A walk around the hamlets of Villar d'Arène

In the village of Villar d'Arene, on the edge of the Ecrins National Park with the sound of the river Romanche in the background, you will discover an easy trail made for everyone in a protected and spectacular environment under the watchful eye of the local wild life.

Departing from the village, this loop takes you around the hamlets of Villar d'Arène. Come and discover what these hamlets have to teach you about the local heritage and traditions. Along the narrow streets of our hamlets, you'll discover chapels and typical houses: take the time to visit them. Depart from the parking lot at the bottom of the village. Head for Saint Martin's church on the village square, which you'll have to cross to get to rue de la Forge, which is quite steep at the start. At the halfway point, turn right to enter the upper part of the village, and continue for about 200m to the path (cross-country skiing departure point in winter) just opposite. From this point on, you'll alternate between dirt tracks and stretches of road. 150m further on, you join the road leading to the hamlet of Arsine for about 1km. Once you've reached the large parking lot, turn left into the hamlet and continue through the next hamlet: Le Pied du Col to the large fountain. Then turn right to go up towards the fields and follow the farm track to the left. At the end of the track, you'll come to the main road, which you'll have to cross to take the path opposite, which crosses a field and leads to another farm track. Turn left to reach the hamlet of Cours, which you'll have to cross via its main street, along which you'll discover 2 typical fountains and the little chapel of Sainte-Anne. Continue towards the large Saint-Antoine chapel overlooking the village of Villar d'Arène. Then descend to the crossroads with its recognizable cross, and continue downhill to the main road to reach the starting parking lot by descending the Rue de la Forge, which is much easier to do than at the start of the climb. This walk can also be done in the opposite direction without any problem.