Snowsure: 3.6
- Occasionally gets enough snow for skiing
- Is often closed due to a lack of snow
- Occasionally suffers from a lack of snow
- Rarely suffers from a lack of snow
- Ax 3 Domaines is snowsure even in the poorest seasons
Visitor reviews for Ax 3 Domaines Ski Resort
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(NOTE: Reviews may be edited by our content team for the purposes of ensuring accurate and relevant information)
(NOTE: Reviews may be edited by our content team for the purposes of ensuring accurate and relevant information)
Latest
March 30, 2026
Caroline from
France
Caroline from
France
Ax les Thermes is an excellent resort for all levels of skiers, with some challenging terrain for the advanced, and good for beginners too. The pistes are mostly wide and well groomed, and there are trees for the cloudy days.
This season, 25-26, is bumpier year for snow and with 2,40m of snow and 40 cms of fresh snow expected this week the April Fool is the station that is already closed, instead of staying open for the Easter holiday. The whole skiing ethic being betrayed presumably by administrative constraints.
December 05, 2017
David from
France
David from
France
I have been taking my family to Ax for 6 years now. It is a lovely ancient thermal spa town in the Pyrenees with bags of history and a ski resort above the town. There is a great market twice a week; lots of small independent shops and restaurants and plenty of characterful places to stay. The resort itself is compact and very family-friendly, but still has 75km of pistes to suit all ages and abilities. It is less chi-chi than the alps, less banging than Andorra, and cheaper than both in terms of lift passes and ski hire. If you avoid French school holidays it isn't very crowded either. There are pistes up to 2400m and plenty of snow cannons as well, so the conditions are generally good. There are also lots of other great winter sports activities available, such as: dog sledding, Nordic skiing, ski-joering, snow trekking, ice climbing, sledging, & snow biking.
Just a quick note regarding an older review: there is a now a bypass around the town that takes out the through-traffic on its way to Andorra, so the town centre is much quieter and easy to navigate even in high season. There is a Park & Ride scheme that operates between the railway station and the ski resort, and there are navettes (minibuses) that run between several of the outlying villages and the resort. There is also extensive (free) parking at the resort itself.
February 17, 2015
lynne from
United Kingdom
lynne from
United Kingdom
December 2014: Ax Les Thermes is a great resort with some great value for money accommodation and great skiing for all abilities served adequately by the gondola and chairlifts. We stayed there for a full week in Feb 2013; fabulous. We have also driven in from our home to ski on a daily basis; Christmas and New Year 2013, again, great.
This was our second New Year of driving as we did last year. We drove in to ski but this time on a daily basis. Unfortunately, so did half the population of France on the both days we tried between Christmas and New Year. Sadly, there is almost no parking and the whole town, on both days, was gridlocked, it taking over 2 hours to drive the final 2 miles only to have to leave again without skiing as there was no parking. The roads had not been cleared and the police, directing the traffic, were all stood in one spot.
The current system is definitely broken and should be serviced by a one way system, adequate parking and a park and ride facility. How difficult would that be? The car parks were full of snow which made car parking impossible. A simple sign such as car park full may have helped!
One final comment, which is a serious concern, the gondola queues are long and having stood in the queue all of 10 mins, after a hard day skiing, it is not appreciated to be then not allowed an option to wait for the next gondola so I could be seated. Despite my protest that this would separate me from my 9 year old child I was then pushed and physically forced onto it.
Great value, great skiing, lovely town but be warned! Come on Ax Les Thermes, you really need to get this sorted.
January 01, 2015
SteveJ from
France
SteveJ from
France
December 2014 - Ax Les Thermes is a great resort with some great value for money accommodation and great skiing for all abilities served adequately by the gondola and chairlifts.
This was our second visit and as we did last year, we drove in to ski, but this time on a daily basis. Unfortunately, so did half the population of France on the both days we tried between Christmas and New Year. Sadly there is almost no parking and the whole town, on both days, was gridlocked, it taking over 2 hours to drive the final 2 miles only to have to leave again without skiing as there was no parking.
The current system is definitely broken and should be serviced by a one way system, adequate parking and a park and ride facility. How difficult would that be?
Great value, great skiing, lovely town, but be warned! Come on Ax Les Thermes, you really need to get this sorted...
February 21, 2013
David Sargent from
United Kingdom
David Sargent from
United Kingdom
This is my second year visiting Ax (Ax-les-Thermes) as one of my sons now lives in Toulouse (90 mins for Ax). What a great little resort. Good accommodation available, good value lift passes and excellent skiing. In 2012 the snow cannons provided adequate snow to have an enjoyable time and this year, 2013, a deluge of snow - I did not see any ice whatsoever. I would strongly recommend for families, beginners and intermediates. The lift pass includes the lift from Ax up to the Bonascre area where the chair lifts operate from. And there is free parking in Ax and the Bonascre area. You can even stay in a camper van. Full marks. I shall be back again with the family. The only downside is at the weekends when the day visitors from Toulouse arrive but during the week it is quiet with no lift queues.
February 11, 2012
Lp from
United Kingdom
Lp from
United Kingdom
Our English children really enjoy the Bonascre ski school. Group classes on weekends and during Toulouse school holidays. Our children speak very little French so they wear a different coloured bib. They do get some instruction in English - learning a bit of French and skiing. Private lessons are also very good. Great resort for learning as loads of cannons.
Also getting the bubble back down to Ax gives little ones a break from the snow with tired legs.
January 05, 2010
Neil Crowley from
France
Neil Crowley from
France
I am a 61 year old Englishman who learnt to ski at the Milton Keynes indoor ski centre in January 2007, had my first skiing on greens and a few disasterous blues at Val d'Isere in April that year before my wife and I moved permanently to France in November, 2007.
We live south of Toulouse, just under an hour and a half from Bonascre by road, and the Ax-les-Thermes ski station has my nearest, cheapest, welcoming and most user-friendly pistes. The ski hire shops are good and understand my improving French and do speak English to other Brits.
The restaurants, both those at Bonascre and the two on the mountain provide good, reasonably priced fare, although Le Chalet de la Hulotte, amongst the trees, may not be as acessible for beginners.
Since my move to France, I have skiied at La Mongie in the Western Pyrenees another family-friendly resort; Pas de la Casa in Andorra and at Vallandry in the French Alps. I have now progressed from blue to red pistes with confidence and love the fact that I can have a relatively cheap day's skiing for around 50 euros, including my lunch.
During the week, apart from Wednesdays, when French schools are closed, the pistes are fairly empty. I benefit for my advancing years, as a 'Senior', getting a 4 euros reduction for my lift pass. Other resorts don't offer such reductions until their 'Senior' clients are post-70 or even 75, which could be pretty meaningless!!!
Facilities for beginners at Ax-les-Thermes are reasonable, but the 'green' Boulevard La Griole is a little narrow, as is the 3 Jasses, which requires a lot of baton use at times. All in all, Bonascre is a good skiing experience for mainly intermediate+ skiers and has been enjoyed by some of my English friends who have been on the pistes for over thirty years.
I am looking forward to a day's skiing at Bonascre later this week, when I will be launching my new boots and helmet down the slopes.
November 16, 2009
James from
United Kingdom
James from
United Kingdom
Ax-les-Thermes is a very good place to be based for downhill skiing, cross-country skiing and snowshoeing. The town of Ax is down at 700m so rarely gets snow and has the charm of a ‘real’ French town. There is a good selection of bars and restaurants to suit all tastes and budgets. Most of the accommodation in Ax is self catering, but there are also a range of hotels (up to 3 star). Ax is linked to the ski station of Bonascre (1400m) by a high speed cable car that takes about 10 mins. Bonascre is a purpose built resort and is not a good looking place. There are lots of self catering apartments and 1 very good hotel. It is a self contained town with ‘ski food’ restaurants, bars, a disco and small shops.
The downhill skiing area at Ax-les-Thermes is fairly extensive and is divided into 3 well linked domains (watersheds). The skiing is from 1400m up to 2300m with the lower sections being well served by snow cannons. There are enough pistes to keep most people happy, but one of the real joys of the station is the amount of safe ‘between piste’, in and out of the trees there is to be done.
The station is good for beginners as the ‘green slopes’ are up at 1800m and are set apart from the main pistes (so you don’t have to worry about being cut up by others). The only ski school is the ESf and a few of the instructors speak enough English, however there is no ‘group lessons’ for English people, so you need to hire an instructor by the hour.
There are a couple of good mountain restaurants in the middle of the ski areas, so it is not necessary to descend to Bonascre for refreshments.
The resort is favored by people living in Toulouse as it is accessable by train (lots of Toulouseians have apartments). This does mean that it can get busy at the weekends and during the Christmas and February holidays. However, out of the periods you rarely need to queue for an up lift and the slopes are beautifully empty.
The Thermal waters in Ax have been exploited for their medicinal qualities for many years, but in 2009 a luxury Roman Baths (Le Couloubret) was opened with with its jacuzzi, sauna, frigidariam (very chilly pool), steam room and outside relaxation pools, amoungst other things. It is open every evening except for Sundays, and only costs 15E for 2 hours worth of relaxed pleasure. The new spa comes highly recommended - it has a lovely calm ambiance and is the perfect thing for a holiday treat.
Ax (Ax-les-Thermes) is also one of the best places in the Pyrenees to base yourself if you are interested in cross-country skiing. A short drive from Ax are the dedicated cross-country ski domains of Chioula (1400 to 1700m) and Beille (1800 to 2000m), located on high plateaux offering dramatic mountain views at every corner as well as reliable snow cover. The ‘Espace Nordic des Pyrenees’ provides the experienced skier with a suitable alternative to Scandinavia, and the novice, the perfect terrain and climate for taking up this fantastic sport. The stations offer ski hire as well as some excellent café/restaurant facilities.
All the ski stations (Bonascre, Chioula and Beille) offer ‘self guided’ snowshoeing trails which are marked approximately every 20 meters and the trail is prepared with a skidoo making it impossible to get lost.
It is also worth mentioning that Ax (Ax-les-Thermes) is a short drive from 3 other downhill ski stations, opening up a vast ski area. Ascou Pailheres (20mins), Port Puymorens (30 mins) and Pas de la Case – Andorra (45 mins)
February 17, 2008
jackie from
United Kingdom
jackie from
United Kingdom
Ax is a great little town with a real French atmosphere. There is easy access to the ski hill on the gondola from town. There are some great budget hotels in town and a pool of hot spring water to soak your feet in after a day on the slopes. If you are expecting an English style party town, then carry on into Andorra, Ax is more for the family who want to ski a little, experience the real France and relax.
February 16, 2008
Philip W from
United Kingdom
Philip W from
United Kingdom
Just back from 6 days at Bonsacre (Ax-les-Thermes) and was very disappointed. The resort is fine for intermediate and advanced skiers, but beginners are very poorly served. The 2 main green runs down to the base station do not have snow cannons (in fact the whole resort is lacking in cannons) so have not been open for the last 2 years. The remaining greens iced up very quickly and by our 4th day were more difficult to ski on that the reds. There are some long blues, but getting back up from the bottom takes about 10 minutes. Personally, no run is worth over half my time sitting in a chair getting there !!
The restaurants in Bonsacre (Ax-les-Thermes) are good and although there are lots of ski shops, they only rent skis and sell small items, such as hats, gloves and goggles. Jackets and trousers for sale are few and far between.
If you expect to go down to Ax in the evening, then you will need to take your car as the telecabin shuts at 20:00
Note: in 2006/7 only 3 runs were open.
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