Villers le Lac (730 - 1150 m)

Located between 730 and 1,150 meters altitude in the Doubs, Villers-le-Lac serves as the northern gateway to the Nordic skiing kingdom of the Jura mountains and the official starting point of the famous Grande Traversée du Jura (GTJ) cross-country ski route. An authentic village resort in the Pays Horloger just a few kilometers from the Swiss border, Villers-le-Lac offers a generous winter destination with pristine nature, stunning panoramas and a variety of activities for families seeking balance and wide open spaces.

For alpine skiing, the Meix Musy site offers 6 downhill runs totaling approximately 3 kilometers spread across 1 green run, 1 blue run, 2 red runs and 2 black runs, suitable for both beginners and advanced skiers. The Val de Morteau alpine area is served by 3 main drag lifts including the 480-meter Baby lift and the 534-meter Meix Musy lift, complemented by 2 rope tows for beginners with play areas equipped with arches and cones. The Chauffaud site also features 1 drag lift and 1 rope tow, while La Bonade offers a 1-kilometer drag lift serving one blue and one red run, ideal for families.

For cross-country skiing, Villers-le-Lac and the Val de Morteau constitute a true Nordic paradise with over 150 kilometers of trails groomed for both classic and skating techniques, spread across several complementary sectors. The Franco-Swiss Ridges site starting from Le Gardot offers ten trails including 2 green beginner trails of 1 kilometer each at Le Gardot and Meix Musy, 6 intermediate blue trails including the Meix Lagor and Essarts loops of 3 to 3.5 kilometers, 4 advanced red trails including the 4.5-kilometer Seignolet and 8-kilometer Martelottes, and 1 very difficult black trail with the 27-kilometer Franco-Swiss loop allowing skiers to cross the border thanks to the reciprocal agreement between France and Switzerland. The Combes site offers 4 additional trails including La Forestière and the 10-kilometer Saugette, while the Chauffaud sector provides 15 kilometers of forest trails. The area is the starting point for the GTJ cross-country ski route, a legendary 185-kilometer itinerary connecting Villers-le-Lac to Giron in the Ain, one of Europe's longest cross-country ski routes.

The resort also features 38 kilometers of marked snowshoe trails across 10 routes of varying difficulty levels distributed across the Gardot, Meix Musy and Combes sectors, including the easy 3.6-kilometer Gardot circuit, the 3.5-kilometer Ronde des Sommettes, and the difficult Bellevue route for more experienced hikers. The area also offers toboggan areas at Meix Musy and La Bonade, 2.2-kilometer groomed pedestrian trails at Meix Musy, and connections to other Nordic sites in the Val de Morteau and neighboring Switzerland. A quintessential family resort nestled in a pristine environment, Villers-le-Lac represents the ideal destination for discovering the joys of Nordic and alpine skiing in a friendly and authentic atmosphere, with equipment rental and dining facilities on site.