Balcony trails and villages of the Oisans

Level: 3 / 5

Intermediate. Suitable for walkers with moderate to good fitness, with 5 to 7 hours of walking per day. Few technically challenging sections, with a mix of tracks and trails. Average daily ascent: +800m.

No main luggage to carry: you only carry a small daypack with your belongings for the day and your picnic lunch. Your luggage will be waiting for you every evening at the end of each stage. Your luggage is transported by vehicle and is limited to one bag per person, weighing a maximum of 15kg.

Minimum 2 people.

7 days, 6 nights, 6 days of walking.

Choose your departure date from mid-June to mid-September.

A self-guided trip, without a guide; we provide a digital travel pack that includes access to our smartphone navigation app, your accommodation list, any relevant vouchers and all the information you need for your stay to run smoothly.

If you wish, we can send a printed version of the travel pack to your home, including maps, a route guide and a travel document pouch, for a supplement of 35 € per pack. For printed travel pack requests made less than 45 days before departure, and for travellers living abroad, the pack will be available at the first hotel of your stay.

Accommodation

2*-star hotels (2 nights), 3*-star hotels (3 nights) and accommodation equivalent to 4* stars (1 night) for the final night at the Col du Lautaret.
En-suite bathroom facilities.

Hotel classification

In France, increasing numbers of hotels and guesthouses choose not to have an official rating, including establishments that were still rated just one or two years ago. This does not mean their quality has declined, far from it. Many guesthouses offer charming rooms.
If we indicate, for example, a comfort level of “3* stars or equivalent”, this means that the establishment does not necessarily have an official rating, but offers a level of comfort comparable to a 3*-star hotel.

Meals

Half board is included during your stay. Lunches are not included.

Please tell us about any food allergies or special dietary requirements when booking; we will do our best to adapt your meals.

Wellness

At some overnight stops, you can use attractive wellness facilities (usually at an extra charge):

In Monêtier les Bains
Your hotel is close to the wellness facilities at Les Grands Bains du Monêtier. You can find more information on the website.
“Grands Bains” area : An outdoor overflow pool measuring more than 300m², open all year round and equipped with a wide variety of water features.
“Romano-Irlandais” area : An exclusive adults-only area featuring saunas, steam rooms, an indoor pool, a variety of private showers, a sun terrace with a jacuzzi and a Vaucluse-style waterfall.
“Institut Beauté-Santé” area : The beauty and wellness institute offers individual treatments or packages (hydrotherapy, hydromassage baths, jet showers, etc.), facial and body treatments, scrubs and more.

Hotel at the Col du Lautaret
A wellness area is available free of charge to hotel guests every afternoon until 21:00, with a sauna, steam room, jacuzzi, fitness room and swimming pool. A bathrobe is provided.

Please note: Accommodation photos are for illustration only. Accommodation may change. Depending on availability, we may book other hotels offering an equivalent standard and level of comfort.

Start

On Day 1 in the afternoon in La Grave.

End

On Day 7 after the walk, in the early afternoon, in La Grave.

By train

Grenoble or Briançon railway station
You can check train timetables and fares at https://www.sncf-connect.com/

By car

You can plan your route on Via Michelin.

By bus

Take route 55: Grenoble – La Grave – Villar d’Arène – Briançon (in both directions):

https://www.autocars-resalp.com/lignes-horaires/briancon-grenoble

Parking your car

You can leave your car at the first accommodation.

A number of our trips offer opportunities to swim, either during the day’s route or at the end of the day. It would be a shame to miss out. However, we emphasise that you alone must decide whether it is appropriate to swim; any swimming is therefore your own responsibility and at your own risk.

Member of Agir pour un Tourisme Responsable (ATR)

Since 2012, Grand Angle has been a member of ATR, the leading association for more responsible tourism. We design our trips – on foot, by bike and on snow – to invite everyone to discover the world differently: with curiosity, respect and kindness.

As members of the board of directors since 2018, we actively help the sector develop more meaningful practices. In practical terms, we are committed to:

• Transparency in our practices and pricing
• Respect for our partners and local communities
• Protecting the environment on every trip

We also share the values of the traveller’s ethical charter, which encourages everyone to take simple steps to protect the places they visit and enjoy meaningful encounters.

Travelife Partner

Since 2025, Grand Angle has been recognised as a Travelife Partner, an international certification that recognises our responsible environmental, ethical and sustainable management practices, both within our company and in our work with partners and the organisation of our trips.

This label, the second level of a demanding international certification scheme, recognises our concrete actions to support responsible tourism. We are actively continuing our progress towards the next level, Travelife Certified, in line with our sustainability policy

Equipment

In this section, you will find links to products from our partner Alpinstore, a French online retailer specialising in outdoor equipment, based in Annecy.

For carrying your belongings

• A comfortable 30 to 50 L backpack with a hip belt to carry your personal belongings and picnic lunch during the day
• A bag for luggage transfers: a backpack, a travel bag in good condition, or a suitcase that is not too bulky. One bag per person; limited to 15 kg

Read our Mag article on how to pack your hiking backpack.

For hiking

• Hiking boots with ankle support, a good treaded sole, a supportive heel counter and good waterproofing
• Comfortable hiking socks (at least 3 pairs)
• A fleece
• Comfortable walking trousers (quick-drying technical fabric)
• Shorts, T-shirts and technical underwear (quick-drying fabric)
• A long-sleeved shirt (quick-drying technical fabric)
• Walking poles (telescopic), which are very important for making walking easier. Discover all the benefits of hiking poles in our dedicated article or how to choose your hiking poles

Note: synthetic technical clothing performs very well. New merino wool clothing has also become available; it performs very well, is comfortable to wear and has the advantage of resisting sweat odours! (Brands include Icebreaker, Ruka, etc.)

As a general rule, avoid cotton, which makes you cold when wet.

For your picnic lunch

• A plastic bowl, food container or plate
• Cutlery (spoon, fork, knife)
• A water bottle with a capacity of at least 1,5 L (essential); an insulated flask for winter

For protection from sun and rain

• High-protection sunscreen and sunglasses
• A hat, cap or bucket hat
• A rain cape or Gore-Tex jacket, and optionally Gore-Tex trousers

After your hike

• A pair of trainers for the evening
• A change of clothes and underwear
• A toiletry bag and a small towel
• Swimwear and a towel for the wellness facilities
• A small first-aid kit: personal medication, adhesive strapping tape, Biogaze or “2nd skin”, gauze, antiseptic, arnica pellets and aspirin for minor aches and injuries… (quite a list! But rest assured, your first-aid kit often comes home untouched after your week of hiking)

You can find these tips in our article “What to take with you on a hike”.

Country: France
Capital: Paris

Documents

Travellers, including minors, must carry a national identity card or passport (EU nationals).

Health

Bring your Carte Vitale health insurance card and enough of your usual medication for the duration of your stay.

Écrins National Park
Domaine de Charance
05000 Gap
0492402010

La Grave Tourist Office
RD 1091, 05320 La Grave
0476799005

Country dialling code for calling France from abroad: +33.

No time difference: GMT +1.

IGN TOP 25 map at a scale of 1/25000: 3435
Valloire / 3436 ET Meije Pelvoux / 3335 ET Le Bourg d’Oisans.

The Écrins Massif
This vast mountain range spans the departments of Hautes-Alpes and Isère. It is bounded to the north by the upper Romanche, to the north-east by the Guisane, to the east and south by the Durance, and to the west by the Drac and the Lignarre. It lies roughly within a pentagon whose corners are Bourg-d’Oisans, Briançon, Embrun, Gap and Corps. Geologists would restrict its boundaries to the central crystalline zone, excluding, among others, the Montbrison massif to the east and the Embrunais and Champsaur massifs to the south. Écrins National Park brings this whole area together and has, in fact, given the massif its name.

The Alpine Garden at the Col du Lautaret
You can find more information on the website.
Admission to the garden is free for children under 12, and reduced rates are available for groups, visitors under 18 and students. The Lautaret Alpine Garden is open to the public from the first weekend in June to the first weekend in September, from 10am to 6pm.

Standard admission: 8 € / Reduced admission at 6 €: groups (more than 10 people), young people aged 12 to 18, students and people with reduced mobility (a route introduced in 2012 provides access to approximately 60 % of the garden)