Châtel Ski Resort France
Châtel is a super family friendly ski resort on the French side of the massive Portes du Soleil. An extensive skiing area in its own right, Chatel has numerous different zones to suit novices & families, intermediate snow riders, plus off-piste powder-hunting experts. To top it off, Châtel is one of the more delightful villages in the French Alps & makes an excellent base from which to explore one of the world’s largest interconnected ski areas.
Pros & Cons for Châtel Ski Resort
Pros
- Wonderful snow holiday destination with vast terrain & diversity straddling the French-Swiss border.
- High snowfall zone, particularly in the upper alpine.
- Exceptionally good value lift pass for the entire resort in the Espace Liberté sector.
- Superb beginner & intermediate piste trails.
- Interesting off-piste & freeride terrain options for everyone from beginner to expert, including tree-skiing.
- Untracked snow in the off-piste can be found several days after a snowfall.
- Ski lifts being modernised across the resort.
- Châtel village is authentic & one of the loveliest at any ski resort in the French Alps.
- Après ski is lively in the mid-mountain sectors of the resort.
- Ski two countries but speak one language – French (the Swiss sector is in the French speaking part of Valais).
Cons
- High numbers of visitors at peak periods (but not many riding the off-piste).
- Relatively low top elevation & shortish skiable vertical of between 400-600m in the upper alpine.
- Major piste trails in the Linga-Pre la Jouz sector are prone to high skier traffic & the subsequent slope conditions that follow it!
- Limited advanced on-piste trails & valley trails (i.e. Petit-Chatel would be great if it had one).
- Lifts in parts of Châtel (& interlinked Morgins) are out-dated (but several new chairlifts are being installed in coming seasons!).
- Whilst it is fun to get around, some lift & piste connections are awkward & it can be easy to get ‘lost’ - pay close attention to signage as people have been known to end the day stuck in the wrong resort or worse, the wrong country!
Pro or Con (depending on your perspective!)
- Close to Geneva for quick & easy access private transfer or rental car (but has the subsequent crowds during peak season as a result). Close to the only cross-border pass in the Portes du Soleil.
- A high number of surface lifts in the Espace Liberté sector may challenge beginner snowboarders.
- Limited ski-in ski-out accommodation in Chatel (but available elsewhere).
- Lacks morning sunshine in the village, but receives it in the afternoon, just in time for après!
Skiing & Snowboarding, Lift & Terrain
Châtel ski resort is part of a local ski sector called Espace Libertè, combining the lifts & terrain of Chatel with La Chapelle-d'Abondance, plus the Swiss resort of Torgon & the lame Corbeau sector of Morgins. The resort also has direct lift & trail connections with Avoriaz. Espace Liberte includes around 130km of ski trails & 56 lifts across the sector.
Check out the ski trail map for Châtel - Espace Libertè below.
With a highest lifted point of 2,100m, statistically Châtel doesn’t give the appearance of a world class ski area. Indeed, most of its main lifts only serve 350-450m skiable vertical - just enough to be worthwhile. But sometimes a good ski hill is not all about 1,500m skiable verticals. The valley trails have a respectable 750m+ of skiable vert, but it is the appealing location & accessibility of the resort’s terrain to a wide variety of snow-riders that is its true strength.
Chatel’s ski & snowboard terrain is all north & west aspect, soaking in just enough afternoon sun to be pleasant, but not too much so as to turn the hill to mush. It can be divided into three distinct sectors, each with its strengths. Directly above town, Super-Chatel is accessed by the main gondola & is the perfect stomping ground for novices, beginners, families & non-skiing pedestrians. It has easy links to Morgins in Switzerland via the upper tows or an advanced run from the summit of Morclan. Beyond Morclan is the next sector, Barbossine, which is a fun-filled freeride zone for advanced sliders & better. Return access to the resort can be painful, but worth it. In the opposite direction, the third sector, Linga/Pré-la-Joux is joined to Super-Chatel by a long, traversing chair & has the best piste trails for intermediates & advanced skiers & boarders.
From a powder seekers perspective, the Morclan chair is the most important in Chatel. It accesses the stellar Barbossine bowl, several quality piste trails, the border crossing into Switzerland, a north-aspect off-piste bowl into Onnaz & lovely, sunny south-facing 600m skiable vertical off-piste terrain into the bottom of Conche chair, or further all the way into the village.
Some of the ski lifts in the Petit-Chatel & Super Chatel-Barbossine sectors (& indeed, the entire Espace Liberté) are amongst the oldest in the Portes du Soleil. Nearby Torgon has deleted several lifts within the last four years simply due to lack of serviceability. Thankfully, Châtel has reversed the trend of late. New 6-seater chairlifts to replace the painfully slow, old versions of Morclan & Conche, will change the way the mountain skis, removing previous doubts about riding them & making powder day laps ssoooo much more fun!
Lift Passes
There are essentially two major lift pass options at the resort - Espace Libertè & Portes du Soleil. Whilst a large ski area in and of itself, Espace Libertè is only a fraction of the terrain available in the vast interconnected Portes du Soleil. Lift passes for the entire Portes du Soleil (a.k.a. Doors of the Sun) are €11 to €13 more than local lift passes, but forays into the broader region are definitely worth the extra coin.
See the Portes du Soleil ski trail map.
On the plus side of the ledger for the affordable Espace Libertè pass is the incredibly cheap Saturday & weekend rates. On Saturdays the flat rate is €11 cheaper than the cash desk price for midweek- amazing value.
Where is Châtel France?
The Châtel ski resort is in the Vallée d'Abondance of the Haute Savoie in France near the Swiss border, only 78km east of Geneva (GVA) international airport. Travel time by road in winter is usually around 1¾hr.
The nearest major centre to Chatel is the lakeside city of Thonon-les-Bains, 38km (45min) by road west of the ski resort. Thonon les Bains has reasonable public transport links, including by train, with Geneva. Regional trains depart the Geneva central station to Thonon-les-Bains every few hours during the day, with the journey taking around 1hr. From the railway station, the route 121 bus completes the journey to Châtel in around 1hr. In winter, some bus services run direct from Geneva to the ski resort.
If one does not have a rental car, due to the proximity of Châtel to Geneva, we recommend looking at a direct private transfer from the airport. It avoids a sometimes convoluted public transport journey to the ski resort. A private transfer can be particularly cost effective for groups of 3 or more people. For those with a car, in good road conditions, travel to Chatel from Geneva airport is quickest via the north shore of Lac Leman & the Swiss resort of Morgins over the 1,369m Pas de Morgins.
Search & book here for all airport transfers from Geneva to Châtel.
For hints, tips & warnings about getting to French ski resorts in winter, see our Travel in France page.
Châtel Accommodation
Châtel is one of the most authentic villages in the Portes du Soleil. Indeed, it is one of the more pleasant ski resort villages in the entire French Alps. The main village centre is hive of activity during winter & has extensive bus & ski lift links within a few steps of the shops. To the north, connected by local bus is an outlying hamlet of Le Petit Châtel which comes complete with its own shops, bars & chairlift which connects to Torgon & Morgins in Switzerland. Between the two ends of Châtel, a host of hotels, guesthouses, apartments & chalet line the mountainside.
Search & book here for all Châtel ski accommodation.
Down valley from Chatel are numerous lodging options in La Chapelle-d'Abondance and Abondance. La Chapelle-d'Abondance has direct ski lift links into the Portes du Soleil via Torgon. Abondance has its own small ski area that is not lift or piste connected to the rest of the network & requires a free local bus ride to access it.
Over the ridge in Switzerland, Morgins makes a good alternative base from which to ski Châtel. Similarly, ‘over the ridge’, but in France, Châtel can also be easily accessed from the incredible alpine village at Avoriaz.
[AdListings Filter="Chatel Packages"]
Ski Rentals, Lessons & Equipment
Ski rentals are available with our local partners in all the Châtel villages. Receive a discount when you search & book via our Châtel Ski or Snowboard Rental page.
[AdListings Filter="Chatel Guiding"]
If you need a new outfit for your ski trip comprising modern jacket, pants, gloves & goggles, Chatel is one of the French ski resorts served by our local partner ski clothing rental company, Ski Chic. Order online & your ski outfit is delivered direct to your accommodation at the resort.
[AdListings Filter="Meribel Ski Rentals Clothing"]
Review
The Powderhounds skied Châtel in late 2019 & we had a fine time navigating its many nooks, crannies, and pistes! Click on the review link in the left column (or top of the page if on a mobile) to read its predictably profound prose!
See how Chatel & Portes du Soleil compares to the rest of the European ski resorts on the Europe ski resort ratings page.
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