Meribel Resort is massive, with 41 lifts, 64 defined lines totaling around 150km of piste ranging in height from 1,100 to 2,952m (1,852m vertical), and two terrain parks. The runs are usually spacious and well-kept. Meribel skiing and snowboarding (as well as Les Trois Vallees) is suitable for intermediates who like cruising for kilometers to the next pit stop. Skiable vertical descents of up to 1300m are conceivable.
Meribel is a great place to start if you’re new to skiing. Despite the fact that some of the green slopes are a touch pitchy, more than half of the piste terrain is classified ‘easy’ or’very easy.’ Bump runs (if you like bumps!) are offered for expert riders. While professionals may bemoan the lack of steep terrain, there are still difficult steeps to be discovered, especially if you have a guide.
Purchasing a 3 Vallees lift pass grants access to over 600km of pistes on around 328 tracks, including the high altitude glaciers of Val Thorens ski resort.
Meribel Beginner Skiing
Despite the fact that its great nursery slope is significantly far from the resort base, Meribel is the finest base for novices.
All of the Three Valleys can be skied on green slopes, and although some of the blue routes may seem intimidating at first, their sheer width and the quality of the grooming ensures that much of the ski area will rapidly open up to novices.
The Foret green is the finest spot to begin since it has the most moderate slope of the lot; it may frequently be so flat that you have to schuss or pole along.
The Blanchot green, which can be reached by taking the Rhodos gondola from the Chaudanne, is equally level and winds well through woods in spots, giving newcomers the sense that they are traveling someplace, but at a very leisurely speed. If things become too challenging, there’s a restaurant halfway down with a nice patio.
In the summer, Altiport, a golf course, is seldom frozen, broad, and tree-lined. It is also fortunate to have relatively little through traffic. It is also possible to reach the blues somewhat further up the mountain from here, making it an ideal site to learn or develop from the Blanchot slopes.
Those stationed at Meribel-Mottaret must depend on the Truite green, which flows along the Chaudanne in Meribel proper.
The Rhodos green is the most difficult of Meribel’s beginning slopes. If you can manage the Rhodos, you should be able to handle the Geai, Biche, and Belette blue areas of Saluire, as well as the Choucas, Escargot, Grive, and Faonblues in Plattieres.
Meribel Intermediate Skiing
The Three Valleys is the spot to rack up the miles, and Meribel is the excellent starting point.
All of the runs to the right of the Tougnete bubble and drag, especially the Blaireau red, are fantastic. It is also worthwhile to pursue the trail along the ridge line to the blue Choucas, whose undulating slopes may be ridden as if on rails. The walk down to Chaudanne via Gelinotte runs through the woods but may get ice. The reds Pramint and Jerusalem, which go down to St Martin de Belleville, are maybe two of the nicest red runs in the Three Valleys, especially first thing in the morning. They’re also not too horrible on the walk down to lunch.
The runs from the top of Saulire are all broad cruisers (once you have navigated the sometimes rutted and always icy path around the headland to the runs leading down to Meribel). The reds of Niverolle and Aigle mix for a lengthy ski down to Meribel Mottaret.
The Chamois red has a wonderful steep climb to begin with, but if the snow is good enough, don’t pass up the chance to ski the Mauduit red from top to bottom; it is about 1,300m of vertical. The majority of the blues are quite simple.
The twisting reds that descend Mont du Vallon, Combe Vallon, and Compagnol will appeal to intermediates. Mouflon is a magnificent red run in the sun, but it may become cold and hardpacked in the shadow and flat light. Lagopede, accessible via the Roc de Tougne drag, offers outstanding pitch and camber and can be extended by taking either Fouine or Coqs down to Mottaret, which are also the best runs into the resort center.
The Venturon and Lac de La Chambre reds off the Cote Brune are also great intermediate challenges.
Meribel Advanced & Expert Skiing
Meribel might not have the most difficult terrain in the Three Valleys, but there is plenty to keep professional skiers interested, both on and off the slopes. Because of Meribel’s strategic position, skilled skiers based there can rapidly reach the difficulties in the neighboring valleys.
The blacks of Bartavelle (which usually has decent snow) and Bosses (which usually does not) in the Tougnete region are ideal for bumps, however most of the pisted slopes are mogul-free.
Tetras suffers with snow and is nearly always a mogul field, while Le Face (the women’s Olympic downhill) may be magnificent in untracked powder or a big adrenaline rush on newly pisted corduroy. Combe Tougnete is a good rapid run with a very steep first hundred metres. Grande Rosiere and Sanglier are unimpressive yet demanding and pleasant, while Combe Tougnete is a nice quick run with a very steep first hundred metres.
Skiers interested in experiencing the valley’s off-piste difficulties should travel to Mont Vallon and check the region between the Combe de Vallon and Campagnol pistes from the safety of the lift. But be cautious: there are hazards here, and once you leave the piste markers, you’re on your own – so make sure you have the proper equipment and, if in doubt, hire a guide.
Strong skiers, on the other hand, will not want to spend all of their time in the Meribel valley. Because Meribel is located in the heart of the world’s biggest lift-connected ski region, they have access to a wide selection of expert skiing in Courchevel, Les Menuires, and Val Thorens. As long as you get an early start, don’t do too much exploration along the way, and avoid accidents, you can reach, ski, and return from any slope on the Les 3 Vallees map well before the lifts shut. However, keep a look out for unannounced lift closures, especially in poor weather – there are interactive maps indicating what is open and what is closed at all of the main stations, and most excursions have more than one way back. The travel from Meribel to Val Thorens by lift and piste may be relatively swift and enjoyable, but the same cannot be said for the forced return by road, and if you must take a cab (transport links between the Three Valleys are few and far between), the fee paid will reflect this.
Meribel Snowboarding
Meribel has two main snow parks, one of which is totally fenced for novices.
The Plattieres Snowpark has recently been renovated and now offers a totally covered section where novices may progress without feeling scared. There are 17 acres of terrain, two half-pipes, jumps, whoops, and banks.
The Moon Park in Meribel offers a significant vertical drop, one competition class half pipe, another for beginners, and a kilometer-long boardercross.
For those who like things to be more natural, right before reaching the summit, there is a massive wall underneath the Adret chair. The wall may be reached by the Marmotte or Geai blues. It climbs roughly two metres at its sharpest point, although it levels off as you approach it to the right. For comfort, the landing is a touch too flat.
The Ours blue from the foot of Mont Vallon and Lac de La Chambre from the top of Cote Brune to the bottom of Mont Vallon are two runs that boarders should avoid owing to their flat nature. The last section is quite flat. The Boulevard de La Loze from Loze to Saulire is fairly flat, while the Perdrix green from the Tougnete into Mottaret is very flat at the bottom – make sure you get some speed up.
