Nature

The mountain range of the Alps – the highest in Europe – stretches along a curved line from Nice on the Mediterranean coast to Vienna in Austria, covering a distance of 1 200km/750mi. The French Alps extend from Lake Geneva to the Mediterranean, a distance of 370km/230mi, and they are over 200km/125mi wide at their widest point, between the Rhône Valley and the Italian Piedmont. The highest peak, Mont Blanc, rises to 4 807m/15 771ft, but the altitude gradually decreases towards the south and the range is easily accessible through a series of deep wide valleys.