DISCOVER The Trièves AND FIND YOUR BALANCE
You’ll be blown away by the Trièves and find real peace here! A startling, majestic territory in southern Isère (38), 45 minutes from the Grenoble metropolis. This is a country of summits between the Vercors and Dévoluy mountain ranges, of villages in sublime settings, and pure fresh water rivers and the brilliant turquoise blue Lake Monteynard-Avignonet. There is plenty to do for those who want to take the time to enjoy unique outdoor experiences, who want to add meaning to their journey with visits and encounters with our friendly, creative and informative locals. This is also a part of France where ecotourism and the preservation of our natural surroundings are taken very seriously.
The Trièves : between THE Vercors and Dévoluy
With one foot in the Vercors, the other in the Dévoluy, in the Trièves reconnect harmoniously with the elements essential to life. Explore new horizons and a territory that nurtures you, its inhabitants and its land.
Open yourself up to an eco responsible stay in our carefully protected countryside and contribute to taking care of your host, mother nature.
Throughout the seasons, choose an element that inspires you to find life balance and renewal. The Trièves offers you multiple opportunities to live unforgettable moments: nature and the great outdoors with all its related activities, plenty of cultural events and communities like our “Route des Savoir-Faire” where you may meet artists, craftsmen, producers, and share in the simplicity of their daily lives.
The Trièves promises you a restorative experience, where you are invaluably enriched. Find yourself in the Trièves, this land of balance and help us to continue to preserve it.
Once visited, we know you’ll be back!
The Three Wonders of the Trièves
From the turquoise waters of Lake Monteynard-Avignonet, to the summit of Obiou mountain, the Trièves offers plenty to discover.
The Mont Aiguille and the EastERN Balcony of the Vercors
This is mountain and nature enthusiasts’ countryside.
Dominating the Trièves, the Mont Aiguille, climbed for the first time in 1492 and marking the birth of mountaineering in Europe, is a mecca for climbers with routes for all experience levels.
Equally the Grand Veymont, the highest summit in the Vercors, will inspire you and the eastern balcony of the Vercors will surprise you with their unparalleled beauty in an exceptional natural setting. The balcony is sometimes called the French Dolomites, where rare species of flowers and animals live side by side: Sabots de Vénus Lady Slipper orchids, Martagon lilies, Trumpet gentian wildflowers, ibex mountain goats, bearded and griffon vultures, tichodrome songbirds…
LAKE Monteynard-Avignonet
There is certainly no lack of water sports in the Trièves on Lake Monteynard-Avignonet !
This is heaven for freshwater lovers and hikers alike and the Lake is close to several local villages.
The Avignonet dam on the Lake, built in 1962, has allowed for the development of an extensive nautical leisure base, especially renowned for wind and kite surfing thanks to ever present thermal breezes.
There are rivers running off the Lake where you can fish and go canyoning. Also don’t forget to relax and have fun with water at our Trièves swimming pools and spas!
The villages at the heart of Trièves
For those who are curious about our land and its heritage…
Discovering the Trièves also means diving into its history and the essence of slow tourism in our 27 villages. Observe rural pastoral tradition during your hikes, appreciate the works of artists who loved (and continue to love this territory), learn and understand how the past has shaped the Trièves of today. Anchored in sustainable agriculture of yore, producers are turning more and more towards organic farming. This is how you get to enjoy local products, directly sourced and resulting from long years of know-how farming fertile, rich land.
Embrace the flavours , the colours and aromas of our region: cheeses, honey from mountain flowers, a delicate watercolour landscape, farmers’ markets galore, village festivals, cattle, sheep and pig breeders, ancient grains cereal farmers…
The Trièves, an unspoilt natural fortress
The Trièves is a middle mountain region (between 500 and 2780 meters altitude). It’s nestled between mountain ranges and deep gorges (the Vercors, Dévoluy and Drac gorges), and forms a link between the northern and southern Alps, bordered by the Lus La Croix Haute pass.
Origins of The Trièves
The name Trièves, “Triviæ” in Latin, could be derived from the cult of the goddess Diana Trivia, who was honored at travel crossroads.
Also historically, three roads intersected in the Trièves: the first heading East to Gap, and the second linking Grenoble to Provence via the Hautes Alpes. The third, to the West, leads to Die in the Drôme.
In addition, the people of the Trièves were called the Tricorii: the ‘3 armies’, or the ‘3 tribes’ in Gaulish language (spoken by the Celto-Ligurian people of Narbonne Gaul).
So we believe the number 3 probably has a lot to do with the origin of the word Trièves!