The Three Valleys: €52 Million Lift Revolution
The biggest single story this winter is the replacement of the iconic Côte Brune chairlift with a state-of-the-art 10-seater gondola connecting Méribel-Mottaret, Val Thorens, and Les Menuires. In service since 1991, the old chairlift has been a bottleneck for decades—particularly during peak periods when queues stretched beyond tolerable limits. The €25 million investment by Méribel Alpina transforms this critical Three Valleys artery into a smooth, weather-resistant connection carrying 1,800 passengers per hour in heated comfort.
For anyone who’s endured a 40-minute queue in -15°C winds only to spend another 15 minutes on an exposed chairlift, this represents rather significant relief. The new gondola features bubble protection, heated seats, and WiFi—because even at 2,400 metres, one mustn’t be disconnected from email, apparently.
Val Thorens Gets the Face Nord Gondola
Val Thorens isn’t resting on laurels either. The new 10-seater Face Nord gondola, replacing the ancient Glacier and Col chairlifts, opened this December with €15 million from SETAM. With 22 Doppelmayr cabins carrying 1,450 people per hour, it provides vastly improved access to the Asters and Face Nord slopes whilst simplifying connections to Orelle via the Lory blue run.
The resort is also reopening the Cime Caron cable car following extensive renovation. The summit station at 3,195 metres now features a panoramic walkway, viewpoint, and the new Caron 3200 restaurant, wine bar, and café. Breathtaking views accompanied by overpriced Champagne—the alpine experience distilled to its essence.
Méribel’s €10 Million Rhodos Overhaul
Méribel Alpina is committing €10 million to completely refurbish the Rhodos chairlift serving the popular Rond-Point and Altiport sectors—beloved by families, beginners, and ski schools. The project includes mechanical refurbishment, complete electrical system replacement, and enhanced energy efficiency. Rather than building new, the resort opted for comprehensive renovation—a bold environmental choice prioritising sustainability over flashy new construction.
The 2030 Olympics Effect: €532 Million Rail and Road Upgrade
Whilst new gondolas grab headlines, the real game-changer is the €532 million allocated for southern Alps rail and road modernisation ahead of the 2030 Winter Olympics in the French Alps. This represents the largest alpine transport infrastructure investment since the 1992 Albertville Olympics—and it’s happening now, not in 2029.
The Aix-en-Provence to Briançon railway line is receiving €367 million in upgrades between 2027-2029, including track electrification, tunnel modernisation, and station refurbishment. Travel time from Marseille to Briançon will drop from 4 hours 40 minutes to 3 hours 40 minutes—making car-free skiing holidays from Mediterranean cities suddenly practical.
Briançon station itself is being transformed into a multimodal hub (€20.5 million investment), whilst the Paris-Briançon night train is getting €1 billion in new rolling stock. Contracts are expected by September 2026, with delivery scheduled well before the Olympic opening ceremony. For property owners in resorts like Serre Chevalier, Montgenèvre, and La Grave, improved rail access translates directly to expanded rental market reach—particularly among environmentally-conscious European tourists who prefer trains to short-haul flights.
Sustainability Takes Centre Stage
This winter marks a noticeable shift toward genuine environmental commitments beyond greenwashing press releases. Les Arcs’ Chenus gondola upgrade incorporates solar panels, rainwater recovery systems, and wildlife protection measures into its doubled-capacity design. Val Cenis is integrating sustainable energy into lift operations, whilst multiple resorts are prioritising renovation over new construction.
Saint-Gervais is investing heavily in snowmaking infrastructure on the Prapacot slope—controversial among environmentalists but increasingly essential as reliable natural snowfall becomes less predictable below 2,000 metres. The resort is also adding indoor picnic areas and ski locker facilities, improving the off-slope experience during poor weather.
New Passenger Experiences Beyond Skiing
Several resorts are recognising that not everyone wants to ski eight hours daily—a revelation that took the French Alps approximately 80 years to internalise. La Plagne is adding pedestrian-accessible areas with panoramic terraces, indoor relaxation zones with bay windows, and improved mountain restaurants. These aren’t afterthoughts—they’re €10+ million investments designed to attract non-skiing partners, older visitors, and families with young children.
Val Thorens’ new Cime Caron summit station exemplifies this shift. Pedestrians can now access the 3,195-metre viewpoint via cable car without skiing a single metre, enjoying restaurants, wine bars, and panoramic walkways that rival anywhere in the Alps. It’s Aiguille du Midi without the queues or the Chamonix prices—relatively speaking.
Events Calendar: World Cup Racing Returns
Val Thorens is hosting Ski Cross World Cup and Freeride World Tour events this season, with off-piste champions launching from Cime Caron’s 3,000+ metre summit before descending 500+ vertical metres. For anyone who enjoys watching genuinely talented skiers make the rest of us look pathetic, these events are worth attending.
Peisey-Vallandry is launching Apple Peak, a relay race combining uphill trail running (3.5km) and ski touring (2.5km) to the summit. Because apparently, some people find skiing insufficiently exhausting and require additional cardiovascular punishment.
What This Means for Property Investors
Infrastructure investment of this magnitude doesn’t happen often—and when it does, property values follow. The Three Valleys upgrades eliminate longstanding bottlenecks that have frustrated visitors for decades. Improved flow efficiency means less time queuing, more time skiing, and better guest reviews for rental properties.
The 2030 Olympics rail upgrades are even more significant for long-term value. Properties in Serre Chevalier, Montgenèvre, and Briançonnais resorts suddenly become accessible to car-free European tourists—a demographic that’s growing rapidly among younger, environmentally-conscious travellers. Three-hour-40-minute journey times from Marseille make weekend ski breaks viable, expanding rental season demand beyond traditional week-long bookings.
For those exploring Courchevel, Méribel, or Val Thorens properties, the €52 million Three Valleys investment signals resort confidence in long-term viability. Resorts don’t spend €25 million on single gondola replacements if they’re uncertain about future demand. These are 30-year infrastructure decisions—and they’re bullish ones.
The Verdict: Transformation, Not Evolution
This isn’t merely another winter season with a couple of lift upgrades. Over €100 million in Three Valleys infrastructure improvements, €532 million in Olympic-driven rail and road modernisation, and genuine sustainability commitments represent the most significant alpine transformation since the TGV reached the Alps in the 1990s.
For property investors, the message is clear: the French Alps are betting heavily on their future, and they’re doing it now, not in five years. The resorts making these investments—Three Valleys, Serre Chevalier, Briançonnais—are positioning themselves for the next generation of skiers who expect seamless lift systems, car-free accessibility, and genuine environmental responsibility.
Rather good timing for anyone considering alpine property investment, one suspects. The infrastructure is being built today, but the property value benefits will compound for decades. First-mover advantage, as the business consultants say—though in this case, it involves considerably better views and significantly more après-ski.
