Intermediate Pistes

37

Advanced Pistes

39

Expert Pistes

17

Total Riding

251 Km

Plan Your Trip

Alpe d'Huez

Piste Map

Alpe d'Huez Skiing Piste Map

View printable version

Practical Information

Opening times

3 November - 23 April

Resort prices

42€ Day Lift Pass, 205€ 6-Day Lift Pass

Nearest airport

Grenoble Alpes Isère Airport (1 hr 32 min)
Aéroport Chambéry Savoie Mont Blanc (1 hr 51 min)

Tourist Office

Office de Tourisme d’Alpe d’Huez
Place Paganon
38750 ALPE D’HUEZ
France

Phone: +33 (0)4 76 80 13 52
Web: www.alpedhuez.com
Email: info@alpedhuez.com

Alpe d'Huez

Accommodation

Alpe d’Huez offers a good variety of places to stay that cater to skiers and snowboarders seeking convenient access to the slopes, and some decent après-ski venues. Many properties offer ski-in/ski-out accommodation, so you can roll out of bed onto the pistes. For instance, the Grandes Rousses Hotel & Spa and Le Pic Blanc are well rated for their proximity to the slopes. Alpe d’Huez also has plenty of centrally located bars and restaurants, so you can indulge in some “après” and find your way back to your cosy chalet without too much hassle.

Ski & Snowboard Guide

Alpe d’Huez is where French freestyle skier Thomas Krief cut his teeth. And, testament to the quality of his home training ground, he took bronze at the 2013 FIS Freestyle World Ski Championships.

The Skiing and Snowboarding

The Alpe d’Huez Grand Domaine links 7 resorts and a total of 250 km of pisted runs. The terrain lends itself well to improving your skiing over the course of your holiday. There’s a roughly equal split of beginner, intermediate and advanced runs and the higher you climb, the steeper and more technical the terrain becomes. The resort sits in the shadows of the imposing Pic Blanc, though the 3,300 m summit is not visible from the village. As a result, the sheer scale of the resort comes as a surprise as you work your way up to the top of the lift system. Conveniently for beginners, the green and blue runs are concentrated near the village where the gradient is shallower, whereas the reds and blacks are mainly higher up.

The best skiers will appreciate the black slopes taking the cable car to the Pic Blanc or Marmotte III. Don’t miss the 13 km Sarenne piste, the longest black run in the French Alps. Sarenne offers something for everyone. The length itself offers an endurance trial while more advanced skiers can opt to hit up the mogul field. Many people consider Sarenne more of a red than a black, so intermediate skiers can get a good challenge here too. The views from the top are spectacular.

Le Tunnel is much steeper, more direct black run from the top of the resort. Emerging from a tight couloir that gives the run its name, you’re faced with one of the most challenging black runs in the Alps. Not for the faint hearted.

Beginners will be delighted to find some of the best nursery slopes in the Alps. There are 42 green runs across the Grand Domaine area and a concentration of 15 or so green runs accessible from 2 draglifts and a chair lift right at the snowline.

Intermediates will enjoy striking out across the Domaine covering huge distances in a day. You could have lunch in a different resort every day of the week. For the best of the red runs, head across to Oz-en-Oisans and Vaujany, and when the snow is good low down, don’t miss the run down to Villard Reculas.

Off-Piste Skiing

Alpe d’Huez isn’t as renowned for its off-piste skiing as Chamonix, Sainte Foy or La Grave, but the steep, high terrain and huge vertical drop means there’s plenty for powder hounds to relish. Don’t miss the epic Grand Sablat from the Pic Blanc, the steep and technical Les Cheminées de Macle or La combe du Loup, an Alpe d’Huez classic. It goes without saying that you need experience off-piste and full avalanche kit when tackling these runs. To stay safe, the best thing to do is employ a qualified guide.

Alpe d’Huez Snowpark

For freestyle skiers and snowboarders, Alpe d’Huez has an excellent snow park that is split into a beginners and advanced section making it accessible to all. 21 hectares of hip jumps, spines, table tops and rails provide enough to keep even experts entertained for a full day.

Alpe d'Huez Skiing & Snowboarding Video

We're watching: Skiing the famous Tunnel Piste in Alpe d’Huez!

Experience the legendary Tunnel Piste in Alpe d’Huez! This iconic black run begins with a thrilling 300m tunnel carved beneath the Pic Blanc at a breathtaking altitude of 3330m. Brace yourself for the adrenaline-pumping 70% gradient drop as you emerge onto the dramatic main face—an unforgettable challenge for expert skiers!

Please leave a comment below if you need specific advice for your ski holiday to France, or if you have any recommendations to help us improve this guide. Happy holidays!

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