Where to stay near Grand Bornand Ski Resort: the 4 areas to know in 2026
Under a single name, Le Grand-Bornand hides two places that look nothing alike. Down below, at 1,000 metres, a village of shingled chalets that happens to be the capital of farmhouse reblochon and that lives all year round. Up above, six kilometres of road away and 1,300 metres up, Le Chinaillon, which is the snow front. One of our members settles the question in a single line: the slopes up top are good, the ones down below much less so.
Everything else follows. If the trip is a skiing trip, the matter is closed and you go up. If it is something else, and our members say precisely that the place is worth it in its own right, the village takes the lead again. That leaves two options nobody puts forward: the Saint-Jean-de-Sixt crossroads, from where both Aravis ski areas are within reach, and Annecy, half an hour down the road.
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The two ways to stay near Grand Bornand Ski Resort
The ski area is the same from all four bases; what changes is the morning journey and what is left to do in the evening.
| What changes | Up top, at Le Chinaillon | Down below: village, crossroads or town |
|---|---|---|
| The morning | You click in outside the door | Six kilometres, or thirty as far as Annecy |
| The slopes | The ones our members prefer | The same ones, after the morning climb |
| The evening | The hamlet, and not much else | A village that lives, or a whole town |
| Without skiing | Few things to do | Market, farms, museums, lake |
| Without a car | Possible, but it all hangs on the shuttles | Annecy, on the coaches from the bus station |
| The wider ski area | Le Grand-Bornand alone, unless you drive back down | Both areas from Saint-Jean-de-Sixt |
| The price | The highest in the valley | From the affordable village to the town, by season |
| Who it suits | A week of skiing, full stop | A weekend, a family, or a liking for the place |
How long to the entrance, area by area?
Times are counted to the start of the Chinaillon lifts.
| From | Time | How |
|---|---|---|
| Le Chinaillon, the snow front | on site | on foot The hamlet sits at the foot of the lifts. |
| The village, down below | 6 km | car or shuttle The road climbs in hairpins from 1,000 to 1,300 metres. |
| Saint-Jean-de-Sixt, between the two ski areas | 3 km | car or shuttle And as much again the other way to reach La Clusaz. |
| Annecy, half an hour away | 33 min | car, or Y62 and Y63 coaches 30 kilometres of road; allow 1 h 05 to 1 h 15 by coach. |
At a glance: our picks by traveller type
Pick the profile that fits you and go straight to the recommended area.
Map of the areas near Grand Bornand Ski Resort
See how the areas sit relative to one another before choosing your base. Click a name to jump to its description.
Le Chinaillon, the snow front At 1,300 metres, where the lifts start
Anyone whose trip is a skiing trip, and nothing else
The high hamlet sits at the foot of the lifts, and that is its whole point: you step out, you click in, you come back at lunchtime. It is also where the slopes our members rate best are found, and the extra 300 metres of altitude count early and late in the season. The downside comes in two parts, and both are real: there is not much to do when you are not skiing, and the village down below, the one with a life of its own, is six kilometres of hairpins away. A skiing base, and openly so.
The slopes up top (Chinaillon) are good, but down in the village, meh.
Where to stay in this area
Chalet-Hôtel & Spa Les Cimes Mid-range
The chalet of the high hamlet, with a spa, whose location score is among the best in our readings for the valley. You are at the start of the slopes, which is exactly what you come here for.
Pros
- The lifts outside the door, and the better slopes
- 300 metres more, which count in short seasons
- Nothing to organise in the morning
Cons
- Little to do beyond skiing
- The village and its life six kilometres of hairpins away
The village, down below At 1,000 metres, around the church and the market
Anyone coming for the place itself, in winter or in spring
Down below, the village has kept its shingled chalets and its life as a working commune: farms, a market, places to eat, and a calendar that does not stop with the snow, from the Bonheur des Mômes festival in late August to the biathlon World Cup in winter. This is where the capital of farmhouse reblochon lives, and two of our members say the same thing: the place is worth it in its own right, skiing or not. For pure skiing, on the other hand, you accept going up every morning, and the runs that start from here are the weakest of the ski area.
It is not just a ski resort, but a place that stays lively all year round.
Where to stay in this area
Logis La Croix-Saint-Maurice Mid-range
Right in the centre, facing the church, with a sauna, hammam and hot tub. The most reviewed address in the village in our readings, and the one that puts the market and the restaurants a pavement away.
Pros
- A village that lives, and not only in winter
- The market, the farms and the restaurants on foot
- Gentler rates than at the snow front
Cons
- The lower slopes, which our members find average
- Six kilometres to climb every morning
Saint-Jean-de-Sixt, between the two ski areas At the crossroads of Le Grand-Bornand and La Clusaz
Anyone who wants both ski areas, or the lowest price in the massif
The hamlet sits at the fork: Le Grand-Bornand on one side, La Clusaz on the other, both a few minutes away. It is the only base in the area from which both ski areas are within reach on the same morning, and the Aravis pass brings them together with Manigod, 215 kilometres of slopes instead of 90. The hotels are mostly on the La Clusaz side, where they run from the traditional chalet to the five-star, and prices cover the whole range. The trade-off is the car, or the shuttle, for every day on the snow.
Where to stay in this area
Au Coeur du Village Luxury
The five-star of La Clusaz, wood and stone, with one of the best location scores in our readings. The top end of the massif, a few minutes from Le Grand-Bornand.
Hotel Beauregard Mid-range
A big Savoyard chalet at the foot of the La Clusaz slopes, and by far the most reviewed address in the area. The compromise between the two ski areas, without paying centre prices.
Pros
- Two ski areas within reach, on the same pass
- 215 kilometres of slopes instead of 90
- The full price range, from chalet to five-star
Cons
- The car or the shuttle every morning
- Neither the snow front nor the life of a village
Annecy, half an hour away The town and its lake, 30 kilometres down the road
Anyone who wants a town in the evening, or who arrives without a car
Thirty kilometres of road separate the old town from the snow front, half an hour by car and a little over an hour on the Y62 and Y63 coaches, which leave from the bus station. That is a lot for a week of skiing and very little for a weekend, especially if you want a town in the evening, museums when it rains, and a choice of rooms on a different scale from the valley's. Annecy has its own guide with us, and it answers the question of which district far better than this page can.
Stay in the city
Where to stay in Annecy
Annecy has its own guide: neighbourhoods, prices, our recommended hotels.
Pros
- A whole town, and the lake
- Coaches from the bus station, with no car
- The widest choice of rooms, at every price
Cons
- Half an hour of road for every day of skiing
- No snow on the spot, and the gear to carry
Our tips for booking the right place
- Two villages, two different trips: The confusion never stops, because both carry the same name. The village is at 1,000 metres, Le Chinaillon at 1,300, and six kilometres of hairpins separate them. Up top you click in outside the door and the slopes are better, in our members' view; down below you find a market, farms, restaurants and a commune that lives all year. Check which of the two your accommodation is advertising before you book: the gap cannot be closed once you are there.
- The Aravis pass doubles the ski area: Le Grand-Bornand on its own offers around 90 kilometres of slopes, 86 of them alpine across 47 runs. The Aravis pass adds La Clusaz, Manigod and Saint-Jean-de-Sixt, linked by shuttles: 132 runs and 215 kilometres. Over a week, the difference changes the trip; over two days, it is of no use. And it explains why Saint-Jean-de-Sixt, which is neither one resort nor the other, is a defensible base.
- Keep your pass within reach: One of our members points out a detail nobody writes down: the pass carries a photo and it is checked at every lift. That is nothing once, and tiresome twenty times a day with gloves and a ski suit on. A dedicated sleeve pocket makes the problem disappear; it is the kind of thing you wish you had thought of on the first morning.
- Booking in the village believing you are at the foot of the slopes: there are six kilometres of hairpins, and the lower lifts are not worth the upper ones.
- Choosing Annecy for a whole week of skiing: half an hour of road a day, gear included, ends up weighing more than the saving.
- Buying the wider pass for two days: the 215 Aravis kilometres mean crossing over, and that takes a day.
FAQ: where to stay near Grand Bornand Ski Resort
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