La Clusaz in summer – the guide to holidays in the Alps
This beautiful, well-to-do village in Haute-Savoie raises its bulbous bell tower facing the grandiose valleys of the Aravis. A stone’s throw from Lake Annecy and near the Mont Blanc massif, it is one of the most beautiful places to spend your summer holidays in the Alps. At medium altitude, La Clusaz has been endowed with a mild and pleasant climate. Here, we hike in a preserved massif in the heart of the valleys and beautiful passes of the Aravis. At the Col des Aravis and the Beauregard plateau, the view of Mont Blanc is spectacular!
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La Clusaz: presentation and location
30 minutes from Annecy, this beautiful village of 1,700 inhabitants is for us one of the most beautiful villages in Haute Savoie. At the foot of the Aravis chain, it spreads its beautiful wooden chalets covered with tavaillons (these small wooden tiles) on the slopes of gentle mountains. At the heart of the village, a few large chalets, residences and hotels huddled around the church form a charming shopping village, typical of the resort villages of Haute-Savoie.
Rather spread out, La Clusaz is spread over several sectors, all connected by shuttles in season. Around the village center, the urbanization follows the 2 main valleys of the town. To the south, you will find beautiful chalets for 3 km towards the Aravis and Croix Fry passes. On the east side, the chalets are scattered on a beautiful sunny slope towards La Balme and Les Confins. The dwellings are distributed between 1,100 meters above sea level (the village) and 1,400 meters in Les Confins.
Access to La Clusaz in summer
30 minutes (25 km) from Annecy and the motorway, La Clusaz is a relatively easily accessible village. It is located in Haute-Savoie at an altitude of 1,100 meters, on the road to the Aravis and Croix Fry passes. It will take you 2 hours to reach La Clusaz from Lyon, 30 minutes from Annecy and 5h30 from Paris. All year round, TGVs connect Annecy to the rest of France. Shuttles then connect Annecy to La Clusaz and Le Grand Bornand all year round in about an hour. A quieter and more ecological option than the car!
The +/ the –
- La Clusaz is a charming, rather chic village, located in an exceptional setting… beautiful in all seasons!
- Only 30 minutes from Annecy and 5h30 from Paris, La Clusaz remains one of the resorts in the Alps closest to Paris.
- You can find all kinds of quality accommodation in La Clusaz: chalets, residences, hotels…
- As La Clusaz is located at an altitude of 1,100 metres, the summer temperatures are ideal: neither too hot nor too cold! If it’s too cold, you can always go down to Annecy, 600 meters lower (around 4° warmer).
- Very extensive, the town of La Clusaz sometimes has the air of an urban mountain. Its landscapes are in fact populated by numerous tourist chalets. Higher up, however, the landscapes of the Aravis are grandiose.
Useful and useless info
- La Clusaz has 1,700 inhabitants for a capacity of approximately 21,000 tourist beds. The town has 79% of faulty second homes, either as cold beds (the owners do not rent their accommodation), lukewarm (they rent it a little) or hot (they are rented by a real estate agency or in the form of a tourist residence ).
- Here, we are on the terroir of two AOCs: Reblochon and Chevrotin. Reblochon is made from cow’s milk and is the main ingredient in tartiflette. This “traditional” dish was invented in the 1980s by the Reblochon syndicate, to find a compound for cheese stocks. He is inspired by the skin, a traditional recipe quite similar to tartiflette, made in a pan. Contrary to popular belief, you need a tasty Reblochon to make a good tartiflette. Buying a “tartiflette cheese” or a cheap Reblochon is nonsense. Chevrotin, on the other hand, is a Reblochon cheese made from goat’s milk.
To see, to do in La Clusaz
We mainly come to La Clusaz in summer for its authentic and chic Haute-Savoie village lifestyle and for walks in its exceptional setting. Occasionally, farm visits are possible in the town. Here, more than a dozen farms produce farmhouse Reblochon. If the latter can be bought in stores and in cooperatives (in Thônes in particular), we strongly recommend that you buy it directly from the farm.
In terms of activities, the resort has a museum (on skiing and agriculture), a cinema, a bowling alley, a swimming pool, a summer toboggan run, a beautiful balneo area and numerous spas. You can also learn about many mountain activities such as mountain biking, paragliding, via ferrata or canyoning. To test the rafting, it will be necessary to take the direction of the country of Mont Blanc, by the collar of Aravis.
Activities to book with our partners:
3 top hikes!
Where to sleep in La Clusaz?
La Clusaz is a known, historical and recognized tourist spot. There are beautiful hotels, residences, apartments and chalets for rent.
- There are nearly twenty hotels in La Clusaz, often beautiful establishments with a mountain spirit. In the heart of the village is the resort’s 5-star Relais & Châteaux. Right in the center of the village, it offers 41 suites and 19 contemporary rooms with a cozy atmosphere, a spa with hammam, sauna, 6 treatment cabins and a balneo-ludic swimming pool. The farm is a very popular 2-star chalet located a stone’s throw from the center of the village. Of recent design, the Saint Alban is an elegant and cozy 4-star hotel overlooking the resort. In a decor inspired by English clubs, it has 48 rooms, a bar, a large library and a 250 m² Nuxe spa with heated indoor pool, sauna, sensory shower, ice grotto and two treatment cabins…
- Lovers of guest rooms will take the direction of Barnaa beautiful guest house located 200 m from the ski lifts, on the heights of the village. The Trace is a bed and breakfast located on the mountain, on a beautiful slope exposed to the late afternoon sun.
- Side apartments in residences, The Mendi Alde is a recent residence with spa which offers 178 apartments located 5 minutes walk from the village. Residences The tops and The Great Alps are 2 very beautiful residences of the PVG Group, a local group specializing in hotels between Annecy and La Clusaz. Both are close to the center. They have top-of-the-range amenities and a swimming pool and wellness area.
- You will also find at La Clusaz all kinds of apartment and chalet rentals, in all price ranges. The resort has made a specialty of XXL chalets with top-of-the-range equipment. This architect’s chalet located at the Col de la Croix Fry is undoubtedly one of the most beautiful in the Alps.
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Similar destinations
La Clusaz is an authentic, somewhat chic village. In Haute-Savoie, Le Grand-Bornand, Les Gets and Morzine can be treated as similar in their characteristics. In the Southern Alps, Serre Chevalier and Montgenèvre also have similar characteristics.
To go longer:
See the hotels in La Clusaz
Book an apartment at the best price in a residence in La Clusaz
Book with a private individual in La Clusaz
Discover La Clusaz in winter
See the station website