VAN-COMPARATOR Guide
Motorhome Rental in Chambéry: Savoie’s Lakes and Alpine Passes
Chambéry by motorhome: renting at the crossroads of the Alps, Lac du Bourget and Aix-les-Bains, the Bauges and Chartreuse massifs, and the Route des Grandes Alpes via the Maurienne.
Historic capital of the Dukes of Savoy, Chambéry occupies the most strategic crossroads of the French Alps: Lac du Bourget to the north, the Bauges and Chartreuse massifs on either side, Annecy forty-five minutes away, and the great valleys — Maurienne, Tarentaise — opening onto all the legendary passes. For a mountain trip without long transfer days, it is hard to be better placed.
Renting in Chambéry: where and at what price
The offer combines professional depots along the Alpine corridor with private owners on Yescapa and Goboony, and a fleet naturally geared to the mountains — well-equipped converted vans and semi-integrated models. Expect €80–160 per day for a campervan or converted van, with price peaks tracking both winter and summer school holidays — our detailed price guide is the reference. And if nothing matches your dates, Grenoble and Lyon widen the choice within an hour.
Half a day in town
The old centre deserves a look before you leave: the Elephant Fountain, the city’s most famous monument, the Sainte-Chapelle of the castle of the Dukes of Savoy, and the covered alleyways that recall the Piedmontese past. Park on the edge of town — the historic centre’s streets are unforgiving to tall vehicles.
The lakes first
Lac du Bourget, the largest natural lake lying entirely in France, is fifteen minutes away: a thermal east shore through Aix-les-Bains, a wild west shore beneath the Dent du Chat, and Hautecombe abbey poised on the water. Forty-five minutes on, Lake Annecy adds its improbable colour and its cycle path — our guide to Lake Annecy by campervan covers where to sleep, a sensitive subject on these much-loved shores.
The massifs, in order of difficulty
- The Bauges (30 min): the Savoyards’ secret massif — alpine pastures, cheeses and quiet roads, perfect for a shakedown.
- The Chartreuse (30 min): the Granier and Cucheron passes, the monastery and deep forests — our Vercors and Chartreuse guide chains the two massifs together.
- Aravis and Beaufortain (1 h): the Aravis and Saisies passes, tradition-steeped villages and alpine Beaufort cheese — see our dedicated itinerary.
- The high mountains: via the Maurienne, the Galibier, Télégraphe and Iseran — the highest paved pass in the Alps — link up on the Route des Grandes Alpes, for which Chambéry is a natural gateway.
What mountain travellers are looking for
A study published in 2014 in Tourism Management by Mao-Ying Wu and Philip Pearce, based on the detailed accounts of motorhome travellers on long nature itineraries, concludes that the primary motivations of this way of travelling are psychological and social — freedom of pace, immersion in landscapes, shared time — more than financial (Google Scholar page). Mornings facing the Bauges from a mountain aire will happily confirm it.
Good to know
In the mountain zone, French law requires winter equipment (suitable tyres or chains on board) from 1 November to 31 March — check what your rental carries; our guide to mandatory equipment by country has the detail. The great passes only open June to October: check their status the evening before, a reflex covered in pass weather. Finally, if you’re in Chambéry looking to buy a converted van rather than rent one — Savoie is an active market — start with our method rent before you buy: a few rental weekends in the Bauges are worth any number of static viewings.
Free checklist: your first campervan trip
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