12 Properties for sale in Hautes-Alpes, Provence-Côte d'Azur, France
Hautes-Alpes
Located in the southern Alps, Hautes-Alpes is currently in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. It is home to more than 30 ski resorts, the best known of which is Serre Chevalier with 250km of slopes. The departments also boasts two national parks, cols made famous during the Tour de France and French military architect Vauban's fortifications in Briançon and Mont-Dauphin which have been listed as an UNESCO World Heritage site. There are also gorges and valleys to explore either on two feet or horseback.
CAPITAL: GAP - Gap sits on the road linking Grenoble and the Mediterranean ports so was once an important market town. It was largely destroyed during the Wars of Religion but is now a peaceful town full of bars, restaurants and bustling markets. It has a 19th-century cathedral and the attractive square of Place Jean-Marcellin surrounded by pastel-coloured buildings.
Access from UK
By air: Nice and Grenoble
By train: Eurostar to Lyon and then TGV to Grenoble and local trains
By road: Gap is 969km from Calais
Climate
Average annual temperature: (Embrun): 4.9°C/16.5°C
Average annual rainfall: 726.5mm
Average annual sunshine hours: 2,510.9
Highlights
The Écrins National Park is home to 50% of French flora and animals such as marmots, ibex and grouse as well as the Plus Beau Village of La Grave. The department's other Plus Beau Village is St-Veran in the nature reserve of Queyras and is proudly the highest inhabited village in Europe at an altitude of 2,042m. Also visit the Meije glacier, the valleys of Valgaudemar and Calrée, which is one of the Grand Sites de France, and the department's largest town Briançon.