Villar-D'arêne: Hotels and Accommodation

The Refuge de l'Alpe de Villar d'Arêne welcomes day hikers, is suitable for a first stay in a mountain hut, and serves as accommodation for ski touring and mountaineering in the Écrins Massif. It is also an overnight stop on the GR54 long-distance hiking trail.

You would like to book a hotel in Villar-d'Arêne.

Mountains and altitude

Villar-d'Arêne lies on a mountain slope facing south-southwest at an altitude of around 1,650 metres. The Alpe Valley of Villar-d'Arêne in Écrins National Park offers an easy hike and serves as a starting point for further mountain tours. The Chalet-refuge de Chamoissière is located on the Alpe-Plan at 2,106 metres, at the foot of the glaciers and at the entrance to Écrins National Park. From Arsine in Villar-d'Arêne, the chalet can be reached on foot via a path in around 1.5 to 2 hours. Haymaking and grazing strongly shape the landscape around Villar-d'Arêne.

Winter trails and mountain sports

The snowshoe loop Tour des hameaux de Villar d’Arêne can start at the village church, beside the D1091, or in Arsine. Three marked and freely accessible snowshoe hikes begin in Villar-d'Arêne. In the Nordic area of Villar-d'Arêne, there is also a marked out-and-back route covering 8 kilometres with 85 metres of elevation gain and a stated duration of 2 hours and 15 minutes. This Itinéraire piéton is also a free, groomed and marked footpath of around 8 kilometres from Villar-d'Arêne via Arsine to Fond de la Gravière. The Crête de l'Aiguillon is freely accessible, marked with orange poles, and is closed or opened depending on snow conditions.

The Tour des hameaux de Villar d'Arêne snowshoe loop is around 11 kilometres long and leads through the hamlets of Villar-d'Arêne with their historic ovens, chapels and churches.

The Via Ferrata d'Arsine is a two-hour route measuring 300 metres in length with 200 metres of elevation difference. It lies at the foot of the Meije Massif and at the entrance to Écrins National Park. The relatively easy route includes several exposed and athletic sections. There is an escape route halfway along; equipment can be rented from sports shops in Villar-d'Arêne or La Grave.

Nature and trails

The Jardin du Lautaret in Villar-d'Arêne preserves a collection of 2,000 mountain flower species from around the world at an altitude of 2,100 metres. The garden offers one-hour guided tours of its collection of alpine flowers.

The marked out-and-back hike to L'Aiguillon is 7.5 kilometres long and has 430 metres of elevation gain. It is suitable for families and offers a 360-degree panorama from the summit over the Romanche Valley, the Écrins Massif and its glaciers.

Culture and local history

The Church of Saint-Martin de Tours in Villar-d'Arêne was built between 1866 and 1870 from tuff, also known as travertine, from the Col du Lautaret. Its porch hosts exhibitions during the European Heritage Days as well as the Heritage and Mills Days.

Le Moulin à grains de Villar d'Arène is a restored complex of three mills that preserves the former operating systems. As an ecomuseum of Faranchin life, it displays historical objects, the processing of dairy products, a miller's clothing and how the machinery works. Guided tours are offered at the Four banal de Villar d'Arène, explaining the village's former way of life.

The “Au fil des Fontaines” discovery trail in Villar-d'Arêne leads to seven fountains and presents the village's architecture and traditions. The “SITE” sculpture by Antony Gormley was created in October 2021 and stands permanently along the hiking trail at Pointe de l'Aiguillon.

Local traditions

The tradition of Pain Bouilli continues to this day in Villar-d'Arêne; passers-by can sample local specialities such as Tourtes, Ravioles, Pompes and Crozets. The oldest written evidence discovered concerning the production of this bread dates back to 1450.

Other places in the same destination area: Puy-Saint-Pierre, Le Sauze-Du-Lac, Freissinières, Buissard, Saint-Crépin, La Beaume, Saint-Jean-Saint-Nicolas, Briancon

To the higher-level travel overview: Hautes-Alpes.