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Morzine is a charming French ski resort in the heart of the vast Port du Soleil ski area. It's hugely popular among British skiers from December through to April - and Christmas is no exception.
Thanks to its traditional, buzzing high street, top quality ski slopes, and friendly atmosphere, people return to Morzine time and time again for their annual ski holiday, and we can't think of a better way to experience the resort than while its in the thralls of its Christmas events calendar.
You'll find Christmas is a cosy time in Morzine, with beautiful lights, markets and family-friendly events and activities packing out a busy festive calendar.
For those keen to get on the mountain, the resort tends to open for skiing in and around the penultimate weekend in December, while the neighbouring and easy-to-reach resort of Avoriaz opens a week earlier, roughly around the second weekend of December.
If you're wondering whether it's worth heading to Morzine for a Christmas ski holiday, this article has you covered. We'll clue you into what usually goes on, what the snow's like, where to go for a delicious Christmas dinner - and more!
Christmas in Morzine: Key Information
| What's on | Details |
|---|---|
| Lifts opening date | Penultimate weekend of December (Neighbouring Avoriaz usually opens the week before) |
| Snow depth | December 20/21: 81cm | December 21/22: 94cm | December 22/23: 102cm |
| Christmas market | Mid December to the 1st January |
| Christmas events | 5 |
| Christmas eve | Live band, Christmas market, festive activities (details below) |
What’s the snow like in Morzine around Christmas?
As previously mentioned, Morzine has, in recent years, opened its local slopes around the penultimate weekend of December (tying in with Christmas ski breaks). You can check out Morzine's snow history here. This is one week later than neighbouring Avoriaz, which, at 1,800m, is slightly higher up the mountains and therefore offers more reliable early season snow cover.
But hold your horses! That doesn’t mean that you need to rush off to book accommodation in Avoriaz instead. Morzine and Avoriaz are really well connected, so you can hop on a bus (they come every 7 minutes) from outside the tourist office, police station (Marie) or the Pleney lift and be at the bottom of the Prodains cable car in 15 minutes.
The Prodains cable car will then whizz you up to Avoriaz in just 4 minutes. And if you’re visiting once Morzine’s local slopes are open for business, then you can rest assured the skiing is still pretty good - over the last 11 years, Morzine has averaged about 28cm of snowfall and 2.7 snow days each week in December.
If, on the off chance, Morzine’s slopes are slightly limited when you arrive, you also have the whole of the Portes du Soleil ski area at your disposal, which is one of the world’s most famous. Ski from Morzine to the slightly higher ski area of Les Gets or head up to Avoriaz and ski over to Chatel and the Swiss resorts of Morgins and Champery.
Morzine's festive calendar
Away from the skiing, Morzine has plenty of events to enjoy during the run up to and time after Christmas. Here are just some of them:
‘The geese in fanfare’
This wonderfully bizarre tradition occurs in the run up to Christmas Day - likely on or around the evening of Thursday 12th December 2024 - and takes place in Morzine town centre, in the ‘Enchanted Village’ among the lights and music.
Here, a flock of about eleven geese skilfully march around town to the beat of drums and whistles during four twenty-minute stints.
Wonderland Light Juggling
Another chaotic French tradition, this one involves incredible Alice in Wonderland-inspired costumes, with a white rabbit, Mad Hatter and angry queen among the characters.
The show is put on by street theatre specialists, the Archibal Caramantran company, and provides a dazzling display of lights, action and fun for all.
Alta Lumina Enchanted Night Walk (Les Gets)
In the nearby village of Les Gets, people set off on an organised walk through the Enchanted Forest, following a ‘music-maker and his hot air balloon’. Even if you can’t speak French, it’s worth soaking in the atmosphere as a magical story gets told, with various light shows, music, imagery and set designs. There are also multiple chances to interact with the performance. Check out the magical event below!
Madame Ballon
On Christmas Day you’d be crazy not to make time to get outside in the evening and see the mesmerising Madame Ballon sweep across Morzine. Wrapped in gold and surrounded by about a hundred matching balloons, the town lines up to see her trot through - before everyone has a drink and mingles.
Luminous Rabbits
On the 30th of December each year Morzine is amazed by two huge, luminous rabbits which stroll around the village, accompanied by traditional music. Children (and adults!) can get snaps with the creatures, while the whole town comes to socialise and soak in the second-last day of the year.
New Year’s Fireworks
On New Year’s Eve, there is a classic torchlight parade of the ski school instructors down the big Pleney slope at about 6pm, with attendees sipping on vin chaud and hot chocolate. Following this, there is a fireworks display, and then usually a DJ plays the tunes from 11pm until 1am.
What’s Christmas Eve like in Morzine?
Christmas Eve is celebrated just as much as the other days, although there is one key difference - everyone receives their gifts the day before Christmas in France, unlike us Brits.
As a result, Morzine’s ‘Enchanted Village’ town centre welcomes “25 D - the hidden sons of Santa Claus” - a band of musicians draped in standard Santa outfits, who hand out home-made gifts to those in attendance, while also playing live music. It’s not traditional carols though - instead it’s “way cooler”.
Meanwhile, most of the activities in the town centre carry on as normal - check the section above and below for more specific details of the activities.
Does Morzine have a Christmas market?
Morzine has a town centre which transforms into a self-branded ‘Enchanted Village’, a fabulous Christmas market that usually opens from mid-December until the 1st of January.
The Enchanted Village boasts a range of attractions, including an ice-skating rink, a ferris wheel and various pop-up wooden stalls selling food and drink. The two weeks or so mainly focus on the live music and various artistic performances, meaning it really feels alive compared to many places simply selling food, drinks and gifts.
The village usually kicks off with free Green Chaud drinks (chartreuse liqueur and hot chocolate - although normal hot chocolate is definitely available for the youngsters!) as well as candy floss and a live music performance.
And just to top things off, Father Christmas (Pere Noël) will be sure to make an appearance or three.
Where to go for Christmas dinner in Morzine
For those self-catering, treat yourself to Christmas dinner in any of these restaurants.
La Rotonde
This popular restaurant tends to book out in advance, so make sure you get your reservations in early. The food at La Rotonde is fairly reasonably priced, and out of over 700 reviews on Tripadvisor it has garnered a trustworthy 4 out of 5 score.
La Chaudanne
Another strong choice, La Chaudanne is known for its strong vegetarian offerings - although still scores very highly in the meat department. With over 760 Tripadvisor reviews and a 4.5 out of 5 overall rating, you’d be very happy if you celebrated Christmas here.
La Chamade
This restaurant is also a favourite in town, and in previous years has offered, among other choices, roasted duckling, fish and shellfish marinade and an alpine platter from their ‘cheese cave’. With a strong 4 out of 5 score from a whopping 1,170 reviews on Tripadvisor, La Chamade really is the real deal.
In Summary
If you’re after a Christmas ski break that’s absolutely packed full of fascinating and wonderfully bizarre activities, then a Morzine ski holiday is absolutely your answer. Its schedule is sprinkled with music, food, and all sorts of events - with notable ones including the Alta Lumina night walk, the New Year’s fireworks and the marching geese.
You can also ski on Christmas Day in Morzine and the surrounding Portes du Soleil area. And remember, if you’re here slightly before the Morzine skiing opens, it’s just a fifteen-minute bus ride and a four-minute cable car to Avoriaz which is that bit higher in the mountains and is therefore open earlier.
Book your festive ski holiday to Morzine with Iglu Ski
If Christmas in Morzine sounds right up your street, then we’ll make sure it really hits the spot by catering to your every need. Here at Iglu Ski we’ve got a vast range of accommodation, packages and all the extra bits and pieces you need to complete a skiing holiday, like ski hire and lift passes.
We’ve got hundreds of deals on all the best chalets, apartments and hotels, and have spent the past 25 years sending people on their dream ski holiday to Morzine. Check out the latest Morzine deals here.