Sitting high in the southern French Alps, the third or fourth largest ski area in the country is an amazingly well kept secret, arguments rage as to the size of the ski station itself, however it is agreed to have 250 kilometres of groomed pistes and an amazing variety of snow, especially for the intermediate to expert skier. Serre Chevalier, France is indeed an excellent destination.

Situated in the south west corner of France on the border with Italy the area is on the crossroads to everywhere, whether it be north to Austria, west to Italy or south to the Mediterranean.

The scenery is breathtaking, fantastic alpine peaks and a climate that has given rise to the claim the area sees 300 days of sun a year, it has to be a place to visit, but it’s not just for winter activities the area is famed. The summer draws hikers, nature lovers, white water canoeists and those who just want to bask in the sunshine at an altitude of up to 1600 metres.

In the autumn the larch forests change colour bringing a flood of painters and those who find the summer months just a little bit too hot, but as the season ebbs from August into September the days cool and the temperatures become more balmy during the day. Serre Chevalier in France is further south than many other mountain resorts, so expect some extremes of weather.

The area sits between the main cities of Grenoble in France and Turin in Italy, with these places both being served by international airports. The fast TGV train from Paris calls in at Oulx 40 kilomteres away in Italy and there is a sleeper service available from Paris all the way to the old fortified town of Briancon, designed and built by Vauban in the 19th century.

But it is perhaps by road that it is most rewarding to climb into the mountains, taking in the peaks at your own pace and stopping whenever and wherever you feel like it. There are countless campsites to pull in at and enjoy what has to be one of the most breath taking regions of France, if not the world. Serre Chevalier, France is above all, ‘campervan friendly’.

Here is a nice little spot I found to stop in the ski resort of Serre Chevalier. This car park is between St Chaffrey and Briançon and I have been here for 3 days and no one has said a word.Motorhoming in The French Alps is always a nice thing to do as you can find superb places to wild camp and there is always fantastic scenery to see,

It is pretty quiet here as the skiing stopped last Saturday, so everyone is having a very chilled ‘interseason’ as they call it. There are very few bars open at the moment and even (open) restaurants are few and far between.  Having said that, at the moment I am only 4km from Briançon, which although is technically part of the Serre Chevalier ski resort, does continue to function as a proper town in it’s own right. Wild camping isn’t your only option when motorhoming in The French Alps, there are loads of really good campsites, some open all year round too.

If you’d fancy some motorhoming in The French Alps, then do hire a motorhome and explore this amazing area of Europe.