The Grand-Bornand

Promise kept. The area has a great variety of slopes suitable for both beginners and experienced skiers. A visibly perfect environment to give birth to champions including Tessa Worley, 2013 world champion in alpine skiing, Nelly Moënne-Loccoz, vice-world champion and 2015 Crystal Globe in snowboard cross. Competitors from the Grand-Bo ski club also won numerous Olympic medals in Sochi.

Living in the mountains

In 2017, the resort will once again host the biathlon world championship. However, the station is not reserved for champions alone.

By traversing the various slopes of the domain, the whole chain of the Aravis is revealed. Lessons provide an introduction to slalom, powder skiing and cross-country skiing. A great initiative by the ESF: ski outings to discover the local heritage. From uninhabited hamlets in winter to isolated chapels, there are three hours of skiing punctuated by local legends. An outing that reflects the concern of the Grand-Bornandins, namely the preservation of mountain culture. Which means, pell-mell, to know the mountain and the names of its summits, to know how to ski, to know the cows and the reblochon, to walk the hiking trails, in short, to fully experience the mountain.

Bike ? Skiing?

If Serge and Pierre Mermillod are excellent skiers, the two brothers have created another mode of skiing: the ski bike.

Serge designed it 6 years ago to allow his wife to go on the slopes with their children when she is no longer skiing. In their mechanical workshop, they set up these funny machines equipped with a brake which allows them to manage their speed well. For a first descent, an initiation session with an instructor is recommended. Then it's just fun!

Artisans and defenders of living heritage

The charm of Grand-Bo is not only its magnificent landscapes, its beautiful chalets, its festivals and events, summer and winter alike. It is also the warm welcome by its inhabitants, the passion of the craftsmen. Caroline, unbeatable on the habitat and life of yesteryear. First visit, the Heritage House. Indispensable to fully appreciate the beauty of the typical habitat of the "pearl of the Aravis".

More than 400 of its chalets date from the 17th century! The one over which Caroline watches, belongs to the town and bears witness to the life of yesteryear. With great enthusiasm, she guides through the living and working rooms, picking up details and little secrets, vividly recounting the living conditions of its inhabitants: why the teenagers slept in the back room, what hides the credenza in the kitchen, the meaning of the mare sheath, what we did in the peille or even where the name of the mythical reblochon comes from.

leather work

Didier Perrillat is one of the emblematic figures of Grand-Bo. The one who, as a child, had a real crush on leather work, is the only saddler in the valley.

The large decorated straps supporting the bells come from his workshop. In the warmth of his shop, which smells of leather, he is happy to show all the stages of his work, from cutting the leather to placing the last decorative nail. The master craftsman also makes belts (made to measure when purchased), bags, bracelets, etc. Installed in one of the oldest chalets in the village, this lover of well-made work willingly offers introductory leatherwork workshops. Cozy next to the stove, we never tire of listening to him and watching him at work.

Farmhouse Reblochon

With around fifty farms, Grand-Bornand is positioned as the leading agricultural town in Haute-Savoie.

And as the cradle of farmer's Reblochon. Among its fervent defenders, Denis Perrillat. He regularly opens the doors of his cheese dairy to explain the entire manufacturing process. Passionate, too, he is inexhaustible when it comes to cheese. Sorry, reblochon!