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New Bus Stop in Mottaret Le Hameau
Posted 16th July 2020
BEN’S BUS CREATES EXTRA BUS STOP IN MOTTARET LE HAMEAU
We’ve listened to our customers and have added a new stop in Mottaret. Now all our services from Geneva Airport to Mottaret will make a stop at Mottaret Centre and Mottaret Le Hameau.
The Hameau area includes accommodations such as Residence Le Lac Blanc, Les Logis du Meribel, Residence Club Odalys Le Hameau de Mottaret and VVF Le Fontany a Meribel. There are also 2 hotels, Les Arolles and Hotel Tarentaise close by.
The area of Hameau is above the centre of Mottaret and so previously customers would have to take the shuttle bus to get from our stop in the centre up to the Le Hameau sector. The problem is that in the early hours of the morning and late in the evening, the shuttle bus might not have been working, which meant a bit of a walk. So our services will make a stop on the roundabout at the top of the road, so it’s just a very short walk to many of the large accommodations centres in Le Hameau. Click on the map to view a larger version.
Our services from Grenoble Airport and Lyon Airport still only make stops at Moutiers, but from here you can use public buses or taxis to take you onto your accommodation.
Our cheap shared ski transfers from Geneva Airport will continue to make stops at Meribel and Meribel Village, Les Allues and Brides Les Bains.
We hope you can make use of this new stop and that it will enhance your holiday experience.
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Charity Donations from Ben’s Bus Customers
Updated 3rd May 2026
BEN’S BUS CUSTOMERS HELP GENERATE £1, 154 FOR CHARITY
Thank you to all our customers who opted to donate 25p to charity when they booked their ski transfer in the 2025 / 2026 ski season. As promised, Ben’s Bus has matched the total amount donated.
This year our passengers generated £577 in charitable contributions. We’ve doubled that, making a total of £1, 154
We’d like to send out a huge thank you to all our customers who travelled from Geneva Airport, Grenoble Airport or Lyon Airport and ticked the box to give to good causes.
WHERE THE MONEY GOES
We gave £577 to WaterAid, a charity helping to deliver clean water and sanitation to people around the world.
We gave £577 to Shelter, a UK homelessness organisation.
Our Environment and Charitable Donations page can tell you more about our Policy for Charities.
A huge thank you from our chosen charities and and from Ben’s Bus to all of you who donated. Hopefully next year we can generate even more money!
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How to Avoid French Holiday Ski Resort Traffic
Updated 26th June 2026
DRIVING TO THE ALPS FOR THE SCHOOL HOLIDAYS? READ OUR TOP TIPS FOR BEATING THE TRAFFIC
If you’ve travelled to a French ski resort during the school holidays, you’ve probably experienced some heavy traffic. Bottlenecks can form at motorway toll stations and when 2 lanes turn into the 1-lane mountain roads, causing huge tailbacks. If it’s snowing, things can get really messy as vehicles pull over to put chains on or, even worse, lose control and cause an accident.
It can be a stressful start or end to your holiday. We’ve created some top tips to help you avoid spending half a day stuck in a traffic jam. Or read our suggestions on how to kill time at the airport.
WHAT ARE THE WORST DATES TO TRAVEL?
The French take holidaying as seriously as they take striking. And they’re good at it. They get 2 weeks off for Christmas and then another 2 weeks for February half term. In February they split the country up into 3 zones, each one taking a different 2 week period. This spreads the load evenly, but it means there are a total of 8 Saturdays in the winter season when the traffic can be pretty nasty.
Here’s a list of dates when you should expect a lot of cars on the road. You should plan your journey more carefully on these dates and take some precautions to make sure you don’t get caught out.
HEADING UP THE MOUNTAIN
19th & 26th December 2026 – You may find the days either side of these dates will be busier than usual too.
6th, 13th, 20th and 27th February 2027 – The 13th & 20th February will be particularly bad.
HEADING DOWN THE MOUNTAIN
26th December 2026 & 2nd January 2027 – If it is snowing on these dates, the traffic will be horrendous!
13th, 20th & 27th February and 6th March 2027 – The 20th & 27th February will be the worst dates.
The Annecy Carnival is on the 20th Feb and the Geneva Motor Show is on the 27th February. You should avoid Annecy after 8am if you can.
BE PREPARED – BRING PLENTY OF FOOD AND WATER
However you are getting to and from the resort, whether it be on a shared ski transfer with Ben’s Bus, a private transfer or driving in your own car, make sure you have enough food and water, especially if you are diabetic. Keep any medicines in your hand luggage and make use of the toilets before you get into your vehicle.
It’s not unusual for an airport transfer from Geneva to Tignes to take 5 or even 6 hours instead of the usual 3 & 1/2 hours. So bring a book, some games for the kids and lots of pre-downloaded videos to view on your device.
AVOID THE MOUNTAIN ROADS BETWEEN 7AM – 2PM
Plan your journey in advance. If you’re heading up to the resort, try to get to Grenoble or Albertville by 8am. Between 11am and 3pm the roads climbing the mountain can be moving at a snail’s pace. When leaving the resort, try to do it before 07:00 or after 14:00. The worst areas are between Bourg St Maurice – Moutiers (transfers from Val Thorens & Les Menuires don’t take that road), the ring road around Grenoble and the Lyon and Chambery motorway peages.
If you’re on a Ben’s Bus leaving Grenoble, Geneva or Lyon Airports between 9am – 4pm, you will probably hit some heavy traffic. Your Ben’s Bus eTicket will mention if we have allowed extra time for your journey. If you are heading to La Plagne, Les Arcs, Val d’Isere or Tignes, our drivers may have to take a legal break en-route. This is to comply with EU legislation and is designed to protect all road users. Use the facilities at the airport or in the resort before you leave as not all of our vehicles have toilets. If you need to go en-route, just ask the driver to pull over at the next convenient place.
LOCAL KNOWLEDGE IS GOLD!
Book your ski transfer with a reputable and established company. Ben’s Bus has been working in the mountains for 15 years and works with local coach companies. Our drivers know the cheeky short cuts and how to avoid the bottlenecks. Our coordinators consult traffic websites and traffic cameras and our drivers and reps report where the roads are congested.
Top Tip: Don’t rely completely on Sat-Nav as it might try to take you across mountain passes that are closed in the winter!
CHOOSE YOUR DATES WISELY
The easiest way to avoid the rush and the crowds is to take your ski holiday in January or March. You’ll also get cheaper deals on accommodation and the queues for the ski lifts will be much smaller. Plus, you’ll get that table at your favourite restaurant! This website is a good source of information about school holidays in France https://about-france.com/school-holidays.htm Of course if you have kids in school, then that’s not possible.
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Transfers to Les Deux Alpes for the Rise Festival
Updated 26th July 2026
AIRPORT TRANSFERS TO LES DEUX ALPES FROM ONLY £27pp
The Rise Festival is returning to Les Deux Alpes for 2026. The music and fun runs from the 5th – 12th December and promises to be one of the best Alpine parties of the season. Watch the video from previous festivals here.
Les 2 Alpes offers fantastic skiing and snowboarding and even better apres-ski. The Main Stage and Indoor Arena will be playing host to some big names, including Sub Focus, Chris Stussy, Badger, Hannah Laing and many more.
We sell the cheapest transfers from Grenoble Airport, Lyon Airport and Geneva Airport to Les 2 Alpes, with frequent services so you won’t have to wait long.
Book Now and use the Discount Code EarlyRiser5%2026 to get 5% off, including from GENEVA AIRPORT
HOW TO GET FROM THE AIRPORT TO THE RISE FESTIVAL
If you’re flying, you have 4 options to get from your chosen airport to the Rise festival in Les Deux Alpes.
1. Travel with Ben’s Bus: This is the cheapest option to get to Les Deux Alpes with lots of services. Put your flight times into our booking form and a list of bus times will appear. All transfers are carbon neutral and make 3 stops in the resort, so you won’t be far from your accommodation. Please note that Ben’s Bus is an independent transfer company and is not affiliated with or endorsed by the Rise Festival.
2. Hire a Car: Although there is lots of free parking in Les 2 Alpes, space is limited and can be hard to come by. Make sure you get snow chains as the mountain roads can be treacherous. When budgeting, remember to add in the cost of tolls and fuel.
3. Public Transport: This is the least recommended option as you’ll need to change at least once and wait for your connection. When you add all the costs up, our direct transfers cost about the same and are certainly quicker and less hassle.
4. Official Rise Festival transfers: These transfers are offered via the official Rise website, although they seem to be considerably more expensive than Ben’s Bus transfers.
WHICH AIRPORT IS THE BEST ONE?
Grenoble is the closest airport to the Rise festival. It’s only 68 miles away, which means the journey can take just 1 hour 45 minutes. A Saturday Single with Ben’s Bus costs up to £36 and a Return costs up to £63.
Lyon is quite close to Les Deux Alpes. It’s 97 miles away and a lot of the journey is on motorways. If there is no traffic, the journey can take just over 2 hours. A Single costs up to £43.50 and a Return costs up to £79.
Geneva Airport is the furthest airport at 134 miles away and the transfer usually takes about 3 hours. You need to cross an international border, which can sometimes cause delays. A Single costs up to £45.50 and a Return costs up to £83.
We know when the roads will be busy and allow extra time for the journey back to the airport during these periods.
GETTING THERE FROM GRENOBLE AIRPORT
We’ve laid on extra buses on the dates of the festival, so getting there is a breeze with Ben’s Bus. Travel with us and you’ll spend less time hanging around the airport and more time at the event. We run frequent services – up to 11 on a Saturday – and we operate transfers on weekdays and Sundays.
Make sure you book early as we expect to sell out. Upgrade to Ben’s Bus Plus in case your flight changes. The airlines operating to and from Grenoble Airport include:
– easyJet : connecting with London Luton & Gatwick, Bristol, Edinburgh and Manchester
– Jet2 : connecting with Newcastle, London Stansted, Birmingham and Manchester
– BA : connecting with London Heathrow
– Wizzair : connecting with London Luton.
– Ryanair : connecting with Manchester, Birmingham, London Stansted, London Luton, Bristol and Dublin
GETTING THERE FROM LYON AIRPORT
Lyon Airport to Les Deux Alpes Transfers take a little longer than from Grenoble Airport, at just over 2 hours. All our buses are non-stop and direct. We have 3 stops in the resort, 1 at either end and one in the middle of the resort. We have around 10 departure times a day, all connecting with the main flights to and from the UK and Europe.
Skyscanner is a great website to compare prices and see which airports you can use.
As always with Ben’s Bus, a rep will greet you at Lyon Airport and in resort to make sure you get on the bus and answer any questions you may have.
GETTING THERE FROM GENEVA AIRPORT
Transfers from Geneva Airport take the longest time so we’d recommend choosing Grenoble or Lyon if you can. However, there are loads more flights into Geneva servicing a lot more airports. Flight prices will also probably be cheaper, so Geneva Airport is worth considering if budget is your priority. We have up to 6 buses a day.
IMPORTANT! Don’t forget about the new EES Passport Control checks for non-EU citizens this winter! Read more about it in our blog post
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Ben’s Bus Reviews
Updated 23rd July 2025
BEN’S BUS REVIEWS AVERAGE 4.5 STARS & EARNS A 2025 TRIP ADVISOR AWARD
We’re delighted to have earned yet another Trip Advisor Traveller’s Choice Award! Our team work incredibly hard to provide our customers with a great service and we’re really proud and grateful for their efforts.
A big thank you also needs to go out to all our customers who took the time to review us, or who have been in touch with feedback so we can improve our service. We’re delighted that we continue to meet your expectations.
See what travellers think of us on our Trip Advisor page. Or find out why over 3,000 people rate us as Excellent on Trust Pilot.
A big thanks also to our staff who’ve worked for us over the years and rate us 4.9 out of 5 stars on our Ben’s Bus Glassdoor Reviews
We’ll work hard to continue to provide a great service for the 2025 / 26 ski season. All our services are now on sale, including our popular Geneva to Val Thorens and Geneva to Tignes routes.
Selecting your Airport here to see our destinations. Or you can select your Ski Resort here.
All our buses will once again be carbon neutral. We also have a new stop in Plagne Bellecote.
PREVIOUS BEN’S BUS AWARDS
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We’ve listened to our customers and have added a new stop in Mottaret. Now all our services from Geneva Airport to Mottaret will make a stop at Mottaret Centre and Mottaret Le Hameau.