Queyras regional park

The Park is magnificent for hiking; the air is clear, the mountains and valleys are magnificent and the views breathtaking. Plus throughout the park’s 650 sq.km there are many mountain trails across wild, colourful countryside full of both traditional flowers of Provence as well as those from the Arctic and the Caucasus.

The Queyras is one of the most beautiful and remote mountain ranges in the French Alps. Despite its comparatively high altitude (typically between 1,500m. and 2,500m.) it has the pleasant charm of pastoral mountains, with its Mélèze forests, fresh white water torrents, and classic alpine meadows. The highest, most imposing and well-known mountain in the whole area is Monte Viso (3841m/12,592ft), its summit lying just over the border in Italy.

The classic road approach to the Queyras is via the famous Col d’lzoard (2361m/7740ft) on the D902 from Briançon and Cervières. This is one of the most impressive road passes in the Alps, providing spectacular views, but usually made impassable by snow from October to May. But if you are staying with us in the Vallouise Valley you would normally approach via Guillestre 20 minutes south of us.

There is one route through the heart of the Queyras and over into Italy. It runs from Château-Queyras to Ville-Vieille and on past the Demoiselle Coiffée (a natural feature that consists of a vertical earth tower capped by a large flat boulder), continuing up to the Col Agnel on the border and down to Chianale in Italy and so on to Turin. The route is an ancient one, and many believe it to be the line taken by Hannibal and his elephants in the legendary crossing of the Alps.