We have some fabulous 💦 swimming lakes 🏔 au Pays du Mont-Blanc, some large enough to practise watersports like ⛵️ windsurfing, sailing and paddle-boarding.
[ ⇒ for more information about 💦 swimming lakes 🏔 au Pays du Mont-Blanc, see separate MBFF article here ]
And not too far away, you’ll find some 💦 larger lakes in 🇫🇷 Haute-Savoie & Savoie, in Isère, 🇨🇭 in Switzerland, and in 🇮🇹 Italy, all with stunning backdrops !
On the larger lakes, you’ll be able to practise 🌊⛵️ watersports or even hire a small motor boat.
COLOUR CODE FOR LISTINGS
🏔 Pays du Mont-Blanc
🇫🇷 Further France
🇨🇭 Switzerland
🇮🇹 Italy
🇫🇷 HAUTE-SAVOIE LAKES
These swimming lakes you’ll find not too far from the Pays du Mont-Blanc :
Lacs de Thyez
A well-equipped base de loirsirs, with picnic tables, BBQ facilities, playground & skatepark, a parcours sportif, ping-pong tables, volley-ball & badminton and pétanque.
The lake is watched by maîtres-nageurs sauveteurs over the summer months.
TNA Cable Park (Arenthon)
You may have seen 💦 TNA cable park on a drive to Geneva or Annemasse from the 🏔 Pays du Mont-Blanc . . .
This is NOT a swimming lake, but you can try out: wakeboarding & water-skiing (on a cable), or their wibit watergames.
eating options: buvette, BBQs;
website & FB page & TNA aquaparc address: 110 chemin du Brachouet, Arenthon / tel: +33 9 53 13 46 01
Base de Loisirs du Lac Bleu (Morillon)
The 💦 Base de Loisirs du Lac Bleu in Morillon, with its clear water (there is a hint of blue, as the water arrives via underground rivers), is located 500m away from Morillon village centre.
On offer is swimming (with lifeguards), green areas and other loisirs: volleyball, tennis, accrobranches, 💦 NEW in 2021: Le Splash watergames! You’ll also find Le Mali’s Parc bouncy castles are nearby;
good to know: you can get to the 💦 Lac Bleu via the cycle path along the Giffre river from Taninges;
Base de loisirs du Lac aux Dames (Samoëns)
💦 La Base de Loisirs de Samoëns = 10 hectares of green grass and lakes with a whole host of activities for families, including :
- since last year 💦 a swimming lake (in addition to the outdoor swimming pool);
- 🌈 laser games & paintball, ⛳️ golf, 🧗♀️ accrobranche, 🌈 an escape game, 🥏 disc golf, 🥏 lake golf, 🎾 tennis . . . (⇒ see here);
[ ⇒ for more information, see Samoëns Tourisme here ]
Lac de Montriond (Montriond)
Set below huge cliffs, and also know as the lac vert, is the 💦 Lac de Montriond. You’ll find lots of strolls and hikes in the vicinity of the lake, like the one to 💦 the Cascade d’Ardent.
The 💦 Bout du Lac end of the lake is calmer, with picnic tables and a restaurant.
Over the summertime at the beach end of the lake, you’ll find a ☀️ base de loisirs, with:
- 💦 a special family swimming lake;
- 🎣 fishing;
- kayaks and paddle boards to rent;
- a playground;
- and pony rides;
- Parc Activity – with ⛳️ mini-golf, inflatables to hire and bubble football!
In wintertime, you can practise ❄️ ice diving here!
eating options: there are buvettes and restaurants at both ends of the lake;
💦 Lac de Montriond is close to 🐏 the goat village of Les Lindarets, where the goats roam freely over the summertime !
Lac d’Annecy
💦 Lac d’Annecy is the largest lake entirely in Haute-Savoie: 14,6 km long, 3,3km wide at its largest spot (and 800m wide at its smallest), 41,5m deep on average (and 82m deep at its deepest!), and with an area of 27,6km2.
It is also is the second largest glacial lake in France (after 💦 Lac du Bourget) !
Located not far from the 🏔 Pays du Mont-Blanc, it is a popular spot for a day out. It is considered one of the cleanest lakes in France and the average temperature of the water in July is 22°C.
There are 🏖 plenty of beaches (12 official beaches), lakeside walks and water sports to enjoy all around the beautiful lake.
[ ⇒ Lac d’ Annecy Tourisme’s suggestions for family beaches ]
For more information about family strolls & hikes around Lac d’Annecy, see separate MBFF article here.
🇫🇷 LAC LEMAN & CHABLAIS
Lac Léman (southern French side, in Haute-Savoie)
With 🏖 beaches in both 🇫🇷 France 🇨🇭 and in Switzerland, there are plenty of spots for swimming on 💦 Lac Léman!
[ ⇒ for a full list of beaches around 💦 Lac Léman, see here ]
Here are some suggestions in 🇫🇷 France (southern side of the lake):
Excenevex plage
Near Yvoire, you get a sense of being by the sea at this 🏖 sandy beach, and there are pedalos to rent and a playground.
eating options: Restaurant le Vent des Sables and Guinguette de la Plage / for access to a smaller, private beach, you could eat at the Hotel de la Plage;
⛺️ campsites: Camping La Pinède and ⛺️ La Pourvoie des Elandes;
Excenevex Tourisme
Yvoire & Nernier
These are both pretty medieval lakeside villages, and worth a visit in their own right for a wander and to eat some fresh perches.
You can also find spots 🏊♂️ to swim: off the rocks in Yvoire, and off a pebbly beach in Nernier! Nernier is lesser known than Yvoire, and so it remains a quieter spot to visit. Both villages are close to 🏖 Excenevex, so you could combine a village visit and beach visit!
Plage de la Beunaz (Saint-Paul-en-Chablais)
Located above Evian and Lac Léman, this base de loisirs has lots of offer: a natural lake at 900m, swimming, canoes & paddle boards to rent, a paddling pool, a new splash pad, wibit, a restaurant A la belle étoile, shaded spots to relax, Indianaventures parcours . . .
[ ⇒ more information here ]
🇫🇷 SAVOIE LAKES
Lac du Bourget
💦 Lac du Bourget (on which Aix-les-Bains sits), is the largest and deepest glacial lake located entirely in France: 18km long, 1,6km to 3,5km wide, an average of 85m deep (145m at its deepest!) and an area of 44,5km2. Though not far away from the 🏔 Pays du Mont-Blanc, gives one a total sense of dépaysement once there!
Legend has it that it was formed by the tears of an angel when God told it to leave the Alps.
There are plenty of great beaches for family swimming – 9 official beaches:
[ ⇒ see here for some recommended beaches, and some lovely hiking too (the iconic Dent du Chat looks over the lake ]
⛵️ watersports: sailing (16 ports de plaisance around lake), rowing, canoë-kayak, fishing, diving, water-skiing and wakeboarding / there is also Aqualac in Aix-les-Bains, with a beach, swimming pool, paddling pool, wibit (see here);
MBFF’s experience: a few years ago, with a 3 year old and small baby in tow (our then baby lounged on a rug in the shade!), MBFF spent a day at 🏖 Plage de la Chatière, Conjux, on the north-western side of the lake. This area is referred to as the Côte Sauvage, and it really does have an off-the-beaten-track feel to it (another recommended beach on this side, though only accessible by boat, is 🏖 Plage des Meuniers);
💦 Le canal de Savière meanders for about 4km from the Rhône at the lovely village of Chanaz down to Portout on 💦 Lac du Bourget;
The village of Chanaz it is picturesque and you can hire boats (we did this in May 2021!) to head down the canal.
⇒ our small motorboat journey down the Canal de Savière, to Portout and then into Lac du Bourget :
⇒ our lovely walk beside the water – Au fil de l’Eau – down to the Jardin Vagabond:
also good to know – not too far away from Conjux is the ⛪️ Abbaye d’Hautecombe;
Les Îles du Chéran (Massif des Bauges)
We hiked past 💦 this base de loisirs on a family weekend in ⛰ the Massif des Bauges, and it looked fun!
On offer you’ll find: swimming on the fully equipped beach, a water slide with 3 tracks, a fun paddling pool, accro-bungy jumping, 🌊 cable skiing, electric mini-quads, tennis courts, lawn bowling, a multi-sports field . . . another lake for 🎣 fishing, another for walks . . .
The base de loisirs is located a short hike from the 💦Cascade du Pissieu and next to 💦the Chéran river for wading and fishing! Beautiful!
WAM Park Savoie (Montailleur, near Albertville)
There are now a handful of 🌊 WAM Parks in France, and this 💦 water fun specialist describes itself as: « mieux qu’un WAKEPARK . . . un WAMPARK! ».
The 🌊 wake park has :
- téléskis nautiques installations, allowing you to practise water-skiing or wakeboarding on a lake (the traction, instead of being from a boat, is through a system of cables and an electric motor – think téléski de neige!);
- 🌈 watergames;
- 🌈 a waterjump with 13 slides;
- 🧗♂️ a climbing wall on the water (psicobloc);
Onsite you will also find : a buvette, paddle boards to rent and 🏝 a “floating island“, diving gear, hiking around the lake, and a large trampoline and slackline.
It is open from mid April until November (depending on weather)!
FB page & website address: Base de Loisirs Montailleur, 73460, Montailleur
Lac d’Aiguebelette (near Chambéry)
I am eager to take the family camping at 💦 Lac d’Aiguebelette (to the west of Chambéry) as I have heard such lovely reports!
There are 9 swimming beaches and some campsites, including a Huttopia with huts if you don’t like tent camping so much !
[ ⇒ see here for more information about Lac d’Aiguebelette ]
🇨🇭 NEARBY SWISS LAKES
Lac Léman
We’ve discussed some of the beaches on the 🇫🇷 French section of the lake, and now here are some suggestions on the larger 🇨🇭 Swiss section !
Geneva beaches
Apart from 🏖 Baby Plage, all of these swimming areas have a small entrance fee:
🏖 Baby Plage (Quai Gustave-Ador, Geneva) – located in in Eaux-Vives, near the 🌹Parc de la Grange, this is the only FREE public beach in Geneva. There is 🌈 a play area for children and a 🏖 sandy beach and grass / ⇒ more information here;
🏖 Eaux-Vives beach – new for summer 2019, a pebble beach (extension from sandy 🏖 Baby Plage), and a restaurant planned for a later date . . .
🏖 Les Bains des Pâquis (Quai du Mont-Blanc, Geneva) – a vertitable institution in Geneva, a site with history: a concrete jetty with slide, diving boards, beach-volley, tyrolienne, climbing wall on the water, stand-up paddle / website;
🏖 Genève-Plage (Quai de Cologny, Geneva) – with 🏊♂️ lake swimming and swimming pools, a slide (9m high), diving pool, parcours aquatique de jeux gonflables. There are lots of sport on offer: 🏓 table tennis, 🏐 beach-volley, pétanque, diving, 🌊 waterskiing & wakeboard, flyboard, stand-up paddle . . . There is a 🥗 restaurant & terrace and the famous 💦 spa Bain-Bleu Hammam & Spa;
🏖 Hermance Plage (Hermance) – in the medieval village of Hermance, on the Franco-Swiss border, this beach also has a playground, a grassy area with shade, and a buvette;
🏖 Plage de la Nymphe (Collonge-Bellerive) – grassy areas, a playground, a beautiful view of Geneva and its Jet d’Eau . . . and Geneva’s very own little mermaid ( la Petite Sirène du Léman ) – good swimmers can swim out to her !
🏖 Bouveret Plage – it’s worth mentioning this beach, which is a bit further away, as it is right next to the fabulous Aquapark du Bouveret !
MBFF has also visited 🏖 sandy beaches around the towns of Nyon, Rolle and Morges, on the northern stretch of the lake. A visit to one of these super towns combines well with a beach visit !
Champex-Lac (Champex)
You can do paddle-boarding here or rent out a pedalo, and you can combine with a visit to the 🌺 Jardin Botanique alpin Flore-Alpes. Champex-Lac is known as le Petit Canada, due to the forest surrounding the pretty lakeside village.
website & FB page
Le Domaine des Îles (Sion)
La Bourgeoisie de Sion is responsible for this 💦 lake & leisure infrastructure, which covers 54 hectares . . . You’ll find lots of activities here: a lake, picnic spots (with BBQs) & restaurant, playground, mini-golf, tennis, beach volleyball, climbing wall, camping ground . . .
good to know: the NEW surfing spot 🌊 Alaia Bay (which has a surf camp!) is nearby!
website address: Bourgeoisie de Sion, Grand-Pont 12, 1950, Sion, Switzerland
🇫🇷 ISÈRE LAKES
Lac de Paladru (Pays Voironnais)
We had an unscheduled stop at this beautiful turquoise coloured lake one summer, en-route to la Drôme. We didn’t have time to swim, but we had a lovely lunch in Charavines . . .
💦 Lac de Paladru is 6km de long, 1km wide, 36km deep (at its deepest) and 392 hectares in dimension, which makes it the 5th largest natural lake in France (of glacial origins).
You can swim here, and there are also boating activities, fishing, biking, hiking . . . and its natural lake chalk is said to be good for the skin!
Here are a couple of the beaches you’ll find, ideal for family outings:
- Bois d’Amour in Charavines;
- La Véronnière at Montferrat;
There is a voie verte, which links Charavines and Paladru, via le chemin des marais, ideal for a family walk . . .
Lac de Monteynard
Emerging from the construction of an EDF dam in 1962, 💦 Lac de Monteynard is located just 25 minutes from Grenoble . . .
It is 20km long, and is a great spot for windsurfing and kite-surfing, catamaran, canoë-kayak, waterskiing and wakeboarding! La base nautique de Treffort has a paddling area and waterslide.
🌉 impressive bridges: Brac & Enron (see here for more details);
🇮🇹 NEARBY ITALIAN LAKES
You have plenty of super options for 💦 lake swimming across the border in Italy, which makes it an ideal location for a weekend away!
Starting with the closest swimming lake to the Tunnel de Mont-Blanc:
Lago di Viverone
Only about 1.5 hours from Courmayeur, and just after Ivrea, you’ll find 💦 Lago di Viverone . . .
MBFF has now been to this lake several times – we went to a wedding here one summer and stayed overnight (and got really pestered by mosquitoes, so think to pack repellent!).
There are ⛺️ campsites and plentiful hotels and B&Bs dotted around the lake (try mobile homes Albaluce Village Viverone), as well as super restaurants (many with playgrounds!);
And a bit further afield in Italy (but still within driving distance for a weekend away!), you have several options:
Lago di Orta
A lovely lake, with a small island – Isola San Giulio – located just across from the beautiful town of Orta San Giulio. A visit to this lake is highly recommended !
Lago Maggiore
We have been to a handful of the villages and towns around 💦 Lago Maggiore, and it never fails to delight us as a destination – there are great places to stay, wonderful food . . .
MBFF recommends visits to:
- Isole Borromee by boat from Stresa (Isola Bella and its palazzo and gardens and Isola dei Pescatori);
- Parco Pallavicino for the gardens and animal park, and views across the lake;
- the botanical gardens at Villa Taranto Giardini Botanici . . .
💦 Lago Maggiore’s north-eastern corner extends into 🇨🇭 Switzerland, with Locarno and Ascona to visit, and the Isole Brissago :
Lago Mergozzo
💦 Lago Mergozzo is a small lake just north of Lago Maggiore, and the small, pretty town of Mergozzo is worth a visit.
Lago di Varese
With beautiful snow-capped mountains in the background, this lake is picturesque !
Lago di Lugano
A small section of this mainly 🇨🇭 Swiss lake is located in 🇮🇹 Italy!
Lago di Como
This 💦 iconic Italian lake has some lovely old palaces and gardens to visit . . .
Mont Blanc Family Fun 