Cluses / Le Grand-Bornand

On the menu on this stage is a climb worthy of a Tour de France… of which there are very many along the Route des Grandes Alpes®! Here, you tackle the Col de la Colombière pass. That’s not all, as the stage offers up several Haute-Savoie surprises: the resort of Le Grand-Bornand; the Chartreuse du Reposoir (an historic religious establishment); the Bargy Range; the Aravis Range; and the villages of Le Reposoir and Romme, perched on their natural balconies. If not in a rush, from Le Grand-Bornand village, ride to the end of the Bouchet Valley for a detour you won’t regret!

From Cluses to Le Grand-Bornand via Le Reposoir and the Col de La Colombière

Route North / South

From Cluses, the route takes you across the Arve River to Scionzier, from where you climb out of the valley to Le Reposoir. Alternatively, you can ride up via Romme, following a Tour de France route on the Étape du Tour 2018. After Le Reposoir, the cycling gets serious up to the Col de la Colombière pass (1613m), where you cross towards the Aravis Range and its resorts. Take in the magnificent views of the Aravis, as well as the Bargy Range, before descending at breakneck speed to the villages of Le Grand-Bornand Chinaillon and Le Grand-Bornand.

Route South / North

Heading north, the last major pass along the Route des Grandes Alpes® is La Colombière (1613m). After crossing Le Grand-Bornand village, the climb begins. The first few kilometres lead you without too much effort to the next village of Le Grand-Bornand Chinaillon. There follow another few kilometres that aren’t much tougher to reach the pass, where you switch to the Arve Valley. Make the most of the magnificent views over the Aravis and Bargy Ranges before starting your descent. Half-way down, from Le Reposoir, it’s possible to take an alternative route, going via the village of Romme, to Cluses and the Arve Valley.
 

Don’t miss

• Le Grand-Bornand and Le Grand-Bornand Chinaillon: magnificent villages with c.400 centuries-old chalets and famed for producing Reblochon cheese and ski champions.
• The Chartreuse du Reposoir: a former Carthusian monastery, today the Monastère du Carmel du Reposoir, located in the shadow of the prominent Pointe Percée summit. The present order of Carmelite sisters has been based here since 1932. 
• Perched villages: these are little gems, both in terms of heritage and natural settings, perched above Cluses and the Arve Valley. Explore Romme and Le Reposoir.
• Cluses: a lovely town, with a museum celebrating its clock-making and precision engineering past, plus the perched villages close by.