Méribel – the chalet village in the heart of Les 3 Vallées

Méribel was built with rules about wood, stone and slate long before anyone talked about sustainable architecture. The result is the most cohesive ski resort in Les 3 Vallées – and one of the most expensive.

Méribel is located in the middle valley of Les 3 Vallées, between Courchevel to the east and Les Menuires and Val Thorens to the west. The resort belongs to the municipality of Les Allues in Savoie, and what sets it apart from its neighbours is immediately apparent: there are no high-rise buildings here. Wood, stone and slate roofs recur in almost every building, from the large hotels at Chaudanne to the smallest chalets in the forest above.

It is no coincidence. According to the local area's own history, the municipality commissioned architect Paul Sirvin and engineer Jean de la Valdène in 1935 to plan a ski resort. Sirvin formulated the architectural principles as early as 1936, and they have been followed ever since. The entire property market in the municipality can be found on VERA PI's page on Les Allues.

A Scotsman and a slate roof

In 1937 Jean de la Valdène brought in British investors, among them the Scotsman Peter Lindsay. The following year, Chalet Doron was built, which is considered the resort's first house, along with a motorised sledge lift that could pull up to 19 skiers. The war halted the work, but in 1946 Lindsay took it up again and had the architect Christian Durupt continue in Sirvin's spirit: the houses were to fit into the landscape, be built from traditional materials and have gabled roofs with slate and limited height.

In the 1960s, Méribel became a destination for celebrities from Paris – the resort's history mentions Brigitte Bardot, Johnny Hallyday and Marina Vlady. The first chairlift arrived in 1968, and in February 1976 the new neighbouring resort of Méribel-Mottaret opened further up the valley. It is situated higher up and closer to the lifts towards Val Thorens, and it follows the same architecture.

Roc de Fer – the women's Olympic downhill run

When Albertville and Savoie hosted the 1992 Winter Olympics, Méribel became the women's resort. All five women's alpine events – downhill, super-G, giant slalom, slalom and combined – were held at Roc de Fer, a course of just over 2.4 kilometres with a vertical drop of 685 metres. In addition, 46 ice hockey matches were played in the valley. According to the resort's history, 52 of the Games' 126 events were decided in the valley.

In 2023 the championships returned. Courchevel and Méribel jointly hosted the Alpine World Ski Championships, and Roc de Fer was used for the women's combined, super-G, downhill, giant slalom and slalom. For ordinary guests, the piste is a long, even descent down towards the village.

Living in Méribel

Méribel is the resort of the chalet. There are hotels here, but the typical thing is to rent an entire chalet with a chef and host for a week, often with a ski room, sauna and your own glazed dining room. The most sought-after are in ski-in-ski-out locations around the runs down towards Chaudanne and in the wooded area around the altiport, where small planes land on a runway on the slope.

Those who choose a hotel can stay in the centre, near Chaudanne where most of the lifts start, or further up in Mottaret, which offers a shorter route towards Val Thorens. The village has shops, restaurants and bars, but it is smaller and quieter than Courchevel 1850, and the evenings are more about dinner in the chalet than about being seen.

Restaurants in the valley

In the Michelin Guide 2026, L'Ekrin by Laurent Azoulay in Méribel has one star. Within skiing distance are also Courchevel's starred restaurants, with Le 1947 à Cheval Blanc and its three stars, and in the neighbouring municipality of Les Belleville is René et Maxime Meilleur at La Bouitte in Saint-Martin-de-Belleville, with two stars. The information is taken from the Michelin Guide's listing dated 25 October 2026.

Les Allues according to VERA PI

According to VERA PI, which is based on the French tax authority's register of property transactions, 978 homes have been sold in Les Allues from January 2021 to June 2026. The median price for flats is €10,192 per square metre and for villas and houses €10,584. Over the past twelve months, the median for flats has risen to €11,410, 9.9 per cent higher than twelve months earlier. Of the municipality's 8,089 homes, 88 per cent are second homes, and 1,750 people live here year-round.

That makes Méribel almost as expensive as Courchevel, where flats have a median of 10,862 euros. Compare on VERA PI's page about Courchevel and VERA PI's page about Les Belleville, where Val Thorens is located.

Méribel in figures

Next door, read our guide to Courchevel 1850. More alpine destinations can be found among metromode.co's destinations.