Cervinia
Italy
At 2,050m with glacier lifts and a link into Zermatt, the most snow-sure resort in Italy.
Village 2,050m · top 3,500m
81
/ 100
Very snow-sure
The Best Christmas Ski Resorts for Beginners
Learning to ski at Christmas has one specific hazard: nursery slopes are the lowest terrain in a resort and therefore the first to be thin. A resort that is excellent for beginners in February can be awkward in December.
The resorts here combine genuinely gentle terrain with enough altitude that the gentle terrain has snow on it.
The ranking
Ordered by our beginner rating.
Saas-Fee
Switzerland
A car-free village at 1,800m ringed by thirteen four-thousand-metre peaks, with glacier skiing above it.
Village 1,798m · top 3,457m
71
/ 100
Very snow-sure
Alpe d'Huez
France
Three hundred sunny days a year, 3,330m of altitude, and the longest black run in the world.
Village 1,860m · top 3,330m
70
/ 100
Very snow-sure
Avoriaz
France
Car-free, ski-in/ski-out from almost every door, and the best resort in France for young families.
Village 1,800m · top 2,466m · 130km of piste
48
/ 100
Weather-dependent
La Plagne
France
Eleven villages, enormous intermediate terrain, and consistently one of the best-value big French resorts.
Village 1,250m · top 3,250m
46
/ 100
Weather-dependent
Courchevel
France
The most luxurious address in the Alps, with the grooming, the restaurants and the prices to match.
Village 1,300m · top 2,738m
36
/ 100
Weather-dependent
Val Thorens
France
Europe's highest ski resort at 2,300m, and the closest thing to a guarantee that you will be skiing on Christmas Day.
Village 2,300m · top 3,230m
84
/ 100
Very snow-sure
Tignes
France
Glacier skiing on the Grande Motte and the same Espace Killy terrain as Val d'Isère, for less money.
Village 1,810m · top 3,456m · 300km of piste
71
/ 100
Very snow-sure
Les Arcs
France
Four villages at four altitudes, linked by cable car to La Plagne as the huge Paradiski area.
Village 1,600m · top 3,250m
59
/ 100
Usually reliable
Méribel
France
The prettiest of the Three Valleys resorts and the one that suits families best.
Village 1,450m · top 2,952m
46
/ 100
Weather-dependent
Lech
Austria
Quietly the most exclusive village in the Alps, and among the snowiest places in Austria.
Village 1,444m · top 2,811m
43
/ 100
Weather-dependent
Cortina d'Ampezzo
Italy
The most beautiful setting in the Alps, and an elegant Italian town that happens to have skiing.
Village 1,224m · top 2,930m
38
/ 100
Weather-dependent
Morzine
France
A working Savoyard market town with real life in it — and the lowest altitude in our French selection.
Village 1,000m · top 2,466m
18
/ 100
Weather-dependent
Obergurgl
Austria
The highest parish in Austria at 1,930m, and the country's most reliable bet for Christmas snow.
Village 1,930m
Snow Score pending
Val Gardena
Italy
Three Ladin villages in the Dolomites, on the Sellaronda circuit and the vast Dolomiti Superski pass.
Village 1,563m
Snow Score pending
Zermatt
Switzerland
The Matterhorn, year-round glacier skiing, and a car-free village that is among the loveliest in the Alps.
Village 1,608m · top 3,883m
74
/ 100
Very snow-sure
Val d'Isère
France
The rare resort that has both a real village and 3,456m of glacier-backed terrain above it.
Village 1,849m · top 3,456m · 300km of piste
73
/ 100
Very snow-sure
Ischgl
Austria
High, snow-sure skiing across the Silvretta Arena into Switzerland — and the biggest party in the Alps.
Village 1,377m
Snow Score pending
Verbier
Switzerland
Serious off-piste, a sunny south-facing balcony, and the liveliest nights in Switzerland.
Village 1,490m · top 3,329m
57
/ 100
Usually reliable
St Anton am Arlberg
Austria
The spiritual home of Alpine skiing, with the toughest terrain and the liveliest après in Austria.
Village 1,304m · top 2,811m
38
/ 100
Weather-dependent
Not yet ranked
We cover these resorts but have not finished verifying the data this ranking uses, so they are left out rather than given a number we cannot stand behind.