Val d’Isère named world’s best ski resort as Europe sweeps top three in 2026 Snomad Awards

Val d’Isère named world’s best ski resort as Europe sweeps top three in 2026 Snomad Awards

Livigno and Val Gardena complete all-European worldwide podium as Canada’s Sun Peaks tops North America in skier-rated awards.

Val d’Isère in France has been named the world’s Best Overall Ski Resort in the 2026 Snomad Ski Resort Awards, with European resorts taking all three places on the worldwide podium.

The French resort scored 4.62 out of five, ahead of Italy’s Livigno (4.56) and Val Gardena (4.53). In the North American rankings, Canada’s Sun Peaks took the Best Overall title with 4.52 out of five. The worldwide result marks a change from 2025, when the global winner was Grand Targhee in the US.

The third annual awards are based on 153,854 resort ratings from skiers and snowboarders during the 2025/26 season. Winners are recognised across 20 categories, including family skiing, value, powder, off-piste, beginners and après-ski. The results come from first-hand experiences rather than paid nominations or an industry judging panel.

Rankings take account of average ratings and a minimum ratings threshold, with the number of ratings also contributing to a lesser extent. Snomad has recorded 377,826 resort ratings cumulatively. Its exact ranking calculations are not published.

“It’s interesting to see Europe take all three top spots for Best Overall this year, after a US resort won in 2025. Poor snow conditions across much of the western US may have played a part. More American skiers are also heading to Europe, where lift passes can be significantly cheaper and a week's skiing can sometimes cost less, even including flights,” said Dan Lever, founder of Snomad.

Beyond the overall rankings, Canada’s Kicking Horse won three distinct worldwide categories: Best for Powder Skiing, Best for Off-Piste and Best for Advanced Skiers. It also won North America’s Best for Expert Skiers. Austria’s Ischgl secured three worldwide Golds for Après-Ski, Accommodation and Groomed Runs, while Bulgaria’s Pamporovo was named the world’s Best Value resort and Best for Ski Schools.

Some lesser-known destinations also came out ahead of bigger-name competitors. France’s Les Carroz won the worldwide Best for Families category, Sainte Foy Tarentaise was named world’s Best for Intermediates, and Canada’s Calabogie Peaks took North America’s Best for Families.

Among the specialist results, Switzerland's Laax was named the world's Best for Snow Parks and Europe's Best for Powder Skiing. Fellow Swiss resort Verbier won European Golds for Off-Piste and Mogul Skiing, while Finland's Ruka topped Europe for Tree Runs and Quiet Slopes. Canada's Castle Mountain was named the world's Best for Quiet Slopes and North America's Best Value resort.

“A resort that is brilliant for experts may not be the best choice for families or beginners. That’s why the awards cover 20 different categories, and why it is so interesting to see resorts such as Les Carroz, Sainte Foy and Castle Mountain earning recognition alongside some of skiing’s biggest names,” said Dan Lever, founder of Snomad.

The full list of Gold winners appears below. Gold, Silver and Bronze positions and scores for all three geographical rankings are set out in the results appendix.

2026 Snomad Ski Resort Awards: Gold winners

A worldwide Gold may also appear in the corresponding regional rankings. This is not an additional category win.

• Best Overall Ski Resort: Worldwide: Val d’Isère; Europe: Val d’Isère; North America: Sun Peaks.

• Best for Families: Worldwide: Les Carroz; Europe: Les Carroz; North America: Calabogie Peaks.

• Best for Off-Piste: Worldwide: Kicking Horse; Europe: Verbier; North America: Kicking Horse.

• Best for Snow Parks: Worldwide: Laax; Europe: Laax; North America: Copper Mountain.

• Best for Eating Out: Worldwide: Cortina d’Ampezzo; Europe: Cortina d’Ampezzo; North America: Jackson Hole.

• Best for Après-Ski: Worldwide: Ischgl; Europe: Ischgl; North America: Aspen Snowmass.

• Best Value: Worldwide: Pamporovo; Europe: Pamporovo; North America: Castle Mountain.

• Best for Groomed Runs: Worldwide: Ischgl; Europe: Ischgl; North America: Brighton Resort.

• Best for Tree Runs: Worldwide: Brighton Resort; Europe: Ruka; North America: Brighton Resort.

• Best for Mogul Skiing: Worldwide: Jackson Hole; Europe: Verbier; North America: Jackson Hole.

• Best for Powder Skiing: Worldwide: Kicking Horse; Europe: Laax; North America: Kicking Horse.

• Best for Quiet Slopes: Worldwide: Castle Mountain; Europe: Ruka; North America: Castle Mountain.

• Best for Ski Lifts: Worldwide: Plan de Corones / Kronplatz; Europe: Plan de Corones / Kronplatz; North America: Mt St Louis-Moonstone.

• Best for Ski Schools: Worldwide: Pamporovo; Europe: Pamporovo; North America: Big Sky.

• Best for Accommodation: Worldwide: Ischgl; Europe: Ischgl; North America: Beaver Creek.

• Best for Beginners: Worldwide: Mayrhofen; Europe: Mayrhofen; North America: Tremblant.

• Best for Intermediates: Worldwide: Sainte Foy Tarentaise; Europe: Sainte Foy Tarentaise; North America: Sun Peaks.

• Best for Advanced Skiers: Worldwide: Kicking Horse; Europe: Val d’Isère; North America: Kicking Horse.

• Best for Expert Skiers: Worldwide: Val d’Isère; Europe: Val d’Isère; North America: Kicking Horse.

• Best for Snowboarding: Worldwide: Zermatt; Europe: Zermatt; North America: Revelstoke.

To see the full 2026 Snomad Ski Resort Awards results visit: https://gosnomad.com/ski-resort-awards/2026