Cirque du Fer à Cheval and Cascade du Rouget

Published on July 4, 2024 at 4:00 pm

Are you planning to stay in Flaine in Haute-Savoie during the summer? Although the town, also known as the "Gateway to the White Desert", is best known as a winter sports resort, it also makes a wonderful mountain holiday destination during the warmer months. The town offers a vast choice of sporting and cultural activities for young and old in the heart of the highest resort in the Grand Massif and on the nearby hiking trails.

And if you'd like to get away from the resort of Flaine and discover some of the other exceptional places the region has to offer, we suggest you explore the Cirque du Fer à Cheval and the Rouget waterfall. Located in Sixt-Fer-à-Cheval, one of the five Grand Massif resorts just a few kilometres from Flaine, these two natural treasures are a must if you love cliffs, waterfalls and breathtaking stretches of green!

Summary

Sixt-Fer-à-Cheval
Fer-à-Cheval circus
Cascade du Rouget

Sixt-Fer-à-Cheval

Sixt-Fer-à-Cheval is just under fifty kilometres from the winter sports resort of Flaine, in the Vallée du Giffre in Haute-Savoie. The birthplace of mountaineering in the 1930s, the village later became a ski resort and a 4-season holiday destination.

In winter, the Sixt-Fer-à-Cheval ski area is particularly popular with families. You can also enjoy all the other usual activities in the resort, such as snowshoeing, cross-country skiing, ski touring and dog sledding.

In summer, Sixt-Fer-à-Cheval boasts some remarkable sites and landscapes, including the emblematic Cirque du Fer-à-Cheval and Cascade du Rouget. Discover this exceptional natural heritage on family-friendly walks.

Fer-à-Cheval circus

The Fer-à-Cheval cirque is a natural cirque that takes its name from the semi-circular shape of its cliffs. Situated at an altitude of two thousand metres in the Vallée du Giffre, this limestone hemicycle is almost five kilometres long and surrounded by peaks. The highest peak in the Fer-à-Cheval cirque is almost three thousand metres high.

The Cirque du Fer-à-Cheval in the French Alps, in Sixt-Fer-à-Cheval and near part of the Sixt-Passy National Park, with impressive rock formations and four waterfalls.

Easily accessible, you can enjoy this impressive spectacle of nature. Its formation gives rise to a variety of waterfalls that contribute to the breathtaking beauty of the area. In spring, when the snow melts, you can admire no fewer than thirty waterfalls forming short torrents.

The Fer-à-Cheval cirque is part of the Sixt-Passy national nature reserve, another treasure of the region. You can also go as far as the municipality's second natural glacier cirque. Le Bout du Monde, near the Fer-à-Cheval cirque, is a listednatural heritage site.

Testimonial

"Magnificent walk at the end of the world. Beautiful scenery. Perfect to do with family, couple, friends, etc. Several path options available with varying levels of difficulty. A choice of car parks, one free with an additional 35 minute walk or a nearby car park for a fee."

Booking.com

Chalet Vaclav

Located in Sixt, Chalet Vaclav offers a shared lounge, free Wi-Fi, a shared kitchen and room service.

7.7 Fine

From

£137

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Cascade du Rouget

Named "France's most beautiful waterfall" in 2009, the Rouget waterfall, nicknamed the "Queen of the Alps", is Sixt-Fer-à-Cheval's second most popular waterfall after the Cirque de Fer à Cheval.

La cascade du Rouget, an impressive waterfall in the Sixt-Fer-à-Cheval mountains in Haute-Savoie, France

Situated at an altitude of one thousand metres in the Vallée du Giffre, this famous Alpine waterfall gushes out over a distance of almost ninety metres. Formed by three jumps, it flows from the torrent de Sales upstream to the Giffre des Fonds downstream.

The Rouget waterfall, one of the 4 waterfalls of the Cirque du Fer-à-cheval in the Grand Massif in Haute-Savoie.

Easily accessible from a tourist trail, you can plan to discover it during your hike to the Cirque de Fer à Cheval. It's a pleasant walk that takes less than two hours to reach and enjoy. What's more, the route is perfectly suited to children. It's a great way to enjoy a refreshing family activity.