Few resorts in the Alps can match Alpe d’Huez for its suitability for skiers and snowboarders at both ends of the skills graph, as well as in the middle. The terrain here is equally suitable for experts and beginners, while confident advanced riders will have a great time.
Alpe d’Huez has grown spectacularly in stature since Polish engineer Jean Pomagalski installed France’s first drag lift here in the 1930s, powered by a Perkins engine from a World War I American truck. Pomagalski went on to found the international Poma lift company, while Alpe d’Huez now has the fifth largest ski area in France with 250km of pistes covering the slopes of the remote villages of Auris, Villard Reculas, Oz en Oisans and Vaujany.
Keep up to date with the key facts about the resort below and scroll down for our insider’s guide to a day on the slopes, expert reviews and advice. For more Alpe d’Huez inspiration, check out our guides to the resort’s best accommodation, restaurants and après-ski.
In this guide:
Within the resort
Alpe d’Huez has great slopes for all levels, a large ski area of 250 km and reliable snow cover. The slopes range from 1,135 meters to a height of 3,330 metres, while the resort’s Sarenne Glacier at the highest point of the Pic Blanc ensures snow cover is sufficient for a long season stretching from early December to late April. Moreover, it is easy to reach, as it is a 90-minute drive south-east of Grenoble, the nearest airport.
Located at an altitude of 1,860 meters on a sunny plateau above the valley town of Bourg d’Oisans, the village has developed haphazardly over the decades, resulting in an architectural hodgepodge split into eight small districts or quartiers.
There has been a vigorous campaign with financial incentives from the city council to renovate some of the older buildings, but there is no denying that the village is still home to examples of the worst mountain excess of the 1960s – concrete blocks and A-frame buildings – and without the usual softening blanket of snow it is hardly ugly.
The best places to stay are at the top end of town, close to the main lifts that access the slopes at the Rond Point des Pistes, or in the ski-in/ski-out area of Bergers, a chalet district in the eastern corner of the track. resort close to nursery slopes and a few chairlifts to the middle of the mountain. The slow Télécentre yoghurt pot-style passenger lift provides access to Rond Point from the lower districts of the village; the huge two-stage Grandes Rousses gondola, also known as the DMC, departs from Rond Point to the center of the mountain.
Alternatively, there is a 10-person gondola from the lower part to Bergers. The Télévillage barge lift connects it to the lower village of Huez. The more recent Alp’ Express lift goes from the Vieil Alpe district (near the tourist office) and the Bergers including a stop in the l’Eclose district.
There is a wealth of other activities to do in Alpe d’Huez, including ice skating, climbing (there is an indoor climbing wall), swimming (heated outdoor and indoor pools), ice skating (outdoor ice rink), dog sledding, aerial activities such as paragliding, heli- and airplane flights and snowshoeing. The sports center offers more than 30 activities.
On the slopes
Alpe d’Huez is situated on a sunny plateau, with varied pistes reaching the far corners of this vast ski area in all directions to the slopes of the linked villages of Auris, Villard Reculas, Oz en Oisans and Vaujany. The resort village lies at the foot of the dominant Pic Blanc, although the 3,330 meter peak itself is not visible from the village. As a result, the sheer range and severity of the higher slopes comes as a stomach-churning surprise.
The main access to the Pic Blanc summit is via the two-stage DMC jumbo gondola from the resort, known as the Télépherique des Grandes Rousses, followed by a cable car. Pic Blanc is the starting point of the Sarenne descent, which at 16 km is the longest black run in the Alps. However, it is known more for its endurance than its difficulty, because although it is a long way downhill, there are no particularly butterfly-inducing sites and half of its great length consists of a gentle descent on a riverside path through the eponymous gap.
Much scarier is Le Tunnel, a much more direct black run, also from the top of Pic Blanc. After emerging from the rock tunnel that gives the piste its name, the start of one of the most daunting black pistes in the Alps begins: an often icy mogul field where a fall can result in a slide of 100 meters or worse. In addition to these black runs, a short climb from the top of the Pic Blanc cable car gives access to some truly fantastic off-piste.
At the other end of the scale is Alpe d’Huez, home to some of the most extensive practice slopes in the Alps. The two main beginner areas, on the Bergers side of the village and on the slopes served by the first stage of the DMC gondola, are accessed via a choice of drag lifts, chairlifts and a chondrola (a hybrid gondola/chair). as the DMC. The two areas are linked by easy runs, and a dozen green runs offer a variety of beginner terrain that few other resorts can match.
Between these two extremes, the ski area is also ideally suited for strong advanced skiers who feel like they are going somewhere every day, far beyond the central and often busy slopes just above the resort. The linked resorts of Oz and Vaujany on one side of Alpe d’Huez, and Auris on the other, have significant ski areas, and when snow conditions permit, the runs to the farming hamlet of Villard Reculas are some of the most enjoyable in the region. region.
Alpe d’Huez also has a huge terrain park suitable for all levels, with a full range of jumps and obstacles, as well as a ski cross course. The Vaujany ski area also has a smaller park that is better suited to beginners and advanced skiers.
Who should go?
Beginners will thrive here on some of the most extensive practice slopes in the Alps, with plenty of opportunity to progress to more challenging terrain. The ability to ski to the interconnected resorts of Oz and Vaujany on one side of Alpe d’Huez and Auris on the other will satisfy advanced skiers keen to rack up the miles and experts will find plenty to challenge them too. While everyone will be pleased with the resort’s snow record and fast transfer time from Grenoble.
Know before you go
Essential information
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British Embassy/Consulate: (ukinfrance.fco.gov.uk)
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Ambulance (Samu): call 15
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Police: call 17
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Fire (pompiers): call 18
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Emergency services from mobile phone: call 112
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TOURIST OFFICE: See alpedhuez.com, the website of the Alpe d’Huez tourist office, for weather reports, lift status, webcams, traffic information and local event listings. Collect maps, leaflets and other information from the office in the center of the resort’s main square.
The base
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Currency: Euro
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Phone code: from abroad, call 00 33 and omit the zero at the beginning of the number.
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Time difference: +1 hour
Local laws and etiquette
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When greeting people, French uses many more formal titles (Monsieur, Madame and Mademoiselle) than English.
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It takes years to master the laws of vouvoiement (which version of “you” to use). When in doubt – except when talking to children or animals – always use the formal vous form (second person plural) instead of the more informal tu.
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When driving, it is mandatory to have fluorescent vests and a warning triangle in the car in case of a breakdown. Since 2021, it is also mandatory to have snow chains in your car or winter tires from early November to March.