January 22, 2026 French alpine town pushes for train-first tourism

Less air travel to Les Arcs is becoming a focus in Bourg Saint Maurice, where local officials are encouraging visitors to arrive by train, funicular, and shuttle instead of flying.

“When I arrived twenty years ago, no one was talking about mobility,” says Guillaume Desrues in a short film produced in conjunction with Protect Our Winters Europe’s Mobility Month.

Since 2020, Desrues has served as mayor of Bourg Saint Maurice, a gateway town to the famous French alpine resort Les Arcs. Since taking office, Desrues has worked to change the way people travel to and within his community.

“For the past two years, we have focused on promoting access to the destination by train, the funicular, and shuttles,” he explains.

From tourist novelty to public transport

As a result of these efforts, infrastructure such as the funicular railway – once considered a tourist novelty – has been developed into a key piece of public transport. Equally important, says Desrues, is a shift in the town’s tourism marketing strategy:

“We have stopped promoting the destination outside of Europe.”

Today, one in four visitors to Bourg Saint Maurice now arrive by train or other lower-emission transit. Desrues hopes this is just the beginning of a broader shift toward smarter travel.

Mobility as everyday practice

“Twenty years ago, cycling was activism for me. But now, it’s just my lifestyle,” he says, before concluding:

“With Protect Our Winters, we share the same idea: to keep enjoying the mountains, but to do it responsibly.”

Photo: Yann Allegre