A motorhome trip to the Queyras!

The Queyras is a mountain range and national park located in the French Alpes, in the French department Hautes-Alpes, to be exact. When we say that this place is "off-the-beaten-track", we really mean it! The Queyras is a stunning nature reserve, but the fact that you see small amounts of other tourists during your motorhome trip only makes the place more beautiful. So, let's go and travel to the Queyras!

There are only a few entrances to the Queyras. Do you want to travel to this mountain range by motorhome? Then there are just 3 entry roads. From the north, you can best reach this area by the Col d'Izoard. Are you coming from the west of France? Choose to enter via Guillestre, located nearby the popular skiing resort Risoul. The last option is to approach the area from Italy via the Col d'Agnel.

Besides entry roads, there are also only a few motorhome stopovers in de Queyras. Despite that, you can stay in the middle of the stunning area! Park your motorhome at Parking St. Marie Madelaine, in Saint-Véran. Besides this being one of the nicest villages in the area, it is also the perfect base to start exploring the Queyras. Parked your motorhome? Then it is time to head out and explore!

- The motorhome stopover in Saint-Véran offers amazing views over the mountains!

When you go on vacation to the mountains, you cannot not go hiking. And guess what: the Queyras is the perfect place to do just that! Quayras is an ultra accesible area for hikers, with a couple of very easy "hiking mountains". There are not many mountain ranges in Europe where hiking is this easy!

The Queyras has three cols running through the area, which you regularly see featured in the Tour de France; the Col d'Izoard, Col d'Agnel and the Col de Vars. These cols are surrounded by several nice hiking trails. For example, you could hike to the Lac du Souliers (2.492 m), nearby Col d'Izoard. Besides a beautiful lake, this hike offers amazing views over the Queyras.

Do you want to climb a 3.000-metre mountain? Then this is your time to shine! As abovementioned, the mountains in Queyras are fairly accesible. A hike to the Pic de Caramantran (3.025) is, compared to other 3.000-metre peaks), like a walk in the park!

Experienced hikers can indulge themselves as well in Queyras since you can find one of the most beautiful long-distance hiking trails here. The GR58, or Tour de Queyras, is a trail that's 95 kilometres long and takes you across the national park of Queyras.

- The Queyras has some amazing easy mountains for hiking!

We'll be honest: Queyras' power doesn't lie with its quaint mountain villages. This isn't strange since there only live about 2.500 people in Queyras. This is just as much as the amount of chamois in the area! Nevertheless, there are a couple of charming villages to be found here that are definitely worth a visit.

The first village that is worth a visit, and simultaneously the village where you will stay with your motorhome, is Saint-Véran. This village is also known as the highest village in Europe, though there are other villages that also claim this title. Though what Saint-Véran undoubtedly is, is absolutely beautiful! Besiders this village being almost constantly sunny because of its location on a south-facing slope, you'll find a couple of authentic houses and amazing views over the mountains of Queyras here.

Another recommendation is Guillestre. Admittedly, this village lies a little outside of Queyras, but it is still worth a mention. In Guillestre you will find multiple cosy restaurants and you can visit the weekly market every monday morning!

- Besides Saint-Véran, we also recommend you visit Ceillac!

If you want to engage in some other activities besides hiking, Queyras is still the place to go! You could go paragliding, rafting on the Durance, or admire the surroundings from above on a zipline that runs through the Gorges de la Durance. Do you find yourself in Queyras in winter? Then you can do all the typical wintersports activities over here, such as skiing or snowboarding, but also snowshoeing in the beautiful mountains of the Queyras. Anyways, there is lots to experience in this beautiful mountain range in the southeast of France!

- Paragliding in the Queyras!

Not done hiking yet? Go for a hike in Austria! Austria is the perfect place to go hiking in Europe and there are several motorhome stopovers from where you can directly put on your hiking boots and go explore the beautiful nature. In our blog "6x hiking from the motorhome stopover in Austria!" you can read everything about these motorhome stopovers and its surrounding hiking trails.