Travel Guide Gavarnie-Gedre

To say that Gavarnie is unique is an understatement. You're sure to run out of superlatives to describe the grandeur and natural beauty of this majestic site. At an altitude of 1,375 m, Gavarnie is the highest village in the département, an exceptional altitude given that few villages are above 1,000 m in altitude. At the end of the Pays Toy (made up of the three valleys of Luz, Barèges and Gavarnie), Gavarnie has always been a crossroads between Bigorre and Aragon in Spain. From shepherds and farmers, its inhabitants have become hiking and mountain guides and ski instructors. Long gone are the days when Gavarnie was a spa resort. Here, the climbs are far less mundane. Formerly a hamlet of Luz, Gavarnie became a commune in 1842 and was not accessible by road until 1864. The village was once occupied by the Knights Templar, who built a church and a hospital. Today, Gavarnie is an exceptional mountain site, both in winter and summer. The Cirque de Gavarnie, listed since 1941 and a Unesco World Heritage Site since 1997, attracts over a million visitors every year, who come to its feet to experience the grandeur of these mountains. Also part of the Pyrenees National Park, it is a "Grand site Midi-Pyrénées" Go and measure yourself against its wall, and you'll understand that words can't match its height. In season, private cars are not allowed to park in the upper part of the village, which is reserved for pedestrians. They are invited to park in the parking lots at the entrance to the village.