Travel Guide Les Houches

The authentic mountain village of Les Houches is a renowned family ski resort, home to the legendary Verte des Houches piste (not recommended for beginners...), which is also the venue for the Kandahar Alpine Ski World Cup. The resort has been awarded the "famille plus" label, and offers a wide range of activities for families. There are many attractions in this village, whose particularity is that it is very extensive: between 850 metres at its lowest point and 4,304 metres at its highest point, the Dôme du Goûter. This is the royal road used by mountaineers from all over the world to reach the majestic Mont Blanc and, from Bellevue, to climb the impressive north face of the Bionassay. Its many hamlets and oratories, chapels and isolated farms can be discovered on beautiful hikes through forests and crystalline peaks. You'll be amazed by the Baroque richness of the Saint-Jean-Baptiste church - one of the most beautiful in the département - the statue of Christ the King measuring over 25 metres, and the prestigious École de Physique des Houches, founded by the young physicist Cécile de Witt in 1951. Attached to Grenoble's Joseph Fourier University, it has welcomed such eminent physicists as Pierre-Gilles de Gennes and Georges Charpak. Les Houches, a village apart and a breath of fresh air in its own right.