The Southern Stevenson Trail

For moderately experienced to strong walkers who have already completed day hikes involving 3 to 6 hours of walking and elevation gains of + 200 to + 600m.

No main luggage to carry: you only carry a small daypack with your picnic lunch and what you need for the day. Your luggage will be waiting for you at your accommodation each evening. 1 transferred bag per person, weighing no more than 13 kg. Luggage storage is available in Le Puy-en-Velay, or you can arrange for a bag to be delivered to the end of your trip.

From 1 person.

8 days, 7 nights, 6 days of walking.

Choose your departure date from April to October.

This is a self-guided trip without a guide accompanying you. We provide a digital travel pack containing access to our smartphone navigation app, a list of your accommodation, any vouchers required and all the information you need for your trip 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 wallet.

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 trip.

Overnight stays in hotels and guesthouses of varying standards, sometimes fairly basic (usually with a shower and toilet in the room). Bathroom facilities may occasionally be shared and located on the landing. Please note that in Cassagnas, you may stay in small dormitories sleeping 4 people (bed linen provided, shared bathroom facilities, no single rooms available).

In general, single rooms are available at a supplement but can be difficult to secure, especially in high season.

All our accommodation has been selected for its quality. However, some properties have reported the return of bedbugs, which are most often carried from place to place by walkers. This is not a widespread problem, but to reduce the risk, you should spray the inside and outside of your luggage (both your daypack and your transferred bag), as well as all your clothing and footwear. Sprays are sold in pharmacies and at some accommodation; some products are 100% natural and ECOCERT-certified. Please follow any procedures your accommodation has put in place (such as not allowing luggage in rooms or dormitories).

In France, more and more hotels and bed and breakfasts are choosing not to have an official rating, including establishments that were still rated a year or two ago. This does not mean their quality has declined—far from it. Many bed and breakfasts offer charming accommodation.
If we indicate, for example, a comfort level of “3* or equivalent”: this means that the establishment may not have an official rating, but offers comfort comparable to that of a 3* hotel.

Half-board: breakfasts and hot dinners.

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

On Day 1 in the afternoon in Chasseradès.

On Day 8 in the morning in St Jean du Gard.

You can check train timetables and fares at https://www.sncf-connect.com/

Plan your route on Via Michelin

You can park your vehicle near your first accommodation for the duration of the walking trip (public car parks). There is not enough parking space at the hotels.

We can book you a shuttle from St Jean du Gard to Chasseradès at 8:15 am or 1:15 pm. The shuttle must be reserved when booking your trip.

A number of our trips offer opportunities to swim during a day’s walk 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; you therefore swim under 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 adopt more meaningful practices. In practical terms, we ensure:

• Transparency in our practices and prices
• Respect for our partners and local communities
• Protection of 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 foster rewarding encounters.

Travelife Partner

Since 2025, Grand Angle has held Travelife Partner status, an international label that certifies our responsible practices in environmental protection, ethics and sustainable management, both within our company and in our work with partners and the organisation of our trips.

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

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 20 to 30 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 13 kg

Read our magazine guide to packing your hiking backpack.

For hiking

For maximum comfort, choose a layered clothing system: warm base layers (leggings + top) such as “Carline” or “Capilene” (hollow fibres that wick away perspiration) + a sweatshirt or fleece jacket + a mountain jacket and overtrousers with a waterproof, breathable membrane (such as Gore-Tex or equivalent) for bad weather. In general, except in hot climates and countries, avoid cotton, which holds moisture close to the body (and dries slowly), and choose suitable synthetic fabrics instead.

• Hiking boots with ankle support, a well-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)
• Comfortable shorts in technical fabric
• T-shirts or technical base layers (quick-drying fabric)
• A long-sleeved shirt
• Walking poles (telescopic), which are very important for making walking easier. Discover all the benefits of hiking poles in our dedicated article or read how to choose your hiking poles

Note: synthetic technical clothing performs very well. Merino wool clothing has also become available; it performs very well, is comfortable to wear and has the advantage of not developing odours from perspiration!

For your picnic lunch

• Your eating kit: a plastic bowl, container or plate, and cutlery (spoon, fork, knife)
• 1 or 2 water bottles (a total capacity of at least 1,5 L) – essential –; an insulated flask for winter

For protection from sun and rain

• Sunscreen (high protection)
• Sunglasses
• A hat, cap or bucket hat
• A rain cape or a waterproof jacket such as a softshell or Gore-Tex jacket, and possibly waterproof trousers

After your hike

• A pair of running-style trainers for the evening
• A change of clothes and underwear
• A toiletry bag and a small towel
• Swimwear and a towel for wellness facilities (where specified) or swimming
• A small first-aid kit: personal medication, surgical masks, hand sanitiser, plasters, sterile dressings and a bandage, gauze, disinfectant, arnica granules, aspirin, etc. (Please note that this list is not exhaustive and should be adapted to your own medical needs.)

Find these tips in our article #"what to take hiking".

This list is a guide and should be adapted to your trip and the season in which you are travelling.

Country: France
Capital: Paris

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

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

St Jean du Gard Tourist Office: https://www.saintjeandugard.fr/mon-village/tourisme/loffice-de-tourisme/

Address: Place Rabaut St Etienne – 30270 Saint Jean du Gard – 0466853211

France: +33.

No time difference: GMT +1.

“R.L. Stevenson, Travel Journal in the Cévennes”

The complete text of R.L. Stevenson’s journal. Published by Éditions Privat, Club Cévenol. 2002 edition.

“Travels with a Donkey in the Cévennes”

The complete text by R.L. Stevenson. Photographs by Nils Warolin. New edition from Éditions du Rouergue, 2007, paperback.

“Travels with a Donkey in the Cévennes”

The complete text by Robert Louis Stevenson, published by Éditions De Borée in collaboration with the association, 1998.

Travelling with Stevenson in the Cévennes

A travel account by Jean François Dars, published by Descartes et Cie, 2006. Black-and-white photographs.

In Stevenson’s Footsteps: An Unusual Adventure between Velay and the Cévennes

By Flora Berger, with colour photographs. Published by Éditions du Fournel, 2003.

On the Stevenson Trail

A travel account and discovery itinerary by Hervé Bellec, with numerous colour photographs. Published by Éditions Ouest France, 2007.

FFRP walking guide, “The Stevenson Trail”
IGN Top 25 map at a scale of 1/25000: 2836OT Gerbier de Jonc / Mt Mezenc; 2736 E Solignac sur Loire; 2737 E Langogne; 2738 E La Bastide Puylaurent; 2738 O Le Bleymard; 2739 OT Mont Lozère; 2740 ET Corniche des Cévennes