Via Gebennensis (Sallanches)

At a Glance

• Start / Finish: Sallanches, Collégiale Saint-Jacques (563 m) → Verrières near Beaumont (666 m), junction with the Via Gebennensis
• Length: 73.6 km
• Duration: 4 stages
• Elevation: ↗ 674 m / ↘ 571 m
• Highest point: 666 m at km 73.5, just before the finish on the slope of the Salève
• Landscape: the Arve valley below the Mont Blanc massif, riverside paths and floodplain forest, the watchmaking town of Cluses, gravel-pit lakes near Bonneville, Geneva's suburbs, and finally the slope of the Salève with a view over Geneva
• Waymarking: a yellow arrow on a blue background from the portal of the Collégiale in Sallanches to the junction in Verrières, then the scallop shell and the red-and-white of the GR 65
• Traces of St. James: in Sallanches a collegiate church of St. James with a rib reliquary, a St. James altar, a St. James window and murals of his life; in Beaumont, 2.1 km past the finish, a large statue of St. James from 1998
• Accommodation: hotels and accueils jacquaires, private pilgrim hosts, in Cluses, Thyez, Bonneville, Annemasse and Collonges-sous-Salève; there are no pilgrim hostels in the Spanish sense
• Connecting routes: in Verrières the Via Gebennensis to Le Puy-en-Velay (or 13.4 km back to Geneva); sister feeder routes Via Gebennensis (Saint-Gingolph) and Via Gebennensis (Col du Petit-Saint-Bernard)
• Best time: April to October; the route stays in the valley and is walkable almost year-round, but not along the riverbank when the Arve is in flood
• Associations along the way: whole route: Association Rhône-Alpes des Amis de Saint-Jacques

Overview

On April 19, 1840, Sallanches burned down: 268 of its 273 houses, in three hours. It was the town's seventh great fire. King Charles Albert then had it rebuilt on a grid plan. Right in the middle stands the Collégiale Saint-Jacques, and inside it a reliquary holding a rib of the Apostle. So you start your Camino at a piece of St. James and walk toward the rest of him.

This is the shortest way to set out from Mont Blanc for Santiago. It follows the Arve, the river that comes down from the glaciers of Chamonix and flows into the Rhône in Geneva, through the Faucigny, the old barony whose main towns were Cluses and Bonneville. Past Annemasse it switches to the foot of the Salève, the limestone mountain the Genevans call their balcony. After four days you stand above Geneva, at 666 meters, and turn onto the Via Gebennensis. From there it's still about 334 kilometers to Le Puy.

Other Names

Via Gebennensis (Sallanches) is a working name used by Camino Ninja. In our system, feeder routes are named after the main route they lead to, with their starting point in parentheses. So this route isn't part of the Via Gebennensis itself, which runs from Geneva to Le Puy. It takes you to it.

The Association Rhône-Alpes des Amis de Saint-Jacques (ARA) calls the route the "bretelle du Faucigny-Salève," a link path that brings pilgrims from the Arve valley onto the GR 65 at Verrières. The Haute-Savoie delegation's route description is titled "Partir de Sallanches pour Saint-Jacques-de-Compostelle par le Faucigny et le Salève," dated January 2026, and counts 1,922 kilometers from Sallanches to Santiago. For long stretches the route is identical to the chemin des bords d'Arve, the riverside trail from Chamonix to Geneva.

Who It's Ideal For—and Who It's Not So Ideal For

This route is ideal for you if you live or vacation in the Mont Blanc area and want to set off for Santiago from there. It also suits you if you're looking for a short, flat start: four days, hardly any climbing, and a train station on almost every stage.

Honestly, though, it's not for you if you expect untouched countryside. The Arve valley is an industrial and transportation corridor: highway, railroad, business parks, and between Cluses and Bonneville you have to cross expressways and tracks several times, the Voie rapide at Vougy and the RD 903 before Boringes. For four kilometers you share the Véloroute Léman–Mont-Blanc with cyclists. Past Annemasse come the suburbs of Geneva. It's also not for you if you're after dormitories full of fellow pilgrims: there are only private hosts you have to call ahead, and hardly any pilgrims.

Route & Landscape

From Sallanches to Bonneville (km 0–36.4): The waymarking starts at the portal of the Collégiale. Just outside town, at Saint-Martin (km 1.6), you cross the Arve on an old stone bridge with a view of the full width of Mont Blanc. Then you stay by the river: on riverside paths and levees via Luzier to Magland (km 12.7), where the valley narrows, and through the rocky gorge that gave the town of Cluses (km 19.4) its name. Beyond it the valley opens out, Thyez lies just off the route, and via Vougy you reach Bonneville (km 36.4), the old capital of the Faucigny.

From Bonneville to Verrières (km 36.4–73.6): Past Bonneville the route threads between gravel-pit lakes, where some paths dead-end; follow the waymarks closely. Via Boringes (km 48.6) and Pilly you come to Arthaz-Pont-Notre-Dame (km 54.5), then cross the Arve at Étrembières to the edge of Annemasse. From here you walk west along the foot of the Salève. At the Pas de l'Échelle (km 64.1) you pass the Swiss customs post and catch your first glimpse of the Jet d'Eau. Via Bossey and Collonges-sous-Salève (km 69.1), the route finally climbs a good 200 meters, through La Montagnère up to Verrières.

Stages, Terrain, and Difficulty

The four stages are a Camino Ninja suggestion, set at places with accommodation. Distances come from the Camino Ninja map, calibrated exactly to 73.6 km. The last stage is short; if you like, you can walk another 2.1 kilometers on the Via Gebennensis to Beaumont the same day.

1. Sallanches → Cluses (19.4 km) — across the Arve and along the river through Magland into the rocky gorge of Cluses.
2. Cluses → Bonneville (17.0 km) — through the wide valley, with road and rail crossings, to the old capital of the Faucigny.
3. Bonneville → Étrembières/Annemasse (22.6 km) — between gravel-pit lakes and woods via Boringes and Arthaz to the Arve bridge at Étrembières; your host in Annemasse will pick you up.
4. Étrembières → Verrières (14.6 km) — along the foot of the Salève, past the Pas de l'Échelle and up to the Via Gebennensis.

Nothing here is technically difficult. In floods or storms, avoid the riverside paths along the Arve.

A Rib of St. James, and the Rest of Him Lies 1,922 Kilometers On

The cartulary of Cluny already names Sallanches around 1178. On December 2, 1389, Pope Clement VII raised its church to a collegiate church, and it is still the only one in Haute-Savoie. It is dedicated to St. James and holds a reliquary with a rib of the Apostle. On November 20, 1669, a fire destroyed the previous building; by 1688 the new one stood, and the exterior from 1680 to 1688 is what you still see today. After the great fire of 1840 the interior was renewed. The trompe-l'œil paintings were begun by the Piedmontese painter Casimir Vicario; after his death in 1847, his students carried on. In 1606 Francis de Sales came on a pastoral visit as Bishop of Geneva.

The ARA lists what to look for inside: the St. James altar, the St. James window, murals of the Apostle's life, choir stalls, altarpiece, monstrance, Gospel book and the rib reliquary. You get your first stamp at the parish house on the Place du Commissaire Chesney (Tuesday to Friday 3 to 6:30 p.m., Saturday 9 a.m. to noon). According to the ARA, it's 1,922 kilometers from here to the tomb in Santiago. And the editor of the route description, Henri Jarnier, sends you off with a matter-of-fact line: "La qualité du balisage est suffisante aujourd'hui pour cheminer sans difficulté." (The waymarking is now good enough to walk without difficulty.)

Highlights Along the Way

• Collégiale Saint-Jacques, Sallanches (km 0) — a collegiate church since 1389, with a reliquary holding a rib of the Apostle; listed as a Monument historique since 1986.
• Pont Saint-Martin (km 1.6) — first recorded in 1223, rebuilt in 1783, a Monument historique since 1934 and pedestrian-only since 1974. From here you see the entire Mont Blanc massif.
• Chessin near Magland — the chapel of Notre-Dame-des-Anges from 1740; three houses bear the "clé des colporteurs," the sign of the peddlers who left the valley each winter to sell their wares.
• Cluses (km 19.4) — in 1720 Claude-Joseph Ballaloud brought watchmaking to the valley, and in 1848 Achille Benoit founded the royal watchmaking school. Turning tiny screws grew into décolletage, the precision machining that still shapes the valley today; the museum covers both. Add the old Arve bridge from the 17th century and the Fontaine des Allobroges from 1791.
• Bonneville (km 36.4) — capital of the Barony of Faucigny since 1310. The 44-meter column by the bridge honors King Charles Felix, who had the Arve diked; the 13th-century castle of the lords of Faucigny served as a prison until 1934. Since 2024, a fresco with a scallop shell has decorated the underpass.
• Fontaine Jules César near Étrembières — a spring of the Salève; legend has it that Caesar drank here.
• Pas de l'Échelle (km 64.1) — the old mule track up the Salève is mentioned as early as 1320 as "scalam de Munetier," named for the steps cut into the rock. Since 1932 the cable car up the mountain has started here.
• Salève — the "balcony of Geneva." Genevans climbed its rock gullies, the Grande and Petite Varappe, so much in the late 19th century that the French word for rock climbing, "varappe," is named after them.
• Beaumont (2.1 km past the finish, on the Via Gebennensis) — the church of Saint-Pierre with a large statue of St. James by Estelle Briot, blessed on July 28, 1998.

How Pilgrims Find Their Way onto This Path

Sallanches is a starting point, not a crossing: no other route in Camino Ninja leads here. Two more feeder routes in Camino Ninja lead to the Via Gebennensis:

• Via Gebennensis (Saint-Gingolph) — from the Valais along the south shore of Lake Geneva to Geneva
• Via Gebennensis (Col du Petit-Saint-Bernard) — from the Alpine pass on the Italian border through Savoy to Yenne

Continue the pilgrimage?

The feeder route ends in Verrières, and you're standing on the Via Gebennensis, at its km 13.4. You have two directions:

• Toward Le Puy-en-Velay: 2.1 kilometers to Beaumont, then on through Savoy and the Pilat massif, about 334 kilometers in all
• Toward Geneva: 13.4 kilometers back to the Cathedral of Saint-Pierre, where the Via Lugdunum to Lyon begins and the Via Jacobi ends

From Le Puy, the Via Podiensis leads to Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port, where the Camino Francés continues over the Pyrenees to Santiago.

Preparation & Practical Information

Season. The route runs through the valley and is walkable almost year-round. It's loveliest in May, June and September, when Mont Blanc is often clearly visible.

Waymarking and route description. Follow the yellow arrow on a blue background; from Verrières on, the scallop shell and the red-and-white of the GR 65. The ARA's Haute-Savoie delegation provides a route description with maps, accommodation and stamp locations as a PDF, available via chemins.compostelleenrhonealpes.fr. For hiking maps, it recommends IGN Top 25 3530 ET, 3429 ET and 3430 OT.

Accommodation and credential. You can stay in hotels and with accueils jacquaires, private pilgrim hosts who take a donation: in Cluses, Thyez (three hosts, pickup at the Pont des Chartreux), Bonneville, Annemasse (with pickup) and Collonges-sous-Salève. Always call one or two days ahead. The easiest way is right in the Camino Ninja App, where you put your stages together and plan suitable accommodation along with them. As on all French routes, you need a pilgrim passport (credencial) to stay in pilgrim accommodation and to receive the Compostela at the end. It's best to order it online in advance so it reaches you in time for the start of your trip.

Supplies. You can shop in Sallanches, Magland, Cluses, Vougy, Bonneville, Annemasse and Collonges; Contamine-sur-Arve and Arthaz lie a good 500 meters off the route.

Border. At the Pas de l'Échelle you walk along the Swiss border. Carry ID; you'll only need Swiss francs if you turn off toward Geneva.

What the journey will cost you

Plan on 60 to 100 € a day for a room, dinner and breakfast; hotels in Sallanches and near Geneva cost more than in Cluses or Bonneville (Camino Ninja estimate, as of October 2026). With the accueils jacquaires you pay by donation, which usually covers dinner and breakfast. For four stages that comes to roughly 250 to 400 € in total.

Getting Here

• Getting to the start: Sallanches-Combloux-Megève station on the line to Saint-Gervais, served by the Léman Express directly from Geneva and Annemasse, by TER and by TGV from Paris; from there it's a few minutes to the Collégiale.
• Joining midway: the stations in Cluses, Bonneville and Annemasse are on or close to the route.
• Getting home from the finish: Verrières and Beaumont have no train station. Either walk 13.4 kilometers on the Via Gebennensis to Geneva, or take a bus or train from Saint-Julien-en-Genevois to Geneva and Annemasse.
• Timetables: ter.sncf.com, lemanexpress.ch