Alps: Mercantour National Park

Access: There are regular trains from Nice to La Brigue. Check the schedule on SNCF PACA

You arrive in the timeless village of La Brigue, nestled in the mountains close to the Italian border. Take some time to wander around and take in the beautiful architecture and centuries-old homes with colourful façades. The village traded its Italian flag for a French one in 1947, and much of this valley is bathed in a Franco-Italian fusion of language, food, and culture. There is a market in the town every Sunday morning.

Overnight in La Brigue with dinner included

Option 1: La Brigue > Notre dame des Fontaines > La Brigue

Option 2: La Brigue > Tende > La Brigue

Distance: 12 km | Ascent: 550 m | Descent: 550 m | 4 hrs approx.

From La Brigue, you climb up a tight valley laden with wild lavender, thyme, and winter savoury. You pass the ruins of stone dwellings, before reaching the Boselia pass. Here you begin a breath-taking and panoramic descent along the slope towards Tende, the very last town before the Italian border. Take a well-deserved break in town, at a local café or restaurant. Though we have marked a walking route to return to La Brigue, the railway line links both villages so you can also return by train if you prefer.

Overnight in La Brigue

Loop walk from Castérino > Cime de Gratin

Distance: 10 km | Ascent: 650 m | Descent: 650 m | 4 hrs approx.

Morning transfer to your cosy, chalet-style hotel in the hamlet of Castérino, set in a lush green valley. Leaving your hotel by foot you climb upwards through the evergreen forest, and soon the last of the larch trees give way to open pastures and bare rock. Atop the crest you’ll enjoy panoramic views of the serrated peaks of the Mercantour National Park to the east. A leisurely descent leads back to the hamlet of Castérino.

Overnight in Casterino. Picnic lunch included today.

Loop walk from Castérino > Refuge des Merveilles

Distance: 16 km | Ascent: 650 m | Descent: 650 m | 6 hrs approx.

Short morning transfer to the Lac des Mèches lake to begin your hike to the Vallon de la Minière, then entering the boundaries of the Mercantour National Park. Leaving the forest behind, you walk among crystal-clear mountain lakes, surrounded by wildflowers and under the watchful eyes of the chamois and ibex that graze on the slopes (perhaps even the elusive wolves). Reaching the Refuge des Merveilles, you can enjoy a refreshing drink and soak up the alpine ambiance before your walk back to the Lac des Meches for a transfer back to Casterino.

OPTIONAL: From the refuge you can embark on a guided tour of the Vallée des Merveilles rock carvings, Europe’s largest open-air museum, highly protected and only accessible with an accredited guide. Tours last about 2 hours and cost around €15 per person.

Overnight in Castérino. Picnic lunch included today.

Loop walk from Castérino > Fontanalba

▪ Short option

Distance: 16 km | Ascent: 700 m | Descent: 700 m | 5½ hrs approx.

▪ Long option

Distance: 20 km | Ascent: 1150 m | Descent: 1150 m | 7½ hrs approx.

Today, you climb through the bucolic Fontanalba valley, and once again enter the heart of the National Park. Reach the Lac Vert, from where you can explore some of the 100,000 sacred stone carvings, some of which are 6,000 years old.  Up until modern times, many different agricultural civilizations would carve their histories into stone — quite literally — before the advent of writing.  The site of Fontanalba boasts more carvings then elsewhere in the park, and many are set beside the marked trails, accessible to all hikers without an accredited guide.  An optional route takes you to the pristine lakes of the Valmasque valley.

Return to Castérino for your third and final night. Picnic lunch included today.

Transfer to La Brigue after breakfast. End of your trip. Or continue your walk all the way to the Mediterranean with the trip starting in Breil sur Roya down to Menton!

Return: Regular train lines from La Brigue to Breil and Nice