10 Best Ski Resorts in Europe

The Three Valleys (Les 3 Vallées) is widely known as the most extensive ski area in the world. Spreading through – you guessed it – 3 valleys, in the very midst of the French Savoie department, it clocks up some seriously formidable stats along the way – 370 miles of interlinked slopes, 2,300 snow-making canons, a top station at 3,200 metres above sea level. It's impossible to get bored here.

The vastness of the Three Valleys means it isn't just one resort but several, all woven together by one of the most high-tech lift systems around. The easternmost valley of Allues hosts charming French mountain towns like Méribel, a family favourite. Further west, you get the likes of Courchevel, where jetsetters in designer salopettes sip hot chocolate by their ski-in chalets.

Tignes – just a mention of the name is enough to get the hairs standing on the necks of après lovers everywhere. Wedged onto a high-altitude plateau between the Italian border and the jagged Grande Motte massif, this ski resort has access to the award-winning Espace Killy, a ski domain that clocks up 186 miles of groomed runs.

Most of those are long, wide blues and reds, making the resort a scorcher for intermediates. Terrain-hungry folks can spend days carving back and forth between Val-d'Isère, another iconic resort in the region. There's also plenty of square meterage up on high to fit in DJ-spinning, champagne-popping bars.

The Chamonix Valley is hallowed ground in the world of winter sports. It carves through the mountains of the Haute-Savoie, bounded by mighty Mont Blanc on one side and the Italian border on the other. It's known for its series of challenging ski resorts and long history of alpinism – it was here, back in 1921, that the first ever Winter Olympics took place.

Today, the valley's skiing is divided into a couple of sectors. Purists often go for the zigzagging runs of Le Brévent or Argentière, which aren't big on territory but do have whizzing black runs aplenty. For a hit of adrenaline, nothing much can beat the Vallée Blanche, a gnarly drop on a glacier tongue and one of the world's most famous off-piste rides. For families, there's small and quaint Les Houces at the entrance to the valley.

Mayrhofen is a picture of a Tyrolean ski centre that's steeped in Austrian charms and buzzing with energy. It sits about 3 quarters of the way down the Zillertal Valley, just east of Innsbruck. As you arrive on the lovely little narrow-gauge train that weaves its way to the hotels, you'll watch as the mighty glacier of Hintertux lurches into view and the Penkenbahn gondola dangles disconcertingly overhead.

There's now just one ski pass for the whole valley, which means access to 388 miles of groomed runs across five separate ski areas. They include Mayrhofen proper, a great bowl that's home to the gravity-defying Harakiri – at 78% gradient, the steepest run in the Alps – and Zillertal Arena – a vast mix of family slopes and fun parks for the little ones.

St Anton am Arlberg is the place for advanced and upper-intermediate skiers in Austria. The resort is the stepping stone into the ever-growing Arlberg ski region, which now boasts links to Lech, Zurs, and Zug, along with over 90 separate lifts and around 187 miles of groomed terrain. Perhaps more notably, the first pro ski club in Europe was formed in St Anton in 1901.

These days, the place is known for its challenging mogul runs and steep black slopes. The resort centre itself is part modern, part old, with beer halls that spill onto Marktstrasse. It's more accessible than many ski resorts in Austria, sat neatly on the main train lines that run west from Innsbruck.

The Dolomiti Superski has charged to the top of the bill over in Italy. It covers a jaw-dropping section of the Dolomites east of Bolzano, encompassing 12 individual resort centres as it goes. Each of them has its own unique charm and character, from sleepy Arabba to elegant Ortisei to more family-friendly Corvara. 

There's an ace up the sleeve of the Dolomiti Superski. Cue the Sella Ronda. A legendary ski circuit that whisks you 360 degrees around the Piz Boe mountain on more than 350 miles of connected terrain, it is fantastically well-marked and can be done in 2 directions. Expect tasty ski lunches of cheese-topped pasta and pizza washed down with rich Veneto wines to break up the day.

Cool and collected Megeve is one of the most stylish ski resorts in the Alps. Unlike many of its immediate neighbours, this charming town of timber-built cottages and sweet-smelling boulangeries is traditional France from tip to toe. It cosies up in a valley in the heart of the Haute Savoie, with ski areas looming up the ridges to the north and the south.

You'll instantly notice how well-curated the runs are in Megeve. They're each marked with slick signage and planned to hairpin through the low pine forests in perfect fashion. Back at base level, Megeve has all the elegant designer stores you could want, plus Michelin-worthy eateries that churn out fondue and French Chablis galore.

St Moritz has become a byword for jetsetter winter holidays ever since the likes of Alfred Hitchcock, Aristoteles Onassis, and Greta Garbo started dropping by to hit the pistes. Set between the phalanx of mountains that is the Piz Bernina and the Piz Julier, the resort is mountain royalty, crowned by some of the most opulent and iconic hotels in Europe – Badrutt's Palace, the Kulm Hotel.

Come to be pampered in high-class spa facilities and dine in haute kitchens by evening. By day, prepare to ski 186 miles of linked runs on 42 uber-modern lifts. The resort has over 80 championship-rated slopes for the hardcore skiers out there, but also loads of wide corduroy for family groups and casual skiers.

Zermatt possesses arguably the most iconic view of any ski resort, anywhere in the world. This Swiss alpine village overlooks the gnarled top of the Matterhorn from its plinth at the roof of the Valais canton. It's a sight that will wow and continue to wow, no matter how many times you ski the panoramic runs of the Gornergrat mountain gazing over the valley at the famous peak.

Zermatt itself, in true Swiss style, now has more than a whiff of the A-lister about it. There are ski lodges with saunas in the bedrooms, right next to refined fondue kitchens with curated wine lists. For something cheaper, consider staying on the Italian side of the border in Breuil-Cervinia and skiing over for the day.

Zakopane has established itself as a fine alternative to the Alps in the last decade. It's the home of Polish skiing, set under the shadow of the craggy Tatra Mountains right in the south of the country. Oozing charms, the town is a mix of crooked timber cottages and hearty Slavic dumpling taverns, which make for great après when the time comes.

The skiing is shared between a handful of small resorts. The highest in Poland is Kasprowy. Access that via the classic Kuznice gondola, which has been there since 1935. Across the valley, you can ski the 2 runs of Polana Szymoszkowa to get the best head-on views of the Tatras going.