Want to turn off the sound for a few hours? Escape from the hustle and bustle of the resort (or your overexcited children)! Rest your overworked senses for an enchanted interlude in one of our favorite hideaways: the Versant du Soleil, the listed Champagny-le-Haut valley and the rare cembra grove on gypsum that slowly blossoms above Plagne Villages. Zen, let's be Zen...
1. The Versant du Soleil (Granier and Valezan): zero ski lifts on the horizon
The aptly named Versant du Soleil faces the high-altitude villages of La Plagne, on the other side of the Isère. Up here, there are no ski lifts (the last chairlift was dismantled in 2022), no tourist residences, no sports stores... Just miles and miles of marked trails to explore on foot, snowshoes, cross-country skis or ski touring, starting from two unspoilt hamlets: Granier and Valezan.
Feeling peckish? Stop by the stove at Chalet du Bresson for a gourmet break! On the menu: comforting recipes inspired by Monique, the grandmother of one of the three friends who had the bright idea of moving back in. Tell us about their pot-au-feu...
📍 How to get there? By car. In Aime (the village below La Plagne through which you arrived at the resort), take the D86 towards Valezan (parking des Pars or parking du Cézalet) and Granier (parking de Prachanié).
❄️ Equipment required? Depending on the itinerary you decide to explore and the snow conditions on the day of your walk: simple warm, waterproof hiking boots, snowshoes, cross-country skis or touring skis.
🏔️ Download the Versant du Soleil walking, snowshoeing and cross-country ski itinerary topo.
💡 Good to know: you don't need a ski pass to explore the Versant du Soleil Nordic ski area (free access).
2. The Champagny-le-Haut valley: an introduction to the Vanoise National Park
This little white paradise, classified as a natural site in 1992, will delight hikers and snowshoers, as well as skating and cross-country enthusiasts (24 km of cross-country ski trails in all). Here, you're at the gateway to the Vanoise National Park, a protected natural area of over 500 km² inhabited by France's largest colony of ibex (3,000 individuals!).
Don't forget to pack a pair of binoculars in your rucksack: you just might spot a few of these curved-horned majesties by pointing them towards the sunny south-facing slopes, facing the impressive Vanoise glaciers overlooking the valley...
📍 How to get there? From Champagny-en-Vanoise, take the free shuttle bus to the Le Bois stop (approx. 20-minute journey from the village center). By car, allow 15 minutes from the main village. Free parking on site.
❄️ Equipment required? Depending on the itinerary you decide to explore and snow conditions on the day of your hike, you can choose between warm, waterproof hiking boots, snowshoes or cross-country skis.
🏔️ Download Champagny-le-Haut's walking, snowshoeing and cross-country skiing itineraries, and check out our Nordic ski pass prices.
3. The gypsum cembra: a rare and particularly poetic geological curiosity
A cembraie is simply a forest of cembro pines (also known as "arolles"), and gypsum is a soft, water-soluble rock. So much for the down-to-earth definition of La Plagne's cembraie sur gypse... which in no way conveys the poetic beauty of the place!
Imagine instead a pretty meringue of hollows and bumps (known as dolines), dotted with conifers and populated by foxes, ermines and varying hares. Listen carefully: you might just hear the architect of the place! It's the speckled nutcracker, a bird that sometimes forgets where it has hidden the pine cone seeds it has patiently shelled in preparation for winter. The result: a forest of cembro pines (but also larches) that grows slowly but surely (50 years to reach two small meters high...).
📍 How to get there? On snowshoes! There's no other way to explore this remarkable territory, classified as a Natural Area of Ecological, Faunistic and Floristic Interest. To admire it from above without leaving a trace, you can take the Colorado chairlift (skis only) or the Funiplagne gondola from Plagne Centre. See pedestrian lift pass prices.
❄️ What equipment do you need? Snowshoes and poles (which you can rent here), good, warm, waterproof mountain boots, cozy but breathable (and snow-friendly!) clothing, sunglasses... Find all our tips for getting properly equipped here.
👥 Go in good company! The cembraie sur gypse is an ungroomed natural area, with no signage whatsoever. To explore it safely (and learn lots of fascinating anecdotes along the way), enlist the help of a mountain guide. These snowshoeing specialists know the area like the back of their hand...
