Looking for the best place to ski?

This is a touch question to answer because the value of ski area pretty much depends on what you want.  Do you want challenging ski conditions, good nightlife, ease of access, good hotels? It all depends.

Here are some thoughts...

 1) I've been skiing all my life in North America, Europe and Asia. Generally, my priorities are:

a) Challenging slopes

b) Nice, moderately priced hotels

c) Good snow, nice weather

d) Decent apres ski activities 

My favorite places in Europe are Lech and St Anton in Austria, Chamonix and Val d"Isere in France, Verbier and Zermatt in Switzerland. For my money, these have the best combinations of challenging slopes and good night life.

2) I have always thought the Austrians run the best hotels in the world. They are clean, friendly and cheap. Many of the French ski areas have, in my estimation, pretty poor facilities. Chamonix is the exception. Les Trois Vallee, for instance, is known for having really unpleasant apartment block type condos.

3) Italy is a great place to ski for one reason only. The food. It is the best you will find slopeside in the world.

4) Austria is a great place to ski if flying into Munich is convenient. Flights to Munich are often cheaper than other cities near the Alps, and the drive to St Anton is not too long.

5) Chamonix isn't very far from Geneva, but it is generally more expensive to fly there than to Munich.

6)  Switzerland is more expensive than France or Austria and more expensive to get to. The two areas mentioned above are good places to ski, but I find most of the others areas not particularly challenging. However, if the steepness of the slopes doesn't matter to you, then there are many places in Switzerland you might like.

7) If you are American, you may find the "customer service" in Europe lacking. Many Americans complain about the slopeside and restaurant service. I've never thought this to be a big issue, but do note that many Europeans, after skiing in Colorado, mention that there is a level of attention paid to customers that is not common in Europe.

8) On a related issue, it is acceptable in Europe to walk on other people's skis. In America this is a big "no-no", so if you are American, get used to it. The French, in particular, like to make sure that Americans know that etiquette is different in France.

As for your orginal question, is Switzerland better than France, I would have to say the based on a cost/benefit kind of estimation, the value is probably better in France. But at the end of the day, I'd take Austria over both of them in a minute.

My recommendation? Lech in Austria. Lovely town, great mountain, access to hundreds of miles of skiing and great hotels. Easy to get to, great night life at the nearby town of Zurs, hotels are a great value and, lastly, the Austrians are very nice people.

Unfortunately, this year is not one to consider the "rank" of the ski resort. The only significant snowfall so far this year globally (and this is Christmas Day) is in western Canada. In the alps you'll be skiing on grass. Good luck, whether you're in Switzerland or France! Bring your hiking boots. Even Dubai has more snow than the alps! I just came back from a ski-week at Whistler in BC. Two metres of snow fell during that week. They had to close runs because of too much snow (avalanche risk). And, no I'm not a ski resort promoter... just someone who goes where the snow is. Even in "normal" years your question would be difficult to answer. Top 10 based on what? -Most expensive? -Highest vertical? -Most skiable area? -Best for families? -Best apres ski? -Most difficult runs? For European skiing, I haven't found a central database, but for North America... http://ski-guide.com ...is a gold-mine of data that could answer all those questions.

You might find this site of interest

http://www.skinet.com/skinet/photos/article/0,26964,1536279,00.html