7 Nights France Ski - 3* Grand Chalet Brides-les-Bains

Brides-les-Bains

France

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• Easier on the wallet than better-known resorts, but with the same great skiing.
• Take the Olympe gondola straight to Méribel to explore the Three Valleys.
• Named for its thermal pools (‘bains’ means ‘baths’) and has one of the biggest spas in France.

This little town is a great-value pick in the world’s biggest lift-linked ski area. To get to the 600km of slopes, it’s a 25-minute gondola ride up to Méribel – well worth it if you want to stay somewhere quieter and cheaper than other resorts in the Three Valleys. There are handy lockers at the bottom of the gondola you can pay to keep your stuff in, and you can ride in a cabin designed to represent the region and scan a QR code to learn the story behind the style. A free bus is on hand to whisk you to the gondola too for an even easier start to your ski day. When you reach Méribel, warm up on the local tree-lined blues before setting off to really cover some ski miles.

Brides-les-Bains first became a ski resort in 1992, when it was used as a base for the Albertville Olympics. It’s pretty and peaceful – the Parc Thermal is a lovely place for a stroll, and Le Grand Spa is one of the biggest thermal spas in France, so après here's all about unwinding. If you do fancy something livelier, you can try your hand at blackjack, poker and roulette at the casino.

As for the accommodation, there’s a handful of hotels and apartments that cost far less than those in other resorts in the ski area, like Courchevel or Val Thorens. There are also a few bars and restaurants where you’ll get more bang for your buck, plus lots going on during the season too, with free events like film nights, live music, well-being classes and ice sculptures most days.