Le Queyras - Hautes Alpes

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Coming from Guillestre, take the famous Route des Gorges du Guil to Queyras. Protected by its mountains and confined but never isolated in bygone days, Queyras has a very interesting history.

Queyras and its Regional Natural Park

The harshness of life in the mountains bred a community with a strong sense of solidarity, where survival depended on ingenuity. Working with wood, once a necessity, is now an artistic tradition producing furniture decorated with superb rosettes and wooden toys depicting local animals. The beauty of the villages and alpine pasture is heightened in Queyras by the unique light. It is an ideal destination for lovers of nature in all its forms, a timeless place where you can take time to relax and enjoy the surroundings.

In 1977, Queyras became a Regional Natural Park to protect and showcase the extremely rich but fragile heritage of the region – flora, fauna, architecture and food.

The highest village in France, which is known as the place where ‘cockerels peck at the stars’, is steeped in tradition with chalets built of round logs, larchwood fountains and sundials giving it a unique charm. In winter the village becomes a ski resort along with four of its neighbours : Abriès, Arvieux, Ceillac and Molines-en-Queyras. The villages of Ristolas, Aiguilles and Château-Ville-Vieille are a little set back from the winter sports facilities, but are nonetheless gateways to wide open spaces. The area is criss-crossed with tracks for Nordic skiing and trails for cross-country skiing and snow shoe treks.

Queyras, its family ski resorts, its gastronomy.

Lac du Queyras — Queyras offers a full range of winter sports in magnificent natural surroundings : downhill skiing, cross-country skiing, snowshoe treks, dog sledding, ice climbing and lots more.

There are plenty of different activities for all ages in summer too including walking, mountain biking, family walks with a donkey around villages, rafting, Via Ferrata and summer toboggan. The numerous paths and trails include the GR58 hiking path, Tour du Queyras, Tour du Mont Viso, Lac Miroir, Lacs Malrif and lots more. You’ll just have to come back again to see everything in Hautes-Alpes !

In winter, Col Agnel (2,744m) and Col Izoard (2,361m) can only be reached by cross-country skiers and walkers with or without snowshoes. Col de Vars (2,108m) remains open to traffic throughout the winter but is closed during heavy snow. From the top of Col Agnel, you can contemplate Mont-Viso and the whole Italian valley. Col Izoard has wonderful views over the Briançonnais, the Massif des Ecrins as well as Font-Sancte and Parpaillon which dominate the Ubaye valley. These are all names which are familiar to followers of the Tour de France as they are some of the HC (hors catégorie) climbs which provide the race with unique experiences !

The long winters enabled the alpine inhabitants to perfect traditional crafts, handed down through generations like making furniture decorated with carved rosettes for men and lace-making for women. Tickle your tastebuds with local alpine cheeses, honey, sweets and famous Croquettes du Queyras biscuits. These crafts and foods along with many others can be seen, sampled and bought at the local Maison de l’Artisanat.

Each valley in the Queyras region has its own particular architectural style: houses with Italian-style arcades in Arvieux, chalets ‘en fuste’ built of round logs in Moline-St Véran and bourgeois town houses in Aiguilles en Queyras. When exploring these villages look out for the splendid sundials carved or painted on chapel pediments and house fronts with wonderful mottos recalling the passing of time. It is impossible to talk about heritage buildings without mentioning Fort Queyras, the work of Lesdiguières and Vauban, which dominates Château-Ville-Vieille from its rocky peak.

A regular customer, who returns to Queyras every year, lets us in on one of her many secret corners of paradise « Lac de Roue is an absolute gem in a timeless setting. Walk around the lake which is surrounded by larches and observe how the sunshine reflects on the countryside. The sunsets here are superb ! I recommend walking through the woods for a few minutes to the two spectacular viewing points (Belvédères du Lac de Roue) one has a view of Fort-Queyras, the other Villargaudin. Absolute magic ! »

How to get to Queyras :

By air : to Turin (Italy) 153km, Lyon 261km, Marseille 258km

By road : RN85, RN75, RN94 and autoroute A51

By rail : to Montdauphin/Guillestre, TGV to Grenoble, Valence, Aix en Provence"