Les randonnées littéraires dans les Alpes : des chemins nouveaux pour des séjours alternatifs à la découverte des mondes de la montagne

After a literature review of scientific and non-scientific publications, digital resources and case studies, this chapter examines a phenomenon combining outdoor sporting practices and nature tourism with cultural tourism in the Alps. The chapter analyses literary hiking in Savoie, the Vaud and Aosta Valley. In recent years, these literary trails have helped to direct the flow of Alpine holidays in a new way, encouraging people to (re)discover and promote destinations that so far have been neglected. At the same time, the diversification of tourism is helping to preserve the destinations that represent the highlights of the Alps from the risk of overtourism in peak holiday periods. By following literary accounts that tell the story of places and people and that evoke the essence of the landscapes and the spirit of the communities that live or lived there, hikers can discover a variety of natural and human ecosystems alongside the «must-see» sites, enjoying a form of ecoliterary tourism based on shared experience with storytellers, who may be local writers, excursionists or independent holidaymakers.