Partner

Association Rhône-Alpes des Amis de Saint-Jacques (ARA)

The St James association for Rhône-Alpes, based in Lyon since 1993: it created the Via Gebennensis from Geneva to Le Puy, waymarks some 2,000 km of pilgrim routes and maintains a network of private pilgrim hosts.

Visit websiteportail.compostelleenrhonealpes.fr

The Caminos on the map

Caminos of this partner

Via GebennensisThe Via Gebennensis connects Geneva with Le Puy-en-Velay over a distance of 347.6 kilometers—it begins where the Via Jacobi ends in Switzerland and ends where the Via Podiensis begins. The name sounds medieval, but it dates from 1996; the roads along it are Roman, and the route is steeped in a history of religious denominations that stretches from Calvin’s Geneva to the Righteous of Le Chambon-sur-Lignon.Explore this Camino
Trier – Le PuyThe Way of St. James from Trier to Le Puy-en-Velay takes you on an 886-kilometer journey from the only apostle’s tomb north of the Alps—St. Matthias Abbey Church in Trier—up the Moselle River through Metz, Toul, and Langres, through the vineyards of Burgundy and over the hills of the Forez region to Le Puy-en-Velay, where the Via Podiensis begins. In France, it is called the “Chemin des Allemands,” or “Path of the Germans”—not because of an ancient document, but because French associations have counted how many people walk it today.Explore this Camino
Via LugdunumThe Via Lugdunum runs 251 kilometres from Geneva over the Jura foothills near Nantua, the vineyards of Cerdon, medieval Pérouges and right across Lyon into the Monts du Lyonnais and the Forez plain. At Saint-Georges-Haute-Ville it joins the Trier – Le Puy route; from there it is still around 83 kilometres to Le Puy-en-Velay.Explore this Camino
Via RhodanaThe Via Rhodana runs 239.8 kilometers from La Roche-de-Glun, north of Valence, along the right bank of the Rhône through the Ardèche and the Gard to Arles. Two feeder routes meet in La Roche-de-Glun: the Via Rhodana (Lyon) along the river, and the Via Adresca, which comes from Gillonnay on the Via Gebennensis via Saint-Antoine-l'Abbaye. Along the way lie Cruas, Rochemaure, Viviers, Villeneuve-lès-Avignon facing the Papal Palace, and Beaucaire; in Arles the Via Tolosana begins.Explore this Camino
Via AdrescaThe Via Adresca branches off the Via Gebennensis at Gillonnay in the Isère and runs 222.2 kilometers to Le Puy-en-Velay, but not by the direct route. It first heads south across the Plateau de Chambaran to the mother house of the Antonines in Saint-Antoine-l'Abbaye, crosses the Rhône at La Roche-de-Glun and then climbs through the Protestant highlands of the Vivarais to 1,284 meters. In Le Puy the Via Podiensis begins.Explore this Camino
Via Rhodana (Lyon)The Via Rhodana (Lyon) runs 116.2 kilometers from the church of Saint-Nizier in Lyon downstream to La Roche-de-Glun, north of Valence, almost entirely on the right bank of the Rhône and with almost no climbing. Along the way lie Roman Vienne with its temple, pyramid and cathedral, the vineyard slopes of Côte-Rôtie and Condrieu, and the castle of Tournon. In La Roche-de-Glun the route flows seamlessly into the Via Rhodana to Arles; Lyon → Arles is 356.0 kilometers in total.Explore this Camino
Via Gebennensis (Col du Petit-Saint-Bernard)This feeder route starts where Italy and France meet at 2,187 meters: on the Col du Petit-Saint-Bernard, the Alpine pass on the Roman road from Milan to Gaul. From there it runs 153.7 kilometers down through Savoy, through the Tarentaise with Bourg-Saint-Maurice, Aime and Moûtiers, to Albertville, through the Combe de Savoie via Montmélian and Myans to Chambéry, and along the Lac du Bourget to Yenne. There, at 233 meters, it meets the Via Gebennensis, which runs from Geneva to Le Puy-en-Velay.Explore this Camino
Via Gebennensis (Saint-Gingolph)This feeder route starts in Saint-Gingolph, a village that has had a border running through it since 1569: the Morge stream separates the Swiss half from the French half. From there it runs 75.6 kilometers along the south shore of Lake Geneva, through Meillerie, Évian-les-Bains and Thonon-les-Bains in the Chablais, on via Douvaine to Hermance, where you cross back into Switzerland, and through Cologny into Geneva. At the Cathedral of Saint-Pierre, the Via Gebennensis to Le Puy-en-Velay begins.Explore this Camino
Via Gebennensis (Sallanches)This feeder route begins at the portal of the Collégiale Saint-Jacques in Sallanches, a church that keeps a rib of the Apostle James, with Mont Blanc at your back. From there it runs 73.6 kilometers down the Arve through the Faucigny, via Magland, Cluses and Bonneville to Arthaz-Pont-Notre-Dame and Étrembières near Annemasse. At the foot of the Salève, past the Swiss border at the Pas de l'Échelle, it climbs through Collonges-sous-Salève to Verrières. There, just before Beaumont, it meets the Via Gebennensis from Geneva to Le Puy-en-Velay.Explore this Camino
Via Adresca (Montélimar)This feeder route starts at the church of Saint-James in Montélimar, crosses the Rhône at Le Teil after just under ten kilometers, and then climbs through the Ardèche onto the high plateau of the Velay. Along the way lie Alba-la-Romaine, the Roman capital of the Helvii, Aubenas with its castle, the spa town of Vals-les-Bains, and Burzet, where the cross has been carried up the Calvary hill every Good Friday since the Middle Ages. At 1,298 meters, a few kilometers from the source of the Loire at the Gerbier de Jonc, you reach the highest point; from there the trail leads through Le Monastier-sur-Gazeille, where Robert Louis Stevenson set off with his donkey in 1878, to Le Puy-en-Velay. After 141.2 kilometers, the Via Podiensis begins there.Explore this Camino
Via Gebennensis (Grenoble)This feeder route starts at the Cathedral of Notre-Dame in Grenoble and takes you 57.9 kilometers to the great Ways of St. James of the Isère. It first follows the Isère downstream via Veurey-Voroize to Tullins, then climbs over the wooded Chambaran hills to La Forteresse and Saint-Michel-de-Saint-Geoirs and crosses the Bièvre plain via Brézins to Gillonnay. At the Le Rondet stele it meets the Via Gebennensis to Le Puy-en-Velay and the start of the Via Adresca.Explore this Camino
Via Gebennensis (Saint-Étienne)This short feeder route takes you from Saint-Étienne onto the Via Gebennensis in one long day of walking. It starts on the southern edge of the city in the Furan valley, climbs via Planfoy and the Pas du Riot reservoir into the Pilat Regional Nature Park and runs across upland plateaus of forest and pasture up to 1,260 meters. Just before Les Sétoux and the Col du Tracol you meet the GR 65, which leads from Geneva to Le Puy-en-Velay.Explore this Camino
Via Lugdunum (L'Arbresle)This feeder route is the green alternative to starting the Via Lugdunum in the middle of Lyon. It begins at the train station in L'Arbresle, just under an hour by train west of the city, and climbs over 31.1 kilometers into the Monts du Lyonnais. Via Sain-Bel, the old pass of Saint-Bonnet-le-Froid and a quiet high plateau, you reach Rochefort and Saint-Martin-en-Haut. There it joins the Via Lugdunum toward Le Puy.Explore this Camino
Trier – Le Puy (Mâcon)This feeder route is for anyone who arrives by train and wants to be on the Way of St. James the same day. It starts at Mâcon-Ville station and climbs 21.3 kilometers out of the Saône valley into the hills of the Mâconnais. Via Loché, Chasselas, La Grange du Bois and Prémecin you reach Cenves. There it joins the Trier – Le Puy route, which runs from Cluny to Le Puy-en-Velay.Explore this Camino

Who stands behind the route

The Association Rhône-Alpes des Amis de Saint-Jacques now goes by the name Compostelle en Rhône-Alpes, ARA for short. Since 1993 it has been putting the Ways of St James between Lake Geneva, the Rhône and the Forez back on the map. Based in Lyon, it is organised in eight delegations – Ain, Ardèche, Drôme, Isère, Loire, Rhône, Savoie and Haute-Savoie – and belongs to the French federation of St James associations.

Its best-known work is the Via Gebennensis: the association created the route from Geneva to Le Puy-en-Velay and gave it its name; since 1998 it has been part of the GR 65. In all, volunteer teams in each département waymark some 2,000 kilometres, plus feeder routes from Savoy, the Lyonnais and the Rhône valley.

The association's routes

Via Gebennensis – the whole route: from Geneva through Savoy, the Bas-Dauphiné and across the Rhône to Le Puy-en-Velay
Trier – Le Puy – section Cluny – Le Puy-en-Velay: the final stretch through the Beaujolais, the Roannais and the Forez
Via Lugdunum – the whole route: from Geneva via Nantua and Lyon to Saint-Georges-Haute-Ville in the Forez
Via Rhodana – the whole route: from La Roche-de-Glun near Valence along the right bank of the Rhône to Arles
Via Adresca – the whole route: from Gillonnay via Saint-Antoine-l'Abbaye, La Roche-de-Glun and the Vivarais to Le Puy-en-Velay
Via Rhodana (Lyon) – the whole route: from Lyon down the Rhône via Vienne and Tournon to La Roche-de-Glun, where it continues as the Via Rhodana
Via Gebennensis (Col du Petit-Saint-Bernard) – the whole route: from the Col du Petit-Saint-Bernard on the Italian border through the Tarentaise via Albertville and Chambéry to Yenne on the Via Gebennensis
Via Gebennensis (Saint-Gingolph) – the whole route: from Saint-Gingolph on the Swiss border along the south shore of Lake Geneva via Évian and Thonon to Geneva
Via Gebennensis (Sallanches) – the whole route: from the Collégiale Saint-Jacques in Sallanches along the Arve via Cluses, Bonneville and Annemasse and past the Salève to Verrières near Beaumont on the Via Gebennensis
Via Adresca (Montélimar) – the whole route: from the church of Saint-James in Montélimar across the Rhône to Le Teil, through the Ardèche via Aubenas and Burzet onto the high plateau and via Le Monastier-sur-Gazeille to Le Puy-en-Velay
Via Gebennensis (Grenoble) – the whole route: from Grenoble along the Isère via Tullins and the Chambaran hills to Brézins and the stele of Gillonnay on the Via Gebennensis
Via Lugdunum (L'Arbresle) – the whole route: from L'Arbresle station via Saint-Bonnet-le-Froid and the plateau of the Monts du Lyonnais to Saint-Martin-en-Haut and the Via Lugdunum (Chemin Jean Biver)
Via Gebennensis (Saint-Étienne) – the whole route: from Saint-Étienne through the Pilat Regional Nature Park up to the Via Gebennensis near Les Sétoux
Trier – Le Puy (Mâcon) – the whole route: from Mâcon station through the vineyards of the Mâconnais to Cenves and the Trier – Le Puy route

What the association does for pilgrims

At its heart are the accueils jacquaires: a network of some 300 families who take pilgrims into their homes for a donation. Their addresses are in the association's guidebooks – one for each route, available in its shop (as of October 2026). In Le Puy-en-Velay, where the Via Gebennensis ends and the Via Podiensis begins, the association runs the donation-based pilgrim hostel Relais du Pèlerin Saint-Jacques; it trains volunteer hospitaliers in Le Puy every year.

The association issues the credencial to its members, free of charge, through the nearest delegation and its monthly drop-in sessions. It also runs initiatives of its own: with joëlettes, all-terrain wheelchairs, it takes people with disabilities out on the Way.

Contact and getting involved

Routes, guidebooks, delegations and the contact form are on compostelleenrhonealpes.fr; post: Maison des Associations, MJC du Vieux Lyon, 5 Place Saint-Jean, 69005 Lyon. An association that did not just rediscover a route but laid out a new one – and has kept it walkable year after year.