A limestone plateau carved into vertical gorges and cliff-hung "corniche" roads, ringed by 1944 Resistance memorial sites — the longest drive in the series so far, with a mandatory charging stop each way.
The Parc Naturel Régional du Vercors is a limestone massif riddled with canyons, cut through by two of France's most dramatic engineered roads: the Gorges de la Bourne (a river-carved corridor of tunnels and overhangs between Pont-en-Royans and Villard-de-Lans) and Combe Laval, a corniche literally dynamited into a sheer cliff face between 1896–1898 to haul timber out of the Forêt de Lente — it hangs hundreds of metres above the Cholet valley with no guardrail in places. The plateau was also the main stronghold of the Vercors maquis in 1944, and the real history is heavy: in July 1944 German forces crushed the Resistance redoubt, killing over 200 civilians and 639 maquisards, an episode now covered by memorial sites across the massif. Base at Villard-de-Lans (45.0725°N, 5.5539°E), the plateau's main town, roughly equidistant from both gorges and well set up for groceries, water, and a comfort meal.
Meudon-la-Forêt → Villard-de-Lans is ≈595–600 km, about 5h40 of driving via the A6 (Autoroute du Soleil), per ViaMichelin routing — comfortably outside a single charge on this car's realistic ~330–370 km range, so plan for one Supercharger stop each way, roughly at the halfway point (around Beaune/Mâcon on the A6 corridor — check the in-car nav for the best-timed stop given traffic and state of charge). Near the destination, the closest confirmed Tesla Supercharger is Grenoble (Bernin) — Holiday Inn Express Grenoble-Bernin, 134 Chemin des Fontaines, 38190 Bernin, 8–16 stalls up to 150–250 kW — about 45–50 minutes from Villard-de-Lans, useful for a top-up before the long drive home. There is no Supercharger inside the Vercors itself; standard/CCS chargers exist in Villard-de-Lans and Autrans as a slower backup.
Long driving day — leave early, charge once near Beaune/Mâcon, arrive by afternoon. Grocery run in Villard-de-Lans, set up camp, short evening walk near town to stretch legs before the big days ahead.
Drive the D531 through the Gorges de la Bourne — a narrow river gorge with the road blasted through tunnels and clinging under overhangs, one of the classic Vercors drives. Stop in Pont-en-Royans, famous for its brightly-painted houses cantilevered directly over the Bourne river. Options for an afternoon hike into the gorge itself (several marked trails drop down to river level) or a visit to the Grotte de Choranche show cave nearby.
Drive the Combe Laval corniche road (via Saint-Jean-en-Royans) — carved into the cliff face by dynamite in the 1890s to haul timber from the Forêt de Lente, with sheer drops and tunnels cut straight through rock. Continue to Vassieux-en-Vercors for the Mémorial de la Résistance du Vercors at the Col de la Chau — a deliberately camouflaged building recounting the July 1944 massacre where German forces killed over 200 civilians and 639 maquisards after the Vercors stronghold fell. A sobering, essential stop, not a quick photo op — budget real time here.
Morning hike on the plateau (the Hauts-Plateaux du Vercors nature reserve has extensive marked trails) or a road/gravel ride on the quiet plateau roads around Villard-de-Lans and Corrençon-en-Vercors. Head home via the same A6 route with a Bernin charge before the long return leg, or add a night if the legs and battery both want more.
The Vercors is a Parc Naturel Régional, not a national park core zone, so rules are lighter than in the adjacent Réserve Naturelle Nationale des Hauts-Plateaux du Vercors — but they are real and enforced, not a free-for-all.
Paid fallback: Camping Les Eymes, between Autrans and Méaudre on the plateau (heated pool, open late April–late September 2026) — a standard tent pitch for 2 adults runs from roughly €20/night in low season (set fee ~€22–37 plus ~€8/adult/day, varies by season), a straightforward backup if bivouac spots are full or weather turns.
The Vercors is genuine mountain-biking and road-cycling territory — the plateau roads around Villard-de-Lans, Autrans, Méaudre and Corrençon-en-Vercors are quiet, rolling, and popular with road cyclists, while the forests and limestone terrain around Lans-en-Vercors and the Gorges de la Bourne have an extensive marked VTT trail network. The climbs up to Combe Laval and the various cols are serious road-cycling objectives in their own right if you want a leg-burner. Bike loaded inside per the Car Camping & Bike Guide — no range penalty, and useful given how spread out the sights are.
| Category | Cost |
|---|---|
| Tolls (A6 autoroute, round trip) | ≈ €55–70 |
| Charging (2× Supercharger stops each way, ~600 km each leg) | ≈ €35–45 |
| Lodging (mostly free bivouac, 1 night Camping Les Eymes as fallback) | €0–20 |
| Mémorial de la Résistance du Vercors entry | ≈ €8–9 |
| One comfort meal (local Vercors specialty — raviole du Royans or Saint-Marcellin cheese) | ≈ €20–25 |
| Food (self-cooked, 3–4 days) | ≈ €35–45 |
| Total | €130–190 |