Cirque de Gavarnie via the Plateau de Bellevue

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Walk to the Cirque de Gavarnie, staying above the Plateau de Bellevue, aptly named.

⚠️ Hiking is prohibited from 1 November to 30 April. Once the quiet zone is in place, using this route between (4) and (7) constitutes a violation of National Park regulations. This is a category 4 offence under: R.331-65 3° — "Deliberate disturbance of the peace in the core area of the National Park" (€750 fine).

⚠️ DOGS PROHIBITED

See other prohibitions in the practical information section.

Please check with the Gavarnie Tourist Office before setting off: +33 (0)5 62 92 49 10.

Details

n°63945963
Creation:
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  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 11.18 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 4h 25 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate
  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 442 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 448 m
  • ▲
    Highest point: 1,706 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 1,366 m
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Photos

The waterfall
Cirque and waterfall

Description of the walk

Park in the paid car park in Gavarnie. Access by bus is possible, please enquire.

(S/E) Follow the road towards the village, keep right at the fork in the road and reach the three-way junction a few metres after the town hall.

(1) Turn right and climb the cobbled lane. Walk past the cemetery and church and continue along the path that follows theGRT®30and the discovery trail. Follow a few tight bends at Les Entortes and reach the Plateau de Bellevue.

(2) Continue on the left.

(3) Leave theGR®®30on your right, which leads to the Col de Boucharo, then descend to the bridge over the Gave des Tourettes.

(4) Cross this bridge and climb back up, leaving the marked path that descends to the left. Then cross a forest and scree slopes high up to a scree slope with a trail that climbs directly to its summit: this climb can be tricky but is not technically difficult.

(5) Begin the descent, with magnificent views of the cirque, and reach a fork in the path.

(6) Ignore the path on the left leading to the footbridge upstream from the Hôtellerie du Cirque, which was destroyed by storms in September 2024. Continue towards the bottom of the cirque to reach the Gave de Gavarnie.

(7) Cross the river and head east to find the path leading to the foot of the Grande Cascade.

(8) Turn left and head towards the Hôtellerie.

(9) Follow the wide track towards Gavarnie.

(10) Leave the Sentier de Découverte trail on your left and stay on the track. Pass the orientation table, leave the Pont de Nadau bridge on your left, which allows you to cross to the left bank, then the footbridge.

(11) Cross the Pont Brioule bridge, pass in front of the gendarmerie and continue straight ahead to the three-way junction at the town hall.

(1) Retrace your steps to return to the car park (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 1,377 m - Car park
  2. 1 : km 0.54 - alt. 1,378 m - Town hall - three-way junction
  3. 2 : km 2.75 - alt. 1,658 m - Bellevue Plateau
  4. 3 : km 3.12 - alt. 1,706 m - Three-way junction
  5. 4 : km 3.78 - alt. 1,629 m - Bridge, marked path abandoned
  6. 5 : km 4.68 - alt. 1,648 m - Summit scree
  7. 6 : km 5.13 - alt. 1,666 m - Junction
  8. 7 : km 5.96 - alt. 1,650 m - Passage of the Gave de Gavarnie
  9. 8 : km 6.23 - alt. 1,657 m - Grande Cascade trail junction
  10. 9 : km 6.97 - alt. 1,564 m - Hôtellerie du Cirque
  11. 10 : km 8.68 - alt. 1,421 m - Discovery trail junction
  12. 11 : km 10.03 - alt. 1,378 m - Pont Briou
  13. S/E : km 11.18 - alt. 1,377 m - Car park

Notes

The description refers to a hike undertaken in summer.
⚠️ This hike is only possible in snowy conditions as a round trip between (1) and (3).

⚠️ In winter, public access to the main path leading from the village of Gavarnie (1) to the Hôtellerie du Cirque (9) is temporarily prohibited by municipal decree beyond a certain limit (usually the entrance to the Bois du Caussilet) for safety reasons (risk of avalanches, rockfalls, ice formation, etc.).

⚠️ The proposedroute does not only follow marked trails, particularly between (4) and (8). River crossings on this site are particularly exposed in the event of flooding. Water levels are also difficult to predict on this site due to an extensive catchment area with a complex karst network.

In both summer and winter, check the mountain weather report and, in winter, the snow and avalanche report from Météo-France for the Haute-Bigorre massif in the Hautes-Pyrénées. You can also call the Haute-Montagne Gendarmerie group for reassurance about current conditions.

This route passes through a protected area, which may be subject to special regulations:

Worth a visit

Always be cautious and plan ahead when you're outdoors. Visorando and the author of this route cannot be held responsible for any accidents occurring on this route.

The GR® and PR® markings are the intellectual property of the Fédération Française de Randonnée Pédestre.

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Reviews and comments

4.4 / 5
Based on 4 reviews
Reliability of the description
4.3 / 5
Ease of following the route
4 / 5
Route interest
5 / 5
PetitPhilou33
PetitPhilou33

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Sep 02, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

A lovely little walk to do with the family, avoiding the main route and its crowds of tourists

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User 25652663

Overall rating : 4.3 / 5

Date of your route : Jul 07, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

One minor drawback: at the foot of the falls, with the snow melting, the streams were very large and difficult to cross. The bridge was still dismantled... And crossing the snowfields remained dangerous, as they could collapse.

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Jean Mi
Jean Mi

Overall rating : 3.7 / 5

Date of your route : Jun 18, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★☆☆ Average
Ease of following the route : ★★★☆☆ Average
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

This hike, classified as moderate in difficulty, should be reconsidered. The passage at point (4) is more than tricky in the scree, and then at point (6) it says to ignore the path on the left leading to the footbridge upstream from the cirque hotel and continue towards the bottom of the cirque to reach the Gave de Gavarnie. Crossing the Gave at point (7) proved to be more than perilous with a relatively high water flow. We came across a Spanish couple in the scree at (4) who did not take the risk and turned back.
On the way back, we passed an intersection with a sign indicating Plateau de Bellevue and, 100 metres below, a footbridge in good condition spanning the river.

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AACR
AACR

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

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

A very beautiful hike. Superb view of the cirque.
However, it was very hot and the snow was melting, so we wanted to avoid crossing the stream and the upper snowfield.
We descended along the stream, but the bridge near the hotel had collapsed, so we had to cross the lower snowfield, which was very busy. These snow bridges can be risky in places.

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