THE ALPS, WITH A PLAN.
Choose a resort.
Know your ski area.
Plan a better trip.
Resort overviews, lift passes, piste maps, lessons, ski hire and season dates across the Alps.
Explore ski guides
PLAN YOUR DAYS ON SNOW65 destinations4 countries
65 destination overviewsCompare before you book
A trip that fitsPasses, lessons, rentals
500 free articles65 destination overviews
START EXPLORING
Find your destination guide
Start with a destination overview. The trip finder offers monthly guides where they are available.

France · Val Thorens
Val Thorens Skiing Guide: Ski Area, Passes, Lessons & Season
Val Thorens packs a 150 km local ski area, a 600 km link into Les 3 Vallées and a village built at around 2,300 m where most accommodation sits on the slopes. This guide sets out the season dates for 2026/27, the sectors worth planning around, pass choices, beginner meeting points, lesson formats and hire, so you can book the right trip rather than the biggest one.
Explore the guide
France · Tignes
Tignes Skiing Guide: Ski Area, Villages, Passes & Lessons
Tignes is a snow-sure, high-altitude pick with five villages spread between 1550m and 2150m and a shared ski area with Val d'Isère. This guide covers the sectors, season dates from 21 November, lift-pass products and prices, beginner zones, ski schools, hire and how to choose your village.
Explore the guide
France · Val d'Isère
Val d'Isère Skiing Guide: Sectors, Passes and Terrain
Val d'Isère skiing splits into three sectors you can plan around, plus two secondary access points that change how your day runs. This guide covers sector choices, the Tignes-Val d'Isère pass boundary, beginner provision, altitude context and a booking sequence so you can pick a base and a pass with fewer surprises.
Explore the guide
France · Courchevel
Courchevel Skiing: Villages, Passes and Ski Area Guide
Courchevel skiing spans five villages, a local 150 km area and the wider 3 Vallées network. This guide explains the pass boundary, base-choice trade-offs, beginner zones and purchase channels so you can match village, pass and dates before booking.
Explore the guide
Switzerland · Zermatt
Zermatt Skiing: Resort Guide to Sectors, Passes and Lessons
Zermatt skiing works best when you plan around sectors rather than reputation. This guide covers the Swiss areas of Matterhorn Ski Paradise, the Cervinia link, beginner provision, lessons, hire and the booking order that keeps a week coherent.
Explore the guide
Austria · St Anton
St Anton Skiing Guide: Arlberg Pistes, Passes and Sectors
St Anton rewards skiers who plan by sector rather than by reputation. Here is how the Arlberg layout works, which base to start from, how the pass products compare and where beginners genuinely fit in.
Explore the guideDestination overviews
Choose a destination to find a starting point for your trip.
Austria13 guides
- Alpbach Skiing Guide: Ski Juwel Resort, Sectors and Passes
- Ischgl Skiing Guide: Which Sectors and Passes Fit You
- Kaprun Skiing Guide: Kitzsteinhorn, Maiskogel & Lift Passes
- Kitzbühel Skiing Guide: Ski Areas, Passes & Where to Base
- Lech Skiing Guide: Arlberg Sectors, Passes and Planning
- Mayrhofen Skiing: Ahorn, Penken and Zillertal Passes
- Obergurgl Skiing Guide: Pistes, Lifts and When to Go
- Obertauern Skiing Guide: Terrain, Lifts and Season
- Saalbach Skiing Guide: Skicircus Sectors, Passes & Planning
- Schladming Skiing: 4-Mountain Area, Passes and Terrain Guide
- Sölden Skiing Guide: Three Sectors, Big 3 Peaks and Pass Choices
- St Anton Skiing Guide: Arlberg Pistes, Passes and Sectors
- Zell am See Skiing Guide: Pistes, Passes and Sectors
France27 guides
- Alpe d'Huez Skiing Guide: Pistes, Sectors, Passes and Bases
- Avoriaz Skiing Guide: Choose Passes, Sectors & Terrain
- Chamrousse Skiing Guide: Choose Sectors, Passes & Terrain
- Courchevel Skiing: Villages, Passes and Ski Area Guide
- Flaine Skiing Guide: Grand Massif Pistes and Passes
- La Clusaz Skiing: A Complete Guide to the Ski Area
- La Plagne Skiing: Paradiski Pistes, Sectors and Passes
- La Rosière Skiing: Espace San Bernardo Guide
- Le Grand Bornand Skiing: Resort Guide for Trip Planning
- Les Arcs Skiing Guide: Paradiski Sectors and Passes
- Les Deux Alpes Skiing: Which Area and Pass to Choose
- Les Gets Skiing Guide: Ski Area, Passes and Trip Planning
- Les Houches Skiing Guide: Sectors, Passes and Planning
- Les Menuires Skiing Guide: Base, Sectors and Passes
- Megève Skiing Guide: Ski Areas, Passes & Terrain
- Méribel Skiing Guide: Terrain, Passes and Where to Base
- Montgenèvre Skiing Guide: Pistes, Ski Passes and Italy Link
- Morzine Skiing: Ski Area, Passes and Where to Stay
- Samoëns Skiing: Grand Massif Terrain, Passes and Access
- Serre Chevalier Skiing Guide: Sectors, Passes and Terrain
- Tignes Skiing Guide: Ski Area, Villages, Passes & Lessons
- Val Cenis Skiing: Terrain, Sectors and Passes Explained
- Val d'Isère Skiing Guide: Sectors, Passes and Terrain
- Val Thorens Skiing Guide: Ski Area, Passes, Lessons & Season
- Valloire Skiing Guide: Pistes, Passes & Lessons
- Valmeinier Skiing Guide: Pistes, Passes & Ski Schools
- Valmorel Skiing: Le Grand Domaine Resort and Ski Area Guide
Italy12 guides
- Alta Badia Skiing Guide: Sectors, Passes and Terrain
- Bormio Skiing Guide: Terrain, Sectors and Pass Buying
- Canazei Skiing Guide: Where to Ski in the Dolomites
- Cervinia Skiing: Choosing Ski Area and Pass Options
- Cortina Skiing Guide: Sectors, Passes and Trip Planning
- Corvara Skiing Guide: Choose Slopes, Passes & Trip Plans
- Courmayeur Skiing Guide: Ski Area, Sectors and Passes
- La Thuile Skiing Guide: Pistes, Passes and Lessons
- Livigno Skiing Guide: Two Sides, Lifts and Pass Choices
- Madonna di Campiglio Skiing: Dolomites Ski Area Guide
- Sestriere Skiing Guide: Which Slopes & Pass Suit You
- Val di Fassa Skiing: Village Bases, Sectors and Lift Passes
Switzerland13 guides
- Andermatt Skiing Guide: Pistes, Sectors & Lift Passes
- Arosa Skiing Guide: Ski Area, Passes, Beginners & Season
- Crans-Montana Skiing: A Practical Resort and Terrain Guide
- Davos Skiing Guide: Which Ski Area and Where to Base
- Engelberg Skiing Guide: Which Pistes and Passes to Choose
- Skiing in Grindelwald: A Complete Guide to the Ski Area
- Laax Skiing: Flims Laax Falera Trip-Planning Guide
- Saas-Fee Skiing: Glacier Slopes, Sectors and Passes
- St Moritz Skiing: Guide to the Engadin Ski Areas and Passes
- Verbier Skiing: A Complete Guide to the 4 Vallées
- Villars Skiing Guide: Resort Tips & Decision Help
- Wengen Skiing: Jungfrau Region Guide to Sectors and Passes
- Zermatt Skiing: Resort Guide to Sectors, Passes and Lessons
NOTES FOR YOUR NEXT ADVENTURE
Fresh from the journal.
A little inspiration. Plenty of practical advice.

GUIDE / Oct 17, 2026
Le Grand Bornand Ski Map: Pistes, Sectors and Lifts
The Le Grand Bornand piste map is easier to use once you know how the village and Chinaillon bases divide the 90 km of slopes. Here is how to read the sectors, match them to your ability, find the beginner zones and check live lift status before you set out.
Read the guide
GUIDE / Oct 17, 2026
Valloire Piste Map: How to Read the Galibier-Thabor Ski Area
The Valloire piste map covers one half of the linked Galibier-Thabor area shared with Valmeinier, and reading it well is mostly about sectors and return legs. This guide explains the scale of the terrain, the four village lift bases, the beginner zones, the long Selles blue and how to check live openings before you commit.
Read the guide
GUIDE / Oct 17, 2026
Valmeinier Piste Map: Galibier-Thabor Sectors and Lifts
The Valmeinier piste map covers one half of the 160 km Galibier-Thabor domain. Here is how the four labelled zones fit together, which lifts and named runs to look for first, and how to check live openings before you ride.
Read the guideSourced guides
Factual claims carry a link to the source beside them. Piste Desk Editorial is a publication byline.
Dated and updated
Each guide shows when it was published and last updated, with the 2026/27 season figures it relies on.
The season matters
Check current operator dates, pass coverage and booking terms.
Check the sources
Look for article-level citations beside destination descriptions and transport facts.
Planning FAQ
A few things you might be wondering.
How to use our ski guides, check sources and make booking decisions.