Grand Massif

What is the Grand Massif like?

The Grand Massif is five ski resorts on one lift system in Haute-Savoie, about halfway between Geneva and Chamonix. Four of them grew out of valley villages: Samoëns, Morillon, Les Carroz and Sixt-Fer-à-Cheval. The fifth, Flaine, is a purpose-built resort from the 1960s, set in a high bowl at 1,600 m.

The lift company counts 265 km of pistes and 60 lifts between 700 m and 2,500 m, and calls it one of the largest ski areas in the French Alps. Most of the slopes face north, which the Haut-Giffre tourist office credits for snow that holds through most of the season.

That covers the ski area. The question that shapes your holiday is which village to stay in, because the five share a lift pass and not much else.

Where should you stay?

It comes down to altitude or atmosphere. Samoëns, Morillon and Sixt sit on the floor of the Giffre valley, at 700 to 760 m on the lift company's piste map. From Samoëns and Morillon you ride a gondola up to the snow each morning; from Sixt, a free shuttle takes you to the Grand Massif Express in Samoëns. Les Carroz sits higher, on the other side of the mountain above the Arve valley. Flaine sits on the snow at 1,600 m: you ski from the door, but you are staying in a resort rather than a village.

• Flaine

  On the snow at 1,600 m, with the area's highest skiing and longest season. A car-free 1960s resort rather than a village.

• Samoëns

  An old market town with four ski schools and two gondolas up to Samoëns 1600, one of the largest beginner areas in France.

• Morillon

  Smaller and quieter than Samoëns next door, with a cheaper beginner pass, a children's ski village from 18 months, and the Lac Bleu in summer.

• Les Carroz

  A real village at 1,140 m with a gondola from the centre, several free beginner areas, and a hotel restaurant with two Gault et Millau toques.

• Sixt-Fer-à-Cheval

  A summer village first: the Cirque du Fer-à-Cheval on the doorstep, and the end of the 14 km Cascades run in winter, with a bus back to the lifts.

How the villages link

Tête des Saix, at 2,120 m, is the crossroads. Lifts from Les Carroz, Morillon and Samoëns all meet there, and on a clear day you can see Mont Blanc from the top. The piste map shows the way to Flaine: down through the Vernant area and up the Grands Vans chairlift.

The lift company reckons on about an hour from Flaine back to the villages, and asks you to be on your way by 15:30.

Sixt is the exception. No lift connects it to the rest of the area: you arrive on the Cascades run and leave on a free bus.

Skiing the Grand Massif

The Cascades

The area's signature run starts at the top of the Grandes Platières, above Flaine, and ends 14 km later in Sixt. It drops 1,720 m through a nature reserve. The lift company grades it red and says it suits intermediates who are comfortable on reds, not beginners or young children.

It opens from 10:00 to 14:00 when the snow allows, and only the full Grand Massif pass covers it. At the bottom, a free shuttle runs back to the Grand Massif Express gondola in Samoëns about every 20 minutes, going by last winter's timetable.

Beginners and children

Every resort has its own beginner area with its own cheaper pass. The lift company counts the one at Samoëns 1600 among the largest in France, and Flaine has four free beginner lifts. At the time of writing, children under eight and adults aged 75 and over ski free for the day if you buy at a ticket office with proof of age.

Off-piste

The Haut-Giffre tourist office points experienced skiers to Flaine. The Combe de Gers gives you 800 m of north-facing vertical, marked but never groomed, and the Agate, Combe de Véret and Onyx descents are official freeride zones: secured, marked, left ungroomed. On the piste map, Les Carroz has a freeride zone at Corbalanche, and Samoëns has a DVA park for practising with an avalanche transceiver. Anything beyond those is proper off-piste and needs a guide.

Next to Flaine lies the Désert de Platé, one of the largest limestone pavements in Europe and a protected landscape since 1998.

Lift passes

The lift company sells three main passes:

• Grand Massif covers all five resorts and the Cascades run.
• Villages covers Les Carroz, Morillon, Samoëns and Sixt, but not Flaine or the Cascades.
• Flaine covers Flaine only.

Each resort also has a beginner pass, and walkers can buy gondola returns. If you are staying in one of the villages, count the days you want to spend in Flaine before you pay for the whole area. Prices change every season, so check the lift company's price list before you book.

Getting there

Geneva is the airport. The tourist offices put each village about an hour's drive away, and every route leaves the A40 motorway. For Flaine and Les Carroz you come off at exit 19 and climb from the Arve valley. For Samoëns and the rest of the Giffre valley you take exit 18, Cluses-Scionzier. From 1 November to 31 March, French law requires winter tyres marked 3PMSF, or chains or snow socks in the car, everywhere in Haute-Savoie.

Without a car, take the train to Cluses. Altibus coaches run from the station to Flaine and Les Carroz, and the Y94 bus serves Morillon, Samoëns and Sixt. In winter, Eurobus runs direct from Geneva Airport to Flaine, and a newer line, the 274, links the airport with Morillon and Samoëns. Timetables change each season, so check them before you travel.

When to go

The lift company's dates for 2026/27 run from 5 December 2026 to 18 April 2027, both in Flaine. The villages open later and close earlier: Samoëns and Les Carroz from 12 December to 11 April, Morillon from 19 December to 4 April, and Sixt from 19 December to 7 March. The whole area links up from 19 December.

Late in the season, height counts. Flaine keeps its lifts turning for a week after Samoëns and Les Carroz close. In summer, Samoëns runs the Grand Massif Express gondola and the Chariande Express chairlift for walkers and paragliders.