Diomaz Waterfall

A very pretty walk for everyone in an enchanting setting. The waterfall, made up of several cascades, flows into a multitude of naturally carved rock pools at a place called La Diomaz. At the foot of the waterfall is the Croix des Chartreux, engraved in the rock.

Details

n°121543

Creation:
20 May 2015

Last update:
18 Jun 2022

Last review:
10 Aug 2026

Activity: Walking
Distance: 3.02 mi
Average duration: 2h 00
Difficulty: Moderate
Back to start: Yes
Ascent: + 663 ft
Descent: - 682 ft
Highest point: 4,154 ft
Lowest point: 3,537 ft

Country: France
Areas: Alps, Chablais
City: Bellevaux (74470)
Start/End: N 46.218515° / E 6.557337°
IGN map(s): Ref. 3429ET, 3528ET, 3528ETR
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Description of the walk

Access: from Annemasse (Geneva), take the A40 motorway, exit 15 on the left, then the second on the right towards Vallée Verte (Boëge). Pass the Pont de Fillinges bridge, St-André-de-Boëge and continue to Boëge; in this village, turn right towards Villard.
Continue and cross Habère-Lullin and once in Habère-Poche, turn right towards Bellevaux. Cross Hirmentaz and descend to the Col de Jambaz (intersection). Turn left towards Bellevaux; shortly afterwards, turn right towards Lac de Vallon. You will pass through L'Èpuyer and La Clusaz just before the lake, where you will find a car park on the right.

(S) From the car park, enter the woods (yellow arrow on a spruce tree), pass the hut and turn right, crossing the footbridge.

(1). Shortly afterwards, turn left (signposted "La Chèvrerie"). Follow the track that runs alongside the lake until you reach a large meadow, which you cross, keeping slightly to the right until you reach a wooden bridge, which you cross.
You will reach the Saint Bruno Chapel.

(2) Then turn right, following the sign for "Cascade de la Diomaz". Pass two buildings, including a charming stone cottage with wooden shingles, then follow the right bank of the Diomaz stream.
Cross from one bank to the other, following the signs: the Croix des Chartreux (2 wooden signs) and Cascade de Diomaz, until you reach the foot of the waterfalls.

(3) The normal route (currently a little congested!) continues on the left (yellow markings) and climbs up the rocks on the right (handrail).

Pass the Croix des Chartreux, engraved in the stone (a piece of wood and a yellow arrow indicate the exact location), and continue along the path that climbs up to the left of the waterfalls. Once back on level ground, cross the stream to reach a new signpost; turn right to descend towards Lac de Vallon (Saint-Bruno chapel, goat farm).

(4) The path becomes quite steep; the terrain levels out and you cross the stream again.

(5) Return to the path you took on the way up, which will take you back to the car park (E).

Waypoints

S/E : mi 0 - alt. 3,560 ft - Car park before the - Lac de Vallon
1 : mi 0.06 - alt. 3,540 ft - Footbridge over the - Brevon (rivière)
2 : mi 0.8 - alt. 3,586 ft - Saint Bruno Chapel
3 : mi 1.47 - alt. 4,065 ft - Diomaz waterfall
4 : mi 1.61 - alt. 4,154 ft - Direction Lac du Vallon
5 : mi 1.88 - alt. 3,740 ft - Crossing the Diomaz stream
S/E : mi 3.02 - alt. 3,560 ft - Car park before Lac de Vallon

Notes

P.S. When we did this route, the ground was waterlogged due to recent bad weather that caused enormous damage, with many uprooted trees, some of which had fallen across the path, making the going quite challenging.

Reviews and comments

4.4 / 5

Based on 43 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.5 / 5

Ease of following the route
4.2 / 5

Route interest
4.4 / 5

Nchapel

10 Aug 2026 at 20:45 7200

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 05, 2026
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Warn climbers of the difficulty at the end of the climb (where there are ropes) and of the risk of slipping if it rained the day before.

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User 4555911

13 Jul 2026 at 10:11 7200

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 25, 2026
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A lovely, easy walk – the scenery is stunning along the lake and then on the climb up to the waterfall – we didn’t encounter any particular difficulties – I’d recommend using walking poles for the climb –

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Quen Tin

13 Jul 2026 at 08:33 7200

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 13, 2026
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A lovely little walk.
The route is well signposted, with a slight diversion due to cows grazing next to the chapel, but everything is clearly marked.
The start is really very easy; the upper section leading to the potholes is a bit steeper and more rugged, but that’s part of its charm.
We did it with a 9-year-old without any problems; he really enjoyed it.

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Rochi1999

25 May 2026 at 20:15 7200

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : May 25, 2026
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

Route taken on 25 May 2026 :-) To avoid just doing a simple round trip, we started at the “https://www.visorando.com/randonnee-tour”... and finished at the lake viewpoint.

The paths are nice and dry and there are handrails wherever needed (and even a bit more than that ;-)) so no worries. From St Bruno’s Chapel, we followed the recommended route exactly and that’s fine as it is, thank you. It does climb very steeply after the Croix des Chartreux, but nothing insurmountable.

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User 12177852

14 Oct 2025 at 13:05 7200

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 19, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

Thank you very much, your guidance is brilliant. Visorando, a trustworthy website.
As for how busy it is, I would say it varies depending on the time of year.
A magnificent place!

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ROUX37

17 Aug 2025 at 09:42 7200

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 17, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

Very beautiful landscape
The path along the waterfall becomes more rugged but is fine if you take your time
Worth the effort

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noelle martin

28 Jul 2025 at 10:13 7200

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 17, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very pretty walk, but be careful when climbing up the waterfall on the left, as the path is difficult and there are chains to hold on to. You need to be a bit of an acrobat, otherwise it's better to go back the way you came on the right, which is less well marked and doesn't take you to the Chartreux cross. We didn't dare climb above, stopping at the Chartreux cross and returning by the same route, so we didn't get much of a view of the potholes. A shame. However, we really enjoyed it. Thank you for this discovery.

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User 7741576

16 Jun 2025 at 09:04 7200

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 16, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

A wonderful discovery of this magnificent waterfall.
A holiday atmosphere in the heart of Haute-Savoie.

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Segi

22 Jul 2024 at 12:02 7200

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 22, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Nice description and useful, well-designed app

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Npeud

27 May 2024 at 10:14 7200

We found this hike fairly average up to the waterfall, but after that it becomes quite difficult, with muddy and slippery paths along the edge of the drop, some steep climbs and a clear lack of signposting. I wouldn't describe the trail as average, and I wouldn't recommend it with children.

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Philippe 74

03 Jul 2023 at 13:53 7200

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 03, 2023
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★☆☆ Average
Very busy route : No

I should have thought about it before, there isn't much water, it must be more spectacular in autumn.
The climb is steep in places.
Over a few metres, the path is collapsing and will soon be impassable. To be on the safe side, I decided to climb up to the cross upstream and come back down the other side.

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Stecaille

17 Oct 2022 at 17:32 7200

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Oct 17, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

The walk around the lake is very pleasant. There is a lovely chapel to see. I didn't climb up to the waterfall. It was too difficult for me, but I'm no expert...
Too steep. Slippery ground and lots of mud.

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Alanax

09 Sep 2022 at 18:33 7200

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 27, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Very nice hike. Thank you for the previous comments that directed me to the upper loop and the "panorama" with a magnificent view and a small bench to enjoy it. I also followed the advice to take the cross-country trails and see the waterfall and the potholes up close (and there are indeed potholes).
The route was very well explained and signposted. There were no major difficulties despite the rain the day before, but there was little water in the river and the fords were easy to cross. I'm not sure if this will always be the case.

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Yves Gilet

14 Aug 2022 at 21:03 7200 • Edited: 14 Aug 2022 at 21:10 7200

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Aug 14, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A lovely walk despite the low flow of the waterfall, due to the dry weather...
However, the "potholes" were clearly visible
No particular difficulty, brand new chains provide excellent assistance on the few tricky steps on the rocks, allowing access to the summit from the Chartreux cross (at the foot of the waterfall).
Don't hesitate, on this final steep section along the waterfall, to take the small, well-marked "side paths" that branch off from the main route to admire the waterfall more closely, taking care to stay safe. You'll reach the edge of the potholes, which are very pretty. However, avoid this route if the water flow is strong or the ground is too wet.

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Anoucka71

18 Jun 2022 at 17:46 7200 • Edited: 18 Jun 2022 at 17:51 7200

Overall rating : 3.3 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 15, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : No

This hike cannot be described as easy or accessible to everyone. There are some very tricky sections and reaching the return route is almost like climbing.
The trail is not well marked everywhere.
The lakeside is very pleasant and the chapel is well worth a visit.

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