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Flaine

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Flaine

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Flaine Resort Reviews

Resorts > France (187) > Flaine

Visitor reviews for Flaine Ski Resort

  • February 26, 2013
    Tom B-C from United Kingdom

    Went to Flaine in February half-term 2013.

    Drove down from the Eurotunnel on the Friday, with absolutely no problems (however, I did hear the Saturday was a disaster). Accessability, for me anyway, is good. Snow chains were required for the last 2km - although the locals drive very quickly and don't seem to need them!.

    The snow was absolutely epic: 4 metres at the top and 2.5 meters at the bottom.

    Yes, Flaine is ugly and now looking tired, however, who looks at the buildings when you are coming down the pistes?

    The only gripe I have is that the food and drink prices are horrendous, 8 euro a pint, a portion of chips and a can of coke 10 Euros. Main meals start at 10 Euros. Follow the example set on other reviews; buy food and drink at the bottom of the mountain and stay in your appartment for meals.

    However, the skiing was the best I have ever had which made up for the expensive prices.

  • Flaine Ratings

    Based on 37 votes. Vote

    Access: 4.7

    (1) At least one overnight stop, (2) requires a whole day, (3) requires more than half a day – you may have time for a few turns (4) arrive by lunchtime and ski all afternoon, (5) there is a main airport within an hour of Flaine.

    		 Public Transport: 3.9

    (1) There are no buses or taxis to Flaine, (3) there are slow or infrequent buses / trains available, (5) getting to the resort is easy with frequent bus / train connections.
    Scenery: 3.8

    (1) An ugly resort in a bland setting, (3) average mountain views and resort, (5) a spectacular setting and a beautiful / historic resort town.

    		 Accommodation: 4.2

    (1) No places to stay in/near Flaine, (3) a few places to stay in the resort, (5) a wide variety of accommodation suitable to suit all budgets.
    Cheap Rooms: 3.7

    (1) No budget accommodation available, (3) just one or two hostels so book ahead, (5) several cheap hostels and pensions available.

    		 Luxury Hotels: 3.6

    (1) No luxury accommodation available, (3) just one or two luxury hotels so book ahead, (5) several up-market hotels in Flaine.
    Ski in/Ski out: 4.5

    (1) The ski area is located far from any accommodation, (3) a free ski bus takes you to the ski area in a short trip, (5) Ski-in ski-out accommodation is available.

    		 Childcare: 4.0

    (1) There are no child care facilities at Flaine, (5) the resort has excellent child-care facilities including at least one reasonably priced creche.
    Snowsure: 4.5

    (1) Occasionally gets enough snow for skiing, (2) is often closed due to a lack of snow, (3) occasionally suffers from a lack of snow, (4) rarely suffers from a lack of snow, (5) Flaine is snowsure even in the poorest seasons.

    		 Snowmaking: 4.1

    (1) Flaine relies entirely on natural snow, (3) there are just a few snow cannons, (5) there are snowmaking facilities on all pistes.
    Snow Grooming: 4.5

    (1) There are no snow groomers at Flaine, (3) occasionally some pistes are left ungroomed and in a poor state, (5) all the runs at Flaine are groomed daily.

    		 Shelter: 3.7

    (1) there is nowhere to ski when it is windy or visibility is bad and lifts often shut, (3) there are some trees for poor visibility but main lifts sometimes close, (5) Flaine is mostly in forest where you can ski in flat-light and windy days, lifts rarely close.
    Nearby options: 3.2

    (1) If snow conditions are poor at Flaine, it will be poor everywhere nearby, (3) there are good alternatives within an hours drive, (5) other locations on the same lift pass provide a rich variety of snowsure ski conditions.

    		 Regional rating: 4.6

    (1) Flaine usually has poor snow conditions compared to other resorts in region, (3) has average conditions for the region, (5) usually has the best snow conditions in the region.
    Lift Staff: 4.2

    (1) The staff at Flaine are rude or unhelpful, (5) lift staff at Flaine are pleasant, cheerful and eager to help.

    		 Crowds/Queues: 3.8

    (1) the resort is always busy and there are usually long lift queues, (3) it is quiet apart from occasional weekends and school holidays, (5) it is uncrowded and lift queues are very rare.
    Ski Schools: 4.6

    (1) No ski schools available, (2) one or two ski schools but local language only, (3) a few ski schools but book early for multi-lingual instructors, (4) plenty of ski schools and multi-lingual instructors available, (5) excellent ski schools with friendly multi-lingual ski instructors.

    		 Hire and Repairs: 4.5

    (1) Nothing can be sourced, not even ski-wax or ptex. (3) there are some ski shops but rentals need to be booked in advance, (5) good quality ski equipment can be purchased or hired and overnight repairs are possible.
    Variety of pistes: 4.6

    (1) The ski runs are featureless and unvaried, (3) the ski runs are varied but not extensive enough for a week, (5) Flaine has diverse and interesting pistes including forests and high alpine terrain.

    		 Beginners: 4.0

    (1) Beginners can only watch others ski and snowboard, (3) a few gentle slopes but beginners will get bored in less than a week, (3) Vast areas of gentle terrain.
    Intermediates: 4.6

    (1) No intermediate terrain at Flaine, (3) intermediate skiers will get bored after a few days, (5) vast areas of cruising runs.

    		 Advanced: 4.1

    (1) Nothing for advanced skiers and snowboarders, (3) enough steep terrain for a few days with some good offpiste, (5) Enough steep terrain and offpiste areas to entertain advanced skiers for at least a week.
    Snow Park: 3.8

    (1) Not even a kicker at Flaine, (3) average sized park quite well looked after, (5) huge park area and expertly crafted pipes, jumps and boardercross trails.

    		 Off-piste: 4.3

    (1) No off-piste worth mentioning, (2) off piste is out-of-bounds, (3) some varied offpiste that stays fresh for one or two days, (5) a vast array of off-piste routes that can stay untracked for several days.
    Cross-country: 3.3

    (1) There is nowhere to go for cross-country skiing around Flaine, (3) there are some cross country trails available, (5) the area features many spectacular and well maintained cross-country trails.

    		 Luge/Toboggan: 2.3

    (1) No designated luge or toboggan runs, (3) there are toboggan runs that open quite often, (5) Flaine has long and well maintained luge / toboggan facilities suitable for all ages.
    Mountain Dining: 3.6

    (1) Nowhere to buy food by the pistes, (3) some places to eat up on the mountain but they are often busy and expensive, (5) there is a variety of excellent mountain eateries right next to the slopes to suit all budgets.

    		 Eating: 3.6

    (1) Bring your own food, there isn't even a shop. (5) A wide variety of places to eat and drink in the resort, from fast food to fancy restaurants.
    Apres-Ski: 3.4

    (1) Nothing to do, not even a bar, (3) there are a few bars in the resort but nothing special, (5) clubs and bars stay open until very late and have a friendly atmosphere.

    		 Other Sports: 2.9

    (1) No sports facilities at all apart from ski lifts, (3) resort has just a small public swimming pool, (5) resort has all kinds of sports facilities, including a full-size swimming pool.
    Entertainment: 2.9

    (1) Besides the snow and walking there is nothing to do here, (3) the non-skier will find things to do for few days but may become bored after a week, (5) the resort area is a fascinating place to visit, regardless of winter sports.

    		 Winter Walks: 3.3

    (1) Very limited walking and no snowshoe trails, (3) a couple of designated scenic walking/snowshoe trails, (5) extensive and diverse winter walking trails for all abilities.
    Ski Pass Value: 4.0

    (1) A 1 week ski pass is overpriced compared to the number of lifts available, (3) the ski pass is averagely priced and covers a reasonable number of lifts, (5) ski passes are excellent value for money and cover a lot of lifts spanning a big area.

    		 Value (National): 3.9

    (1) Overall, Flaine is one of the most expensive ski resorts in the country and not worth the money, (3) overall represents average value for money, (5) overall offers the best value resort in the country.
    Value (Global): 4.0

    (1) Overall, Flaine is one of the most expensive ski resorts in the world, (3) overall it offers pretty average value for money compared to resorts from other countries, (5) internationally the resort offers excellent value for money.

    Based on 37 votes. Vote

  • March 28, 2012
    Will Smith from United Kingdom

    Stayed at Montsoleil apartments 17th-24th of March 2012. Overall, the best week's skiing I've ever had! We were extremely lucky with the weather. We had a day and a half of continuous snow at the beginning of the week followed by 4 bluebird days of scorching sun. We explored most of the pisted areas but only scratched the surface of the off-piste. With such a good base, I believe most of the dangerous terrain features were covered. There are a wide range of off-piste possibilities to suit a range of abilities and much of it is very easily accessed from the pistes. The resort was pretty empty at this stage of the season and we often found ourselves the only skiers on a piste. We did the run down to Sixt on the first day after the fresh snow and it was in good condition until the final few hundred metres which were icy. I would say it's only worth doing for the scenery though, the skiing is good in places but lots of pushing is required! Having not heard of Flaine before our visit I would now recommend it as one of the best places we've been and would certainly consider going back. The Montsoleil apartments looked to me to be the best accommodation available and we ended every day with a steam room, sauna and swim in the outdoor pool. The ski in-ski out was excellent and the lift to get back to the apartment stayed open until 5 which meant you could make use of the main lifts right until closing (4.45) so long as you burned it down the Tourmaline!

  • March 20, 2012
    David Clark from United Kingdom

    I stayed at Flaine Floret 10-17th March 2012, driving from the UK. Flaine is set over several levels so either wait for a bus or find the funicular cars down to the slopes then walk or walk to the end of the road and pick up the Grand Vans lift.
    We stayed in a private apartment which required TLC but was warm and comfortable enough.

    Flaine is purpose built - byword for ugly concrete buildings. There are some attractive chalets on the way into town though. Chocolate box picture it ain't.
    The prices are very expensive in resort compared to the UK. From 5.5 to 6.5 Euros/ pint. The supermarket (Spar) by comparison seems disproportionately expensive for everything. Flutes at the adjacent bakery are 1 Euro and pain 1.30 Euro. My advice if going on a budget is to go to Lidl in Cluses, one of the Carrefours nearby either on the way to resort or take your food with you if driving.
    Expect to pay 9.5 Euros for a takeaway marguerita pizza and between 3.5 and 5.5 Euros for a portion of chips.
    The town was quiet during the evening, partially because it isn't the French, Dutch or English half-term, partially because no-one likes to pay too much for drinks and having a good time.

    Skiing is superb on the week we went, but deteriorated due to warm conditions - 19 deg in resort during the week. This made some of the runs very slushy and bumpy late afternoon.
    The run to Sixt will probably be closed soon unless some fresh snow occurs. If you manage to get to Sixt there is no skiable route back so use the free bus service. Check the timetable as they only run when the run from Flaine is open.
    A Flaine or Grand Massif pass is available, we chose a couple of days for Flaine, and the rest for Grand Massif (265 Kms) .

    Would I go again? Yes, for the skiing - no, because I found eating and drinking out too expensive.

  • February 23, 2012
    Craig from Italy

    11 February 2012.
    Our first time to Flaine, with two families of 4 (4 adults, 4 children) - different abilities from beginner to expert. We had a fabulous week skiing, with great conditions (certainly cold - wrap up well) and were taken aback by the beauty of the skiing bowl and the views of Mont Blanc from the top. The large amount of long wide blues and easy/not so easy reds, providing excellent skiing for all levels of ability. For experts, limited unless you like off piste/moguls. We stayed at Le Refuge du Golf, just above the village of Flaine, which was pretty good (ski out, shuttle back). We liked the rather retro look of Flaine which despite its large buildings, had a great feel and is not the ugly place described (well, at least not when snow covered). The 6/8 man chairs carry large amounts of skiers quickly, so queues were very acceptable, even for the main poma.
    Two days of snow meant that we did not get over to Les Carroz/Morillon etc much, but what we skied suggested that there is great skiing that way too and very accessible from Flaine. The only real negative were the prices of the bars and restaurants in the ski area - 30 euros for a round of coffee and coke for 5/6 - and bad coffee at that! We self catered, and were glad of it as eating out for lunch/dinner would have been hugely expensive for 8. We took most of our food with us for self catering, but there are good supermarkets in Flaine, and pretty good prices, so you could buy there also. All in all, we will certainly be back to Flaine, probably avoiding busy times.

  • February 18, 2012
    Margot Bint from United Kingdom

    Spent half term in Flaine and have to say the skiing was very good. It was very cold (-25 ) at the beginning of the so we all had to wrap up. We were staying at the Terasse d'eos which was very pleasant and had plenty of room in our 2 bedroom apartment. The only negative was the quality of the restaraunts. They seemed very pricey for what you get. Having skied in many other resorts in France I would say the standard was much higher elsewhere. None the less it was a great holiday just next time we will be far more wary.

  • February 18, 2012
    Janey from France

    Just back from what was generally a perfect week in Flaine. Excellent snow, lifts opened pretty much on time - the skiing is fantastic. The village architecture is not pretty but the natural scenery is amazing and breathtaking.
    The service, however, in the mountain restaurants in Flaine is generally appalling and for the prices places charge it's irritating at best and infuriating at worst.
    We had an ok "cheap" meal in the restaurant Le Pre at the bottom of the main cable car station - 5.40€ for a coca cola - which was out of a tap. The service was awful and the staff extremely rude. Avoid this place at all costs and head up to the Bissac - still a bit overpriced but at least they're pleasant when they're ripping you off.
    For the best mountain restaurants head towards Morillon - Le Beu is a very traditional style place, with realistic prices. Or the Igloo - great on a sunny day.
    All in all, the skiing in Flaine is great, the service is the opposite. The prices would not be out of place in Kensington!

  • February 14, 2012
    Patsey from United Kingdom

    Great time 14th to 21st Jan 2012 5 great days sunny last day snow but we still skied all day. Snow was brill. All lifts were on, good access to Les Carroz etc. Hardly any queues, only a wait of about 5/6 mins on main cable car. Stayed at le totem as we got a late deal. Second visit, was clean, food was good, self service at lunch with choice of main course and various salads, also free wine and fruit juice. Dinner seemed bit disorganised re. queues, service slow, but food good and all staff very helpful and friendly. We usually go to Val Thorens, Val d'isere so we really enjoyed the lack of big queues and the short transfer from the airport.

  • February 07, 2012
    Maxine Stuttard from Spain

    Went to Flaine 21st Jan 2012 and had a brilliant time. Not the prettiest village in the Alps with its concrete 'designer' buildings but you´re there for the skiing. Shame that at least half the time the visibility was hindered by fog but sometimes we had the slopes to ourselves which was excellent. Beware of the Cascade Run down to Sixt - it shouldn't be classed as a blue as it turned into an exhausting nightmare for all but the most confident skiers in our group. Sixt fer Cheval is well worth a visit though - ski down to Samoens and then take the free bus if you don't want to risk the Cascade (which was actually closed most of the time anyway due to avalanche risks). Apartment was great - Les Gemeaux bldg in Foret (bldg entrance tired but ok) and at just 180 pounds for the week on owners direct website we'll certainly go again and won't hesitate to recommend it. Beware meal prices at La Perdrix Noire restaurant.

  • February 06, 2012
    Henry from United Kingdom

    We have been going to Flaine for many years and prefer it to many other resorts. The transit time from Geneva is a major plus factor. It is also not too overcrowded except perhaps for the peak season in February. The skiing is varied if you ski the entire grand massif, the ski-schools are great and it's virtually ski-in ski-out except for some of the new developments. This season is the best snow for many years!
    The reason for the delayed opening of many of the lifts is predominantly due to ice on the cables after bad weather, the risk of avalanches in certain areas, and high winds. Perhaps the fault lies with the lift company for not communicating that fact, but they will always open up where they can.
    The area is still in the process of upgrading the older lifts, having already installed a number of new high speed chairs. The Aup de Veran gondola is still closed this season as a result of a very serious derailment in October last year. They have replaced the entire cable and will be airlifting two new pylons into place in the next week - should be open before the end of Feb.
    Consult associationflainoise.free.fr for up to date information.

  • January 30, 2012
    Reece Knowles from United Kingdom

    Just got back from Flaine (21/1/12 – 28/1/12) and the snow are amazing! Some days the vision was a bit impaired because Flaine is situated in a bowl and is prone to mist dropping down!
    Skiing was first rate and would go back without hesitation. Was first time there because we normally go to the 3 Valliees.
    Great time but service in Hotel Le Totem is disgusting at meal times, thank god for good skiing..

  • January 28, 2012
    Ali - Lincoln from United Kingdom

    Just returned from a week in Flaine, no complaints at all. Some people say the place is ugly.....so what, I was there for the skiing, and to be fair, it's not all ugly!! The ski lifts were great, no waiting for us, they ran efficiently all week. An abundance of snow, but that was just lucky. The pistes were kept in fantastic condition all week despite difficult conditions for the bashers. Recommend the Flying Dutchman for apres-ski, my favourite run is 'Fred', it's at the top, the lift there opens at 10, try and be first on it - magic :-)

  • January 15, 2012
    Dan grant from United Kingdom

    I can only assume that another reviewer's bad experience was due to the high winds in the first week of Jan, as we have just come back from a glorious week (7th-14th) with sunshine from Monday onwards, excellent snow coverage with the Cascades being open (although slightly icy lower down near Sixt) and both the Gers powder bowl and the Lindars nord lift to the great "Fred" red run, I can only say what a great week was had by all of us and we'll definitely being going back again.

  • January 04, 2012
    Steve Walsh from United Kingdom

    I have just read the entry by another reviewer. My children had to wait nearly an hour and half to get up the cable car yesterday. It was a beautiful sunny day and there was only one main lift working hence such a huge wait. There was no explanation.
    Today, again, the chairs were not running.
    The hotel is great, the ski school wonderful but the lifts...awful. How they can justify the price of the 6 day pass with this level of service is beyond me.

  • December 31, 2011
    Susan from France

    There is an abundance of snow in Flaine and the skiing is superb. The new 6 man Desert Blanc chair lift is excellent and takes just 5 minutes compared to more than double that on the old 4 seater. It links up well with the Tete des Verds lift installed a couple of years ago, but access to the Faust run is no longer possible at the top. The resort is coping well without the Telecabine de Laup de Veran, which will be out of action until February. The two long drag lifts from the Bissac restaurant have been removed over the summer, and I think that this was a mistake. We need a replacement chair.
    I have heard much better reports of the Totem hotel this year, which appears to be very good value for money. The Swedish staff are said to be polite and helpful, and the food good, with plenty of house wine. One grouse is the queue for dinner (why don't they put more tables in there!), otherwise complaints have been niggles about the size of the rooms and other unreasonable stuff - bearing in mind the price.

    There has been a lot of investment in the resort recently, with several new apartment blocks. We need more quality hotels! The Montsoleil apartments are very popular - and apparently fully booked over Christmas and New Year. A new phase is planned.

    It should be another great skiing year in Flaine.

  • December 29, 2011
    Harry Jones from France

    Whilst the snow conditions in Flaine are often good it seems a shame the lift company cannot seem to be able to organise themselves.
    The lifts rarely seem to open on time and the loading of the cable car and chairs is very badly organised. Poor management.

  • November 21, 2011
    Donald Munro from United Kingdom

    Not only in Flaine, but in the whole of the Grand Massif, there has been good investment in uplift in recent years with some of the old bottlenecks being potentially removed. The sad thing is that having spent €Ms, the management of boarding at busy times is non existent. There are generally no singles gates, apart from those for the ESF classes. The result is that when it gets really busy, the lines get longer and the chairs run at only about 70% capacity. You would think that a small investment in kit and in staff training would be well worthwhile in order to get the full benefit of the money already spent on uplift plant. Perhaps the resort management is just particularly slack?

    [note from editor: edited slightly for the sake of relevance]

  • August 13, 2011
    George mclaughlin from United Kingdom

    Hi, we had our first ever ski/boarding holiday in Flaine and everybody had a great time. Our young ones at 3 and 5 yrs old went to the ESF Rabbit club for 6 days and their skiing came on great, especially Cameron (5yrs).
    The instructors are fantastic, both ski and boarding. We arrived 19th March 2011 and we were lucky as it was snowing for 3 days previous.
    We stayed in Montsoleil apts and they were really good.
    I reckon we couldn't have picked a better place for our first family ski hol. Great weather all week, good snow and great lessons for all the family. Can't wait for 2012 :-)
    P.s. also found Flaine reasonably priced for drinks and eating out.

  • April 06, 2011
    robert smith from United Kingdom

    Got back yesterday and to read reports that there has been a metre of snow I can honestly say is not true, The runs are slushy and the weather is beautiful apart from Monday when it rained heavily and gave a light dusting at the very top. I can only think that people that say it has been snowing maybe own businesses in or near the resort...

  • April 04, 2011
    Jen from United Kingdom

    1metre of snow on 30th March? Are you sure this was in Flaine? We arrived on the 2nd April and it doesn't look like there has been a recent dump of snow. First day was scorchio, nice for the tan, but snow is melting fast. It has been snowing/ raining most of the day today but this snow doesn't look like it will last long. Snow-forecast.com is predicting sun all week..... The nursery slopes have all but disappeared. Our 5 yr old's instructor is hoping to take them up to higher slopes tomorrow. On the plus side, pack your sun tan lotion!

  • April 04, 2011
    Jon from United Kingdom

    Just got back from Flaine, boy was it hot. That was my first experience of Spring skiing and it was really good. Warm sunshine and plenty of snow up high and just a few slushy runs down in the village (avoid the really wet bits or you will get wet as a friend found out)!!. Fortunate to be there when there was a dump of snow. First visit and I was really impressed with the runs and resort. Two favourite drinking/eating venues were The White Bar (very lively) and Perdiex Noir (very relaxed and very friendly bar).

    Would go again, and maybe bring the family next time.

  • April 01, 2011
    Julia from United Kingdom

    Really good to hear that Flaine has just had a good dump of snow. I was getting worried as we are off on 9 April - having to wait for my 19 year old to get back from Uni.

    We have been for 4 of the past 6 years and keep going back. It is a really great resort for families and now we are more competent we are getting out in the wider Massif area.

    We always stay at La Foret - and they usually give us great rooms. The Crystal childcare team are great there too.

    Just hope there is enough snow to put my 3 year old onto skis this time next week (nearly!)

  • March 30, 2011
    paul lindsay from France

    At Flaine now (30/03/11) had a metre of snow - resort half empty so were in skiing heaven - longest queue this week has been 8 people!! Latest dump should see season through - in La Floret appartment (SC) and they are one of the best I have stayed in for the price - paid for 5 star in Val Thorens and it wasn't nearly as good. OK, it's not a night life but with drinks at 6 - 9 Euro each in all French ski resorts who can sup ale from 5 - midnight now?

  • March 05, 2011
    Stuart Ibbotson from United Kingdom

    Returned from Flaine last weekend. Good job it snowed for much of the first 3 days as they were badly in need of snow, even on some of the higher runs. Great early day skiing down towards Les Carroz, Morrillon 1100 and Samoen, although runs to Les Carroz itself closed. However, they do need to develop more runs and maybe another couple of fast lifts to get back over to Flaine as the one main run back got very busy with ski school.
    Resort let down by too many old and very slow lifts that caused totally unnecessary bottle necks. Forgot how little ski in-ski out there is, which spoils the start and end of a day. Thankfully, used Patrick's ski locker for storing boots and skis at base of one of the lifts.
    Was put in L'Arche apartments by Inghams. Nice accommodation but as far as you could be from the slopes and lifts in the older parts of the resort; at least a 10 minute brisk walk without ski boots.
    Sorry, but the French keep putting their prices for everything up in the resorts and this meant that for the first time ever we didn't have a beer or meal out at all. There must be others who are voting with their wallets and spending far less. If they just reduced prices a little they would get far more business, especially at quiet times.

  • February 09, 2011
    phil rees from United Kingdom

    Just returned from Faine. The pistes are doing an amazing job! Considering the lack of snow, most pistes are really good, A bit slushy at the resort but really amazing.
    Well done! Definitely would return.

  • January 28, 2011
    David from United Kingdom

    My wife and I have been going to Flaine now for the last 15 years. It's a friendly family resort with limited night life, so hooray! Yes, it is quite expensive, like all of France is to us Brits at the moment, but the snow record is excellent. January was the worst I have ever seen at that time and we still skied on very good snow at the top. The lower slopes were a bit more challenging but there was still a fair bit of terrain when other resorts were bare. I endorse the comment about Black Side ski shop and cafe/bar, Jean Michelle and Nathalie couldn't be more friendly and helpful. We'll be back in March so here's hoping for more snow.

  • January 23, 2011
    JT - Coventry from United Kingdom

    Just back from a week's skiing in Flaine/Grand Massif. This is the 2nd time I've visited this resort (1st visit in January 2009), and I've not been disappointed, despite the slightly poorer conditions on this occasion due to a lack of fresh snow.

    Accomodation was courtesy of Le Totem Hotel in Flaine Forum. The overall package was very good, with the evening meals served being a particular highlight - excellent - almost cordon bleu standard! The lunches were also of a good standard, but the breakfasts were a little lacking with no cooked options and the porridge tasted like wallpaper paste! The rooms were small, but clean and functional and the hotel staff were polite and friendly.

    Ski school for me on this occasion was provided by ESI (Ecole Ski International) which I was able to book via their own website prior to travelling to France. The instruction was excellent, and my technique (and speed!) has definitely improved - Thanks Seb!

    All in all, a great holiday and particular praise goes to the piste bashers who groomed the slopes to a very good standard each night, despite the aforementioned snow-less conditions over the past few weeks. I would recommend Flaine to anyone, and would be more than happy to visit again - an excellent, functional resort with a good range of pistes to suit all levels of ability.

  • December 15, 2010
    Gavski from Afghanistan

    Don't believe the review that says Mayerhofen beats Flaine. Absolutely no way - for a competent skier / boarder you will be bored in Mayerhofen after a few days and will want to venture out in the Zillertal Arena / Hintertux for greater thrills.

  • December 02, 2010
    John Tolan from United Kingdom

    Flaine is not well known amongst British skiers - which is a shame. It is a huge ski area with a a great snow record. It has an excellent variety of pistes for all levels and more importantly a huge expanse of superb off-piste skiing possibilities. The resort is growing from it's Bauhaus inspired original purpose built resort with a range of architectural styles now in the valley. It has seen a significant improvement over the past three years in uplift. It's a functional resort - not chocolate box pretty. That said, it is well set up for families and the wider ski market - the night life could improve and prices are a bit steep as are most French resorts. A specialism of Flaine is the permanent ski race training on offer every day of the season. Flaine Superski offers race camps and ad hoc race training for improvers as well as for kids and potential instructors looking to pass the Slalom Test Technique and Eurotest GS Race. It is these factors that made me buy a property in Flaine rather than many other better known resorts. I haven't regretted it. Being only an hour from Geneva airport, its super accessible.

  • November 29, 2010
    Andrew Keenan from United Kingdom

    We've been, as a family, to Flaine now for the past 3 years and my 6 year old son is now a competent blue/red run skier thanks to the ESF ski school and child friendly runs which the resort can boast as having in abundance.
    Whilst the après-ski isn't up there with some of the better known resorts this is, in my view, a good thing, but there still are some decent bars, in both Flaine Foret and Flaine Forum, to enjoy.
    In terms of skiing and boarding there's no end of great runs to take on, and when there's fresh snow the off-piste is as good as any! The local shop in Flaine Forum is affordable and we regulary bought beer/wine, snacks, etc..
    Overall, our experience of the resort can be summarised as welcoming, not overly extortionate, fast lifts and short queues, great expanse and child friendly!
    Would we go back again? Without doubt, yes.

  • September 25, 2010
    T J from United Kingdom

    After marrying a man who's been all round the world skiing and is crazy about skiing, I decided I had to have a go, our destination Flaine. He'd been before and actually wanted to go back. Well, what a place, many describe it as ugly, I think it's fantastic. It has much to offer for people of all levels of skiing ability. The shops can be expensive but it's a ski resort, none are exactly cheap - it's not a cheap beach resort. As for bars and restaurants, there are a few and there are some that take turns in having happy hours (just after skiing's almost finished - perfect). Love the 'White Bar' and as for restaurants you can't get much better than Les Cimes; omg the best calzone you will ever eat, and the staff are brilliant. As for the skiing, well, it speaks for itself. The slopes are fantastic; I learnt to ski there courtesy of my poor husband and I wouldn't want to learn anywhere else. After visiting other resorts Flaine is the best place ever, so much so we decided to buy a place and now call it our second home, which means plenty more skiing to be done and I can't wait!