Notre-Dame des Neiges

At the Alpe d'Huez ski resort village of Isere, we are fortunate to have an exceptional church: its architecture, stained glass windows and organ are magnificent. Come and visit! The church is open every day.

In connection with the preparation of the 1968 Olympic Games, the idea is to replace the small wooden chapel of Alpe d'Huez (which was on the site of the current parking) by a larger church , where one can see the Meije. Under the leadership of the Dutch Jaap Reuten father, who was a priest from 1964 to 1992, the Church of Our Lady of the Snows was completed in 1970, funded by donations from parishioners and many benefactors through three associations that created, one to build the building and stained glass (the association Notre-Dame des Neiges, prefecture declared January 17, 1967), the other to install an organ (the association and Organ Mountains), the third dissolved in the early years. The last two associations merged in 2004.
The Crypt St. Nicolas was inaugurated and dedicated December 30, 1968, and the church itself, December 6, 1969, the roof was completed in 1970 and the thirteenth and last window installed in 2002.
The church is built with simple materials (concrete frame for the circular, copper roofing, wood glued to the frame, translucent glass for the cupola). The roof was made by Charles Verguet. With the help of Jean Le Boucher, who had vowed during the war, when fighting the Alpette August 14, 1944, to build a church in honor of St. Mary, symbols are revealed in the architecture of this modern building, designed by architect Jean Marol. First symbol, God has pitched his tent in Alpe d'Huez, as Abraham in the wilderness, the shape of the roof then marries the smooth and rounded this huge shelter. You enter through the choir, or heart of the building: after crossing the dark, by a long entry (narthex) which allows to get used to the darkness and to have to meditation, you reach a skylight in the center. This well is also the pole supporting the tent, the spine of the building. The assembly is seated in a circle around the skylight, as if around a campfire ... Finally, the central pole of the tent is in alignment with the other two towers of the town, those of Saint-Ferreol and Huez en Oisans. For designers, this alignment must remember that religion, according to the root of this word, its role is to connect people together. Just below is the crypt. The thirteen beautiful stained glass windows are all the famous artist Arcabas.