Vanoise National Park

Vanoise National Park lies between the Tarentaise and Maurienne valleys in the French Alps and contains the Vanoise Massif. Created in 1963, it was the first national park in France, and sits entirely within the Savoie department. Small villages ring it (Pralognan-la-Vanoise, Termignon, Champagny-le-Haut, Bramans, Séez) and several of the large French ski resorts border it directly, which makes the contrast between developed and protected ground unusually sharp here. The high routes are a summer season; the passes hold snow long after the valleys are clear.