Located in the Upper Dauphiné in the southern part of the Isère département, the Trièves mountains are dominated by Mount Aiguille. Pastoral landscapes juxtapose wilderness in this mountainous region that writer Jean Giono described as a “cloister of mountains”.

The village of Mens, the capital of the Trièves, is a pleasant and interesting halt with its old covered markets and narrow streets, its Café des Arts decorated with frescoes dating from 1896 and a museum devoted to the history and heritage of the Trièves, covering both the area's natural and man-made attractions.

The Trièves is a wonderful place to relax and recharge your batteries while you enjoy all kinds of outdoor activities, from hiking and mountain biking to horse riding.

Surrounded by mountains at an altitude of 765 metres, Lake Sautet boasts a magnificent natural setting. This wonderful 350-hectare reservoir located below the pleasant village of Corps offers a range of water-based activities including canoeing, sailing, pedalo, electric boating and swimming. Lakeside rambling and via ferrata are also available.

Located in the Taillefer mountains south of the town of Vizille along the Napoleon Road, the four lakes at Laffrey – Lac Petichet, Lac de Pierre-Châtel, Lac Mort and the big Lac de Laffrey – are an ideal spot to unwind and go on nature walks. A water sports centre and beaches with sun umbrellas and loungers at the Lac de Laffrey make it the perfect place to sunbathe, swim, windsurf, pedalo and fish.

High place of history, the castle of Vizille, built in the seventeenth century by the constable of Lesdiguières, was in the eighteenth century the cradle of the French Revolution. It is here that the Assembly of the three orders of Dauphine met on July 21,1788 to request the convening of the States General. The estate also has the distinction of having been, from 1925 to 1960, the summer residence of the Presidents of the Republic. Today open to the public, the castle, property of the General Council of Isère, houses the museum of the French Revolution, a space dedicated to this eventful period of the History of France and which exhibits in particular a superb collection of objects and works of art from the revolutionary era.

In front of the castle, a vast park of 100 hectares awaits the amateurs of walk. Its French gardens, its rose garden, its lake and its canals, but also its animal park, with its deer, fallow deer, herons, swans and geese, are all attractions that will make the joy young and old. Ideal for a family outing…

In the heart of Champsaur, in the peaceful hamlet of Aubérie, in the commune of Benevent-et-Charbillac, stands the adorable Saint-Grégoire chapel or chapel of the Pétètes (petète meaning doll in local language). Built in the mid-eighteenth century by Jacques Pascal, a carpenter mason inhabiting the hamlet, this building for the least original has the distinction of being adorned with naive statuettes representing saints. A jewel of popular traditional art, today classified as a historical monument.

The medieval town of Saint-Bonnet-en-Champsaur, the historical capital of the Champsaur valley and a stop on the Napoleon Road is situated at an altitude of 1,025 metres and boasts many traces of its past, including the charming square Place Grenette with its covered market and well, its narrow streets and old houses.

Not to missed: the Fête du Terroir country fair on the second Sunday in August when the whole village goes back in time 100 years during a colourful and lively day-long festival.

In the area surrounding Saint-Bonnet-en-Champsaur, sports fans will find numerous activities to keep them occupied, like rambling, skiing, river sports, climbing, horse-riding and paragliding.

Surrounded by high peaks over 3,000 metres high, the Valgaudemar valley, crossed by the turbulent Séveraisse mountain stream, is a wild and isolated area in Écrins National Park much loved by ramblers, mountaineers and fishermen.

Around La Chapelle-en-Valgaudémar, nature fans can admire stunning waterfalls like the Voile de la Mariée (bride's veil), Casset and Combefroide.

Also not to missed: Oulles du Diable, not far from the hamlet of Les Portes. This natural site offers an impressive show with the swirling water of the fast Navette mountain stream cutting its way through the rocks. A secure, dedicated footpath running alongside lets you appreciate its full beauty.

As the capital of the Alps and the Dauphiné, a university city, science hub and official City of Art and Culture, Grenoble has a long list of assets! Among its attractions are the old town, full of lively squares, mansions and picturesque shopping lanes lined with old houses; countless museums containing rich collections; relaxing parks and gardens like Paul Mistral park, Jardin des Plantes (Botanical Garden) and Île Verte park; and its stunning panoramic view of the surrounding mountains from La Bastille fort.

In the historic centre, don't miss: the pedestrian Saint-André square lined with café terraces and overlooked by the magnificent Gothic and Renaissance facades of the old Dauphiné Parliament building; Hôtel de Lesdiguières, a mansion opposite the charming Jardin de Ville where hundred-year-old trees grow; Place Grenette square, the hub of Grenoble life, with shops, restaurants and cafés; Place aux Herbes, a square with a little covered market hall where a market takes place every morning except Monday; Place Notre-Dame, for the 13th-century cathedral, Old Bishop's Palace Museum (Musée de l'Ancien Évêché) and Fountain of the Three Orders (Fontaine des Trois Ordres), which commemorates the 1788 events leading to the French Revolution.

In terms of culture, Grenoble offers a large choice of museums, temporary exhibitions and entertainment, including the Museum of Grenoble and its sumptuous collections of old and modern art, the Archaeological Museum, Natural History Museum, National Centre of Contemporary Art, Dauphinois Museum, Old Bishop's Palace Museum, Stendhal Museum, Isère Resistance and Deportation Museum and the Grenoble Automaton Museum. A host of very interesting places to satisfy a wide variety of tastes!

An important historical crossroads, Serres has preserved its original fortified village appearance. Built amphitheatre-style at the foot of Pignolette rock, this site of character is a particularly lovely place to walk around, with plenty to explore for visitors, including steep, narrow streets, a Romanesque church, a clock tower, the old carved door of the town hall and the Renaissance facade of the former home of Supreme Commander Lesdiguières.

Built at an altitude of 735 metres, Gap is the highest chief département town (préfecture) in France. Its historic centre is the perfect place for a wander, particularly the charming square Place Jean Marcellin and its very lively pedestrian streets. Other places of interest in the old town include the beautiful 18th-century facade of the town hall with its wrought-iron balconies, and Notre-Dame-et-Saint-Arnoux cathedral, a 19th-century Neo-Gothic building with a 70-metre high bell tower porch and a fantastic organ inside.

No to be missed: the Gap departmental museum devoted to archaeology and the history of art, where visitors can admire exhibits like the white and black marble mausoleum of the Duke of Lesdiguières.

A few kilometres from the town centre is the Domaine de Charance estate, the former summer residence of the bishops of Gap and today home to the National Alpine Botanical Conservatory and the Écrins National Park Visitor Centre. As well as these two places dedicated to nature preservation, the estate possesses a formal and a landscaped garden, as well as a 220-hectare park with a lake.

As for events, the town of Gap hosts the International Folk Dance Festival every July.

Nestled in a peaceful and lush setting 12 km from Grenoble, the spa resort of Uriage-les-Bains, very fashionable in the late 19th century, has been famous since Antiquity for its curative water. Today specialising in the treatment of rheumatic, dermatological and respiratory conditions, the spa establishment also offers fitness and well-being breaks.

The town is a lovely place to stroll around for the typical and eclectic belle-époque architecture of its hotels, villas and various other buildings. Walking enthusiasts can also choose from the very pleasant, 200-hectare Parc Thermal spa garden and the many footpaths departing from the resort.

One of France's leading art museums, the Museum of Grenoble exhibits one of the finest collections of early, modern and contemporary art with around 900 works on display.

Initially based in a former Franciscan convent, dating from the 13th century and opened in 1798, it offers the general public a complete retrospective of western painting from the 13th to 21st centuries, with French, Flemish, Dutch, Italian and Spanish art represented by numerous masterpieces. A panorama of the main trends in contemporary art since 1945 and an archive of Egyptian antiquities documented by Champollion complete the museum's collection.

The present museum, which reopened in 1994 on Place Lavalette and whose architecture has been completely redesigned, is located in the immediate vicinity of the old quarters of town and is accessible from Place Notre-Dame. It borders the Isère, including the Albert Michallon Park which is directly connected to it and has become a sculpture park. You are sure to appreciate the brightness and the 7,500 m² of space devoted to the permanent and temporary collections, which are spread over the rooms on either side of a large gallery, designed to resemble an indoor street in broad daylight. The rigour, simplicity and clarity of the design, and the very pure geometry with its soft lines, have helped to raise the profile of the Museum of Grenoble, a true conceptual success at the service of Art.

The sheer scale of the museum's art collection may make it hard to organise your visit. Be sure to take a look at the departments of Antiquities, the 13th to 16th centuries, 17th to 19th centuries, contemporary art, modern art and graphic arts. Those who prefer a guided tour can choose from a wide range of tours for all audiences, individuals, groups and families, some of which are designed to build bridges between art, literature, poetry, music, dance, theatre and architecture. For children, there are "Wednesday workshops" all year round, on fifteen or so different themes, to understand, imagine, discover one or more works of art, and take part in a visual art creation workshop.

Towering over Greater Grenoble from a height of 475 metres and accessible on foot or by cable car from the centre of Grenoble, La Bastille fort offers an absolutely exceptional panoramic view of the surrounding scenery: the Chartreuse mountains to the north, Belledonne mountain range to the east, Vercors mountains to the west and the city of Grenoble below! This key tourist attraction is especially worth a visit to see the stunning sunsets.

Built from 1823 to 1848 to defend the Dauphiné from an attack by the Duchy of Savoy, this former military fortress is today a cultural centre with exhibitions of contemporary art and the Museum of the Mountain Troops (Musée des Troupes de Montagne) dedicated to the environment and history of mountain soldiers.

A real natural citadel made of limestone, the Vercors Regional Nature Park, straddling the departments of Drôme and Isère, covers 206,208 hectares and culminates in the Grand Veymont, at an altitude of 2,341 metres. Created in 1970, it consists of 8 natural regions, which are the Vercors Drômois, Diois, Gervanne, Royans-Drôme, Quatre-Montagnes, Trièves, Royans-Isère and Piémont Nord. Rich in natural treasures, the Vercors Park stands out thanks to its diverse, wild and stunning landscapes. Tall limestone cliffs, deep gorges, chasms and caves, high plateaus, green valleys, mountain pastures and forests reflect an exceptional heritage.

Moreover, some impressive tourist routes run through it, like those of the Combe Laval and the Col de Rousset in Drôme, or the Bourne Gorges and the Écouges Canyon in Isère, which offer breathtaking views!

The great biodiversity of the Vercors Regional Nature Park makes it an exceptional territory, particularly rich in fauna and flora. Many animal species live there including 135 nesting bird species, 65 mammal species and 17 reptile and amphibian species. Mammals include large ungulates like the chamois, mouflon, deer, boar and Alpine ibex. When it comes to flora, the territory has 85 protected plant species and 75 orchid species. The Park also contains the biggest reserve of land in mainland France, the Hauts Plateaux, a truly unspoilt area since there are no roads or villages there.

To admire and make the most of this extraordinary countryside, the Vercors Regional Nature Park offers a wide range of activities. On sunny days, explore the paths on foot or by mountain bike. Thrill-seekers can opt for climbing, canyoning, caving or paragliding. In winter, the ski resorts such as Villard-de-Lans - Corrençon-en-Vercors and Lans-en-Vercors welcome you to go skiing down the many snowy slopes or enjoy lots of other winter pursuits.

Lastly, you can't talk about the Vercors massif without mentioning its significant historical past. This mountainous territory was indeed a bastion of the Resistance during the Second World War and was one of the most important maquis in France. Yet this heroic movement came to a tragic end in July 1944 when the Germans launched a powerful attack on the Vercors. A number of remembrance sites, like the Memorial of the Resistance in Vercors at the Col de la Chau pass, the Museum of the Resistance in Vassieux-en-Vercors and La Cour des Fusillés at La Chapelle-en-Vercors, welcome visitors to help them understand and never forget this dark period of history.

Straddling the Isère and Hautes-Alpes départements, Écrins National Park covers a central mountainous area of 91,800 hectares ranging in altitude from 800 to 4,102 metres. A favourite destination for nature lovers, this vast unspoiled territory is home to a very rich flora and fauna, including chamois, ibex, golden eagles, foxes, squirrels and marmots, and plants like edelweiss, blue thistle, genépi and gentian. The Écrins mountains are also a paradise for hikers, with no fewer than 740 km of waymarked footpaths, as well as for climbers: it's considered the second mountaineering site in France.

Not to be missed: the Park Visitor Centre (Maison du Parc) located in the Domaine de Charance estate on the outskirts of the town of Gap in the Hautes-Alpes, as well as the Maison du Parc in Le Bourg-d'Oisans, in the Isère, have a large amount of information about the mountains available for visitors and puts on regular exhibitions.

Dominating both the roofs of the village and the Durance valley, the Château de Tallard, built in the 14th and 16th centuries, features a mixture of medieval and Renaissance architecture.

As well as a beautiful view of the surroundings, the château boasts a seigniorial dwelling flanked by towers and with mullioned windows, a guardroom and the Flamboyant Gothic Saint-Jean chapel.

In summer, the château organises events and festivities like the medieval days (Journées Médiévales) and a historical sound and light show.

La Bourne gorges, located in Vercors Regional Nature Park between Pont-en-Royans and Villard-de-Lans, are a wild natural site best viewed from the breathtaking gorge-side road.

Don't miss stopping off at Choranche caves in the gorges themselves for their wonderful stalactites, two underground rivers, emerald-green lake and sound and light show presented in the cave chamber called the Grande Salle de la Cathédrale.

Pont-en-Royans is a charming and picturesque village in Vercors Regional Nature Park whose old houses overhang the Bourne. A good place to admire this unusual and particularly photogenic sight is Picard bridge or the river banks. Take a leisurely stroll along the river and stop to each lunch at one of the picnic tables or bathe in the waterfall.

Don't miss the Water Museum, a fun scientific and cultural space devoted to water in all its forms, including a water bar with no fewer than 1,500 bottles of water from all over the world!