The jewel in the French Alpine crown, the huge, interlinked ski area of Les Trois Vallées can genuinely claim to have something for everyone. From trembling beginners to off-piste pros, ski-resorts don’t come much bigger or better than this. Or rather these; as the name suggests Les Trois Vallées consists of three adjoining valleys. In fact there’s now a fourth, the Maurienne Valley, linked by a recently-opened gondola.

In total, the combined ski-area covers some 600 km of piste, from a peak of 3,200 m as far down as 1,250m, with 37 black runs, 105 red runs, 101 blue runs and 52 green runs. There are over 200 lifts, capable of shifting an astounding 240,000 skiers per hour – though fortunately they are spread widely over the whole area, so queues are seldom a problem. And though the area is best suited to intermediate skiers, no one who has stood at the top of one of Courchevel’s infamous couloirs will claim it is a pushover.

In addition to the three main resorts of Courchevel, Meribel and Val Thorens, there are others further down the mountain, including Mottaret, Brides-les-Bains, La Tania, St Martin de Belleville and Les Menuires. These are fine in mid-winter when snow cover is generally at its best, though it can be a bit of a hike getting to the prime ski areas. Later in the season, as the snow begins to thin out, they can become a little more of a trial.

Of the three main centres, Courchevel is the biggest and brashest. In fact, Courchevel itself consists of four separate villages. Courchevel 1850 isn’t a happy-hour rendez-vous, it’s where the main skiing hub is, as well as the main après-ski scene. For the gourmet skier, Courchevel 1850 also boasts not just one but two Michelin-starred restaurants. Courchevel 1650 is a smaller, and cheaper, relation, while still further down the mountain, along pretty, tree-lined runs, Courchevel 1300, alias Le Praz, is the original mountain village, a quaint huddle of winding streets, slate roofs and traditional chalets for that genuine Alpine atmosphere (not least at the famous Bistro du Praz).

If Courchevel is French-dominated, Meribel is a distinctly British favourite. First developed as a ski destination in 1940, the village has remained faithful to its local architectural traditions, using wood, stone and slate from the Haute Savoie region and ensuring that the village, the prettiest of the main Three Valleys resorts, retains something of its original flavour. Val Thorens, on the other hand, makes no claims to prettiness. However it claims to be the highest ski village in Western Europe, so consequently has better snow for longer.