The Vercors is a limestone massif between Grenoble and Valence, protected as a regional nature park. Villard-de-Lans is the main village on its plateau: a real village that lives all year, with its shops and its school, not a resort built for the winter. That is what makes the difference when you stay out of season.
Villard-de-Lans is in the Isère, on the Vercors plateau, a little over a thousand metres up and about forty-five minutes by road from Grenoble. The climb from the valley runs through gorges cut into the cliff, which makes it feel like arriving on a suspended plateau. The neighbouring villages of Corrençon, Autrans and Méaudre are minutes away.
The Villard-de-Lans and Corrençon ski area offers family downhill skiing, without the queues and the prices of the big Savoy resorts. The Vercors is above all nordic country: the plateau lends itself to cross-country skiing and snowshoeing over dozens of kilometres of groomed trails, through forest and mountain pasture. For children there is sledging and an ice rink in the village itself.
This is our favourite season. At a thousand metres it is commonly ten degrees cooler than in Valence or the Rhône valley, which makes walking pleasant in the middle of July. The trails start from the village: forests, mountain pasture, and for experienced walkers the ridges above the valley. The plateau is also well known for cycling, on the road and on a mountain bike.
The Vercors is limestone, and therefore hollow. The Choranche caves, with their straw stalactites, and the Luire cave are set up for visits and work well with children. It stays around ten degrees inside all year: bring a jacket, even in August.
The massif was one of the great strongholds of the French Resistance, and that history is everywhere: memorials, cemeteries, museums and villages rebuilt after being destroyed in 1944. The Resistance memorial at Vassieux takes half a day. It is not a light outing, but it is the best way to understand why the plateau looks the way it does.
Two high seasons: February for the snow and July and August for the green mountains. June and September are the quietest months, with the trails open and the village to yourself. November and April are in between: no snow, no season, and some lifts and restaurants closed. The village itself stays open all year, which is not true of every resort.
By car from Grenoble through the gorges, in just under an hour. In winter, snow equipment is compulsory on these mountain roads and the rule is enforced. By train to Grenoble, then by coach: regular services climb to the plateau, to be checked with the Isère transport network. Once there, the centre of Villard-de-Lans is entirely walkable.
Yes, and it is the plateau’s main argument: at a thousand metres it is commonly ten degrees cooler than in the Rhône valley. Hiking, cycling, caves and swimming in a lake or at the aquatic centre. The trails start from the village.
Yes. The ski area is family sized, with gentle runs and a ski school, and the Vercors is best known for cross-country skiing and snowshoeing, which are easier still. It is a place where you learn, not a performance resort.
To reach the plateau, a car or a coach from Grenoble. Once there it depends where you stay: from the centre of Villard-de-Lans, the shops, the ice rink and the start of the trails are all on foot. To visit the caves and the other villages of the massif you still need a car.
Scale and price. Villard-de-Lans is a village lived in all year, at middle altitude, with a family ski area and a strong cross-country tradition. You do not come for the vertical drop or the nightlife, but for a quieter and cheaper stay in the mountains.
Staying in the village centre means you can leave the car parked: shops, restaurants and the ice rink on foot. That is where our apartment Le Simone is, sleeping four, rented direct and without commission.
