Les Chapelles de Samoëns - Mountain biking

800-space parking lot for the Grand Massif Express, an 8-space gondola lift providing access to the Grand Massif alpine ski and mountain bike area.

The Chantemerle Chapel in Samoëns was built in 1684. It was placed under the protection of Saint-François de Sales. This popular saint in Savoy is often invoked as a multi-talented thaumaturge.Nowadays, Saint-François de Sales is the protector of journalists and, by extension, writers. Topped by a magnificent bulbous bell tower, the hamlet chapel is an architectural witness to the art of the stonemasons. The parishioners used to come here in procession, praying and singing for good weather and abundant harvests. This center of religious and social life has survived through the centuries. Just like the De Vallon Chapel, the one in Chantemerle had a role in protecting the local people. They were called the "Bochars de la Lanche". Huddled near the houses of the hamlet that gave it its name, this chapel remained until the 19th century as a pilgrimage place to save the harvests during severe droughts or persistent rains. The chapel was magnificently restored in 2007 thanks to the support of the association "Les amis des chapelles". Would you like to visit the hamlet of Chantemerle, its surroundings, and its chapel? Partial circuits are well signposted (yellow signposts) by the Syndicat Intercommunal de la Vallée du Haut-Giffre and the Conseil Général de Haute-Savoie ( Environmental Quality). Guided tours, organized by the Guides du Patrimoine Savoie Mont Blanc in summer and winter also allow visitors to enter the chapels, but also to discover their history as well as that of these typical Savoyard hamlets.

The Etelley Chapel in Samoëns was built in 1818. It owes its name to an old noble family of the place "de Lestelley" and its denomination to a brotherhood of the Holy Spirit.This religious building was built on 24th August 1457 by the inhabitants of Etelley and Vernay. The inhabitants of Etelley and Vernay owned the land on which the church was built in 1818. The brotherhood to which it is dedicated was founded in the 12th century by Guy de Montpellier. It is one of the oldest charitable institutions. Nowadays it has disappeared, but it is still active in Poland, Spain, and Burundi. Its original aim was to bring together all those who wished to help the poor, the sick, and the orphans. The Etelley Chapel, therefore, bears witness to a long history of blessings and misfortunes. As the Verney stream is frequently flooded, the chapel had to allow the villagers " ... to pray in public, especially when they had to fear the overflowing of the stream... ". Moreover, in January 2018, the year of the chapel's bicentenary, the hamlet of Etelley was evacuated due to a flooding of the Verney stream during the Eleanor storm. This chapel is one of nine chapels, spread over the hamlets of Samoëns. Visits are organized and walking tours allow you to discover the wealth of these historic monuments and the hamlets of the village.

It is one of the nine chapels in the Samoëns village to be discovered. Founded in the 17th century, it overlooks the hamlet of Mathonex, a traditional hamlet in the Alps.This chapel is located in the hamlet of Mathonex, on the Samoens heights, which it overlooks. It is one of the nine hamlets of the village. It also gathers old farms. The chapel of Mathonex was founded in 1656. It is dedicated to Saint John the Evangelist. Destroyed at the end of the 19th century by a landslide, it was rebuilt in 1901 on a hillock overlooking the Giffre valley, slightly distant from the village. At the top of its bell tower, you can see a rooster. A religious symbol and national emblem, it helps to determine where the wind comes from and to forecast possible rainfall. If you walk along the lower level of the chapel, on the side of the path, you will see the Mathonex oratory dating from 1747. It is located in the wall surrounding the chapel. The magnificent virgin that adorned it was unfortunately stolen a few years ago. To discover this hamlet in the Giffre Valley, there is a discovery circuit. It allows you to travel through the Septimont territory and to observe the numerous oratories and cultural buildings that characterize the landscape of the hamlets of Samoëns.

This chapel was built in 1636 by Joseph de Gex, Baron de Saint-Christophe, Lord of Vallon, and the local councilors.It is one of the oldest chapels in Samoëns, in the Haute-Savoie region, which has not been altered due to destruction. With its Baroque influence, it is one of the nine chapels present in each of the nine hamlets of Samoëns. The building in the hamlet of Des Vallons was founded on 24th August 1636 and is dedicated to Saint Jacques, Saint Philibert, and Saint Joseph. It was built in recognition of their protection during a plague epidemic in 1630: "...Desiring to accomplish and carry out the devotion by the princess in December of 1630, during which time it rained divine mercy on the people of the present place and Samoëns' command of the plague scourge and contamination...". What if the saints had drawn a mud stream on them to protect the village? In 1831, an event marked the history of the building: a mud stream tumbled down the slope of the Criou. It brought the snow to the height of the chapel bell tower, remaining there until 15 August of the same year. The painting above the altar in the chapel is another historical testimony. It is a work by Joseph Rabiato, painted in 1765. This painting, painted by the renowned portraitist of the bourgeoisie of central Valais, represents the votive saints of the chapel, placed under the name of Saints James, Philip, and Joseph. It has recently been removed from the altar in order to benefit from a well-deserved restoration. Discover the hamlet and its chapel, as well as the eight others and the multitude of riches they contain, is possible. There are several well-signposted partial circuits allowing you to discover these treasures of the Haut-Giffre Valley. Guided tours are also organized in winter and summer, giving visitors the opportunity to admire, for example, the La Jaÿsinia botanical garden or the other chapels in one of Samoëns's hamlets.

This alpine chapel was built in the 17th century by a local resident. It was a cause of conflict between the inhabitants of the village and the monks.The chapel of Vercland's hamlet in Samoëns was founded in 1626 on communal land, by a local resident, Pierre Vaisy: "as much for him as for his son Claude and his descendants". It is dedicated to the Conception of Notre-Dame and to Saint-Symphorien. Verclands' hamlet, is dedicated to the Conception of Notre-Dame and to Saint-Symphorien. Vercland's hamlet is a historic landmark of the stonecutters of Haute-Savoie and also the birthplace of the first ski lifts. This hamlet has had an animated history, as has its chapel. This religious building has been the source of conflicts and lawsuits between the inhabitants of the village and the monks of the collegiate church in Samoëns. The cost of founding the chapel (10,000 ancient pounds) is significant and obliges the serving rector to reside on-site and to teach the youth. Previously in the form of an oratory limited to the present choir, this chapel was enlarged in 1721. At the beginning of the century, it was the purpose of a procession in August, days before the Ascension, where the wheat was given. Today, this chapel is also used for the Reformed cult. A cult that has no temple in the Haut-Giffre valley. The association "Les amis des chapelles" (Friends of the chapels), a non-profit-making association under the law of 1901, carries out various activities to raise funds. This enables the community to maintain and renovate these buildings, which are part of the historical, cultural, and religious heritage of the Haute-Savoie region. They also organize guided tours of the monument in winter and summer. To discover the Savoyard hamlet, its chapel, and its surroundings, as well as the other hamlets in the commune of Samoëns, partial signposted circuits (yellow signposts), have been created.

The Saint-Théodule chapel in the hamlet of Vigny in Samoëns was built by the village councilors in 1675.The religious building was constructed from the ruins of an old chapel built in 1499, not far from there, at the Crest of Gimbel, near the Combe. The chapel of Vigny was dedicated to Notre Dame and Saint-Théodule. Many churches and chapels are dedicated to Saint-Théodule. Not only in Savoie ( at Vigny, Abondance, Thyez, etc.), but also in Switzerland (at Sion, Orsières, Gruyères, Grimentz, Ile d'Ogoz, etc.) or in the French Jura massif. Saint-Théodule is a popular saint in Valais, evoked to protect himself from lightning and storms. According to tradition, the bell of the Vigny chapel was buried during the Revolution. Unfortunately, as the spot of the hiding place was not found, the building had to be fitted with a new bell. On the façade of the building, there is a baptismal font and a sculpture representing the instruments of the Passion. On the right, above the baptismal font, sculpted in a flattened shape by a Dunoyer, are the instruments of the Passion of Christ. As for the bell tower, it is covered with slates. Nowadays it is possible to visit the chapel. It is one of the nine chapels in the hamlets of Samoëns. These religious monuments benefit from the work of the "Amis des Chapelles" (Friends of the Chapels). This association, under the 1901 law, carries out a variety of activities to raise funds to help the community maintain and renovate this heritage of the Alps. Hiking trails also exist to discover chapels and hamlets, notably the one linking Le Bérouze - Mathonex - Vigny. They are signposted in yellow and have been set up by the Syndicat Intercommunal de la Vallée du Haut-Giffre and the General Council.

The Berouze Chapel is dedicated to the apostles' Peter and Paul. It is one of the nine chapels located in the hamlets of Samoëns.Its origin lies in the transport of the ruins of the chapel founded at the Col de Couz in 1468. This chapel was destroyed in 1476 during the invasion of Faucigny by the Swiss troops. Today's chapel was built on the Place du Bérouze in 1481. It was restored again in 1660, as the Latin inscription on its façade reminds us: "Noble Bernard Ducis, fortunately, raised me at his expense in the year of the Lord 1660". After losing its bell during the Revolution, it was found again in 1824. A new restoration was carried out in June 2010. Inside the religious building, the painting on the altarpiece features the three favorite Jesus' apostles: Peter James and John. They are represented in a mountain landscape surrounded by an Italian town: Peter with the keys and the pallium, John as a young man raising his hand to heaven, and finally, the older and already slightly bald James is painted joining his hands in a gesture of prayer. The painting was a gift from Abbot J.F. Gindre and is a masterpiece of the painter Edouard Cabanne signed and dated 1879. This 19th-century painter is notably responsible for the four large panels in the church of Salies. Numerous of the paintings he made are also kept at the Fine Arts Museum in Bordeaux and at the Saint-Denis Museum in Reims. The Bérouze chapel and the eight other chapels in the hamlets of Samoëns can be visited during hikes in the Alps. There are visits organized by the association "Les Amis des chapelles" and partial tours. These are well signposted and are organized by the Syndicat Intercommunal de la Vallée du Haut-Giffre and the General Council.