TRAVELLING TO MERIBEL
Meribel is easy to reach by plane, train, coach or car. There are 4 airports within two and half hours’ drive of Meribel; you can train from London or Ashford to Paris and then take a direct train to Moutiers (only a 25 minute taxi ride from Meribel); there’s a coach service from London or Folkestone direct to Meribel, or you could drive, which takes about 9 hours from Calais or Le Havre.
By Plane
There are 4 airports that serve Meribel. Chambery is the closest and smallest, a 1½ hour drive up to the resort. It can be chaotic on a Saturday, but the short transfer time makes it worthwhile.
Next up is Geneva. The motorway means that you can get from Geneva to Meribel in a little over 2 hours, although weekend traffic means you’re more likely looking at 2½ hours. It’s either motorway all the way or the more direct main road alongside beautiful Lake Annecy. Geneva is the airport best-suited to cope with Saturday crowds.
Grenoble, which is another small airport like Chambery is a 2¼ hour drive mostly on motorway. Lyon is about 2½ hours. On peak Saturdays (in December and February), traffic can be very bad from all airports, but particularly Lyon and Grenoble, and journey times can be as long as 4 hours. It is worth avoiding these two airports on peak weeks.
From the Airport to Meribel
There are three ways to get from your airport to Meribel.
1. Private or shared minibus transfer
2. Hire a car
3. A coach
Minibus Transfer
There is a large choice of minibus transfer companies – they offer both a private transfer or a shared transfer (when the minibus departs at a scheduled time, or you wait till all your co-passengers have arrived before setting off.). Shared are cheaper and less convenient. Both should drop you at the door of your chalet. We highly recommend Three Vallee Transfers and also Tarentaise Transfer vans, having worked closely with both companies – and they know where our chalets are!
Minibus transfer times are as follows:
Low-season (January, March and April): Geneva – 2¼ hours. Lyon – 2½ hours. Chambery – 1½ hours. Moutiers – 25 minutes.
High-season (Saturdays after 17th December & first Saturday in January, and Saturdays in February): Geneva – about 3-3½ hours. Lyon – up to 4 hours. Chambery – about 2¼ hours. Moutiers – 40 minutes.
*These times are all approximate and depend entirely on traffic and weather conditions. Reputable transfer companies will allow plenty of time on the return journey to catch your flight (resort departure usually 5 or 6 hours before you take-off time).
Fly & Drive
If you’re flying, car hire is often a more cost-effective way than a private transfer, depending on the size of your group. You’ll need to have snow chains, just in case, although the road up to the resort is usually cleared very quickly.
We can email you directions from the airport to your chalet.
Once in resort, there are various parking options. If you’re staying at Chalet Snowbel or La Petite Silene, you’ll be unlikely to need the car during your stay.
For both chalets, you can park outside the chalet to unload the car. Once unloaded we can direct you to the car park. There’s two underground car parks close by, that cost about 85 euros for the week.
For Les Grands Sorbiers there is limited space on the fore-court of the building, and it can be hard to park at peak times. A car is useful but not essential if staying here.
There are various car rental agencies at all the airports, and pre-booking can often be cheaper.
If you’re flying into Geneva, it’s easier to hire a car from the Swiss side – it may be more expensive, but it comes with the Swiss motorway vignette, and you don’t have the fiddle of finding your way out of the French side of the airport.
By Coach from the Airport or train station
There is a coach service from all the main airports, and from Moutiers train station up to Meribel. They are frequent from Geneva, less so from the other airports, they take longer than taxis or cars, and you normally have to change coaches in Moutiers.
If there’s more than 4 of you, it’s often cheaper to get a private minibus. For coaches from Chambery, Geneva and Lyon airports and Moutiers train station, click on www.altibus.com. A cheaper alternative is Ben’s Bus from Geneva or Grenoble.
By Coach from the UK
You can travel in comfort to Moutiers (25 minutes down the valley from Meribel) by coach direct from London and Folkestone, overnight on Friday night, and returning the following Saturday night.
This is a comfortable, hassle-free way to get to Meribel, and it allows you 8 days’ skiing. This service is run by Snow Express. For full details click here.
By Train from the UK
You can get a Eurostar from the UK to Paris, cross Paris by metro, taxi, or spend some time there, before getting a train from Paris Gare de Lyon to Moutiers - Salins – Brides-les-Bains. From Moutiers it’s a 25-minute taxi ride or 40-minute coach ride. Full details here
Self Drive
The drive from Calais or Le Havre to Meribel is a straightforward one. It’s motorway all the way to Moutiers, and then a 25-minute climb up the hill to Meribel. Total driving time is usually about 9 hours, plus stops. Tolls cost about 75 euros and petrol about 100 euros.
When driving in France, it is a legal requirement to carry in the car a safety triangle, and a high-visibility vest for each occupant. You’ll also need to make sure you put on GB sticker and headlight converters.
Many of our guests break the journey along the route, and some drive right through to Moutiers in order to spend a night there before heading up the hill and getting a full day’s skiing on the first day. You’ll need to have snow chains, just in case the last section of the drive is snowy, although the road up to resort is usually cleared very quickly.
Car Ferries: There are various car ferry crossings you can take from England to France: PO Ferries, AFerry.co.uk and DFDS Seaways all go from Dover to Calais, and Brittany Ferries run sailings from Portsmouth to Le Havre or Caen. Then there’s the Eurotunnel from near Folkestone to Calais. Journey time from all these French ports is similar – about 9 hours.