Méribel

Route and travel time

The private transfer from Geneva Airport to Méribel covers about 180 km and takes around 2 h 10 in normal conditions. Your chauffeur takes the A41 motorway towards Annecy, then the A430 to Albertville, and follows the N90 up the Tarentaise to Moûtiers. From there the D90 climbs through Brides-les-Bains and Les Allues to Méribel Centre, then continues to Méribel-Mottaret, 300 metres higher.

On Saturdays during French and British school holidays, the Moûtiers exit is the bottleneck of the whole valley: we plan the pick-up time accordingly and suggest a shifted departure when it helps.

Méribel Centre, Mottaret, Village: the addresses

Méribel stretches along the whole Allues valley, and two addresses can be more than ten minutes apart by road:

• Méribel Centre (1,450 m): the original resort around La Chaudanne, with most hotels and the chalets of the Route du Belvédère and Rond-Point des Pistes.
• Méribel-Mottaret (1,750 m): at the top of the valley, residences right on the slopes, ideal for skiing out towards Val Thorens or Courchevel.
• Méribel-Village (1,400 m): a quieter hamlet on the Col de la Loze road, linked to the ski area by the Golf gondola.
• Les Allues (1,100 m) and Le Raffort: the original villages, served by the Olympe gondola from Brides-les-Bains.

Give the quarter and the name of the chalet or hotel in the booking form: Méribel's roads climb in hairpins, and a chalet on the Belvédère cannot be found from La Chaudanne without an exact address.

What the fixed price includes

The price shown before payment is for the whole vehicle, with no supplement for passengers, luggage or traffic.

• Meet and greet in arrivals with a name board, Swiss or French sector depending on your flight.
• Flight tracking and 60 minutes of free waiting time at the airport.
• Skis, snowboards, boot bags and suitcases loaded by the chauffeur.
• A direct journey to your door, with no other passengers.
• Tolls, fuel and VAT included; child seats and boosters on request at no extra charge.

Which vehicle for Méribel

For two or three with skis, the Mercedes E-Class or S-Class. With a family or from four passengers, the V-Class (7 seats, 10 bags): skis lie flat in the long boot, boots go in the space under the seats. For a shared chalet or a seminar, the Sprinter (up to 19 passengers) is offered on quotation, and very large groups travel in several vehicles driving together.

The road to Méribel in winter

From Moûtiers to Mottaret the D90 gains 1,300 metres in 25 km: wide hairpins above Brides-les-Bains, then a well-cleared resort road that is exposed to ice in the morning and evening. Our Mercedes run on winter tyres with chains on board, as the French Mountain Law requires in Savoie from 1 November to 31 March, and our chauffeurs know the chalet accesses, whose private ramps are sometimes the trickiest part of the trip.

In the heart of the 3 Valleys

Méribel occupies the central valley of the 3 Valleys, the largest linked ski area in the world with about 600 km of pistes: Courchevel on one side, Les Menuires and Val Thorens on the other, all reachable on skis from La Chaudanne or Mottaret. The season generally runs from early December to late April. The resort hosted the ice hockey and women's alpine events of the 1992 Olympics; the Olympic rink and leisure centre are still open in the centre.

Méribel also has an altiport for small private aircraft: if you arrive that way, we can arrange a pick-up there instead of Geneva.

Child seats, pushchairs and equipment

Enter your children's ages when booking: an infant carrier, child seat or booster is fitted before you arrive. The V-Class takes a folded pushchair in addition to the skis. If you are hiring equipment in Méribel, tell us: a smaller vehicle may then be enough.

Your transfer step by step

1. Online booking with flight number, quarter and chalet name; fixed price shown before payment.
2. The day before, you receive your chauffeur's name and phone number.
3. On landing the time is adjusted; the chauffeur waits in arrivals with a name board.
4. Skis and luggage are loaded and you leave immediately.
5. About 2 h 10 later you are dropped at the door of your accommodation in Méribel.

No change at Moûtiers

Moûtiers-Salins station is the terminus of the TGV and Eurostar ski trains: 18 km of mountain road remain, by bus or car, skis in hand. Valley buses serve La Chaudanne but not your chalet. A private transfer avoids the change, leaves at your flight's actual arrival time and delivers every bag to the door, for a fixed price known before you set off.

Return to Geneva and days in Courchevel

Book the outbound and return together: the return gets 10% off and we adjust the departure time to your flight. On a Saturday in February we advise leaving Méribel early to pass Moûtiers before the peak. As a chauffeur at your disposal, the same driver takes you to dinner in Courchevel 1850, to the spa at Brides-les-Bains, or to Annecy for a day by the lake.

Practical tips before you leave

Allow 20 minutes to load skis from the chalet's ski room. Keep ski boots in a separate bag. For an early-morning flight, a night departure is possible: the valley is clear and the journey often takes under two hours.