Winter holidays in Savoie: The unusual sides of the Maurienne valley

Located not far from your hotel in La Plagne, the Maurienne valley, which stretches from the foot of the Levanna to Modane, contains small unusual historical curiosities.
On the occasion of your winter holidays in Savoie, leave the tourist paths and embark on the path of this confidential heritage.

Starting from your hotel in La Plagne, on the road to Valfréjus, near Modane is a strange leaning house. Built in 1939, it was originally an observation blockhouse to protect the entrance to the Mont-Cenis railway tunnel.
In 1944, at the time of the withdrawal of the Germans, 2 wagons packed with explosives jumped in the heart of the tunnel.
The construction was then projected intact a few meters further by the blast of the explosion.
Since then, the floor of the building remains bent in two.

Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne has the particularity of housing the largest Opinel in the world.
Viewed from the Arvan Valley road, it is exposed in the middle of the roundabout at the entrance to the town.
Enjoy your visit to the museum of this small knife, a copy of which is sold every 10 seconds across the globe.
Immerse yourself in the history of Opinel and its manufacturing secrets.
Discover the life of this family of blacksmith-taillandier at the origin of the most famous of pocket knives.

At the top of the Met, on the Val-Cenis ski area, is the “Canopée de Cimes”. This platform, installed at 2,800 meters of altitude, is suspended above the void.
It allows you to safely observe the Maurienne landscape from a point of view at more than 180 degrees.
Sight glasses and an orientation table allow visitors to view the panorama that extends from the glaciers of the Vanoise to the Meije.
Thematic panels present the history and organization of the valley’s hydroelectric works, all built in the 1960s.