Place to visit
Jardin du Lautaret
At the top of the Col du Lautaret, above 2,000 m, this botanical garden displays around 2,000 plant species from the world's mountains, arranged by origin, habitat and use.
At a glance
- Area
- Écrins
- Opening season
- Summer
- Official website
- www.jardindulautaret.com (new tab)
- Opening times
- First weekend of June to first weekend of September, daily, 10am-6pm. Guided tours at 10.30am, 2.30pm and 4pm. Phone answered in season only.
- Phone
- 04 92 23 25 48
- Address
- Sommet du col du Lautaret, 05480 Villar-d'Arêne
Information from Office de tourisme des Hautes Vallées(new tab), checked on . Opening times may change: please check before you go.
Experiences on offer
- Guided tours three times a day
- Behind-the-scenes science tours and workshops
- Astronomy evenings and sun observation (summer programme)
- Discount on the Glaciers de la Meije cable car with your ticket
Related activities
Discover more
Related stories
Hiking & trail running
Six years tracking a she-wolf in the Briançonnais
For six years, Corentin Esmieu watched the same she-wolf in a valley in the Briançonnais, without camera traps, relying solely on direct observation. The film he co-directed with Baptiste Deturche, Louve, une vie dans les Alpes, hits cinemas on 4 November 2026; the she-wolf herself remains out of reach, and that is just as it should be.
Hiking & trail running
Traversette Tunnel: the gate is shut until 2027
On the French side, the gate installed in 2023 once again bars the entrance to the oldest tunnel in the Alps, bored in 1480 beneath the Col de la Traversette. Winter has gripped the Upper Queyras since 18 October: no more hikers will pass through to Italy before late spring or early summer 2027.
Hiking & trail running
Lac Sainte-Anne: hike above Ceillac before the snow
Above Ceillac's last larches, a rocky bowl at 2,414 m holds the Queyras's largest glacial lake. The path is reported passable until 1 November, snow permitting: you have two weekends left to head up.