At the top of the Belleville valley lies Val Thorens, built to be Europe's highest ski resort. At the bottom lies Saint-Martin-de-Belleville, an old village with two Michelin stars. Between them: 15,000 properties and some of Les 3 Vallées' best slopes.
In this story · 4 sections
The Belleville valley in Savoie is the westernmost of Les 3 Vallées. The whole valley belongs to one commune, Les Belleville, and it contains three very different resorts. At the bottom lies Saint-Martin-de-Belleville, an old farming village with stone houses and a church. In the middle of the valley lies Les Menuires, built for mass tourism. And at the top, where the road ends, lies Val Thorens – the resort built to be Europe's highest.
For those looking for a luxurious ski holiday, the two extremes of the valley are the most interesting: the altitude and snow reliability of Val Thorens, and the tranquillity and tables of Saint-Martin. The property market across the whole municipality can be found on VERA PI's page about Les Belleville.
The Belleville valley in figures
- Val Thorens, altitude
- Around 2,300 m
- Cime Caron
- 3,200 m, cable car from 1981–1982
- Homes in the municipality
- 15,177
- Homes sold 2021–2026
- 1,748
- Flats, median per m²
- 6,901 euros
01Val Thorens: a project about altitude
According to the resort's own history, the project began between 1969 and 1971. The property developer Pierre Schnebelen is considered the founder, with support from politicians and officials in Savoie, and the goal was explicitly stated: to build the highest ski resort in Europe. The resort sits at around 2,300 metres, above the treeline, and celebrated its fiftieth anniversary in 2022.
In 1981–1982, the cable car to Cime Caron at 3,200 metres was built, at the time the largest in the world. It is still the symbol of the resort, and from the summit, on a clear day, you can see across large parts of the French Alps. The altitude gives Val Thorens a long season and snow that stays dry further into spring than in the lower resorts.
The resort has been named the world's best ski resort at the World Ski Awards, first in 2013 and in 2025 for the tenth time, according to Val Thorens. This says more about the resort's breadth than about luxury: here you'll find everything from student flats to five-star hotels, and almost everything is ski-in, ski-out.
02High living
The most exclusive hotels in Val Thorens are in the upper part of the resort, with direct access to the slopes. In the Guide Michelin 2026, Les Explorateurs at Hôtel Pashmina has one star. Val Thorens is car-free in the centre during winter, with cars kept in the garages at the entrance.
What you should know is that the altitude comes at a cost. There's no forest to ski in when it's windy or snowing, and visibility can disappear completely on an overcast day. Many experienced skiers therefore choose to stay lower down and ride up.
03Saint-Martin-de-Belleville: the village in the valley
Saint-Martin is the opposite. The village sits at around 1,400 metres, with stone houses, wooden balconies and a baroque church, and just outside lies the chapel of Notre-Dame-de-la-Vie. Lifts run up from the village and connect to Les Menuires and on to both Val Thorens and Méribel. It is one of the calmest ways to stay in Les 3 Vallées, with the whole system within reach.
Here you will also find the valley's most famous restaurant. René et Maxime Meilleur at the hotel La Bouitte, run by father and son Meilleur, has two stars in the Guide Michelin 2026. The village also has Simple et Meilleur, the family's simpler Savoyard restaurant, and La Table du M, which is new to the guide – all according to the Guide Michelin's listings as of 25 October 2026.
04Les Belleville according to VERA PI
Les Belleville is the largest housing market in Les 3 Vallées. According to VERA PI, the municipality has 15,177 homes, of which 89 per cent are second homes, and 3,488 inhabitants. From January 2021 to June 2026, 1,748 homes were sold – more than in Courchevel and Méribel combined. The median price is 6,901 euros per square metre for flats and 5,398 euros for villas and houses.
That is considerably lower than in the neighbouring resorts, and the figure conceals significant differences between Les Menuires, Val Thorens and Saint-Martin. Compare on VERA PI's page about Les Allues, where Méribel is located, and VERA PI's page about Courchevel.
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