Operators’ images, refreshed at their own pace; they are not a continuous video stream. Click to enlarge; check the capture time on the image or at the source.
| Day | Lac du Bourget 232 m | Wind 232 m | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sun 11 Oct | 10° / 17° | 9 km/h | |
| Mon 12 Oct | 9° / 20° | 14 km/h | |
| Tue 13 Oct | 9° / 19° | 6 km/h | |
| Wed 14 Oct | 13° / 23° | 5 km/h | |
| Thu 15 Oct | 12° / 24° | 5 km/h | |
| Fri 16 Oct | 11° / 24° | 6 km/h | |
| Sat 17 Oct | 11° / 16° | 16 km/h |
Weather-model estimates at the stated altitude of each point, not measurements. Source: Open-Meteo, updated every hour.
Lac du Bourget stretches for 18 km below the Dent du Chat, opposite Aix-les-Bains. It is the largest natural lake of glacial origin lying entirely in France (Lake Geneva is shared with Switzerland, and Lac d’Hourtin, in the Landes country, covers a larger area). Its east shore is built-up and lively; its west shore, overlooked by the mountain, remains wild.
People come to swim at around ten beaches with lifeguards in summer, to take a boat to Hautecombe Abbey or the Canal de Savières, to cycle round the lake or to climb to the viewpoints of La Chambotte and Mont Revard. The poet Lamartine wrote “Le Lac” here. Since 2025, the Grand Lac area has been a UNESCO biosphere reserve.
Lake level: 231.40 m · Aix-les-Bains (CNR gauge), 11 October 2026 at 19:00. Altitude derived from the gauge reading and the gauge zero at 230.36 m NGF (updated on 29/04/2025). Raw data, not quality-checked.
Hub’Eau / Compagnie nationale du Rhône (Licence Ouverte Etalab)Direct TGV high-speed trains to Aix-les-Bains in about 3 h; about 5 h by car on the A6. Aix-les-Bains Riviera des Alpes tourist office: getting there and transport
About 1 h by car on the A41 (exits Aix-les-Bains Nord or Sud). Aix-les-Bains Riviera des Alpes tourist office: getting there and transport
About 1 h by car on the A43. Aix-les-Bains Riviera des Alpes tourist office: getting there and transport
About 45 min by car to Hautecombe Abbey. TER regional trains also stop at Viviers-du-Lac, Grésy-sur-Aix, Albens and Chindrieux. Hautecombe Abbey: getting there
Ondéa bus line 1 to the lakeside (Plage d’Aix, Camping, Grand Port), every 20 to 30 min from Monday to Saturday, less often on Sundays. Aix-les-Bains Riviera des Alpes tourist office: getting there and transport
Boats from the Grand Port to Hautecombe; from Chanaz, the Canal de Savières boats also go to the abbey. Hautecombe Abbey: getting there
Tap a point on the map or in the list to see its description, with a link to get directions from where you are.
Boats leave from here for Hautecombe Abbey, the Canal de Savières and the lake tour; tourist office desk. Ondéa bus line 1, Grand Port stop.
Direct TGV high-speed trains from Paris (about 3 h) and TER regional trains; Ondéa buses 1 and 3 to the lakeside.
TER regional train stop south-east of the lake, near the lakeside cycle path.
TER regional train stop north of the lake, a few hundred metres from Châtillon beach.
The large beach on the esplanade, with pools and a paddling pool (Aqualac); bus line 1, “Plage d’Aix” stop.
Sandy beach at the south end of the lake, with a shady park and water-sports rentals; lifeguards in summer, paid car parks in season.
At the north end of the lake, in Chindrieux: lifeguards in July and August, a restaurant, and pedalo, paddleboard and boat hire.
A cove of white pebbles on the west shore, reachable only by boat.
Car park 100 m from the abbey, and a landing stage for boats from Aix-les-Bains or Chanaz.
The “little Venice of Savoie” on the Canal de Savières: cruises, bike hire, ViaRhôna cycle route.
A view along the full length of the lake and of Hautecombe Abbey; car park and start of the Chambotte loop.
Above Le Bourget-du-Lac, the start of the Dent du Chat walk; the road is closed in winter.
A cruise of about 1 h with commentary follows the wild shore to the abbey, with a stop of about 1 h 30 min for the visit, before heading back to the Grand Port. The company also runs a tour of the lake (2 h) and trips on the Canal de Savières.
Compagnie des Bateaux: cruise to Hautecombe AbbeyAudio-guided tour of the abbey church, burial place of the House of Savoy. The abbey is closed on Tuesdays; from 1 November, it can only be visited in the afternoon.
Hautecombe Abbey (Chemin Neuf Community)Eleven beaches with lifeguards in summer all around the lake, most of them paying in season; the tourist office gives an average water temperature of around 26 °C in summer.
Aix-les-Bains Riviera des Alpes tourist office: Lac du BourgetPaddleboarding, canoeing, sailing and boat hire, with or without a licence, from the beaches and harbours; the lake holds the French Station nautique label for water-sports destinations.
Aix-les-Bains Riviera des Alpes tourist office: Lac du BourgetThe little port of Chanaz, its oil mill and its Gallo-Roman museum; cruises on the canal that links the lake to the Rhône.
Aix-les-Bains Riviera des Alpes tourist office: ChanazA hands-on interpretation centre about the lake’s wildlife and nature, with activities all year round, at the Petit Port in Aix-les-Bains.
Grand Lac (local authority): AqualisThe hide at the Étang des Aigrettes, at the south end of the lake, lets you watch reed-bed birds and migrating species.
Aix-les-Bains Riviera des Alpes tourist office: viewpoints and natural sitesA short, flat loop along the esplanade and the banks of the Sierroz, suitable for pushchairs.
Read the route 30 to 75 min depending on the trailFour short waymarked trails on the edge of Aix-les-Bains, leading to viewpoints over the lake.
Read the route 4.7 km · 269 m ascent · 1 h 50 minAn easy woodland loop from the viewpoint that takes in the whole lake and Hautecombe Abbey.
Read the route 4 km · 120 m ascent · 1 h 15 minA short high-altitude loop at 1,500 m, with Lac du Bourget seen from above.
Read the route 5.9 km · 450 m ascent · 3 h 20 minA short but steep climb to the rock that towers over the lake, with a bird’s-eye view along its whole length.
Read the route 35 km · 490 m ascentA 35 km tour by the east-shore cycle path, the Tunnel du Chat and the Jongieux vineyards, returning by boat.
Read the routeA webcam or a forecast cannot tell you whether a beach has lifeguards, a boat is running or a road is open: check with the official sources.
It is the largest natural lake of glacial origin lying entirely in France (44.5 km²). The Savoie prefecture points out that Lac d’Hourtin, in Gironde, covers a larger area, and that Lake Geneva is shared with Switzerland.
145 m at its deepest point, between Hautecombe Abbey and Grésine bay, according to the Savoie prefecture (other sources give 147 m).
By car (about 30 min from Aix-les-Bains, car park 100 m away) or by boat from the Grand Port in Aix-les-Bains, or from Chanaz along the Canal de Savières. The abbey is closed on Tuesdays.
Since 1 June 2026: a maximum of 50 km/h on the lake, a 200 m strip along the shores reserved for quiet, low-impact uses, a tow float compulsory for swimming more than 50 m from the shore, and jet skis and speakers banned.
Yes: take a TGV or TER train to Aix-les-Bains, then Ondéa bus line 1 to the lakeside. The TER stops at Viviers-du-Lac and Chindrieux are close to the beaches at the south and north ends of the lake.
Text written for AlpeSnow and last reviewed on , based on the sources below (mostly official French pages, in French). Webcam images belong to the credited operators; each photo shows its author and licence (Creative Commons for those from Wikimedia Commons, resized for the site); the forecast is the Open-Meteo model at the lake’s altitude.