Sixt-Fer-à-Cheval:The Cirque, hiking and skiing

What is Sixt-Fer-à-Cheval like?

Sixt is where the Giffre valley ends and the mountains close in. It is a small commune of about 800 people, a village with 24 hamlets spread around it, 44 stone basins and fountains, 53 wayside oratories and nine chapels. It was a cradle of mountaineering in the 1930s and a small ski resort from the 1950s, and it still has the largest summer grazing land in Haute-Savoie.

The commune names three jewels: the Cirque du Fer-à-Cheval, the Cascade du Rouget and its 12th-century abbey, founded by Augustinian canons. The abbey now belongs to the département, is being restored and holds exhibitions in summer. About 80% of the commune lies inside a national nature reserve, and the whole of it is working towards Grand Site de France status.

Sixt is a summer destination first. In winter it is a quiet village with a small beginners' area, the finish of the Grand Massif's longest run, and a free bus to the big lifts in Samoëns.

Sixt in summer

The Cirque du Fer-à-Cheval

The cirque takes its name from the horseshoe of limestone cliffs at the head of the valley. The cliffs stretch for 4 to 5 km and rise up to 700 m, and in June, the tourist office says, more than 30 waterfalls pour down them. It is one of the largest cirques in the French Alps and the most visited site in Sixt.

The classic walk is the Bout du Monde, the "end of the world", which starts at the far end of the cirque. It is about 5 km there and back, takes about 2 hours 30 minutes and climbs about 150 m, past a series of named waterfalls in the Fond de la Combe.

Two practical points matter more than anything else:

• The cirque closes in bad weather. Since the torrential floods of 4 August 2025, the commune bans access whenever a yellow or higher weather warning is in force for storms, rain or flooding, and wardens supervise the way out. The rest of the commune stays open. Check the forecast before you set off.
• Parking is charged all year, around the clock. In 2025 a 24-hour ticket cost €7 for a car from mid-April to mid-November, and a 365-day pass cost €12. You can pay by cash, card or the PrestoPark app. Blue-badge holders park free in P3.

The commune's own advice: arrive before 10:00 or after 16:00, avoid summer Sundays, and expect no phone signal in places. Bikes are banned from the Fond de la Combe between 10:00 and 18:00 in summer.

The Cascade du Rouget

Known as the Queen of the Alps, the Rouget is, for the tourist office, the most prestigious of Sixt's waterfalls, dropping more than 80 m. It lies about 6 km from the village beyond the hamlet of Salvagny, at about 1,000 m. You can drive there in spring, summer and autumn, and the summer valley shuttle stops there. In winter the road closes beyond Salvagny, and you walk or snowshoe in, about 1 hour 30 minutes there and back.

The nature reserve

The Réserve naturelle nationale de Sixt-Fer-à-Cheval / Passy is the largest nature reserve in Haute-Savoie: about 9,445 hectares, 8,468 of them in Sixt. Its rules, set by a 2019 decree, are strict:

• No dogs. You can't bring domestic animals into the reserve, even on a lead. The exceptions are guide dogs and working dogs.
• No drones. Flying any aircraft or remote-controlled device less than 300 m above the ground is banned without permission.
• No fires without the prefect's permission.
• Bivouacking is regulated by the prefect; check the current rules before you plan a night out.

Walks and refuges

Beyond the Bout du Monde, the tourist office's routes go high:

• The Refuge and Lac de la Vogealle, from the cirque. The route starts on the wide path to the right of the Fer-à-Cheval restaurant, climbs 1,152 m and takes about 5 hours 30 minutes, with a high point of 1,902 m. It has a section fitted with cables, which the tourist office calls relatively easy, and some loose rock. The lake is 20 minutes beyond the refuge.
• The Refuge de Sales, at 1,877 m, reachable only on foot by a path past waterfalls that the refuge calls suitable for families. It is closed until 12 June 2027 and takes bookings from January 2027.

The commune also lists climbing, via ferrata, rafting and cycling among the valley's summer activities, and the Gorges des Tines are another classified natural site.

Getting around in summer

The summer Navettes du Giffre run from Châtillon-sur-Cluses up the valley to Sixt seven days a week, with no need to book, and serve the Cirque, Lignon and the Cascade du Rouget. The tourist office gives the fare as a €2 day pass or a €10 ten-day pass across the valley network. The "Au fil du Giffre" greenway also runs up the valley, and there are bike racks at the sites.

Skiing in Sixt

Sixt's own skiing is a beginner area at Salvagny: four lifts and six runs, four blue and two green, all covered by snowmaking. For 2026/27 it opens from 19 December 2026 to 7 March 2027, the shortest season in the Grand Massif, and a local pass costs a fraction of the full Grand Massif one. There is also a sledging run for children.

The link to the rest of the Grand Massif is one-way. No lift connects Sixt to the other resorts: you arrive on the Cascades run, 14 km from the top of the Grandes Platières above Flaine, and leave by bus. The free Ligne verte shuttle runs from the bottom of the Cascades to the Grand Massif Express in Samoëns about every 20 minutes, until two hours after the run closes. The Ligne rouge links Sixt and Salvagny with the Grand Massif Express even when the ski areas are closed, and the Y94 bus is free between Samoëns and the Cirque du Fer-à-Cheval.

The Cascades run

The lift company grades it red: 14 km and 1,720 m of descent through the nature reserve, with no lifts on the way and no restaurants. It opens from 10:00 to 14:00 when the snow allows, only the full Grand Massif pass covers it, and it isn't recommended for beginners or young children. It is the longest run in the area.

Ski school and other snow

The ESF works from the Maison de la Montagne in the village centre, with ten instructors every day of the week. It runs Club Piou-Piou and a snow nursery, and teaches at Sixt or out on the Grand Massif. The commune lists snowshoeing, sledging, ski touring and cross-country skiing as winter alternatives.

Where to stay

The lift company describes Sixt's accommodation as apartments, holiday homes, family cottages and self-catering gîtes. The commune notes that the restaurants, refuges, campsite and shops at the Fer-à-Cheval stay open outside the weather closures. The Haut-Giffre tourist office, at the Maison de la Montagne in the village centre, lists them.

Eating and drinking

Sixt has restaurants in the village and at the Cirque du Fer-à-Cheval, so check their 2026/27 opening. The Haut-Giffre tourist office at the Maison de la Montagne is the place to check. Samoëns, down the valley, has a far wider choice of restaurants.

How to get to Sixt

Sixt is at the top of the Giffre valley. Leave the A40 at the Cluses exit and follow the valley up through Taninges, Morillon and Samoëns. From 1 November to 31 March, French law requires winter tyres marked 3PMSF, or chains or snow socks in the car, everywhere in Haute-Savoie. The Pont de la Glière on the RD907 at Sixt was being rebuilt through 2026, so check for roadworks.

By public transport, the Y94 bus from Cluses and the Y02 from Annemasse both run through Morillon and Samoëns to Sixt.

Getting to Samoëns covers the airport, trains and transfers for the whole valley.

Weather, snow and webcams

The Haut-Giffre tourist office runs live webcams at the Feulatière and in the Cirque du Fer-à-Cheval. Its live from the slopes page lists Sixt's runs and lifts alongside Morillon's, and there is a separate forecast for Sixt.

When to visit Sixt

Come in summer. The Cirque is at its most dramatic in June, when the tourist office counts more than 30 waterfalls. The Refuge de Sales reopens on 12 June 2027, and the valley shuttles run in July and August. The commune calls Sixt a four-season destination, and the Cirque is open all year apart from weather closures.

In winter, Sixt's lifts run from 19 December to 7 March. If you want to ski the wider Grand Massif, stay here for the quiet and take the free bus to Samoëns each morning.

Sixt vs Samoëns

Choose Sixt if you're coming for the mountains rather than the pistes: the Cirque, the waterfalls, the refuges and the reserve.

Choose Samoëns if you want the ski area on your doorstep and a village with more going on.

What's nearby

• Samoëns

  Down the valley, with the Grand Massif Express and the Wednesday market.

• Morillon

  Further down the valley, with the Lac Bleu.

• Flaine

  The Cascades run starts at the top of Flaine's Grandes Platières.

• Les Carroz

  The other side of the Grand Massif, over the Tête des Saix.