Easiest resort to drive to? Eg shortest distance up the mountains

A snowHead

Thanks in advance.
Thinking of driving down in Jan 2019, taking our time with a stopover en-route, but trying to decide which resort in France. We know the Tignes/val d’isere area and La Plagne/Les Arcs. Also skied a number of times at Alpes D.huez. So was thinking Trois Vallees or even Les Duex Alpes.
Want a reasonably easy uphill drive if it’s possible, plus large ski area, which previously have led us to Vaujany. But want a change.
The perfect place would be ski-in/ski-out, happy for dead quiet no apres resort. Maybe hotel/half board, but happy with apartment. Key criteria is comfy bed and a bath! Often self catering for 2 is sofa bed and shower.
Any brilliant ideas?

A snowHead

What kind of budget? There are loads of much nicer apartments with pools etc and good accommodation - but they'll cost more than a sofa bed and a shower. Megeve is an easy drive - far, far, easier than somewhere like Tignes. The Mont Blanc Evasion area is big. In the same ski area but cheaper, is St Gervais - also easy to drive, not far off the A40 motorway.

Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?

Budget is what I call ‘value for money’. If I pay more I want nicer places. Do the nice looking apartments with pools have comfy beds?
I’ll look at Megeve. Don’t know the resort at all is it big?

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Until you said France, my immediate thought was that many of the Austrian resorts, where you don't have to drive up the mountain at all, would suit you well. I believe the drive in winter to some of the Austrian resorts isn't that much longer than the French resorts.

Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.

As @pam w, the ski areas east of Geneva are some of the closest to drive in France from UK.

I'd add Morrillon Les Esserts 1100 as of interest. Ski area of Grand Massif, look at hotel Le Buet, but you'd need to look at 4person to get bedroom plus sofa in most french apartment. Cost there is probably best for skiing that domain, small village fairly quite but enough that you'd not have to travel for supplies restaurant etc.
Easy run up to main valley from autoroute plus not a long climb to finish.

Further down, worth a look at Val Cenis, Lansvillard. Very easy drive to village after leaving autoroute near Frejus Tunnel. Nice valley with extensive skiing plus real village as opposed to ski station.

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Not bothered about a real village. I’m there to ski. Husband won’t look at a low resort, or small. We really crank up the mileage and like to try to ski almost every slope in a resort during a week.

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Maybe look at Hotel Le Totem or Le Centaure (apartments with pool) in Flaine. The Grand Massif is a great ski area.

After all it is free

Is it the overall length of the drive from the UK or the ease of getting up the mountain that you're most interested in?

My first thought was Samoens. Of the larger areas its probably the easiest (really no mountain climb at all to speak of, first resort we towed our caravan to) quickest drive from the UK, with access to the Grand Massif area.

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As @pam w, said, StG is 10 minutes of A40 & pass has 440km of pistes

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Klosters, Switzerland.

Like sugamomma says above, my initial thought was Austria. As a lot of resorts are old farming villages/towns, there are no windy access roads and some are literally just off the main autobahn/schnellstrasse, eg St Anton. Drive time from the UK isn't that much different from some of the French resorts, if not shorter depending on where you cross the channel to.

You know it makes sense.

Bride le Bain or St Martin De Belleville...really nearly at the bottom of the 3 V and there is accommodation to fit your criteria

Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:

Siviez, more or less central of 4V. First lift out to any of the different valleys.

Sparse accommodation but almost perfect location to use all areas of ski domain.

Nearby Nendaz has much more accommodation choice.

Quite close to UK.

A snowHead

Orelle in the Maurienne valley is VERY easy to get to - motorway all the way except the last couple of miles on an A-road along the valley floor. A big gondola takes you straight up into the higher reaches of the 3-Valleys.

Limited accommodation right by the lift station but I’m sure there will be transport from the others.

A snowHead

Austria is a good shout, St Anton or Stuben, motorway 99% of the way there, right turn, up through some tunnels and you are in the village. Zero switchbacks from memory!

Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?

+ 1 for Austria.
Most of the big resorts / areas are based in the valleys and therefore have little or no driving up mountain roads.

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Chamonix must be the easiest to drive to, but it's a strange criteria to choose.

Surely the best resort would be a higher priority than the one with the straightest road to it.

Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.

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Austria probably wins if you want no hills between autobahn and ski resort at all. Zillertal, etc.
Steinach am Brenner must be one where the autobahn technically goes thru the resort (the main gondola goes under the autobahn!).
Loads that are just an easy drive up a road with not many switchbacks... Soelden, most of Ski Amade, most of Portes du Soleil, Chamonix?, Samoens/Morillon, Lauterbrunnen for Wengen etc. (covered parking in a lot of those too = no clearing of snow on departure)

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Using No hairpins and large rsort as a criteria then the following sping to mind;

Morillon or Samoens (Grand Massif - 265km of pistes)
Chamonix (115km)
Brides Les Bains (Trois Valleys - 600km)
Les Arc (stay in Bourg St Maurice) (Paradiski - 200km)
Val d'Isere (Espace Killy - 300km)

if you add in 1 hairpin you could probably get to lower parts of Courchevel, Les Gets or Les Carroz via Chatillon

After all it is free

@marcellus,
Plenty of hairpin bends between Bourg St Maurice & Val D'Isere

@Lucywuk, Chamonix has got to be the easiest. Motorway straight in to town. I've PM'ed you.

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+1 for Chamonix, or St Martin de Belleville for 3V and stay down in the valley, similarly Martigny or Bruson for 4V

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Flaine / Les Carroz? Some of the closest to the UK and also to GVA airport.

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@foxtrotzulu, plenty of hairpins there! Unless you’re planning for the long-awaited cable car from Magland...

You know it makes sense.

You’ve given us some great ideas. A straight road is not the main criteria, but it is one in a list of things.

Large resort, somewhere we’ve not been recently.
Ski-in ski-out
Ease of drive (not distance, but I’ve known non-stop traffic jams up hairpins and that’s no fun)

So Megeve and Flaine are on the list to check out. St Martin de Belleville is an idea too. Le Praz is the one place we have stayed in 3V but was avoiding Courchevel for some reason. May need to review. La Tania too.

Ok google here we come.

Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:

@Lucywuk, Maybe Kitzbuhel if you wanted to head east (save on the French tolls too).

A snowHead

@Lucywuk, La Tania has a fair few switchbacks....

A snowHead

Surprised no one has mentioned Avoriaz. Virtually all accomodation is ski in ski out. 1800 m Mostly s/c apartments but the odd chalet. Plenty of takeaway options. Giant ski area.

975km same as Cham and a similar motorway drive although the very last bit is twisty stuff up the mountain.

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@TQA, Avoriaz hasn't been mentioned as the OP specifically doesn't like hairpins or twisty mountain roads.

Which is why suggestions like St-Gervais / Megeve, Samoens, and Austria keep coming up.

Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.

Villars also worth considering, great skiing and a big area.

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Have stayed many times in Brides, Flaine and Megeve. Look at booking.com or Interhome. You can get small apartments with a bed in Brides in The Royal which is very near the lift to Meribel.
https://www.booking.com/hotel/fr/le-royal-brides-les-bains-brides-les-bains.en-gb.html

Have used several Interhome places in Megeve and it does have a large area. If you have a car you can easily access all parts.

Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...

What's considered 'low'? Morzine is less hairpin-y than Avoriaz but with the same giant ski area to sample. Not huge amounts of ski in/out but I'd have thought you have to cut your cloth if you don't want hairpins.

Of course Avoriaz is still an option if you can park in Morzine and get the Prodains lift up.

After all it is free

Of the whole driving to the ski resort project The last little bit up the mountain is IMHO the easiest. The hardest without doubt is getting to Dover in the UK. The 3 hairpin bends up to Les Arcs are nothing compared to the M25.

Anyway if you don't fancy driving up the hill then Bourg st Maurice (leave the car in town and get the funicular up) is an option. The same idea could be applied to leaving the car in Bourg and geting the bus from the railway station to La Rosiere

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Easiest resort to drive to? Eg shortest distance up the mountains

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