Forfait Famille: How French Family Lift-Pass Discounts Actually Work

French resorts price family skiing through a handful of recurring levers. Most resorts offer some combination of these, rarely all of them, and the thresholds vary by resort and by season.

• Free for young children: the youngest kids ski free. The cutoff is usually under 5, but a meaningful number of resorts extend it to under 6, and a few go all the way to under 8. You almost always have to show proof of age at the counter to claim it.
• Forfait famille / tribu: a group of family members buying together (typically 2 adults plus 2 or more children) get a per-pass discount, or everyone drops to the cheapest rate in the group. Conditions are strict: same dates, same duration, one simultaneous purchase.
• Reduced child and junior bands: the enfant rate (roughly ages 5-12) and the junior or jeune rate (teens) sit well below the adult price. Some resorts add a separate etudiant (student) rate, often ages 19-25 with a valid card.
• Senior pricing: a senior band (commonly from 65) and often a grand senior or age d'or band (frequently from 72 or 75) that can be deeply discounted or free, which matters if grandparents come along.
• Multi-day and season breaks: the per-day price falls as you add days, a 6-day pass is often priced like 5 or 6 days of skiing, and a season pass can pay for itself if you ski enough days at one resort.

The family or tribe pass is the headline deal, and it works in one of two ways depending on the resort. Knowing which one you are dealing with tells you whether the discount is modest or substantial.

• The flat per-pass discount: each qualifying family member gets a fixed amount off. At La Plagne and Les Arcs (the Paradiski area), for example, a family pack has offered around 25 EUR off per person when four passes of 6 to 8 days are bought together (2 people aged 13-74 and at least 2 children aged 5-17). For a family of four that is roughly 100 EUR back, which is real money but not transformative.
• Everyone pays the youngest rate: the bigger win. At Courchevel, Meribel and the rest of Les 3 Vallees, the Family Flex pass has let a group (maximum 2 adults aged 18-74 plus at least one child aged 5-17) all ski at the child rate on a single payment, from 5 days up. That can drop an adult from over 400 EUR to the child price for the same days. Alpe d'Huez has run a similar everyone-pays-the-child-rate deal for groups of four or more.

The catch is always the fine print: same resort, same dates, same duration, bought in one transaction, with the family composition limits enforced. A teenager who ages out of the junior band, or a fifth adult, can break the whole group rate. Confirm the exact ages, day minimum and discount on the resort's own pricing page before you count on it.

For the littlest skiers, the answer is often nothing. Across most French resorts the youngest children ski free, with the cutoff most commonly set at under 5. A solid group of resorts pushes it to under 6, and a notable few extend free skiing to under 8.

• Under 5 is the safe default: assume free under 5 unless the resort says otherwise, and confirm the exact birthday rule on the pricing page.
• The under-8 outliers: resorts including Tignes, Val d'Isere and the Grand Massif resorts (Flaine, Les Carroz, Samoens, Morillon) have offered free skiing for younger children up to under 8. These policies move year to year, so verify before you rely on it.
• Bring proof every time: a free or reduced pass is not automatic. You will be asked for proof of the child's age, usually an ID card or the livret de famille, at the ticket counter. Even a free pass is usually issued on a rechargeable card, so factor in a small refundable deposit.

For one week of skiing, a multi-day pass is almost always the right call, and the per-day price drops the more days you buy. The season pass only makes sense once your real ski days at a single resort cross a break-even line.

• Do the simple maths: divide the season pass price by a typical day pass price. If the answer is fewer days than you actually expect to ski at that resort, the season pass wins.
• Count honestly: a family skiing one week a year almost never reaches season-pass break-even. Locals and families with a second home, or anyone doing two or more trips to the same resort, are the ones who do.
• Watch the area, not just the resort: a regional or multi-resort pass can be better value than a single-resort season pass if you split your days. Compare the total against your planned days, not the headline price.

The discount is only as good as your ability to qualify for it at the moment of purchase. Most families lose the family rate on a technicality, not because it did not exist. Get these right.

• Buy together, in one transaction: family and tribe passes almost always require all the passes to be bought at once, for the same dates and the same duration. Splitting the purchase usually voids the deal.
• Bring proof of family and age: have ID for each person and the livret de famille or equivalent ready. Resorts enforce the age bands and the family link, and they ask for it.
• Book online and early: buying on the resort's official site, ideally in pre-sale before the season opens, is typically cheaper than the counter, with savings that have reached the order of 10 percent or more at some resorts. You collect the pass at a machine or have it posted.
• Ask about large-family cards: some resorts give an extra discount on presentation of a French carte famille nombreuse, which can stack with other deals for families of three or more children.
• Read the band edges: if a child is about to cross into the next age band, the date of birth rule can cost or save you a tier. Check it before you pay.