Saint-Martin-de-Belleville
Encyclopedia
Saint-Martin-de-Belleville is a commune
in the Savoie
department in the Rhône-Alpes
region
in south-eastern France
.
Despite being in the world famous Trois Vallées
(Three Valleys) skiing area it has managed to keep its traditional French character, consisting of many alpine chalets with beautiful window boxes bursting with flowers. It is also the setting for the infamous novel by the Marquis de Sade, 120 Days of Sodom
. Saint-Martin-de-Belleville is home to one of the best restaurants in the French Alps, the 2 Michelin starred La Bouitte.
, Val Thorens
, Meribel
, Courchevel
and La Tania
. In total the area has 600 km of pisted runs and 200 ski lifts.
Communes of France
The commune is the lowest level of administrative division in the French Republic. French communes are roughly equivalent to incorporated municipalities or villages in the United States or Gemeinden in Germany...
in the Savoie
Savoie
Savoie is a French department located in the Rhône-Alpes region in the French Alps.Together with the Haute-Savoie, Savoie is one of the two departments of the historic region of Savoy that was annexed by France on June 14, 1860, following the signature of the Treaty of Turin on March 24, 1860...
department in the Rhône-Alpes
Rhône-Alpes
Rhône-Alpes is one of the 27 regions of France, located on the eastern border of the country, towards the south. The region was named after the Rhône River and the Alps mountain range. Its capital, Lyon, is the second-largest metropolitan area in France after Paris...
region
Régions of France
France is divided into 27 administrative regions , 22 of which are in Metropolitan France, and five of which are overseas. Corsica is a territorial collectivity , but is considered a region in mainstream usage, and is even shown as such on the INSEE website...
in south-eastern France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
.
Despite being in the world famous Trois Vallées
Les Trois Vallées
Les Trois Vallées or The Three Valleys is a ski region in the Tarentaise Valley, Savoie département of France, above the town of Moûtiers and have areas within the Vanoise National Park...
(Three Valleys) skiing area it has managed to keep its traditional French character, consisting of many alpine chalets with beautiful window boxes bursting with flowers. It is also the setting for the infamous novel by the Marquis de Sade, 120 Days of Sodom
120 Days of Sodom
The 120 Days of Sodom, or the School of Libertinism is a novel by the French writer and nobleman Donatien Alphonse François, Marquis de Sade, written in 1785...
. Saint-Martin-de-Belleville is home to one of the best restaurants in the French Alps, the 2 Michelin starred La Bouitte.
Ski
The Saint-Martin-de-Belleville ski area is part of the Three Valleys ski area that includes the resorts of Les MenuiresLes Menuires
Les Menuires is a ski resort in the Belleville valley of Les Trois Vallées between Saint-Martin-de-Belleville and Val Thorens. Owned and operated by Compagnie des Alpes, It is in the Savoie département of France....
, Val Thorens
Val Thorens
Val Thorens, located in the Tarentaise Valley, Savoie, French Alps, is the highest ski resort in Europe, at 2300 m altitude. It is located in the commune of Saint-Martin-de-Belleville in the Savoie département...
, Meribel
Méribel
Méribel is a ski resort in the Tarentaise Valley in the French Alps, situated near the town of Moutiers.Méribel refers to three neighbouring villages in the Les Allues commune of the Savoie département of France, near the town of Moûtiers , called Méribel Centre, Méribel-Mottaret and Méribel Village...
, Courchevel
Courchevel
Courchevel is the name of a ski resort located in the commune of Saint-Bon-Tarentaise in the French Alps, in the Tarentaise Valley, Savoie, Rhône-Alpes region. It is a part of Les Trois Vallées, the largest linked ski area in the world...
and La Tania
La Tania
La Tania is a ski resort in the Courchevel area of Les Trois Vallees at 1400m above sea level. It was developed for the Albertville Olympics of 1992 and can be reached by road, being about 25 minutes drive from Moutiers.-Overview:...
. In total the area has 600 km of pisted runs and 200 ski lifts.
Summer
Saint-Martin has also in the past few years increased its publicity of the area for summer visitors. All of the winter brochures now include a section on the summer season that runs most years from the 30th June until 1 September. The 3 Valleys links are open on a Tuesday and a Thursday for mountain biking and walking.Transportation
If travelling there the nearest airports (closest first) are:- AnnecyAnnecyAnnecy is a commune in the Haute-Savoie department in the Rhône-Alpes region in south-eastern France.It lies on the northern tip of Lake Annecy , 35 kilometres south of Geneva.-Administration:...
- ChambéryChambéryChambéry is a city in the department of Savoie, located in the Rhône-Alpes region in southeastern France.It is the capital of the department and has been the historical capital of the Savoy region since the 13th century, when Amadeus V of Savoy made the city his seat of power.-Geography:Chambéry...
- GrenobleGrenobleGrenoble is a city in southeastern France, at the foot of the French Alps where the river Drac joins the Isère. Located in the Rhône-Alpes region, Grenoble is the capital of the department of Isère...
- GenevaGenevaGeneva In the national languages of Switzerland the city is known as Genf , Ginevra and Genevra is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of Switzerland...
- LyonLyonLyon , is a city in east-central France in the Rhône-Alpes region, situated between Paris and Marseille. Lyon is located at from Paris, from Marseille, from Geneva, from Turin, and from Barcelona. The residents of the city are called Lyonnais....
Notable residents
- Vincent Jay - OlympicOlympic GamesThe Olympic Games is a major international event featuring summer and winter sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The Olympic Games have come to be regarded as the world’s foremost sports competition where more than 200 nations participate...
Biathlete who won GoldGoldGold is a chemical element with the symbol Au and an atomic number of 79. Gold is a dense, soft, shiny, malleable and ductile metal. Pure gold has a bright yellow color and luster traditionally considered attractive, which it maintains without oxidizing in air or water. Chemically, gold is a...
and Bronze at Vancouver 2010