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Villars resort snow
Lat Long: 46.30° N 7.10° E
Ski Switzerland

Villars Resort Reviews

Weather Forecast for Villars at 1664 m altitude

Issued: 7 am 25 Apr 2026 (local time)

Forecast update in  hr  min

Next snow in Villars: 1.6 cm on Thu 7th

Visitor reviews for Villars Ski Resort

Villars Ratings

Overall: 4.2. Based on 56 votes and 69 reviews.

Rate this resort

Snowsure: 3.7

  • 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
  • Villars is snowsure even in the poorest seasons

Variety of pistes: 4.2

  • The ski runs are featureless and unvaried
  • The ski runs are varied but not extensive enough for a week
  • Villars has diverse and interesting pistes including forests and high alpine terrain

Off-piste: 3.9

  • No off-piste worth mentioning
  • Off piste is out-of-bounds
  • Some varied offpiste that stays fresh for one or two days
  • A vast array of off-piste routes that can stay untracked for several days

Scenery: 4.8

  • An ugly resort in a bland setting
  • Average mountain views and resort
  • A spectacular setting and a beautiful / historic resort town

Access: 4.2

  • At least one overnight stop
  • Requires a whole day
  • Requires more than half a day – you may have time for a few turns
  • Arrive by lunchtime and ski all afternoon
  • There is a main airport within an hour of Villars

Public Transport: 4.7

  • There are no buses or taxis to Villars
  • There are slow or infrequent buses / trains available
  • Getting to the resort is easy with frequent bus / train connections

Accommodation: 4.3

  • No places to stay in/near Villars
  • A few places to stay in the resort
  • A wide variety of accommodation suitable to suit all budgets

Cheap Rooms: 3.2

  • No budget accommodation available
  • Just one or two hostels so book ahead
  • Several cheap hostels and pensions available

Luxury Hotels: 4.5

  • No luxury accommodation available
  • Just one or two luxury hotels so book ahead
  • Several up-market hotels in Villars

Ski in/Ski out: 4.0

  • The ski area is located far from any accommodation
  • A free ski bus takes you to the ski area in a short trip
  • Ski-in ski-out accommodation is available

Childcare: 4.3

  • There are no child care facilities at Villars
  • The resort has limited child-care facilities
  • the resort has excellent child-care facilities including at least one reasonably priced creche

Snowmaking: 4.3

  • Villars relies entirely on natural snow
  • There are just a few snow cannons
  • There are snowmaking facilities on all pistes

Snow Grooming: 4.4

  • There are no snow groomers at Villars
  • Occasionally some pistes are left ungroomed and in a poor state
  • All the runs at Villars are groomed daily

Shelter: 4.1

  • There is nowhere to ski when it is windy or visibility is bad and lifts often shut
  • There are some trees for poor visibility but main lifts sometimes close
  • Villars is mostly in forest where you can ski in flat-light and windy days, lifts rarely close

Nearby options: 4.1

  • If snow conditions are poor at Villars, it will be poor everywhere nearby
  • There are good alternatives within an hours drive
  • Other locations on the same lift pass provide a rich variety of snowsure ski conditions

Regional rating: 4.0

  • Villars usually has poor snow conditions compared to other resorts in region
  • Has average conditions for the region
  • Usually has the best snow conditions in the region

Lift Staff: 4.5

  • The staff at Villars are rude or unhelpful
  • Lift staff at Villars are pleasant, cheerful and eager to help

Crowds/Queues: 3.8

  • The resort is always busy and there are usually long lift queues
  • It is quiet apart from occasional weekends and school holidays
  • It is uncrowded and lift queues are very rare

Ski Schools: 4.6

  • No ski schools available
  • One or two ski schools but local language only
  • A few ski schools but book early for multi-lingual instructors
  • Plenty of ski schools and multi-lingual instructors available
  • Excellent ski schools with friendly multi-lingual ski instructors

Hire and Repairs: 4.9

  • Nothing can be sourced, not even ski-wax or ptex
  • There are some ski shops but rentals need to be booked in advance
  • Good quality ski equipment can be purchased or hired and overnight repairs are possible

Beginners: 4.6

  • Beginners can only watch others ski and snowboard
  • A few gentle slopes but beginners will get bored in less than a week
  • Vast areas of gentle terrain

Intermediates: 4.5

  • No intermediate terrain at Villars
  • Intermediate skiers will get bored after a few days
  • Vast areas of cruising runs

Advanced: 3.9

  • Nothing for advanced skiers and snowboarders
  • Enough steep terrain for a few days with some good offpiste
  • Enough steep terrain and offpiste areas to entertain advanced skiers for at least a week

Snow Park: 3.5

  • Not even a kicker at Villars
  • Average sized park quite well looked after
  • Huge park area and expertly crafted pipes, jumps and boardercross trails

Cross-country: 4.3

  • There is nowhere to go for cross-country skiing around Villars
  • There are some cross country trails available
  • The area features many spectacular and well maintained cross-country trails

Luge/Toboggan: 4.0

  • No designated luge or toboggan runs
  • There are toboggan runs that open quite often
  • Villars has long and well maintained luge / toboggan facilities suitable for all ages

Mountain Dining: 4.3

  • Nowhere to buy food by the pistes
  • Some places to eat up on the mountain but they are often busy and expensive
  • There is a variety of excellent mountain eateries right next to the slopes to suit all budgets

Eating: 4.3

  • Bring your own food, there isn't even a shop
  • There are a few places to eat in the resort but nothing special
  • A wide variety of places to eat and drink in the resort, from fast food to fancy restaurants

Apres-Ski: 3.7

  • Nothing to do, not even a bar
  • There are a few bars in the resort but nothing special
  • Clubs and bars stay open until very late and have a friendly atmosphere

Other Sports: 4.6

  • No sports facilities at all apart from ski lifts
  • Resort has just a small public swimming pool
  • Resort has all kinds of sports facilities, including a full-size swimming pool

Entertainment: 4.2

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

Winter Walks: 4.6

  • Very limited walking and no snowshoe trails
  • A couple of designated scenic walking/snowshoe trails
  • Extensive and diverse winter walking trails for all abilities

Ski Pass Value: 3.9

  • A 1 week ski pass is overpriced compared to the number of lifts available
  • The ski pass is averagely priced and covers a reasonable number of lifts
  • Ski passes are excellent value for money and cover a lot of lifts spanning a big area

Value (National): 3.7

  • Overall, Villars is one of the most expensive ski resorts in the country and not worth the money
  • Overall represents average value for money
  • Overall offers the best value resort in the country

Value (Global): 3.7

  • Overall, Villars is one of the most expensive ski resorts in the world
  • Overall it offers pretty average value for money compared to resorts from other countries
  • Internationally the resort offers excellent value for money

Show all 35 ratings

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November 26, 2010
Julian from Ski United Kingdom United Kingdom
We're staying in Villars for a week. Over 18 inches of snow in the past 36 hours. Temperatures around -10 during the day. Looks amazing. It's a wonderful village with some lovely restaurants and shops.
November 23, 2010
Sally Dingle from Ski United Kingdom United Kingdom
85 km of snow cannon installed during the summer months - the link across to La Chaux and skiing right back to Villars (Roc d'Orsay) guaranteed throughout the season, which is good news given the late Easter in 2011. We have had an apartment in Rochegrise (Villars) for ten years and are still enchanted with the place - a real town, not a ski-station, full of character, decent skiing, great restaurants (try Lac de Chavonnes in the ski-season, but get there in good time, it gets full up very quickly) and friendly people. Not over-run with louts and speed-merchants. No problem at the Rochegrise station by the way, even after the Hotal Royalp development.
November 09, 2010
James Williams from Ski United Kingdom United Kingdom
People going to Villars in February over half-term week shouldn't complain about queues or inexperienced skiers; that all goes with the territory of half-term skiing. I avoid Feb altogether and suggest that those who complain about the crowds do so too; send your kids skiing on a school trip! XX
October 15, 2010
chris manfield from Ski United Kingdom United Kingdom
I was in Villars over the summer and the news is that they are putting in a load more snow cannons from Bretaye down to town - so will be able to ski down all through the season. Also, they have cannoned La Rasse (run down by Golf Club) as well as putting new cannons in at Gryon.
May 31, 2010
Tyson
Showing off about how much wine you drink, how fast you go and who you hang out with does not make a good review or a good character reference!
March 06, 2010
Paul Meyer from Ski United Kingdom United Kingdom
We're on the way back for our fourth week this season in Villars. The snow this season has been good along with the Ollon which seems to taste better with every visit. Still not bored after 10 years, especially not with the 7pm straight line run home from the Col De Sud with Murphy pie eyed and full of vino.
January 29, 2010
Ross Goodburn from Ski United Kingdom United Kingdom
We went out to Villars the first week of Jan 10 and stayed at the Club Med hotel near the station. We had a very enjoyable week. The week before, apparently, was awful with heavy rain right up to 3000m! Luckily for us it snowed, we had about 80 cm of snow at the start of the week that made the conditions further up the mountain fantastic. However, the runs to Villars were very bad. They really do need to invest in proper integrated snow making on the lower slopes. They do have these giant portable snow makers but all they do is cover one patch with a load of man-made snow. Ok for when they smooth it out later but no good during the day! I agree with other people: it's faster to hop on the bus and take the gondola up than to go on the train but do go on the train at least once as it is a beautifully scenic, leisurely trip up to the slopes. I didn't see any crazy local brew filled English people hurtling down the slopes. In all honesty, there are always a few idiots from all nationalities, even the French and Swiss. But only one or two who are stupid enough to brag about being an idiot! I've skied in various very large resorts and was worried about going to a smaller one but this was unfounded. There is plenty to keep most people very happy here, it was only the price of everything here that caused concern. Luckily, I was all inclusive at Club Med. To give you some idea, a basic meal in Villars will set you back 35-40 CHF which currently is about £28-30 and that's just a main meal (more expensive on the mountain as well)! If there weren't so many other great resorts I've not skied yet, I would come back to Villars. I recommend it to everyone.
December 15, 2009
Wendi Leech from Ski United Kingdom United Kingdom
We too love Villars, not just for the skiing, which is ample for us, but for the ambiance and amazing views, coupled with the beautiful sunshine. We bought in Villars in 2005 and do not regret it at all. Yes, sometimes it gets busy, but look at the French resorts. Do you really want to meet everyone from Surrey? ..... If the snow is not so good, Verbier is only 50 minutes away and Zermatt is about 2 hours drive if you feel like to doing a day trip with an early start. Those who don't care for Villars....that's ok, leaves more space for the rest of us!
December 14, 2009
paul meyer from Ski United Kingdom United Kingdom
Hopefully a great new season to come in Villars. I am hoping for great snow, some great ollon and a fun night out with Pamela Hutchinson who works for the local fun police.
December 08, 2009
Jack Lewis from Ski United Kingdom United Kingdom
I've been going to Villars for about 4 or 5 years. I basically learnt to ski there so I have done all of the ski school levels. 1, 2 and 3 in the Child sessions and 4, 5, and 6 in the adult sessions. I agree with most the comments, but I would like to add that Villars is actually very very quiet outside of the school holidays (in France, the UK, and Switzerland). During the school breaks it can be very busy. At the busy times it is always best to: Avoid the train up between 9 am and 10 am, as this is when most of the ski school go up. Book lunch and get away from the central Ski area, Bretaye. Go to Les Diablerets for a day trip Come down early or come down as late as you can. If you can get down early enough I would really recommend the toboggan run. If you're feeling extra organised then ski to Les Diablerets have a cup of tea at Les Mazots and do the Les Diablerets Toboggan run. It takes between half an hour and an hour but is absolutely fantastic and a great break from skiing.