If you're thinking France, you're thinking the French Alps. Cycling in the French Alps is a dream for every cycling enthusiast. In the Hautes-Alpes region, you can indulge yourself around Briançon. At the invitation of Huttopia, we visited the Vallouise and La Clarée campsites. Both are a stone's throw from Briançon and perfect for tackling the various Alpine climbs you know from the Tour de France and the Giro d'Italia. In fact, during our trip, stage 4 of the Vuelta a España passed right by our door! We'll take you to the region and give you our tips for a wonderful cycling adventure in the Hautes-Alpes region – Briançon.
Electric journey to France
We start our travel day nice and early. Up five in the morning and on to France in one go.... Since we drive electric, we had to recharge a couple of times, but we can combine that nicely with a little pit stop. It's quite a long drive, but eventually we arrive at the campsite at 10.30 pm Huttopia Vallouise. We were called in advance to tell that if you arrive late, you have to report to the restaurant instead of the reception. That was nice to know and so we could pick up our key and information about our stay. The chalet looks good and has pretty much everything needed to spend a few days just fine. We have beds made and so we can quickly go to sleep.
On to the Col de Vars and Col de l'Izoard
After a long journey yesterday, we wake up feeling a little tired today, but morale is high: we are going to conquer two epic Alpine passes. We grab breakfast and dinner in the village and start the day calmly. The first kilometers of the day are downhill towards Guillestre, a perfect warm-up. The climb to the Col de Vars starts off tough, with steep sections at the beginning and end. The middle section is flatter, ideal for catching our breath. At the top, we enjoy the view and descend via a clear road, with a short passage through a village where we have to pay close attention.
The approach to the Col de l'Izoard begins in Guillestre. The road climbs gently between impressive rock faces. After 15 kilometres, we turn left and the real climb begins. We pass charming villages and fill up with water for the final, steep section. The hairpin bends and gradients of over 10% make it tough going, but the views along the way are magnificent. At the top, there is a small restaurant with a souvenir shop. Unfortunately, we couldn't buy a Coke because we didn't have any cash, but thanks to a friendly lady, we were able to fill our water bottles anyway.
The descent to Briançon is spectacular, with many turns and beautiful views. This is followed by another 20 km of slightly uphill to Our campsite at Vallouise. Around six o'clock we drive onto the property, tired but satisfied. Time to shower and cook in our cosy chalet.
Colle d'Agnello / Col d'Agnel; Steven Kruijswijk's Nightmare
After a quiet start to the day, we can still feel yesterday's kilometres in our legs, but we are ready for a new challenge: the Col d'Agnel. This impressive climb is famous from both the Giro d'Italia and the Tour de France. We get our breakfast at the bakery and Carrefour in the village, which is only a minute away by bike. Today's route is 137 kilometres there and back, with the highlight being the border crossing into Italy. The first 20 kilometres towards Guillestre are ideal for warming up. Then we cycle via Château Queyras to the Col d'Agnel: a tough 21 km climb with steep sections at the beginning and end. Along the way, we see curious marmots and enjoy the view in the hairpin bends just before the summit.
At the top of the pass, on the border between France and Italy, the view is breathtaking. There are no restaurants or cafés, but the peace and quiet and the panorama more than make up for that. After a short stop, we descend, first with technical bends, then quickly and straight. On the way back, we stop in L'Argentière-la-Bessée for a well-deserved cola and coffee in the sunshine. We roll out the last few kilometres to the campsite in a relaxed manner. A successful day full of highlights!
Transitional stage Huttopia Vallouise - Huttopia La Clarée
Our last day in Vallouise starts early. We pack up the car and leave for our next destination at 8.30 am: Huttopia La Clarée. On the way, we have breakfast in Briançon and arrive at the new campsite around 10 o'clock. As we can only check in at 16:00, we change in the car park and get on our bikes straight away.
Today is all about the Vuelta, which passes over the Col du Lautaret. We cycle uphill at a good pace and share the road with many other cycling enthusiasts. At the top of the Lautaret, it is pleasantly busy and the atmosphere is good. When the riders pass by, we cheer them on enthusiastically and before we know it, they are already gone.
After this spectacle, we continue climbing towards the Galibier. It is quite windy, but the view at the top is worth it. We take the classic photo at the sign and descend towards the Granon, our last climb of the day. The Granon is short but powerful: 10 kilometres with an average gradient of 9%. It is tough, but the route through the forest and the view make up for it.
Back at the campsite, we are warmly welcomed and can check in again. Our new chalet is comfortable and a nice place to relax after this impressive day. The chalet has a kitchen, two bedrooms with comfortable beds, and the bathroom is also more than adequate.
Legs Up
Today is a rest day. This works out well with the weather, as it is a rainy day. After breakfast, we decide to visit the old town of Briançon, Cité Vauban. It is a beautiful fortress with charming little streets. Perfect for spending a rest day. We have lunch in a side street near the church. After a good lunch, we return to the campsite. We spend a quiet afternoon and evening there. We do some shopping and then look ahead to tomorrow.
Finestre summit up in flames
The last day of cycling in this beautiful week has arrived. We get up and look outside; it's dry, but... a full day of rain is forecast. This is a disappointment because we have a beautiful ride planned for today. We want to ride the Colle delle Finestre, the climb from the 2025 Giro where Del Toro lost his pink jersey and Yates won the Giro. The weather is not favourable today, but it looks like we can still cycle for an hour at the end of the afternoon.
Late afternoon, we go cycling for another hour at half past five. We choose a 23 km route to the Italian border and back. The route includes the Montée Montgenevre, a 7 km climb with a 6% gradient. It is a beautiful climb that rises evenly. We cycle through the village of Montgenevre and continue on to the Italian border. We quickly take a photo because we can already see dark clouds approaching in the distance. We cycle back and arrive at the campsite just before the rain starts.
We go for dinner in the small village, close to La Vachette. After a great meal, it's time for us to wrap it up and depart for The Netherlands the next morning.
Huttopia La Clarée and Huttopia Vallouise
Huttopia offers campsites with camping pitches, equipped tents as well as mobile homes, wooden cottages and more. Both on Vallouise as La Clarée you have bread service for breakfast, bike rental, a restaurant serving pizza and pancakes, for example, and you can have a drink at the bar.
There's a heated pool at both campsites. You can also find several activities such as table tennis, jeu de boules and a football/basketbalcourt. In Vallouise, there's a tenniscourt and a volleyballfield you can use. There's also a washing machine and a dryer at your disposal.
In the neighborhood at Vallouise you'll find many restaurants, with the one in the hotel around the corner being the closest (and the best?). You'll find a small supermarket in the village as well. The bakery will provide you with a great bread for breakfast.
At La Clarée, you have to go to Briançon for the supermarket, but you can order bread from the baker himself at the campsite. For restaurants you can go to La Vauchette, for example Les Copains d'Abord, you can have a really good dinner here and they are very welcoming.
Both campsites are therefore perfect for exploring the Alps and tackling some of the major mountain passes such as the Col du Galibier, Izoard, Col de Vars and Col du Granon. And, of course, the Agnello, Col d'Agnel. With a little time and imagination, the Colle del Finestre is also an option!
How do you get there
By car, it is 1,200 km from Utrecht, for example. It's about 1.000km from Calais (where the eurotunnel is). It normally takes a day to get there. We were travelling in an electric car and had to recharge three times, which meant breaks of 45 minutes. It therefore took us 13 hours, which was perfectly fine.
We drove back and forth on the Route du Soleil, where there's road Toll to be paid.
The journey could also be done by train but it varies greatly in journey times and cost. To Briançon is doable but then you still have to get to your final destination. Anyway, there is a train that runs between Briancon and Valence TGV station. According to Google, a one-way trip from Utrecht is about 12 h via Paris.
Huttopia La Clarée - Vallouise itineraries
Huttopa Vallouise and Huttopia La Clarée are perfect for road cycling. You can also gravel and MTB well there. On our trip, we mainly went out by road bike. These are our routes from this trip.
The region is also very beautiful for gravel biking. We saw a beautiful collection by Simon Rosmolen, who knows the region very well as a hotelier. We don't want to keep this extra collection from you!
