the Écrins
parc national des Écrins
REGION: Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur

The national park is located roughly 50km southeast of Grenoble and 20km west of Briançon - one of the most spectacular regions of the Alps with massive mountains hung with glaciers and more than 100 summits over 3000m high. This is terrain for serious climbers, walkers and in the winter skiers. In late spring and summer you find a profusion of flowers.

At its highest point, the park rises to 4,102 m (13,458 ft) at the Barre des Ecrins and covers 918 km² (354 mi²) of high mountain areas, with high peaks, glacier fields, glacier valleys, alpine pastures, subalpine woodlands and lakes. Its borders mostly correspond to those of the Massif des Ecrins, delimited by the main valleys of rivers Drac, Romanche and Durance.It attracts up to 800,000 tourists each year. The park has been awarded the European Diploma of Protected Areas by the Council of Europe.

© ATOUT FRANCE/R-Cast

This is a marvellous area, worthy of protection. But visitors are far from excluded. Specially designed nature trail footpaths, observation points, information points and the Park house are just some of the ways of discovering the richness of the Ecrins National Park.In the most environmentally friendly way possible, go in search of the extremely varied fauna and flora as you cross contrasting landscapes and settings.

© ATOUT FRANCE/Stéphane Frances