Between Lake Geneva and Mont-Blanc 

The area between the largest lake in the Alps and the highest summit in Europe offers pilots an enormous variety of flying conditions.
Whether you are delighting in the smooth soaring conditions that occur above Le Salève on summer evenings, or testing yourself against the more unpredictable air currents of the alpine valleys with their powerful thermals and complex glacial winds, the views are grandiose!

Free flyers at Châtel enjoy an exceptional vista across Lake Geneva to the Jura, the Valais Alps and Mont Blanc; L'Etale, south of La Clusaz/Le Grand Bornand, is an excellent starting point for cross-country flights; Passy Plaine Joux offers year-round flying, and the towering summits of the Mont Blanc Range are accessible from Planpraz (2233 m), near Chamonix, and Mont-Lachat (2113 m), near Saint-Gervais.

A little history: The first attempt to fly with a parachute from a ground take off was made at Mieussy in 1985 and the first free flying school was set up in Samoëns, in the Giffre Valley, in 1973!

Lake Annecy, Lake Aiguebelette and Lake Bourget

As all three lakes are surrounded by mountains that tower more than 1000 metres above the water, even top to bottom flights can be quite long. And when the aerology is right, superb cross-country flights can be made from the take offs at Montmin, the Col de la Forclaz, Planfait and Pragondran. Whatever the conditions, flying through blue skies above the turquoise lakes is always a breathtaking experience.

Paraglider and hang-glider pilots flying from Le Sapenay enjoy fabulous views over Europe's largest poplar plantation and Hautecombe Abbey on the shores of Lake Bourget. The most popular take off in the Bauges Mountains, between Annecy and Aix-les-Bains, is Le Sire (1490 m), which allows pilots to soar along the immense ridge that culminates at the Croix du Nivolet. And, if you would like to test the latest take off, head to the Relais du Mont du Chat, between Lake Aiguebelette and Lake Bourget.

The Tarentaise and Maurienne Valleys

Savoie's two great valleys form the natural boundaries of the Vanoise Mountains, large areas of which have been a national park since 1963. NB: It is forbidden to fly over the park at heights of less than 1000 metres.

West of the Vanoise, the Montlambert take off in the Combe de Savoie offers year-round flying with great views across to the Belledonne Mountains. The take offs closer to the Olympic City of Albertville are most popular in the afternoon, when strong thermals allow experienced pilots to stay up for several hours.

Further east, at Les Saisies, the Mont Bisanne cross-country take off (1970 m) is an ideal starting point for exploring the rugged cliffs and glaciers that form the magnificent Italian face of Mont Blanc.

Courchevel's "forfait 3 Vallées" provides pilots with unlimited lift access, whereas the Fort du Truc, above Bourg-Saint-Maurice, is an ideal take off for exploring the Upper Isère Valley, the Tignes Dam, the Col du Petit Saint-Bernard and Les Arcs and La Plagne - an area that is most spectacular in the early morning when the sun lights up the east-facing slopes.

Flying in the Maurienne Valley is more discreet, the atmosphere is quieter and the take offs are more remote. The superb autumn colours of the forests around Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne, even more spectacular from the air (take off at 2000 m), are matched only by the breathtaking mountainscapes of the Haute-Maurienne (Val Cenis, Valmeinier, Valfréjus, etc.).

Updated in March 2009