Orcières Merlette
About the area
Orcières Merlette in the French Southern Alps has about 49 km of marked pistes, and the balance leans clearly towards easier skiing: 22 km of blue and 3 km of green make up 52% of the area, or roughly 25 km. Beginners are well served, with four magic carpets for first turns and eleven short easy runs right next to a lift base. Confident intermediates will find 19 km of red terrain. Experts have little to work with: only 5 km is black, 9% of the total, and the biggest vertical on a single run is 557 m. Families can manage here, though the learning zones are the main draw.
The slopes run from 1,825 m up to 2,731 m, so the upper sectors hold snow reasonably well. Twenty-six lifts serve the mountain, mostly drag lifts (13) plus five chairlifts, three mixed lifts and a rope tow. The longest descent measures 3,110 m.
At a glance
- Pistes
- 49 km
- Lifts
- 26
- Altitude
- 1825–2731 m
- Vertical
- 906 m
- Runs
- 69
- Longest run
- 3.1 km
- Biggest vertical on one run
- 557 m
- Magic carpets
- 4
- Nursery runs at lift bases
- 11
Measured on OpenStreetMap data © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), via OpenSkiMap. Computed 2026-09-09. Official figures may differ.
Official sitePistes by difficulty
- Green3.0 km
- Blue22.4 km
- Red19.4 km
- Black4.7 km
Lifts by type
- 13Drag lift
- 5Chairlift
- 4Magic carpet
- 3Mixed lift
- 1Rope tow
Who should come here
Who should come here
Computed from the terrain itself — not a house opinion.
Beginners
yes
- · 52% of pistes are green/blue (25 km)
- · 9% are black/expert/freeride
- · 4 magic carpets for first steps
- · 11 short easy runs next to a lift base
Families
yes
- · 4 magic carpets
- · a base right at the lifts
Experts
not really
- · 5 km black/expert/freeride (9%)
- · longest vertical on one run 557 m
Best forbeginnersintermediateshigh altitude
Where to stay
Villages and towns with lifts to this area, and cheaper towns down the valley.
At the lifts
Cheaper, down the valley
Real towns with beds, food and shops, close enough to ski from.