45.05° N · 6.30° E · Écrins National Park
Two cable car stages climb from the village of La Grave to 3,200 m on the Girose glacier, with the Meije opposite. It opens in summer from June to mid-September and at the top there are an ice cave and a restaurant.
Part of Écrins National ParkAlps
Who offers it
Independent companies: you book with them, on their terms. Prices are as they publish them and may change.
Step by step
From La Grave to 2,400 m. If you like, get off and walk the viewpoints at the intermediate station.
From 2,400 to 3,200 m, to the Girose glacier.
Terrace, ice cave, glacier path and lunch at La Cabine. Come down before 16:15.
It is the quickest way to find yourself in the high mountains of the Écrins without being a mountaineer: in a short cabin ride you go from the houses of La Grave to the ice of the Girose glacier, with the north face of the Meije, 3,983 m high, in front of you.
The cable car climbs in two stages. The first reaches 2,400 m, the intermediate station, where the company has prepared a short route of viewpoints which it calls "sensations". The second leaves you at 3,200 m, at the edge of the Girose glacier: there are the La Cabine restaurant, with a panoramic terrace, a waymarked path across the glacier and a cave dug into the ice.
Off the waymarked path, the glacier is mountaineers' terrain, with rope and guide: do not leave it on your own. To walk on it safely, the company organises a guided walk with the Bureau des Guides on Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays.
The last descent from 3,200 m is at 16:15. The cave and La Cabine follow the same calendar. Hours are indicative: the company may change them because of wind.
Round trip to 3,200 m, €37 for adults and €25 up to age 18; the family package, for two parents and their children under 20, €84. Up to 2,400 m only, €25. There are one-way tickets for those who walk up or down. The ice cave costs €7 (€6 for under-18s) and the guided walk on the glacier, €40 (€30 for under-18s). The Experience and Passion packages combine the ascent, cave and path; the Passion adds lunch at La Cabine.
The lower station is in the cable car square, in the centre of La Grave, beside the D1091. From Lyon it is about two hours forty-five by Grenoble and the Romanche valley. Beyond the Chambon reservoir, the road follows a narrow emergency stretch, for cars only: motorhomes and cars with trailers must go via Gap or the Fréjus tunnel. Without a car, the LER 35 bus links Grenoble with La Grave with advance booking.
Who it's for
What to bring
Map
What you have around the starting point.
More to do
Itineraries
Tips
In the morning there is less cloud and fewer people on the terrace.
The company publishes live cameras at both stations.
At 3,200 m it is normal to feel the effort when walking. If someone feels dizzy, come down.
Questions
Between three and five hours with the ascent, the cave and lunch.
Yes, there is no minimum age. Wrap them up well: it is cold at the top even in summer.
Yes, for €12 a day, on a lead and muzzled.
It is not compulsory. You can buy the ticket at the ticket office or on the website.
Only Thursday to Sunday, 3 to 6 and 10 to 13 September in 2026.
Geocaliahttps://www.geocalia.com/en/france/provence-alpes-cote-dazur/ecrins/things-to-do/meije-glacier-cable-car
