Villars-sur-Ollon sits at about 1,258 m on a balcony in the Vaud Alps, looking across the Rhone valley to the Dents du Midi. It is linked with Gryon and Les Diablerets, and through them to Glacier 3000, the high point of the canton.
How to get there: a cog railway climbs from Bex in the valley to Villars, connecting to the main line between Lausanne and the Valais. Geneva is the nearest airport.
Slopes and lifts: the Villars-Gryon-Les Diablerets-Glacier 3000 area covers more than 132 km of slopes between 1,200 m and 3,000 m. Glacier 3000 holds snow from October to May, which extends the season well beyond what the resort altitude alone would give.
Cross-country skiing: almost 50 km of tracks and loops across the Villars-Gryon area.
What the skiing is like: mostly gentle and wooded around Villars itself, with the serious altitude kept for the glacier — a combination that suits families and mixed groups better than it suits specialists.
Where you stay: Villars is a resort village with hotels, chalets and apartments along its main street, and several international boarding schools that give it year-round life.
