This page compares model forecasts. For a high-mountain outing, use Météo-France’s mountain weather bulletin and avalanche risk bulletin, with their dates, and the advice of a professional.
Sources checked on .
Operators’ images, refreshed at their own pace; they are not a continuous video stream. Click to enlarge; check the capture time on the image or at the source.
| Sector | Alt. | Now · wind | Snow 7 d | Freezing level | Rain-snow line |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Val Thorens (Tarentaise) | 2,300 m | 9°7 km/h | 3 cm | 3,350 m | 2,950 m – 3,150 m |
| 3,200 m | 3°8 km/h | 25 cm | |||
| Les Arcs (Tarentaise) | 1,800 m | 13°9 km/h | 0 cm | 3,360 m | 2,950 m – 3,150 m |
| 3,226 m | 3°8 km/h | 19 cm | |||
| Val d’Isère (Tarentaise) | 1,850 m | 14°5 km/h | 0 cm | 3,310 m | 2,900 m – 3,100 m |
| 3,197 m | 4°9 km/h | 14 cm | |||
| Valloire (Maurienne) | 1,430 m | 17°8 km/h | 0 cm | 3,380 m | 3,000 m – 3,200 m |
| 2,750 m | 7°8 km/h | 7 cm | |||
| Val Cenis (Maurienne) | 1,400 m | 16°5 km/h | 0 cm | 3,220 m | 2,800 m – 3,000 m |
| 2,800 m | 5°8 km/h | 6 cm | |||
| Les Saisies (Beaufortain) | 1,650 m | 13°5 km/h | 0 cm | 3,420 m | 3,000 m – 3,200 m |
| 1,941 m | 11°5 km/h | 2 cm | |||
| Arêches-Beaufort (Beaufortain) | 1,080 m | 18°6 km/h | 0 cm | 3,410 m | 3,000 m – 3,200 m |
| 2,300 m | 9°9 km/h | 5 cm | |||
| Chamonix (Mont Blanc) | 1,035 m | 18°6 km/h | 0 cm | 3,450 m | 3,050 m – 3,250 m |
| 2,767 m | 6°3 km/h | 20 cm | |||
| Les Contamines (Mont Blanc) | 1,164 m | 17°5 km/h | 0 cm | 3,450 m | 3,050 m – 3,250 m |
| 2,487 m | 8°6 km/h | 15 cm | |||
| La Clusaz (Aravis) | 1,100 m | 18°5 km/h | 0 cm | 3,440 m | 3,050 m – 3,250 m |
| 2,477 m | 8°4 km/h | 11 cm | |||
| Morzine (Chablais) | 1,000 m | 19°3 km/h | 0 cm | 3,510 m | 3,100 m – 3,300 m |
| 1,985 m | 11°7 km/h | 1 cm |
The freezing level is the altitude where the model puts a temperature of 0 °C; the rain-snow line is estimated 200 to 400 m lower. Source: Open-Meteo, updated every hour.
To read mountain weather, look at the altitude, not the village. This table compares eleven sectors of the Northern French Alps: freezing level (0 °C isotherm), rain-snow line, forecast snowfall and wind, with how they are worked out and their limits.
In short. The freezing level (0 °C isotherm) is the altitude at which the Open-Meteo model puts a temperature of 0 °C; the rain-snow line is estimated 200 to 400 m lower. The wind shown is the model wind 10 m above the ground, at each point’s altitude: on the ridges it can be stronger. These are model estimates, not measurements or a mountain bulletin.
The freezing level, or 0 °C isotherm, is the altitude above which the air is below zero, according to the model, at the time shown. It rises in mild spells and drops when a cold air mass arrives. It is a guide for snow, ice on a high road or frost on a hike, not a measurement.
To estimate how low the snow will fall, the site subtracts 200 to 400 m from the freezing level. So it gives a range, never an altitude to the nearest metre: the intensity of the precipitation, humidity and terrain can shift it. The rain-snow line does not tell you whether the snow will settle on the ground.
The wind in the table is the model wind 10 m above the ground, at the altitude of each row. On a ridge or a pass, actual gusts can be much stronger; no ridge measurement is shown here.
A valley town tells you nothing about the weather at 3,000 m. For each sector, the table gives the village and the resort’s high point: you can read the difference in altitude and temperature at the same moment.
Observed snow in the Northern AlpsIt is the altitude at which the weather model puts a temperature of 0 °C. Above it, the air is below freezing; below it, it is milder.
By subtracting 200 to 400 m from the freezing level. The result is an altitude range; it is neither a measurement nor a guarantee that the snow will settle.
It is the model wind 10 m above the ground, at each point’s altitude. On ridges or passes it can be stronger: no summit measurement is shown.
No. For an outing at altitude, check Météo-France’s mountain weather bulletin and avalanche bulletin, with their dates.
Text of this page last revised on . This date says nothing about how recent the images or data are: the webcams are supplied by the credited operators and their timestamp shows when the image was taken; model forecasts and official reports are separate pieces of information, each with its own time.