Land of mountaineering
Bessans and Bonneval sur Arc "Land of Alpinism
For many people, mountaineering is a sport that consists of climbing high mountains using different techniques of progression: climbing, crampons, skiing, rope climbing... But mountaineering is not limited to the sport.
It is on the basis of these elements that mountaineering was included in the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Unesco in late 2019. In the Alps, few resorts are recognized by Unesco as "Land of Mountaineering": Chamonix, Courmayeur, Orcières ... but also Bessans and Bonneval sur Arc since June 29, 2021.
To qualify for the "Land of Mountaineering" label awarded by the Comité Alpinisme Unesco France and the FFCAM (Fédération Française des Clubs Alpins et de Montagne), Bessans and Bonneval sur Arc had to prove that they had a history, alive through their traditions, a local anchoring and local structures: clubs, specialized schools, websites... Bessans and Bonneval sur Arc ticked all these boxes.
Natural assets
- A territory surrounded by more than 50 summits of more than 3000 meters and numerous glaciers.
- An excellent terrain for discovery, initiation and improvement for a "soft" and family mountaineering. In the land of the new French ski mountaineering champion Thibault Anselmet, Bessans and Bonneval sur Arc also offer exceptional terrain for ski touring and ski mountaineering from beginner to expert. With notably the Avérole valley "one of the most beautiful spots for ski touring" according to the French explorer and mountaineer Jean Louis Bernezat.
- The guarantee of snow for the next 50 years according to the latest models of Météo France which allows winter mountaineering, ski mountaineering and ski touring