Tende: Holiday Apartments and Holiday Homes

In Tende, discoveries range from the archaeological zone of the rock engravings on Mont Bégo to high-altitude valleys, historic buildings and paths at the Col de Tende. The Musée départemental des Merveilles was founded in 1996 to help protect the region’s archaeological heritage. It preserves evidence of the rock engravings in the Vallée des Merveilles and provides insights into the beliefs, daily life and culture of the peoples from the area around Mont Bégo.

For some travellers, renting a holiday apartment in Tende is part of their personal plans.

Landscape and Culture

The archaeological zone of the rock engravings on Mont Bégo is located within the municipality of Tende. It extends across two valleys at altitudes of approximately 1,900 to 2,700 metres.

The Vallée des Merveilles features a high-altitude, mineral and chaotic landscape with numerous lakes below distinctive peaks. The Vallée de Fontanalba has an open landscape with rich flora; its rock engravings depict the pastoral life of early shepherds from the Neolithic and Bronze Ages.

Active Trails

The Via Ferrata des Comtes Lascaris is a sporty via ferrata above the village. It passes the remains of the medieval castle of the Counts Lascaris, the Grotte des Hérétiques and the Chapelle Saint-Sauveur. The most technically demanding section includes Tibetan and monkey bridges as well as zip lines more than 100 metres long, and takes approximately 3 hours and 30 minutes including the access path.

The Vallée de Fontanalba can be reached from Castérino via a walk of approximately 2 hours and 15 minutes to the Lacs Jumeaux; guided tours begin there. The walk from Lac des Mesches to the Refuge des Merveilles also takes approximately three hours, and guided tours begin there.

Today, the Col de Tende marks the border between France and Italy and is the starting point for numerous hikes and mountain bike routes, including routes towards the Haute Route du Sel.

History and Buildings

The Chapelle de l'Annonciation in Tende is a Baroque chapel with a façade decorated with trompe-l'œil motifs and a monumental, polychrome and gilded altarpiece dating from 1704. It was rebuilt in 1621 by the White Penitents.

Fort Central is the most important defensive structure among the forts at the Col de Tende. The former collegiate church of Notre-Dame-de-l'Assomption in Tende houses the sculptural group “Saint Michel et le dragon”.

The Saint-Eloi patronal festival takes place every year on the second weekend of July.

Winter and Transport

The Centre de ski nordique de Castérino is located within the municipality of Tende at an altitude of 1,550 metres, at the foot of the Parc du Mercantour. From Saint-Dalmas-de-Tende, it can be reached via the D91 towards the Vallée des Merveilles and Parc du Mercantour; the journey takes approximately 20 minutes.

The Nice–Tende railway line climbs more than 1,000 metres from sea level and includes viaducts, numerous tunnels built into the mountains and four spiral tunnels.

For the higher-level travel overview: Alpes-Maritimes.

More Destinations

More places within the same destination:

Péone, Bairols, Èze, Fontan, Castagniers, Rimplas, Mouans-Sartoux, Caille.