Annecy and around Lac d'Annecy:
The city of Annecy, for shopping, restaurants, history and theatre, is 25 minutes drive to the north, along the west side of the lake. It’s possible to cycle between Doussard and Annecy on a dedicated cycle route along the lake.
As well as all the water sports around the lake, you can experience hang-gliding over the lake with an instructor from Col de la Forclaz, a 5 km winding climb above Talloires.
The location is ideal for golfers, being situated half way between the spectacular courses at Golf du lac d'Annecy at Echarvines on the east side of the lake (tel +33 4 50 60 12 89), and the 9 and 18-hole courses at Golf de Giez (www.golfdegiez.com) with views of Mont Blanc and Lac d'Annecy. Either venue is only about ten minutes drive from Résidence les Gentianes.
Similarly for horse-riding, one centre is 5 minutes drive and 3 more within 20 minutes.
In winter ski-ers can choose between La Clusaz, Les Saisies or Megève, and even Courchevel is within about an hour by car
A bit further afield ...:
The charming market town of Thônes is 30 minutes to the east, via Talloires and Bluffy, with excellent value restaurants and bars around its town square, along with speciality shops.
The winter sports resort of La Clusaz is only 10-15 minutes further on, with spectacular views and one of its cable cars leading to a summer luge.
Chamonix is around an hour’s drive by motorway from Annecy, leading to the Mont Blanc Tunnel into Italy, so you can stay in Doussard, have lunch in Italy and be home in time for dinner. L’Aigue du Midi is a spectacular platform including a shop and restaurant near the summit of Mont Blanc, accessible from Chamonix by cable car. It’s the highest point in Europe that is accessible without having to be a climber!
The Winter Olympic centre at Albertville is less than 30 minutes to the south west of Doussard. Other leading ski resorts at Les Saisies and Megève are also around 45 minutes drive from the apartment, in the direction of Albertville.
Getting there ...:
Click on the link below this section to our own site for links to useful air and ferry sites, and for car rental. Flights to Geneva include EasyJet all year from Luton, Gatwick, Liverpool, East Midlands, Newcastle, Bristol and Belfast (and in winter from Stansted, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Doncaster/Sheffield and Bournemouth); British Airways direct from Gatwick and Heathrow; KLM from Heathrow and regional British airports via Amsterdam (often cheaper than BA); Flybe (winter from Southampton, Norwich, Exeter and Birmingham); Bmibaby (winter, B/ham, Manchester, Cardiff, East Midlands); Jet2 (winter, Manchester and Leeds/Bradford); Superfast ferries from Rosyth to Zeebrugge; and Franceferry and DirectFerries (for P&O and Seafrance from the south coast to Calais and other ports) and from Hull or Harwich via Belgium and the Netherlands. See Holidayautos (Switzerland – Geneva Airport) for competitive car rental (cars by Hertz, Alamo etc).
Other Activities:
Skiing at several leading resorts possible 30-60 minutes drive time (approx). The Tour de France passed through Doussard in 2009 and nearby in 2004.
