Appeared as of the 19th century, the Tourisme in Savoy became one of the main activities, resting over the winter and estival seasons. Savoy has many assets as well natural as in terms of infrastructures (stations, road/highway equipment).

History of tourism in Savoy

Birth of tourism

Savoy, as from the 18th century, becomes a major destination of the Grand Turn of the English aristocrats. In 1741, William Windham and Richard Pocock discover glacial Chamouni. Their accounts traverse the London and Parisian living rooms. The valley of Arve and especially the site of Chamonix become the destination headlight of this incipient tourism. It is necessary consequently to await 1786, so that the guide Jacques Balmat and its cord reaches the Mont Blanc, Chamonix becomes the world capital of the alpinism.

Except this passage in the middle same of the the Alps, tourism remains limited to the bottom of valleys and mainly to the lake cities around the lakes of the Léman (Geneva, Thonon-the-Baths, Évian-the-Baths, of the Le Bourget (Aix-the-Baths) and of Annecy. Should be awaited the end of the year fifty so that tourism of mass penetrates the Savoyard intra-alpine valleys, until its tops.

Hydrotherapy

Savoyard hydrotherapy is the heiress of the romanisation. Some quoted knew to reactivate as from the 18th century their thermal potential as Aix-the-Baths close to the Lac of Le Bourget (whose toponym comes from Latin Aquae Gratianae , which means " water of the Gratien" emperor;), or some sites in Tarentaise (Léchère, Support-the-Baths). The phenomenon of cure profits from the medicalisation of the end of the 20th century. The towns of water offer a panel of activities combining rest and discovered mountain medium to the European elite. One estimates at 1000 000 tourists in 1895 benefitting from water. Initially, the towns of water of the Préalpes profit from the first stays. The promotion of the various sites is due especially to the presence of the European aristocracy. Aix-the-Baths receives the queen Victoria (in 1886-8th and 1890), the emperor Pedro II of Alcantara of Brazil (1888), Georges Ier of Greece (of 1889 to 1912), Wihelmine of the Netherlands (1896) or Léopold of Belgium. Évian-the-Baths receives the authorization to take name " Bains" in 1864, officializing a practice appeared a few decades earlier. Thonon-the-Baths profits, it also, of this movement. Just as the small station of Shawl-the-Water in periphery of Chambéry. Then the curists become less reticent more while venturing in the cities inside the Alps. The first to be profited from these tourists is Saint-Gervais-the-Baths on the road leading to Chamonix and the Mont Blanc. The Vallée of Tarentaise has, it also, several sites with Léchère, Saline-the-Thermal baths, Support-the-Baths. Quickly these cities are equipped with theaters, of casinos in order to attract with them the European elite. Thus that of Évian-the-Baths, built by the architect Ernest Hébrard, makes say to J. - M. Marquis who it resembles a " confusing counterpart of Holy-Sophie of Constantinople… the sumptuous dilated volume of its cupola with its underlined veins of garlands of foliages evokes the records of a Byzance acclimatized to freshnesses lémaniques" (in. J. - P. LEGUAY, op.cit., T3, p.327).

Winter sports

Alpine tourism derives from the dash for the Alpinisme begun with Chamonix at the end of the 18th century. Some hotel-country cottages are built (Col of Vanoise, inaugurated by Felix Faure 1897), just as some refuges (Refuge Vallot, 1892, Refuge of the Large Mules, 1897). The true rise of this tourism of winter occurs with the ski. It should be recalled that the presence of slopes and snows do not guarantee the ski, like any social phenomenon, the ski was born from the will of some external or local actors.

The arrival of tourisms from now on is guaranteed by the development of the Railroad and the activity of the thermal spas. The development of the Ski at the end of the years 1880 and the creation of the first ski slopes in the the Alps (Swiss Saint-Moritz in ) allow the development of the first ski stations starting from villages in particular Chamonix, Megève (station launched by a journalist sporting and the Noémie Baroness of Rothschild in 1921) or Pralognan-la-Vanoise.

The first Winter Olympics take place with Chamonix in 1924, however not yet of Alpine skiing. But first winter stations emergent already.

various types of stations :

  • stations known as of " first generations " , i.e. tourist resorts developed around a preexistent village, with an attitude of 900-1200m, appear in Savoy: Revard (proximity of Chambéry and Aix-the-Baths), Morzine (Chablais), Megève (Valley of Arly), in Tarentaise, Valley-in Isere, Pralognan-la-Vanoise, Saint-Good, Peisey-Nancroix, Avanchers or Bozel, a little later Méribel (1938). Is very needed time to wait the second time of development to see these villages proposing practices of winter sport. First concern: a random snowing up due to altitude relatively low, tracks crossing of wood.

  • the local government agencies are interested in this new rise of winter tourism. The regional authorities lace programs of ski stations created ex-nihilo, with more raised height, the level of the mountain pastures (1600-1800m). They are called stations of second generation. In 1945, the General advice of Savoy lance the project of Courchevel 1800 on the commune of Saint-Good (taking up an idea launched by the Vichy government in 1943). The pleasing secondary road with the departmental country cottage to which incorporates hotels and country cottages, without true town-planning. Courchevel is the only example in Savoy (Chamrousse and Alpe d' Huez).

  • In the Sixties, the surge of tourists pushes the promoters to propose with the alpine communes of the projects of stations known as " intégrées" or stations of third generation. These projects find their origin in a governmental will, parallel to the development of the seaside resorts of the Languedocien coast, within a framework of declaration of public utility offering facilities to the private promoters and the possibility of expropriation ( Plan snows ). The promoter decides on the whole of urban, commercial, technical installations (ski lifts…). These stations are conceived starting from a point of fall (the carpark), higher than 1800 m, of which are the real in face of snow with all comfort and of the services in the vicinity, generally in a site in the shape of amphitheater. Among the principal examples in Savoy, let us quote: Plagne (1961) on the commune of Likes entrusted to the town-planner Michel Bezançon (10 stations, 50.000 beds, 105 ski lifts, 225 km of track on 10.000ha, between 1350 and 3000 m); Tignes (created into 1956,1 station, 17.000 beds, 100 ski lifts); the Arcs (created in 1968); Ménuires (created in 1966); Flaine (created in 1968) or Avoriaz (created in 1966), under the impulse of Doctor Jean Vuarnet… These stations are often shown to be " factories with ski" , not-sizeable of natural environment.

  • From the years 1975 and later, from the stations known as of 4th generation or station-villages emerged. They correspond to villages " traditionnels" created ex-nihilo or around a village, more concerned of the uses traditional and integrated into human space surrounding and especially into dimension. Among the Savoyard examples, let us quote Valmorel; Karellis or Bonneval-on-Arc.

The Savoyard ski stations profited from the effects of the last Winter Olympics having taken place with Albertville in 1992, making of the Savoyard Alps, since this date, the place where one finds the greatest skiables fields in the world…

Promotion

The revolution of tourism in Country of Savoy, brought by the development of tourism of winter passes, dice 1937, by the opening of the House of Savoy with Paris, installation by the Regional committee Savoy-Mount-White, sitting at Aix-the-Baths.

Today, this promotion is organized within the Parliament of the Countries of Savoy, in which the whole of the departmental tourist structures takes part.

The promotion of the local inheritance is also organized around the Association of the Guides of the Inheritance of the Countries of Savoy which cuts out the territory in 6 tourist units taking again provincial cutting: in North, in Haute-Savoie, the French Chablais with Léman and the solid mass; the Faucigny with the valleys of Arve (Mont Blanc) and Giffre; the Genevese; and in the South, in Savoy, the Clean Savoy with the Savoyard Tectonic foreland, the Lake of Le Bourget or the Combe of Savoy; and countries of Art and History of the Maurienne and the Tarentaise.

Economy

The capacity of reception of Savoy does of it one of the tourist areas of France. This part of the the Alps turned towards the practice of the ski since the beginning of the XXe century offers in these 110 winter sports resorts more than 875.000 beds. The area is also an estival vacation resort with more than one million beds in summer (hotels), without counting the second home.

Below, two tables allowing to compare the evolution of the number of nuities in Savoy during the two tourist seasons. By comparison, Paris carries out approximately 34,5 million nights per annum and the Area Île-de-France 62,6 million ( Source : CCIP).

The figures presented come from the Observatory of Tourism Savoy-Mount-White (body of the Assemblée of the Countries of Savoy). If the estival tourist frequentations as winter are relatively equivalent to each season, the decelerations or the retreats are to be put in relation to the weather. In addition, these tables do not indicate it, but for the summer period the frequentation is more important in Haute-Savoie (area of the Lac of Annecy and the Massif of Mont Blanc) that in Savoy, about 70% against 30%. For the winter season, the report/ratio is reversed in particular with the Vallée of Tarentaise and its great skiables fields of the Three Valleys, Plagne, the Arcs or of the Espace Killy (Tignes: 1,5M of nights).

According to the site of the General advice of Savoy, the incomes of tourism would generate approximately " 1,8 billion euros, is 50% of the richness of the département". Resting mainly on the development of winter tourism, this activity employs 28% of paid department. In Haute-Savoie, this sector employs 12% of paid because of a more important economic diversity compared to its neighbor.

Tourist places

The Countries of Savoy have many tourist places of which some (it is about an not-exhaustive list) are proposed to you below:

Remarkable sites

The natural heritage rests mainly on the attraction of the the Alps, the mountain landscapes, of which the Mont Blanc, fauna and flaure, the lakes (Lac of Annecy, Lac Léman, Lac of Le Bourget).

Dice the Sixties, Savoy and the State French sauvergardé its inheritance by creating the National park of Vanoise. The installation of the areas also made it possible to create regional natural parks (Regional natural park of the Solid mass of the Wallows, Regional natural park of Chartreuse).

Cities and tourist resorts

Cities and Country of Art and History

Three Savoyard cities and two provinces received the label Villes and Pays of Art and History. Savoy remains best parcelled out with the towns of Albertville - Conflans and of Chambéry, as well as the Pays of the High valleys of Savoy , gathering the high valleys of Maurienne and Tarentaise. In Haute-Savoie, only Annecy and the Valley of Abundance with name Country of the Valley of Abundance , in the province of the Chablais received this label.

More beautiful villages of France

The area counts three villages classified among " lesplus beautiful villages of France " : with Bonneval-on-Arc in Savoy and Sixt-Iron-with-Horse and Yvoire in Haute-Savoie.

Thermal spas

The area has eight thermal cities with Aix-the-Baths /Aix Marlioz; Shawl-the-Water; Support-the-Baths; Léchère; Saline-the-Thermal baths in Savoy and Évian-the-Baths; Thonon-the-Baths; Saint-Gervais-the-Baths in Haute-Savoie

Winter sports resorts

Savoy is the cradle of the ski in France. It has on its territory the greatest fields of Europe and the world. Below, a list of the 105 winter sports resorts Savoyard classified by solid masses:

  • Massive of Aravis: Clusaz; Large-Bornand the; Manigod and Saint-Jean-with-Sixt

  • Beaufortain - Valley of Arly: Arêches-Beaufort; Space Diamond (the Seizures - Hauteluce, Crest Voland-Cohennoz, Saint-Nicolas-the-Vault, Our-Lady-with-Bellecombe); Flumet; Héry-on-Ugine and Giettaz-in-Aravis

  • Chartreuse : The Valley of Entremonts (Saint-Pierre-with Entremont)

Flowered cities and villages

Haute-Savoie holds since 1992 " The National Trophy of the Fleuris" Departments; who relates to only 15 departments in France.

In 2006,53 communes were labellisées (3 Four flowers/Grand Prix, 13 Three flowers, 17 Two flowers). In Savoy, one counts 33 of them (1 Grand Prix, 2 Four flowers, 5 Three flowers, 9 Two flowers). Thus, 5 Savoyard communes out of 197 common Frenchwomen could obtain Four flowers and a Grand Prix (Annecy, Évian-the-Baths, Yvoire, Aix-the-Baths), while the village of Nances (330 inhabitants) has just obtained its fourth flowers.

Casinos

Savoy has eleven casinos left again mainly in Haute-Savoie.

Hotel trade & Restoration

Restaurants 3 stars

Two Savoyard restaurants obtained 3 stars and one 2 stars with the Guide Michelin.

De luxe hotel

There exists 15 de luxe hotels in Savoy

Sources

Random links:Leon Spiegels | Iouri Temirkanov | Oblast of Vladimir | Good Samaritans | Libyque glass

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