Officially the world's biggest linked ski area, and it earns the title: Courchevel, Méribel, Les Menuires, Val Thorens and a handful of smaller villages share one lift pass and 150-odd lifts, so you can ski for a week without repeating yourself or boarding a bus. It suits confident intermediates best, with long groomed runs and some properly steep stuff if you go looking. The villages have very different personalities: Courchevel 1850 is Michelin stars and private jets, Méribel is the classic chalet-and-woodland base. Val Thorens is Europe's highest base at 2,300m and entirely above the trees, is purpose-built, younger and skis out of the door. That height and its top lift at 3220m makes VT the snow-sure end of the valley, while the wooded runs around Courchevel and Méribel are where you head when the cloud comes down. Without a car, take the train to Moûtiers and a bus up the valley (around an hour to Val Thorens). Webcam coverage is good, with super-wide panoramas and, if you're lucky, live video from Courchevel.
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