Skiing in Flaine

Flaine: Mont Blanc views from the Grandes Platières, the Cascades to Sixt and the key to the Grand Massif

Flaine ski guide: 60 runs by official sector, the 14 km Cascades to Sixt, Flaine vs Grand Massif 2026–27 passes, Geneva and Cluses buses, best snow months.

Slopes in the Flaine ski area (operator count)

64

Runs in the whole Grand Massif

139

Grand Massif pistes (km)

265

Top of the Grandes Platières cable car (m)

2500

Cascades run, Flaine to Sixt (km)

14

Grand Massif adult (15–74) 1-day pass 2026–27 (EUR)

63.00

Flaine-only adult (15–74) 1-day pass 2026–27 (EUR)

60.70

Skiing & terrain in Flaine

Flaine's own ski area only, as listed in its official live bulletin (Lumiplan, the list embedded on flaine.com): the 60 graded alpine runs in the five sectors that list assigns (Aup de Véran, Grandes Platières, Combe de Vernant, Grands Vans, Combe de Gers), the four ski links to the other Grand Massif resorts, five fun zones and the slalom stadium, and seven uphill ski-touring tracks — 76 rows. Les Carroz, Morillon, Samoëns and Sixt runs are not listed; only the Cascades run, which starts in Flaine and ends in Sixt, is.

Slopes in Flaine (Grand Massif and tourist-office count)

64

Lifts in Flaine's live list

23

Graded alpine runs in this table (live list)

60

Rows in this table

76

Rows with an official length

1

Runs in the whole Grand Massif

139

• Green runs in this table: 8
• Blue runs in this table: 25
• Red runs in this table: 22
• Black runs in this table: 5

Checked 18 October 2026. The live list is empty out of season, so the run names, grades and sectors come from the Internet Archive copy of the same official bulletin on 10 February 2026 (cross-checked against 23 January 2026 and 5 December 2025; only fun-zone names changed). Area labels are the bulletin's own sector names; the links sit under its 'LIAISONS' heading. The table's 60 graded runs (8 green, 25 blue, 22 red, 5 black, French grades) differ from the operator's headline 64 slopes, which probably counts some fun or special runs, and from the 58 runs (7 green, 22 blue, 24 red, 5 black) on the tourist office's family page — the official sources do not agree, so the table follows the live list. The live list and the Grand Massif openings page show 23 lifts; other official pages say 24. Lengths: the operator does not publish per-run lengths for Flaine; only the Cascades carries one (14 km, Grand Massif and tourist office). No lift length is used as a run length. Cross-country, sledging, snowshoe and walking routes are left out. Opening status changes daily — check the live bulletin.

Flaine pistes: Grandes Platières, Combe de Gers and the 14 km Cascades run

The Grand Massif operator and the tourist office count 64 slopes in Flaine, which runs from about 1,600 m to 2,500 m. The resort's official live list groups 60 graded alpine runs into five sectors — Aup de Véran, Grandes Platières, Combe de Vernant, Grands Vans and Combe de Gers — with 8 green, 25 blue, 22 red and 5 black, plus fun zones and a slalom stadium; it shows 23 lifts. The table below follows that list and its sector names.

The Grandes Platières cable car climbs to 2,500 m for a 360° view of Mont Blanc, and long blues such as Serpentine and Cristal come back down. For steeper skiing, the Combe de Gers is a marked but ungroomed bowl of about 700 m vertical with a single drag lift and the Onyx and Jais blacks; Agate, Diamant Noir and Combe de Véret are also left ungroomed. The ski patrol runs avalanche control there, and the tourist office posts planned closures on its social media.

The signature run is the Cascades: created in 1994, it is the longest in the Grand Massif at 14 km, dropping about 1,700 m from the Grandes Platières side to Sixt-Fer-à-Cheval. The operator and the tourist office grade it red; it is open 10:00–14:00 and has no lifts on the way, so allow about three hours for the round trip, using the ski buses from Sixt. Across the whole Grand Massif there are 139 runs and 265 km of pistes.

Flaine for beginners: free lifts, the Flaine Beginner pass and the first greens

Flaine sells a Flaine Beginner pass for 2026–27: €30.50 for a day for an adult (15–74) and €24.40 for ages 8–14, or €27.50 and €22 for four hours. It covers the beginner lifts — the Télébenne, the Ballacha and Forêt drag lifts, the Gérats chairlift and the Pré, Michalet and Bissac moving carpets. The tourist office also says the beginner zones have four free lifts, and children under 8 ski free.

The green runs in the official list are Erable and Pin (Aup de Véran), Epicea and Meleze (Grandes Platières), Arolle (Combe de Vernant), and Bissac, Malachite and Opale (Grands Vans). Once those feel easy, the tourist office points families to the long blues Serpentine and Cristal.

The whole Grand Massif can be toured on blue runs, so a confident beginner can reach the villages later in the week. The Cascades is a different matter: it is graded red, and the tourist office does not recommend it for beginners or young children because of its length.

Getting to Flaine: Geneva airport, Cluses station and the bus up the mountain

There is no airport in Flaine. The gateway is Geneva Airport, about 70 km away; the tourist office estimates 1 hour 15 minutes by car from Geneva, and the Grand Massif says its villages are about an hour from the airport. In winter, a coach booked through Altibus (run by Eurobus) leaves Geneva Airport on Saturdays and Sundays — meeting point opposite the Montreux Jazz Café — and stops at Les Carroz (tourist office) and Flaine Forum (medical-centre car park).

By train, the nearest station is Cluses, about 30 km from Flaine; from Geneva Airport, take a train to Geneva Cornavin and then on to Cluses. From Cluses station, the Les Carroz Flaine Express bus (Arv'i Mobilité network) runs in winter and summer, also bookable through Altibus. Altibus advises leaving 1.5 hours between a train and the bus, and 3 hours after a flight.

By car, leave the A40 at exit 19 (Cluses Centre) and follow the D106 — the last 30–40 minutes up to the resort. From 1 November to 31 March, winter tyres (3PMSF) or chains/socks in the car are compulsory. Flaine's centre is car-free: you get 1.5 hours free to unload, then park at P1 (Front de Neige), P2 (Forum) or P3 (Forêt) — €5 for 30 minutes to 12 hours, €10 up to 24 hours — or free at the Col de Pierre Carrée with a free shuttle.

Flaine with kids: Piou-Piou club, ESF and ESI lessons, childcare and a car-free centre

ESF Flaine's Club Piou-Piou takes children from 3 outside French school holidays and from 4 during them, at three club sites (the snow front, Flaine Forêt and the P&V Hélios/Eos and Belambra residences); for 2026–27 (13 December–16 April) a six-morning course is listed at €240, with the school's office in the Aldébaran building at Flaine Forum. ESF group lessons for ages 5–12 start at €235 for six lessons.

The tourist office lists four schools: ESF Flaine Forum, ESF Flaine Forêt, ESF Flaine Les Gérats and ESI Grand Massif (Flaine Forêt). Ask each school which languages its instructors teach in when you book. For younger children, the tourist office lists Les P'tits Loups and Les Choucas nurseries in Flaine Forum and kids' clubs at MMV Le Flaine and Belambra Panorama.

Children under 8 and adults 75 and over get a free day pass at the ticket office with proof of age; a €29 top-up pass saves daily trips for 2–7 days. For a non-skiing parent, the car-free centre hosts free activities, and a pedestrian return trip on the Grandes Platières cable car costs €23.

Where to stay in Flaine: Forum, Forêt, Front de Neige or Les Gérats — or Les Carroz and Samoëns

Flaine is built on four levels: Front de Neige (1,500 m), Forum (1,600 m) and Forêt (1,700 m) form the original centre, with Les Gérats (1,800 m) above. Front de Neige is right on the snow and next to the P1 car park; Forum has the ESF office, the nurseries and the stop for the Geneva coach; Forêt has ESF and ESI and is linked to Forum by two free inclined lifts that run around the clock; Les Gérats is the highest base, with its own ESF and the Gérats chairlift used by beginners. The Hameau de Flaine chalets are reached by the free resort shuttle.

Some listings advertise accommodation at 'Flaine Montsoleil'; it is not one of the four levels on the tourist office's resort map, so check the walking distance or the nearest free-shuttle stop before booking. Les Carroz (village at 1,140 m) is a real village with a sunny plateau, the Kédeuze gondola and the Aquacîme spa, and it is on both the Cluses bus and the Geneva weekend coach — but the village is much lower, and you need a Grand Massif pass to ski Flaine. Samoëns, in the Giffre valley, reaches the slopes by the Grand Massif Express and Vercland gondolas and is where the Cascades shuttle can bring you back.

For the best snow and the longest season (to 18 April 2027), stay in Flaine itself; Les Carroz and Samoëns open from 12 December 2026 to 11 April 2027. Wherever you stay, check the walk in ski boots to the nearest lift, ski storage and parking.

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Flaine pass vs Grand Massif pass: 2026–27 prices

There are three ski passes: Flaine (Flaine only), Grand Massif (all five resorts) and Villages (Les Carroz, Morillon, Samoëns and Sixt, without Flaine). In the 2026–27 prices checked on 18 October 2026, an adult (15–74) pays €60.70 a day for Flaine, €63.00 for the Grand Massif and €58.50 for the Villages; ages 8–14 pay €48.60, €50.40 and €46.80. Four-hour passes cost €54.60, €56.70 and €52.60 for adults, and 2–7-day passes are charged at the same daily rate.

Children under 8 and people 75 and over ski free with a day pass from a sales outlet and proof of age. Every booking adds a €2 rechargeable, non-refundable card. A Grand Massif winter season pass costs €732 for ages 26–74 and €488 for ages 8–25 at the promo rate until 15 November 2026 (€1,316 and €878 at the full rate).

Choose the Grand Massif pass if you want the Cascades or a day in the villages — the run needs it — and the Flaine pass if you plan to stay on Flaine's own slopes. Beginners can start on the Flaine Beginner pass.

Best time to ski in Flaine: snow history, 2026–27 season dates and forecasts

Historically, February and March are Flaine's best snow window. At Météo-France's Flaine station (1,620 m, close to Flaine Forum), average snow depth over 1991–2020 is about 98 cm in February and 89 cm in March, against 71 cm in January; January has the most new snow (about 146 cm a month on average), with February close behind (137 cm). April averages about 46 cm and is the late shoulder month; December is the early one, but the station has too few complete December records to quote a figure. These are long-term averages — a SkiPair calculation from Météo-France daily station data — not a guarantee for any season. Lower down, Les Carroz village (1,151 m) averages only about 47 cm in February.

The 2026–27 season in Flaine runs from 5 December 2026 to 18 April 2027 (the first two weeks depend on snow). Samoëns and Les Carroz open from 12 December 2026 to 11 April 2027, Morillon from 19 December to 4 April and Sixt from 19 December to 7 March — so Flaine is the place for late-season skiing, and the Cascades, which finishes in Sixt, is a run to plan before March.

For the day itself, the official live bulletin shows each sector's lifts and runs and the snow depth at both Forum (1,600 m) and the Grandes Platières (2,500 m). Before heading for the Combe de Gers, check the tourist office's social media for planned avalanche control.

Find ski partners in Flaine and across the Grand Massif

Flaine works well for a solo trip: it is compact and car-free, and the Grand Massif links give a natural shared plan — a morning in the Combe de Gers, or the Cascades to Sixt, which is better done with someone than alone. On SkiPair, add your dates, base (Flaine, Les Carroz or Samoëns) and level to match with skiers there on the same days.

Agree in advance who has the Grand Massif pass and who only has the Flaine pass, where to meet (the Grandes Platières cable car or the Flaine Forum snow front are obvious spots), and the return plan from Sixt: the Cascades has no lifts, and the last link lifts home close earlier than you might think.

Ski pass prices for Flaine

Check the operator’s current prices for your ski dates, ticket duration, age group and the area covered by the pass.

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Weather and snow

A clearer view of the snow in Flaine: recent snowfall, what is forecast next, and an outlook for your dates.

Snow and temperature are model estimates. They do not confirm that lifts or pistes are open. Further-ahead dates show seasonal patterns rather than a weather forecast.

Flights & getting to Flaine

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Recommended airport for the French Alps: Geneva (GVA).

Flaine is better with your kind of people

A destination in common is a good start. Find skiers and snowboarders whose dates, ability and idea of a great day match yours.

A glimpse of Flaine

Archive photos · cropped for display

Questions about this resort