• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
MENUMENU
  • Home
  • About
  • Advertise
  • Join us on

Ultimate France

A Thrill-Seekers Guide

MENUMENU
  • Bike
    • Mountain Biking South France
      • Auron-Saint Etienne
      • Le Dévoluy
      • Diois
      • Isola 2000
      • La Moulière
      • Les Orres
      • Montgenèvre
      • Orcières
      • Pra Loup
      • Queyras
      • Riviera Borderlands
      • Roubion
      • Serre Chevalier
      • Sospel
      • Ubaye Valley
      • Valberg
      • Val d'Allos
      • Vars
      • Verdon
    • Mountain Biking French Alps
      • Portes du Soleil
        • Avoriaz
        • Châtel
        • Les Gets
        • Morzine
      • Alpe d'Huez
      • Chamonix
        • Tour du Mont Blanc
      • Courchevel
      • Les Arcs
      • La Clusaz
      • Les Deux Alpes
      • Méribel
      • Sainte-Foy
      • Tignes
      • Val d’Isère
      • Valloire
    • Mountain Biking French Pyrenees
      • Cauterets
      • Luchon
      • Saint Lary
      • Mountain Biking Basque Country
      • Mountain Biking Northern Italy
      • Finale Ligure
    • Cycling Holidays
      • Mountain Bike Hire
      • Cycle Shops & Repairs
      • Airport Transfers
      • Campervan Hire
      • Road Cycling
      • French Alps
      • South of France
      • Cycling Holidays
    • Bike Directory

      • Finale Ligure Freeride - MTB Uplifts & Guiding
      • Whiterides - Private Airport Transfers to the Espace Killy, Paradiski and 3 Valleys
      • France Bike Trips - Mountain Bike & Road Cycling Tours
      • Natureo Surf Camp - Seignosse
      • RIDE ON NOLI - MTB Uplifts & Guiding
      • Bike Alp - MTB Holidays in the Southern French Alps
  • Surf
    • South West France
      • Anglet
      • Arcachon-La Salie
      • Biarritz
      • Bidart
      • Biscarrosse
      • Capbreton
      • Guéthary
      • Hendaye
      • Hossegor
      • Lacanau
      • Messanges
      • Mimizan Plage
      • Moliets Plage
      • Saint-Jean-de-Luz
      • Seignosse
      • Vieux Boucau
    • Brittany
    • Surf Holidays
      • Surf Camps
      • Campsites
      • Surf Shuttles
      • Campervan Rental
      • Basque Country Beaches
      • Surf Webcams
    • Surf Events
      • Quiksilver Pro France
      • World Surfing Games
  • Kite
    • Kitesurf Spot Guide
      • Almanarre, Hyères
      • Beauduc, Camargue
      • Cap d’Agde
      • Carro
      • Espiguette, Camargue
      • La Ciotat
      • Lac de Serre-Ponçon
      • Le Jaï-Etang de Berre
      • Leucate-La Franqui
      • Saint-Laurent-du-Var
      • Sète-Etang de Thau
    • Kitesurfing Holidays
      • Campervan Rental
      • Campsites
        • Almanarre
        • Leucate
      • Kitesurf Schools
        • Almanarre
        • Cannes
        • Hyères
        • Leucate
        • Montpellier
        • Sète
  • Snow
    • Resort Guides
      • Les 3 Vallées
        • Courchevel
        • La Tania
        • Les Menuires
        • Méribel
        • Val Thorens
      • Alpe d'Huez
      • Arêches-Beaufort
      • Avoriaz
      • Bourg-Saint-Maurice
      • Chamonix
      • Châtel
      • Isola 2000
      • La Clusaz
    • Resort Guides cont.
      • La Grave
      • La Plagne
      • La Rosière
      • Les 2 Alpes
      • Les Arcs
      • Les Gets
      • Les Houches
      • Megève
      • Morzine
      • Sainte-Foy
      • Serre Chevalier
      • Tignes
      • Val d’Isère
    • Backcountry
      • Off-Piste Skiing
        • Tignes
        • Val d'Isère
        • Les 3 Vallées
        • Vallée Blanche
      • Ski Touring
        • Les 3 Vallées
      • Heli-Skiing & Boarding
      • Extreme Steep Skiing
      • Snowshoeing
        • French Alps
    • Ski Holidays
      • Airport Transfers
      • Chalet Accommodation
      • Ski & Snowboard Lessons
        • 100% Snowboard
      • Ski & Snowboard Holidays
      • Ski & Snowboard Rental
      • Off-Piste Guiding
      • Last Minute Deals
    • Webcams
      • Alpe d'Huez
      • Val d'Isère
  • Adventure
    • Canyoning
      • South of France
        • Gorges du Verdon
      • French Alps
        • Vercors
      • Canyoning Guides
      • Aqua Trekking Guides
    • Hiking
      • South of France
        • Gorges du Verdon
      • French Alps
        • Tour des Ecrins
        • Tour du Mont Blanc – A Classic Long-Distance Walk in the Alps
        • Mont Blanc Ascent
      • Hiking Guides
    • Paragliding
      • South of France
        • Saint-André-les-Alpes
      • French Alps
      • Paragliding Schools
      • Tandem Flights
    • Rafting
      • The Ubaye
      • The Verdon
      • Rafting Companies
      • Tandem Kayaking
    • Rock Climbing
      • Gorges du Verdon
      • Climbing Guides
      • Mountaineering
      • Mont Blanc
      • Mountaineering Guides
    • Via Ferrata
      • South of France
      • French Alps
      • Via Ferrata Guides
  • Active Holidays
    • South of France
      • Aix-en-Provence
      • Ardèche
      • Avignon
      • Briançon
      • Cannes
      • Cévennes NP
      • Dordogne
      • Ecrins NP
      • Gorges du Tarn
      • Gorges du Verdon
      • The Luberon
      • Massif de l'Esterel
      • Mercantour NP
      • Mont Ventoux
      • Nice
      • Ubaye Valley
    • French Alps
      • Bourg-Saint-Maurice
      • Chamonix
      • The Vercors
      • Mountain Bike Parks
      • Ski Resorts
      • Last Minute Ski Deals
      • Ski & Snowboard Lessons
      • Airport Transfers
      • Chalet Accommodation
      • Webcams
    • Atlantic Coast
      • Arcachon
      • Biarritz
      • Biscarrosse
      • Bordeaux
      • Capbreton
      • Cap Ferret
      • Hossegor
      • Île d'Oléron
      • Île de Ré
      • Lacanau
      • La Rochelle
      • Royan
      • Saint-Jean-de-Luz
    • Featured Accommodation

      • Seignosse Surf Villa
      • Christiania Hotel - Valloire
      • Camping International Giens, Campsite - Almanarre
      • Camping Huttopia Gorges du Verdon
      • Chalet du Mont d'Arbois - Megeve
      • Camping La Ferme de Castellane
      • Camping Huttopia Lanmary - Dordogne
  • Events
    • Mountain Biking
      • Raid VTT
      • Terres Noires Enduro
      • CRANKWORX – Les Gets
      • Megavalanche
      • Pass'Portes du Soleil
      • MTB Instructor Course
      • Roc d'Azur
    • Outdoor Sports
      • Spadtribu - Ubaye Valley
      • Natural Games
    • Skiing & Boarding
      • La Grave Off-Piste Adventure
      • Snow & Rock Backcountry Skiing
      • Val d'Isère Photo Comp
  • Gear
    • Waterproof Cycling Jackets
    • Expedition Duffel Bags
    • Backpacks under 30l
    • Mountain Bike Helmets
    • Snowboard Boots
    • Snowboard Helmets
    • Base Layers
    • Waterproof Jackets
    • Shimano CM-1000
    • Lapierre X-Control
    • Soft Roof Racks
    • Wetsuit Buying Guide – Everything you need to know to choose the right wetsuit
  • Magazine
You are here: Home / Paragliding in France / Paragliding in the South of France / Paragliding in Saint-André-les-Alpes

Paragliding in Saint-André-les-Alpes

Long mountain ridges, powerful thermals and 300 days of sunshine per year make Saint-André-les-Alpes one of the world’s best paragliding sites.

Paragliding in Saint-André-les-Alpes - banner

Paragliding at the Le Chalvet site in St André

Saint-André-les-Alpes is a little Haute-Provence village of 900 inhabitants at the northern end of the turquoise Lac de Castillon in the Verdon Natural Reserve.

During its 20 years as a paragliding destination, St André has carved out a reputation as one of the world’s top sites for cross-country flying. The thermal rockets of the southern French Alps conspire with the high cloud base, dominant north-south winds and interconnected ridges to make it a superb jumping off point for some epic long distance flights. Testimony to this is the fact that a number of paragliding world records have been set from Le Chalvet and pilots from all over the world flock here to improve their cross-country PBs.


Paragliding Lessons and Tandem Flights in St André les Alpes

St André is also a great place to learn to paraglide. Big open landing sites, a thermal breeze you can set your watch by and take-offs possible into four points of the compass. And with easy access via a tarmac road from local school Aérogliss top to bottom logistics are straightforward.

No entries were found.

 


St André les Alpes Paragliding Map and Forecast

Click on the icon for current conditions including wind direction, wind speed and cloud base. Scroll down the pop-up window for a Windfinder forecast.


Paragliding Uplift Shuttles

Uplift shuttles organised by local paragliding club ASAVL are available to book from mid-June to mid-September. They run continuously from 8 am to 1 pm and again after 5 pm from the Aérogliss base to the take-off. The driver will leave as soon as 4 pilots are on board.

Call +33 (0)4 92 89 11 30 to book.

As an alternative, Taxi Vaccarezza also offer shuttle runs to the take off. Call +33 (0)4 92 89 03 28 to book.


Saint-André-les-Alpes Launch Sites

Le Chalvet paragliding take off in Saint-André-les-Alpes
Le Chalvet take off in Saint-André-les-Alpes | © Aérogliss

Le Chalvet mountain (1609 m) to the north-west of Saint-André dominates the high ground in this part of the Alps. Two launch sites on Le Chalvet, one facing south-west and the other south-east offer take offs into most wind directions.

Le Chalvet – South West Launch – Altitude 1540 m

The south-west facing take-off is the main Le Chalvet launch site and it’s from here that Saint-André’s booming thermal conditions have powered some epic long distance flights. Use the south-west launch from 11 am when the valley winds kick in. The winds build into the afternoon making take-offs tricky for inexperienced pilots and as soon as they combine with the thermals, the south-west launch is blown out. Late afternoon, when the thermals die down again, you can enjoy smooth air ideal for soaring until sunset.

There’s a large area for set up out of the wind and a huge launch zone. Pilots are requested to rig up and then walk across to the take off zone. The take-off is relatively steep but free from obstacles.

Le Chalvet – South & East Launch – Altitude 1540 m

The south and east facing launch sites overlook Saint-André-les-Alpes and the Lac de Castillon and offer straightforward conditions. The hilltop has been purposefully landscaped into a more gentle slope clear of obstructions making it ideal for beginner pilots.

There’s also a north facing launch that you can use for early morning take offs.


Saint-Andre-les-Alpes Landing Sites

Saint-André-les-Alpes paragliding landing site
Aerogliss landing site at sunset | © Flickr – Olivier Wenger

There are 2 main paragliding landing areas.

Aerogliss Paragliding School (880 m)

St André’s main landing site is a big field at the northern end of the Lac de Castillon. The Aerogliss paragliding school is located at the far end. There are 3 large windsocks clearly visible from the air.

The landing area is huge and suitable for both paragliders and hang gliders. When there’s little wind, landing is straightforward. The dominant wind blows in from the lake towards Saint André and can occasionally be quite strong.

In the heat of the afternoon the field becomes very thermic and the air can be quite punchy, so you need to continually monitor the 3 wind socks as you make your approach.

A northerly or northwesterly can trigger turbulent air as soon as the thermals kick in. When it’s like this, try to land as close as possible to the central windsock nearest Aérogliss.

This is a busy site, so once you’re on the ground, try to gather up your canopy as quickly as possible and move to the edge of the field to fold your wing.

Moriez – Camping M. BOEUF, Aire Naturelle le Pastaire

Located 3 km west of Saint-André-les-Alpes the Moriez landing site is a small field along the N202 immediately east of the Le Pastaire campground. A single windsock marks the western edge of the field.

This is the landing site to aim for if a westerly or northwesterly wind renders the main landing at the lake too turbulent. Generally, it’s a calmer and more predictable landing site than the lake, with the breeze typically channelled down the valley here towards Saint-André. Moriez is also a good backup landing site in case you lose too much height from a south-west launch to make the main landing field.

Watch out for the thorny hedge at the entrance to the field and for parked cars at the far end.


When to go

April to November

The 8 months from April to November is the best time of year to come to Saint-André. Think smooth early morning top to bottoms, punchy thermic flying from late morning, and glorious sunset soaring. April and May can get a fair amount of rain, but typically the showers are short-lived and interspersed with clear spells. The hot summer months of June, July and August is when expert pilots can expect to achieve huge 100 km+ XC flights. September is calmer and less crowded than high summer and good for a first visit.

December to March

Flying days are shorter, the cold winter air is smooth and thermals are more gentle. However, access to the take-offs may be blocked by snow. Mark Taggart, a very experienced pilot who runs a fantastic gite just a few hundred metres from the landing says that October to December is his favourite time of year.


How to get there

Saint-André-les-Alpes is 1 h 42 min driving time (105 km) from Nice Côte d’Azur airport and 1 h 58 min (166 km) from Marseille Provence Airport. With 4 departures every day, the Train des Pignes narrow gorge railway winds its way up through the Maritime Alps from Nice to St-André in 2.5 hours. The journey on public transport from Marseille takes 4 hours and involves a bus to Dignes and then a train to St-André. Alternatively you can hire a car form either Nice or Marseille airports.


Please leave a comment below if you need specific advice for your paragliding trip to Saint-André-les-Alpes, or if you have any recommendations to help us improve this article. Happy holidays!


You may also like…

Gorges du Verdon – An Active Holiday Guide
Rafting & Kayaking on the Verdon
Mountain Biking in the Verdon
Rock Climbing in the Gorges du Verdon
Hiking in the Gorges du Verdon

Primary Sidebar

Footer

Ultimate France

About us
Contact us
Advertise
Events
Gear
Magazine
Webcams

For Business Owners

Add your business
Rejoindre l'annuaire

Assoc. Atout France

Top Mountain Bike Resorts

Portes du Soleil
Morzine
Les Gets
Avoriaz
Châtel
La Clusaz
Chamonix
Tignes
Les Arcs
Les 2 Alpes
Alpe d’Huez
Valloire
Val d’Allos
Pra Loup
Roubion
Les Orres
Montgenèvre

Directory

Airport Transfers
Campervan Hire
Canyoning
Cycle Hire
Cycle Shops & Repairs
Hiking
Kitesurf Schools
Mountain Bike Holidays
Rafting & Kayaking
Ski & Snowboard Hire
Snowshoeing
Via Ferrata

Secure Payments

Secure Payments with Stripe and PayPal

Copyright © 2022 Hang Ten Media Ltd. All Rights Reserved | CRN: 12758831 | Privacy Policy | Terms and Conditions