Le Lioran is the Cantal's ski resort, set in Laveissière above Murat. The ski area covers 150 hectares between 1,160 m and 1,855 m, with about forty runs, 17 lifts and a cable car that drops you below the Plomb du Cantal, the roof of the département. The 2026-2027 season is announced from 19 December 2026 to 21 March 2027, at €42.90 for an adult day. And the train leaves you a few steps from the slopes, which is rare. Here is what Le Lioran is worth, what it costs, and what awaits you when you take your skis off.
The answer in 30 seconds
| You're after | What awaits you | Best time | Budget |
|---|---|---|---|
| Downhill skiing | 150 ha, about forty runs, 17 lifts, from 1,160 to 1,855 m | 19 December 2026 to 21 March 2027, 9:00 to 17:00 | €42.90 for an adult day, €29.60 for a child |
| A summit without effort | The Plomb du Cantal cable car | A morning without wind, from 9:15 to 17:00 | €16.90 return for an adult, €11.90 for ages 5 to 11 (summer 2026 rates) |
| Cross-country or snowshoes | The Font d'Alagnon snow trail (voie blanche), Prat de Bouc (40 km) | January and February, after the snowfalls | €9.50 a day for an adult (2025-2026 rate) |
| Tobogganing | 4 free runs, a 400 m toboggan on rails | Free runs every day from 9:00 to 17:00, Déval'luge in the afternoon during the Christmas and winter holidays | €0 on the free runs, €4.90 a ride on the Déval'luge |
| Coming without a car | SNCF station at the foot of the slopes, free shuttles | TER regional train from Clermont-Ferrand (1 hr 55) or Aurillac (30 min) | A TER ticket |
If you are still choosing between the Auvergne resorts, our guide to skiing in Auvergne goes through them all. Here, we only talk about Le Lioran.
Where exactly is Le Lioran?
Le Lioran is not a commune: it is a hamlet of Laveissière, the village below, on the road that climbs from Murat towards the Col de Cère. Murat, the nearest small town, is 13 km away. All the addresses in the area are on our page for the commune of Laveissière, and our Le Lioran page sums up the essentials.
The ski area, what it is really worth
The numbers
The ski area has 42 runs and 17 lifts over 150 hectares, nearly 60 km of skiing in all, from 1,160 m in the resort to 1,855 m at the Plomb. Five entry points: the Prairie des Sagnes, Font d'Alagnon, Font de Cère, the Gare drag lift and the Col de Prat de Bouc.
The relief is pronounced: what comes down from the Plomb towards the Prairie des Sagnes is properly steep, while Font d'Alagnon and Font de Cère are gentler and sheltered in the forest. When the wind blows on the ridges, that is where you retreat to.
The Plomb du Cantal cable car
Inaugurated in June 1967 by Georges Pompidou, it leaves from the resort centre and climbs below the Plomb du Cantal, 1,855 m, the highest point of the département, with a viewpoint indicator at the summit.
From the top station to the real summit, allow about twenty minutes' walk, in suitable shoes. In clear weather, you can see the Puy Griou, the Puy Mary and the Sancy in the distance. When the cloud is down, you see nothing, and it happens often: check the webcam before going up. For pedestrians, winter operation is posted from 19 December to 21 March, every day from 9:15 to 17:00, last ascent at 16:45, when the weather allows. At the rate posted in 2026, the return trip costs €16.90 for an adult and €11.90 for a 5-11 year old, and it is free under 5.
Beginners and children
This is the resort's strong point. The beginner area has two magic carpets and the Baguet chairlift, open from 9:00 to 17:00 like the rest of the ski area. The Beginner pass at €23.50 a day (€17 for 4 hours) saves you paying for the full ski area just to stay there, and the ESF (the French ski school) takes children from age 3 with its Piou-Piou club, and puts the ideal age at 4 or 5. For experienced skiers, the Plomb and the passes give real descents.
Dates and lift passes 2026-2027
The alpine ski area opens every day from Saturday 19 December 2026 to Sunday 21 March 2027, from 9:00 to 17:00, with possible pre-openings on December weekends depending on snow cover.
| Pass | Adult (18-74) | Junior (12-17), secondary school pupil, student | Child (5-11) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Day (9:00 to 17:00) | €42.90 | €34.50 | €29.60 |
| Short day (11:00 to 17:00) | €37.80 | €32.10 | €26.50 |
| 4 consecutive hours | €34.30 | €28.90 | €24.50 |
| Late afternoon (15:00 to 17:00) | €28.60 | €24.80 | €21.20 |
| 2 days | €81.40 | €65.30 | €57.20 |
| 6 days | €223.30 | €177.60 | €156.40 |
The adult day pass goes from €41.30 in 2025-2026 to €42.90, an increase of about 4%. It is free for under-5s and from age 75, with proof. Insurance is €3 a day, €35 for the season.
Two good deals that people miss. The family pack: on a pass of 4 days or more, for at least 4 people including one adult (parents with their children), child and junior passes are half price from the fourth. And night skiing, every Monday of the December and February holidays, until 20:30, at €3.50 if you already have a day pass, €6.20 otherwise, free with a 6-day pass.
Without skis: Nordic skiing, snowshoes, tobogganing, ice rink
Font d'Alagnon, the free snow trail
At Font d'Alagnon, a 3.5 km snow trail makes an easy loop in the forest, 110 m of ascent. It is open to everyone, on cross-country skis, snowshoes or on foot, and it is free. That is where you go walking on the days when the wind shuts the top.
Prat de Bouc, the real Nordic area
The Col de Prat de Bouc is on the other side of the Plomb, at 1,392 m, in the commune of Albepierre-Bredons. It is the main entrance to the Prat de Bouc Haute Planèze Nordic area, which climbs in tiers up to 1,670 m, with cross-country trails groomed for classic or skating and snowshoe circuits.
As a benchmark, in winter 2025-2026 the access fee was €9.50 for an adult day, €6 for ages 16 to 25, €4 for ages 5 to 15, and €3 for a snowshoe or walker session from age 16 (€1.70 for ages 5 to 15). That winter, the area was open from 20 December to 22 March, every day from 9:00 to 17:00.
The Nordic area lives by the exact rhythm of the snow: call 04 71 23 26 39 before going up.
In 2025-2026, a shuttle linked Le Lioran, Laveissière, Murat, Albepierre-Bredons and the pass every day from Saturday 7 February to Sunday 8 March 2026, with two return trips a day, at €1.70 a journey. The ticket, time-stamped by the driver, entitled you to the reduced rate on the Nordic area's access fee.
Tobogganing and ice rink
Four secured toboggan runs are free to use, every day from 9:00 to 17:00: resort centre, Font d'Alagnon, Font de Cère and the Col de Prat de Bouc. Only the one in the resort centre costs money, if you ride back up on the Mouflets magic carpet. For thrills, the Déval'luge is a 400 m toboggan on rails in the forest, from age 5 and with no reservation, at €4.90 a ride; it opens in the afternoon, from 19 December to 3 January then from 6 February to 7 March.
The ice rink runs all winter: €6.80 for an adult, €4.80 for a child aged 5 to 11, €3.70 to hire skates, with evening sessions on Wednesday or Saturday. Bring gloves.
Getting to Le Lioran: train first, road second
By train, at the foot of the slopes
This is the argument we repeat to everyone who doesn't have a car. Le Lioran station, at 1,152 m in the commune of Laveissière, is on the Aurillac / Clermont-Ferrand line. You step off the train and you can choose between the Gare drag lift and a free shuttle to Font d'Alagnon and the resort centre.
From Clermont-Ferrand, allow about 1 hour 55, with several return trips a day. From Aurillac, just under half an hour.
In 2025-2026, the Region offered a half-price TER return ticket, lift passes reserved for train travellers (€35 for an adult day, €27 for a child) and 20% off equipment hire.
By car, through the tunnel
From Clermont-Ferrand, allow 1 hour 30: A75 to the Massiac exit, then the N122 through Murat, 121 km. From Paris, allow 5 hours.
The N122 passes under the Col de Cère through the Lioran tunnel, 1,515 m long, opened in November 2007. It replaced a 1,414 m tunnel opened on 4 December 1843, one of the first major road tunnels in France. From 1 November to 31 March, on all roads in the Cantal, you must drive on winter tyres or carry chains or snow socks on board. The tunnel also closes on some days, from 9:00 to 17:30, for its monthly inspections: traffic then goes by the RD 67, which runs through the resort.
The climate, for real
Let's be honest: Le Lioran is a mid-mountain resort exposed to the west, and its sky changes in an hour.
The wind. The Plomb ridges take everything that comes in from the Atlantic. In mid-February 2026, Storm Nils led to the precautionary closure of some lifts.
Fog. It settles over the Col de Cère and can stay there all day. The right habit is to check the snow report and the webcam at 8:00 in the morning, not the forecast from the day before.
Snow. It falls hard, then it melts. In winter 2025-2026, the resort recorded 168 cm of cumulative natural snowfall against 115 cm the previous season, and the share of open runs reached 87% in the third week of the winter holidays. For the really grey days, see what Auvergne offers in winter.
When you're not skiing: Murat and the valley
Murat, 13 km away
Murat is a Petite Cité de Caractère (a heritage label for small towns), built in basalt and phonolite, squeezed beneath three rocks, with a market on Friday morning. The rocher de Bonnevie and its basalt columns overlook the town, crowned since 1878 by a cast-iron Virgin 8 m tall set on a 6 m base. Go up in late morning, when the sun has melted the ice on the path.
The Maison de la Faune occupies four floors of a 16th-century town house: more than 8,000 insects and butterflies, nearly 800 mammals and birds in recreated settings, €5 for an adult and €3 for a child aged 5 to 18. Be aware that its only published opening times stop on 20 September 2026: no opening is announced for the Christmas or February holidays. The other addresses are on our Murat page.
Cheese, and the places we like to eat after skiing
You are right in cantal and salers cheese country. On the road to Saint-Flour, at the hamlet of Pignou (commune of Albepierre-Bredons), la Grange de la Haute Vallée sells its cheeses all year, Monday to Saturday: cantal, salers and bleu d'Auvergne.
On the other side of the mountain, at Pailherols, l'Auberge des Montagnes is a family-run hotel-restaurant. Its restaurant opens from 19 to 31 December 2026, on Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and the weekend.
A short walk
At Chambeuil, a hamlet of Laveissière, the Chambeuil waterfall and its mill restored by the commune, free to visit, can be reached by a 1.3 km loop with 55 m of ascent, 25 minutes along the torrent. In winter, take light crampons.
How many days, and where to stay
One day is enough to ski and go up the Plomb. Two days, with a night on site, let you add Prat de Bouc. A week makes sense with the 6-day pass at €223.30, the family pack and the Monday night sessions.
The resort has most of the residences and rentals, with free shuttles between the sectors. Laveissière and Murat are quieter, and the train from Murat or the C01 coach line (Murat, Laveissière, Le Lioran, all year) take you back to the slopes. To widen your options, our guide to a weekend in the Cantal combines Le Lioran with the rest of the département, and our winter in the Cantal page says what is open right now.
Frequently asked questions
The FAQ
When does Le Lioran open for winter 2026-2027?
The alpine ski area is announced as open every day from Saturday 19 December 2026 to Sunday 21 March 2027, from 9:00 to 17:00, with possible pre-openings on December weekends depending on snow cover. The Prat de Bouc Nordic area, for its part, opens depending on snow cover.
How much does a ski pass cost at Le Lioran in 2026-2027?
The adult day pass is €42.90, the junior (12 to 17) €34.50, the child (5 to 11) €29.60. The 4-hour pass is €34.30, the 6-day pass €223.30, the Beginner pass €23.50 a day. It is free under 5 and from age 75, with proof.
Can you get to Le Lioran by train?
Yes, and it is its best argument. Le Lioran station, at 1,152 m, is right at the foot of the slopes, on the Aurillac / Clermont-Ferrand line. Allow about 1 hour 55 from Clermont-Ferrand and about half an hour from Aurillac, with several return trips a day. A free shuttle and the Gare drag lift then take you onto the ski area.
Where can you go cross-country skiing and snowshoeing at Le Lioran?
At Le Lioran, at Font d'Alagnon, a 3.5 km snow trail welcomes cross-country skiers, snowshoers and walkers. The main Nordic area is at the Col de Prat de Bouc, at 1,392 m, on the other side of the Plomb: 40 km of cross-country trails and 20 km of snowshoe paths, €9.50 for an adult day at the 2025-2026 rate. Its opening depends on snow cover: the state of the trails and a webcam of the pass are online.
What is there to do at Le Lioran when there is too much wind or fog?
Forget the summit: the cable car only runs if the weather allows. Look at the day's report, which says which lifts are open. Otherwise: the covered ice rink, the Font d'Alagnon snow trail on foot or on snowshoes, the shop of a cheese farm in Albepierre-Bredons (Monday to Saturday), or Murat and its Friday morning market.
