Lyon to Courchevel: private car or train for travellers from North America

Lyon to Courchevel is about 187 km (116 mi) from Lyon-Saint-Exupéry Airport to Courchevel 1850, roughly 2 hours 17 minutes on a clear road by our routed estimate, and about 199 km (124 mi) and 2 hours 32 minutes from Lyon Part-Dieu in the city. The alternatives are a train to Moûtiers, the nearest station to the resort, followed by a taxi or bus up the mountain, or a seat on one of the ski shuttles that leave from the airport.

For one or two skiers travelling light, the shuttle or the train is the economical choice. A private car makes sense for families and groups with ski bags, for anyone arriving after a long overnight flight, and for travellers who want the pickup time to follow the flight rather than a timetable. Elly8.net quotes Lyon to Courchevel at a fixed price per vehicle on the web booker; on the published Courchevel price list, a transfer from Geneva Airport starts at US$525 and a short hop from the Altiport starts at US$120.

Is it better to take a private car or the train from Lyon to Courchevel?

The question is less about speed than about the number of handovers. The train plus the last leg means at least two changes with your luggage: airport to train, train to taxi or bus at Moûtiers. A shuttle removes one change but adds stops at other resorts and fixed departure times. A private car removes both, and the cost is shared by everyone in it, because Elly8.net prices are per vehicle, never per person.

See Courchevel prices and reserve

Lyon or Geneva: which airport suits a Courchevel trip?

Geneva is the usual gateway for North American skiers bound for Courchevel, and our Courchevel chauffeur service is built around that route, with fixed published fares and round trips. Lyon is a real alternative, and on a clear road it is not slower. Our routed estimate from Geneva Airport to Courchevel 1850 is about 148 km (92 mi) and 2 hours 34 minutes; from Lyon-Saint-Exupéry it is about 187 km (116 mi) but only about 2 hours 17 minutes, because more of the drive is on fast motorway before the Tarentaise valley. The Courchevel tourist office lists Lyon-Saint-Exupéry among its access airports at about two hours by road, alongside Geneva, Chambéry and Grenoble.

The deciding factor is usually your flight, not the road. If your best connection from New York, Toronto or Chicago lands in Lyon, or if you are spending a night in the city before the mountains, Lyon works well. If you land in Geneva, read our companion guide on Geneva Airport to Courchevel by car, which covers the route, the stops and the published fares.

Distances and times for Lyon, Chambéry and Moûtiers are our routed estimates on the public OSRM road router; the Geneva figure is from the Courchevel fact sheet. Winter conditions add time on all of them.

The private car from Lyon, step by step

Landing at Lyon-Saint-Exupéry. Give us the flight number when you book. The chauffeur tracks the landing, waits inside arrivals with a name board and helps load skis and boot bags, and waiting after a tracked landing is complimentary, which matters when ski bags take their time on the oversize belt. If a connection through Paris or another European hub is missed, message the 24/7 desk and the pickup moves to the new flight. Our meet and greet page explains the arrivals routine.

The road. From the airport the route heads east on motorways towards Chambéry, then along the motorway and expressway to Albertville and up the Tarentaise valley to Moûtiers. The last section is the mountain road to Courchevel, which the tourist office describes as wide and clear and times at about 30 minutes from Moûtiers in normal conditions; our routed estimate is about 24 km (15 mi) and 28 minutes.

Winter rules. Savoie applies France's mountain winter equipment law across the whole department from 1 November to 31 March. According to the Savoie prefecture, every driver must either have winter tyres marked 3PMSF or carry chains or snow socks for the driven wheels. Partner vehicles on Courchevel transfers in that period are equipped accordingly, and the chauffeur fits chains when signs or conditions call for them.

Arrival. The chauffeur drives to the door of your hotel or chalet in Courchevel 1850, Moriond, Courchevel Village, Le Praz or La Tania. Tell the desk the exact address and any access notes from your host, because some chalets sit on steep private lanes.

Price. Lyon to Courchevel is not on the published price list, so it is quoted on the web booker as a fixed, all-in price for the vehicle you choose, before you pay. It includes the chauffeur, the vehicle, taxes, standard gratuity and meet and greet; motorway tolls and parking are billed at cost. For comparison, the published Geneva Airport fare runs from US$525 in a Business Sedan to US$1,365 in an Executive Sprinter, and a Geneva round trip from US$1,000 to US$2,595.

The train to Moûtiers, then the last 24 km

Moûtiers is the nearest railway station to Courchevel, according to the tourist office, which points travellers to SNCF Connect for tickets. Lyon-Saint-Exupéry has its own SNCF station, and the Rhônexpress tram links the airport to Lyon city centre in under 30 minutes, according to Lyon Aéroport's access plan.

The train is a good option in three situations: you are already in France, perhaps after a few days in Lyon or Paris; you are travelling alone or as a couple with modest luggage; and your dates are fixed well in advance so you can book the train and the onward leg together. Check the timetable for your day, because connections vary through the season.

The weak point is Moûtiers itself. The tourist office lists two ways up from the station: the Altibus coach services and taxis. On a busy winter Saturday, the station forecourt is where several resorts' worth of skiers arrive at once. If you take the train, book the last leg in advance. A pre-booked train station transfer from Moûtiers to your chalet is quoted on the web booker, and the chauffeur meets you at the station with a name board and loads the bags.

Ski shuttles and taxis from Lyon airport

Shuttles. Lyon Aéroport runs a ski page that lists shuttle timetables and carriers to resorts in the Tarentaise, Courchevel included, and the airport's bus station sits about two minutes from the terminals. The Courchevel tourist office points visitors to Altibus for coach schedules from Lyon, Geneva, Chambéry and Moûtiers. Altibus describes itself as a booking platform rather than a transport company, so the coach itself is run by a carrier. Seats are sold individually, which makes the shuttle the cheapest choice for a solo traveller.

Taxis. Lyon Aéroport publishes indicative taxi fares to the main ski resorts. To Courchevel, the airport lists about 339 euros at the day rate and about 470 euros at the night rate, which applies from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. and on Sundays and public holidays. To Moûtiers, it lists 230 to 240 euros by day and 330 to 340 euros at night. Taxis wait in front of Terminal 1, Terminal 2 and the TGV station. These are useful reference points, and for a couple arriving on a weekday afternoon a taxi from the rank is a fair option.

Note how the night rate works: a Sunday arrival or a flight that lands at 8 p.m. moves the taxi to the higher rate. A pre-booked private car is a fixed price agreed before you fly, whatever the day or the hour of landing.

When the train or the shuttle is the right call

We would rather you book the right trip than the most expensive one. Take the train or the shuttle if you are travelling alone or as a couple with one ski bag each, you land on a weekday afternoon, and you are relaxed about waiting for a departure. A shuttle seat costs a fraction of any private vehicle. Take the train if you are already in Lyon city centre or elsewhere in France, and pair it with a pre-booked pickup at Moûtiers so the last 24 km is settled.

When a private car wins

Groups and families. An Executive Sprinter seats up to 12 with room for up to 12 bags, according to our fleet table; a Business SUV or Van, a Mercedes-Benz V-Class on European routes, seats six with six bags. Divide a per-vehicle fare by the number of skiers, purely as arithmetic for comparison, and a private van for six often lands closer to six shuttle seats plus a taxi from Moûtiers than people expect.

Children. Child seats are available on request; tell us the ages when you book. Managing a toddler, a car seat and four ski bags through a train change is the scenario we hear about most often.

Late, Sunday and holiday arrivals. The fixed fare does not change after 7 p.m. or on a Sunday, and the chauffeur waits for a delayed flight.

Chalet hosts and fixed arrival times. Many chalets want an arrival window. A tracked flight and a direct drive make that window predictable.

A night in Lyon first. If you spend a night in the city, the chauffeur collects you from your hotel, and you can stop on the way. For a city-to-mountain day with a long lunch, book by the hour; in Courchevel, hourly service costs US$95 an hour in a Business Sedan and US$190 in an Executive Sprinter, with a 3-hour minimum, and a Lyon start is quoted on the booker.

Planning the return to Lyon

The trip down needs more margin than the trip up. For a morning flight from Lyon, the pickup in Courchevel can be before dawn, and Saturdays in season bring changeover traffic along the Tarentaise valley. The desk works back from your departure: the routed drive time, extra time for snow if it is forecast, and the check-in margin your airline recommends for an international flight with oversize ski bags. If the forecast looks severe, we may suggest leaving the evening before and staying near the airport; that is a judgement made with you, not a surcharge.

Book the return together with the arrival. That way the car is already assigned when the weather turns, instead of competing for the last available driver in the valley. If your return flight is from Geneva rather than Lyon, the published round-trip fares on the Courchevel price list apply to that leg.

Combining Courchevel with the rest of Europe

Lyon is a natural hinge for a longer trip. After the mountains, the same desk books the Geneva car service, the Nice chauffeur for the Riviera, Monaco transfers and the Milan chauffeur for the Italian side of the Alps. Long drives between cities are quoted as city to city car service, and a second resort such as St. Moritz has its own price list.

If you are new to the resort itself, our guide to Courchevel transfers for first-time visitors explains the villages, the Altiport and what happens on arrival day. Rides in Courchevel are operated by licensed, commercially insured local chauffeur partners vetted through the Limousine Worldwide network; Elly8.net takes the booking, fixes the price and runs the 24/7 desk.

How booking works

1. Pickup and drop-off. Enter Lyon-Saint-Exupéry or your Lyon hotel, your flight number and the chalet or hotel address in Courchevel.
2. Vehicle. Choose the class that fits your group and tell us how many ski, board and boot bags you are bringing.
3. Reserve. The web booker shows the fixed price before you pay; confirmation arrives by email with the chauffeur's details before pickup.

Book any address

Cancellation is free more than 72 hours before pickup; 10% applies at 72 hours or less, 50% at 48 hours or less, and 100% at 24 hours or less or for a no-show, with refunds to the original card. Ski groups and chalet companies can book on account through travel agent accounts or hotel accounts. Elly8.net books the car only; flights and hotels go through our travel partner BookingWorldwide.net. Elly8.net is a member of LimousineWorldwide.Directory, LimousineAssociation.International, HotelsWorldwide.Directory and VacationsWorldwide.Directory.