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Morzine (; ), alternatively known as Morzine-Avoriaz (), is an alpine commune on the Swiss border in the
Haute-Savoie Haute-Savoie () is a Departments of France, department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Regions of France, region of Southeastern France, bordering both Switzerland and Italy. Its Prefectures in France, prefecture is Annecy. To the north is Lake Gene ...
department in the
Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes (; AURA) or ; or ; . is a Regions of France, region in southeast-central France created by the 2014 territorial reform of French regions; it resulted from the merger of Auvergne and Rhône-Alpes. The new region came into e ...
region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as areas, zones, lands or territories, are portions of the Earth's surface that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and ...
in Southeastern
France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
. It is located in the French-Swiss
Chablais The Chablais (; ; ) was a province of the Duchy of Savoy. Its capital was Thonon-les-Bains. The Chablais was elevated to a duchy in 1311 by Henry VII, Holy Roman Emperor. This region is currently divided into three territories, the '' Chablais s ...
historical area, south-southeast of
Évian-les-Bains Évian-les-Bains (), or simply Évian (, , or ), is a Communes of France, commune in Eastern France, by the border with Switzerland. It is located in the northern part of the Haute-Savoie department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region. A high-m ...
and just west of
Champéry Champéry (; ) is a Municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in the district of Monthey (district), Monthey in the Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Valais in Switzerland. History Champéry is first mentioned in 1286 as ''Champery''. The Ho ...
in
Valais Valais ( , ; ), more formally, the Canton of Valais or Wallis, is one of the cantons of Switzerland, 26 cantons forming the Switzerland, Swiss Confederation. It is composed of thirteen districts and its capital and largest city is Sion, Switzer ...
. As of 2020, it had a population of 2,690. The town of Morzine is situated in the
French Alps The French Alps are the portions of the Alps mountain range that stand within France, located in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes and Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur regions. While some of the ranges of the French Alps are entirely in France, others, such a ...
' Vallée d'Aulps (Aulps Valley), which stretches from Morzine to La Vernaz in the northwest. A traditional
market town A market town is a settlement most common in Europe that obtained by custom or royal charter, in the Middle Ages, a market right, which allowed it to host a regular market; this distinguished it from a village or city. In Britain, small rura ...
in the heart of the
Portes du Soleil Les Portes du Soleil (, literally "The Doors of the Sun") is a major skisports destination in the Alps, encompassing twelve resorts between Mont Blanc in France and Lake Geneva in Switzerland. With more than 650 km of marked pistes (claime ...
, Morzine is dominated by
chalet A chalet (pronounced in British English; in American English usually ), also called Swiss chalet, is a type of building or house, typical of the Alpine region in Europe. It is made of wood, with a heavy, gently sloping roof and wide, well-su ...
s spread across a river gorge, bordered by partially wooded slopes which provide skiing even in poor weather conditions. Situated at an altitude of about 1,000 m, it is one of the most northerly of the French Alpine resorts, weatherwise benefiting from the
Mont Blanc Mont Blanc (, ) is a mountain in the Alps, rising above sea level, located right at the Franco-Italian border. It is the highest mountain in Europe outside the Caucasus Mountains, the second-most prominent mountain in Europe (after Mount E ...
microclimate. The locality enjoys panoramic mountain views and modern ski facilities, as well as hotels and restaurants in the town itself. The ski resort of
Avoriaz Avoriaz (, ) is a French mountain resort in the Portes du Soleil in the French commune of Morzine, on a shelf above the town of Morzine. Cars are forbidden in Avoriaz; transport includes horse-drawn sleighs and snowcats during winter. One ...
is located on the territory of the commune.


History

In 1181, Morzine (, or "border area") was a grange of Aulps Abbey, a
Cistercian The Cistercians (), officially the Order of Cistercians (, abbreviated as OCist or SOCist), are a Catholic religious order of monks and nuns that branched off from the Benedictines and follow the Rule of Saint Benedict, as well as the contri ...
monastery 7 km away. In the Middle Ages, granges were agricultural centres from which the monks exploited their landscape and co-ordinated farming and industrial work. The grange was fundamental to the Cistercians' successful expansion and management of their mountain land. The granges supplied the monastery's food, clothing, utensils and building materials. The granges were manned by lay-brothers, who cultivated the lands and reared livestock. From the 18th to the early 20th century, the exploitation of slate quarries was an important economic activity of Morzine, before winter tourism took over around in 1930. Between 1857 and 1870, the commune received national attention for an unusually high number of women claiming to be
possessed Possessed may refer to: Possession * Possession (disambiguation), having some degree of control over something else ** Spirit possession, whereby gods, demons, animas, or other disincarnate entities may temporarily take control of a human body *** ...
. In 2015 only a few quarries were still being exploited.


Climate

Morzine has a
humid continental climate A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers, and cold ...
(
Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...
''Dfb'') closely bordering on a
subarctic climate The subarctic climate (also called subpolar climate, or boreal climate) is a continental climate with long, cold (often very cold) winters, and short, warm to cool summers. It is found on large landmasses, often away from the moderating effects of ...
(''Dfc'').


Population


Summer sports

Morzine also hosts summer activities such as
mountain biking Mountain biking (MTB) is a sport of riding bicycles off-road, often over rough terrain, usually using specially designed mountain bikes. Mountain bikes share similarities with other bikes but incorporate features designed to enhance durability ...
,
golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various Golf club, clubs to hit a Golf ball, ball into a series of holes on a golf course, course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standa ...
ing,
walking Walking (also known as ambulation) is one of the main gaits of terrestrial locomotion among legged animals. Walking is typically slower than running and other gaits. Walking is defined as an " inverted pendulum" gait in which the body vaults o ...
and
caving Caving, also known as spelunking (United States and Canada) and potholing (United Kingdom and Ireland), is the recreational pastime of exploring wild cave systems (as distinguished from show caves). In contrast, speleology is the scientific ...
. The resort also boasts an Olympic sized swimming pool.


Mountain biking

Local trails are generally single track and with varying levels of difficulty available from steep, rooty and technical to fast open downhill tracks. There is also a small amount of Northshore available in the Chatel Bike Park area. Morzine is also within easy reach of other resorts including
Avoriaz Avoriaz (, ) is a French mountain resort in the Portes du Soleil in the French commune of Morzine, on a shelf above the town of Morzine. Cars are forbidden in Avoriaz; transport includes horse-drawn sleighs and snowcats during winter. One ...
, Morgins, Châtel and Les Gets. The resorts of Pila,
Verbier Verbier () is a village located in south-western Switzerland in the canton of Valais Valais ( , ; ), more formally, the Canton of Valais or Wallis, is one of the cantons of Switzerland, 26 cantons forming the Switzerland, Swiss Confederatio ...
and
Les Arcs Les Arcs () is a ski resort located in Savoie, France, in the Tarentaise Valley town of Bourg-Saint-Maurice. Initially created by Robert Blanc and Roger Godino, it is a part of the huge Paradiski system which is under ownership by Compagnie ...
lie within easy reach by car thus giving access to several places to ride. A single lift pass can be purchased to cover the whole of the
Portes du Soleil Les Portes du Soleil (, literally "The Doors of the Sun") is a major skisports destination in the Alps, encompassing twelve resorts between Mont Blanc in France and Lake Geneva in Switzerland. With more than 650 km of marked pistes (claime ...
area and costs much less than during the winter months.


Tour de France

Morzine has hosted
Tour de France The Tour de France () is an annual men's multiple-stage cycle sport, bicycle race held primarily in France. It is the oldest and most prestigious of the three Grand Tour (cycling), Grand Tours, which include the Giro d'Italia and the Vuelta a ...
stage finishes on several occasions, thanks in part to the proximity of the notoriously steep
Col de Joux-Plane Col de Joux Plane (el. 1691 m.) is a high mountain pass in the Alps in Haute-Savoie, France, linking Morzine with Samoëns. The climb has been featured several times in the Tour de France cycling race. Climb details *Starting from Samoëns, the ...
climb. Morzine was the finale of the first mountain stage in the 2003 Tour de France. Stage seven's yellow jersey (for the leader of the general classification) and polka dot jersey (for the leader of the mountains classification) were awarded to Richard Virenque of France's Quick-Step–Davitamon team. Stage 17 of the
2006 Tour de France The 2006 Tour de France was the 93rd edition of the Tour de France, one of cycling's Grand Tour (cycling), Grand Tours. It took place between the 1st and the 23rd of July. It was won by Óscar Pereiro following the disqualification of Floyd Land ...
ended in Morzine, where Floyd Landis did the impossible and gutted out one of the most memorable stage wins in Tour history during the height of the 1992–2012 doping-era. The town was also the starting point for Stage 18. In the 2010 Tour de France Morzine was the finishing location for stage 8. Morzine again featured in the 2016 Tour de France as the finish for stage 20 – Megève to Morzine. On the 11 and 12 July 2022, the tour visited Morzine again, when it hosted the second rest day of the tour and the start of stage 10.


Football

Morzine is home to the annual French Mountain Villages Football Tournament (Tournoi des Montagnes), where the best junior teams compete for a much coveted trophy each June.


Winter sports


Ice hockey

The town is home to the Morzine-Avoriaz Penguins, an
ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey in North America) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. Tw ...
team which reached the
Ligue Magnus The Ligue Magnus, currently known as Synerglace Ligue Magnus for sponsorship reasons, is the top men's division of the French ice hockey pyramid, established in 1906. The league operated under a variety of names before taking that of its champio ...
final in 2006, but nowadays plays in the country's minor leagues.


Skiing and snowboarding

The intermediate terrain makes the area well suited to beginners and less-seasoned skiers and snowboarders, which has led to the resort being especially popular with families. However more challenging slopes can be found at nearby
Avoriaz Avoriaz (, ) is a French mountain resort in the Portes du Soleil in the French commune of Morzine, on a shelf above the town of Morzine. Cars are forbidden in Avoriaz; transport includes horse-drawn sleighs and snowcats during winter. One ...
. Morzine is closely linked to its neighbours Avoriaz and Les Gets in that they function as linked
skiing Skiing is the use of skis to glide on snow for basic transport, a recreational activity, or a competitive winter sport. Many types of competitive skiing events are recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), and the International S ...
centres during the winter season. The two resorts are included in the
Portes du Soleil Les Portes du Soleil (, literally "The Doors of the Sun") is a major skisports destination in the Alps, encompassing twelve resorts between Mont Blanc in France and Lake Geneva in Switzerland. With more than 650 km of marked pistes (claime ...
ski area, which includes both French and Swiss villages.


Other events

Since 2013, the town has hosted the Morzine Harley Days, a major motorcycle and music rally sponsored by
Harley-Davidson Harley-Davidson, Inc. (H-D, or simply Harley) is an American motorcycle manufacturer headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Founded in 1903, it is one of two major American motorcycle manufacturers to survive the Great Depression along with i ...
and organized by its
Harley Owners Group The Harley Owners Group (HOG) is a sponsored community marketing club, operated by Harley-Davidson for enthusiasts of that brand's motorcycles. The HOG is "the grandaddy of all community-building efforts," serving to promote not just a consume ...
. The event reportedly drew 20,000 vehicles and 60,000 fans in 2019.


Local transport

The closest airport to Morzine is
Geneva Cointrin International Airport Geneva Airport – formerly and still unofficially known as Cointrin Airport – is an international airport of Geneva, the second most populous city in Switzerland. It is located northwest of the city centre. It surpassed the 15-million-pas ...
, Switzerland. Although there is no rail service directly to Morzine the two closest stations are at
Thonon-les-Bains Thonon-les-Bains (; ), often simply referred to as Thonon, is a subprefecture of the Haute-Savoie department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in Eastern France. In 2018, the commune had a population of 35,241. Thonon-les-Bains is part of a ...
and
Cluses Cluses (; ) is a commune in the Haute-Savoie department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in southeastern France. Citizens are known as ''Clusiens''. The commune is situated in the Arve Valley, on the river which bears the same name. Cluse ...
, and from these stations local buses are available to the town.


See also

*
Communes of the Haute-Savoie department The following is a list of the 279 Communes of France, communes of the French Departments of France, department of Haute-Savoie. The communes cooperate in the following Communes of France#Intercommunality, intercommunalities (as of 2025):


References


External links


Official website
{{Authority control Communes of Haute-Savoie