Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes · France
Col du Mont Cenis
D1006Lanslebourg to Lac du Mont-Cenis
A broad pass and high lake on the old road to Italy.
The D1006 climbs the Col du Mont Cenis from Lanslebourg to the great reservoir on the plateau near the Italian border, a wide, open pass steeped in the history of armies crossing the Alps. Open in the warmer months; mind the weather at altitude, the cyclists, and snow outside summer.
On the road
The road runs from Lanslebourg to the shore of Lac du Mont-Cenis. Both ends lie in Val-Cenis, the commune that takes in the village and the plateau above it. The climb out of Lanslebourg is about 6 miles (10 km) at an average close to 7 percent. It works up through a handful of hairpins, then crosses the high plateau beside the lake. Napoleon had the road built in the early 1800s so carriages could replace mule trains.
The pass sat on the Franco-Italian border from 1860 until 1947, when the Treaty of Paris placed it wholly in France. The reservoir drowned the old hospice and chalets when the dam went in. By the lake, a pyramid built in 1967 to mark Bonaparte’s Egyptian campaign now holds a museum on the pass’s history, open in summer. An alpine garden lies at its foot. The Tour de France has crossed the pass five times.
The pass closes for winter, usually from November until May. In 2026 it reopened on 13 May. While it is shut, the road on the French side becomes L’Escargot, a 6 mile (10 km) ski run. It is billed as the longest green run in Europe.
Col du Mont Cenis on the map7.8 mi · point to point
Navigate to the start: Apple Maps · Google Maps
Character
Corners
busiest around mile 4Elevation
under 4%4 to 8%over 8%1,397 to 2,086 mFrom the road
Points of interest2 stops
- Col du Mont CenisViewpoint6.2 mi in
- FlambeauLandmarkat the start
Hazards
- Weather at altitude
- Cyclists on the climbs
- Snow outside summer
Sources
“the drive offers beautiful panoramic views of the snowy peaks of the National Park La Vanoise.”
Route traced from OpenStreetMap, with its stats measured from that line. How the roads are mapped
Routes for iPhone carries Col du Mont Cenis offline, with live weather and a 7 day forecast.
Nearby roads
The closest great drives to Col du Mont Cenis.
