The livelier side of La Forêt Blanche, a spread of hamlets sitting high around 1850 m in the Hautes-Alpes, with the main ski station at Les Claux. It has more variety and a bit more buzz than Risoul, and it's the home of the Chabrières speed-skiing track — the fastest in the world.
- 1,850 m Village base
- 2,722 m Top lift
- 1,090 m Vertical
- 101 Pistes mapped
- 38 Lifts
Terrain, lift and aspect figures shown are for the whole La Forêt Blanche — Vars shares the area's linked lift pass. Its own base altitude is shown above.
The village
Guide coming soon. A full write-up of Vars is on the way. The live weather, snowfall, map and where-to-stay details below are all ready now.
Snow & weather
Live conditions from the mountain, plus the average snow you can expect month by month.
- Feels like
- —
- Conditions
- —
- Wind
- —
- Fresh snow (3-day)
- —
Live data © Open-Meteo.com
Average monthly snowfall
Terrain & aspect
For the whole La Forêt Blanche.
- Novice
- Easy
- Intermediate
- Advanced
- Freeride
Slopes mostly face N — 76% on snow-holding, poleward-facing slopes.
Aspect derived from run bearings · OpenSkiStats / © OpenStreetMap (ODbL).
Skiing & terrain
A level-by-level guide to skiing from Vars is coming soon. The difficulty split and slope aspect (for the whole La Forêt Blanche) are shown here now.
On the map
Legend
Run difficulty
- Novice
- Easy
- Intermediate
- Advanced / Expert
- Freeride / Extreme
- Unknown
Run types
- Downhill — groomed
- Downhill — ungroomed
- Downhill — gladed
- Nordic (groomed)
- Ski tour
- ☾Lit (night)
- △Not patrolled
- →One-way
- ❄Snowmaking
Lifts
- Operating
- Operating (private)
- Non-operating
- Lift station
Slope-gradient grading
Downhill / ski tour
- Flat<3°
- Easy3–14°
- Intermediate14–22°
- Advanced / Expert22–45°
- Freeride / Extreme>45°
Nordic
- Easy<6°
- Intermediate6–9°
- Advanced>9°
Aspect (sun exposure)
- N — least sun
- E — morning
- S — most sun
- W — afternoon
Legend after OpenSkiMap
Stay in Vars
The livelier side of La Forêt Blanche, a spread of hamlets sitting high around 1850 m in the Hautes-Alpes, with the main ski station at Les Claux. It has more variety and a bit more buzz than Risoul, and it's the home of the Chabrières speed-skiing track — the fastest in the world.
Lifts and pistes from the door — the point of a high, purpose-built resort.
Self-catering residences, the bulk of the beds and the flexible-budget option.
Catered and self-catered chalets for groups wanting the whole place.
From simple to high-end, with pools and spas to thaw out in.
Nearby resorts & areas
Other bases within reach — including the rest of the La Forêt Blanche.
Getting to Vars
Book an airport transfer up to the resort, or pick up a car at Marseille (MRS) — search and compare without leaving the page.
Ski data © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), via OpenSkiMap & Skimap.org. Basemap © OpenFreeMap / OpenMapTiles. · Weather data © Open-Meteo.com (CC-BY 4.0), ERA5 reanalysis. Editorial: mynext.holiday. Accommodation via Stay22; transfers via Kiwitaxi; car hire via Travelpayouts.