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Cross-Country Course
Pilot Certificate, independent in thermals and landing outside official sites...
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Come discover the region through dazzling routes: Savoie, Haute-Savoie, Chablais, Beaufortain, Isère… Have you reached a good level of independence in paragliding, with a bit of experience already? Follow the guide! He’ll show you the aerial paths taken by all the cross-country pilots and the great birds of prey ...The goal is to improve your free flying skills while having a great time ...
Course Goals
- Have fun,
- Discover the Savoie regions,
- Fly in a group,
- Progress in air regulations,
- Build up stamina and piloting skills, log flight hours.
Prerequisites
Cross-country courses are aimed at independent paragliding pilots, since only one instructor will be with you... in the sky this time! Equipped with GPS trackers, you’ll fly as a group according to a flight plan established together. A recovery shuttle will follow your route to ensure your safety. A few prerequisites are required for a cross-country course to run smoothly:
- be independent at takeoff and landing outside official sites (even if that’s not a goal in itself).
- have logged a thermal flight of significant duration.
- be able to use thermal conditions to stay airborne while listening to instructions.
- know how to use your radio to communicate in the air.
- have a wing and harness suited to your level.
- the SIV course is not a prerequisite: piloting skills in turbulent air masses are gained by increasing your flight time. This is what’s known as building up flight hours, flying for long periods. The goal here is to keep the paraglider overhead and optimize glide performance. Piloting or SIV courses are complementary, to deepen and refine your knowledge of the equipment by deliberately unbalancing your wing, but in calm air, over water, and in a safe environment.
Program
The ambition of this course is to reach several waypoints in flight and return to your starting point, studying and making the most of the day’s aerology to achieve magnificent paragliding flights. Combining practice with theory, we’ll review your personal expectations for the course together. Where possible, a different route is offered each day depending on weather conditions.
- Weather analysis to start, where to find relevant information to safely prepare a cross-country paragliding flight.
- Reading, analyzing, understanding, and using everything nature has to offer to optimize our flight.
- Working with GPS, analyzing tracks, reading a map, and preparing a cross-country flight plan.
- Setting achievable goals, so knowing yourself, objectively analyzing your progress in paragliding.
- Flying as a group (the group is stronger for cross-country flying) and learning to make use of other paragliders’ presence in the sky!
- Flying fast to go further, optimizing the current conditions,
The topics are broad and sometimes different for each person!
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Practical Info
- We provide trackers to record your flight tracks and debrief them afterward.
- If you're missing any equipment, feel free to contact us.
- Reminder of the independence required for all types of takeoffs and landings.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Our Customer Reviews
This is the best and safest school in Annecy to learn, progress, or fly tandem in paragliding. A huge thank you to Olivier, Thibaut, Max, and Elie for their support during these two weeks of progress toward independence, as well as to Arnaud, Ahcene, Alain, and the whole team who help create a warm, friendly atmosphere. Your safety is in good hands with this highly professional team. See you soon!
I just finished my 5-day paragliding initiation course with Les Grands Espaces, and I'm leaving with stars in my eyes! 🪂 A huge thank you to Arnaud and Robin, two exceptional instructors. Great teachers, patient, and really attentive, they know how to adapt to each student and build confidence. You can tell they love what they do, and it shows! This week was an incredible experience, I'm leaving with a great foundation and above all the drive to keep going. See you soon, team! And thank you for everything! 🙏
A great initiation course, well structured and progressive, all the way to the first solo flights. Thibaut and Thibaut, our two instructors, super professional, great teachers, and super chill. A real dream team! Thanks to both of you for this week, see you soon in the sky 🤙
Our Other Courses
The Instructors Guiding You
Approaching forty, some people buy a convertible... me, I'd rather have several paragliders, some skis, and a mountain bike in my garage! After a first career in craftsmanship, I decided to turn my passion for outdoor mountain sports into a job. I'm just a happy man, proud of his past journey and glad to share his future with you. I still get a thrill every time my feet leave the ground. Tandem flight, hike and fly, or even a short sled run, and I'm all smiles. Whether it's for a tandem flight or leading a course, my goal is simple: create unforgettable moments while guaranteeing a calm, supportive environment.
A mountain enthusiast since forever, I started paragliding seeing it as a quick way to get down from the mountains, after a long climbing route, a hike, or a mountaineering trip. But this "means of transport" quickly turned into a true passion and my main activity! Today my practice mainly revolves around cross country flying in our magnificent Northern Alps, but every facet of paragliding appeals to me, from competition to hike and fly! In my first year of the DEJEPS paragliding instructor certification, I'm happy to start passing on my passion!
A pilot for 8 years, I mainly fly cross country and my favorite playground is the Northern Alps. I've been lucky enough to travel a lot and to fly in Nepal. I care deeply about passing on my passion to future pilots or to anyone wanting to discover the beautiful landscapes of the Annecy basin from the sky. And I invite you to check out my book, Topo Cross Parapente.
A globetrotter and polyglot, I've been traveling the world with my paraglider since 2001, especially in winter, to feed my passion. After scouring southern Europe and Morocco, I've been to Nepal, South Africa, Colombia, and Brazil several times... but these days I spend my winters in Mexico, racking up flight hours (around 200), so I can better devote myself to our students and passengers during the season in Annecy. I'm also the developer/webmaster of our new website, waiting on yours next! ;-)
Originally from the Vercors, I was lucky enough to grow up surrounded by mountains in a very sporty environment. I was first passionate about alpine skiing, which I competed in and now teach. I then turned to paragliding 7 years ago, starting with distance flying before moving into competition. Currently a trainee instructor in my first year of the DEJEPS paragliding certification, I care deeply about sharing my skills and my passion for flying with you.
A mountain enthusiast, I love climbing, ski touring, and of course paragliding. What do I love about paragliding? Everything: first hike and fly, the ultimate form of fun in my opinion, then a bit of cross country and a bit of acro depending on my mood and conditions. Otherwise, I like gardening, but what takes up the most space in my life right now is my son Jim, born last September. So there you go, I hope to run into you soon at Les Grands Espaces, and maybe in the sky too!
A paragliding instructor since 2007, at Les Grands Espaces since 2009. I first started exploring the joys of wind and sails on water through windsurfing, catamaran sailing, and cruising. A young sailing instructor during the summer seasons, I discovered paragliding in 1993. The switch from water to air happened naturally! I love making the most of thermals and moving through the air mass whenever conditions allow. If you're on a course with me, I'll definitely take you flying for a day at Les Saisies! A site I'm fond of, where I fly and work in winter. I love sharing my experience both in tandem flights and courses, and I'm always happy to meet you for a tandem flight around Lake Annecy or to help you progress. See you soon in the skies!
قبيلة I've dreamed of flying since I was a child. I started learning paragliding in 1993 in the Vosges mountains. Careful, paragliding is an all-consuming passion... After a first part of my career in the social and medico-social sector, as an educator, trainer, and manager, teaching paragliding is now my main activity. Flying a paraglider is an extraordinary privilege. It gives you access to countless discoveries. Discovering yourself, nature, and more generally the world, if you let yourself be tempted by a few trips. A sheet of fabric and some strings, human ingenuity, and... you have a bicycle for the sky! Honestly, it's magical. What I enjoy most about my job is sharing my experience and sharing the students' emotions. After 30 years of practice, my passion remains intact!
Always in a good mood! Into acro and board sports, I first dedicated my professional life to rescuing people on skis and at sea. That let me make a living from my passions, surfing and skiing. Today, I thrive on sharing and teaching my new passion for the skies, preferably upside down. My motto: there's nothing stronger than shared emotions.
Makes sense, for someone passionate about flying, mountains in all their forms, and birds! Over twenty years sharing the sky with the finest birds around here and elsewhere, fifteen of which teaching paragliding. Long may it continue, the urge to share is as strong as ever!
I started paragliding in 2005 in the Vercors. I was lucky enough to compete for 2 years with a regional league team in 2011 and 2012. I learned a lot there about performance flying, but after that, I preferred moving toward teaching rather than competition. So I got my BPJEPS certification in 2013, then my DEJEPS in 2019. Discovering new sites and distance flying were my passions in the early years. Then, once I became an instructor, it was mostly acro that motivated me for a few years. I took part in the first edition of the Roq'Acro, the Red Bull Element in 2014, the Transdromoise, and other cross country competitions as far afield as New Zealand and Colombia. I've been an instructor at Les Grands Espaces since 2014, and today I run our "Piloting" (SIV) courses, as well as some "Initiation" and "Independence" courses. I also fly tandem, and I'm involved in the administrative management of Les Grands Espaces alongside my fellow associate colleagues.
A fan of many outdoor activities, and hooked on paragliding since 2010, I never stop wanting to learn more and share this passion for paragliding. Flying for a long time and covering our beautiful mountains after a hike up, that's what drives me most! An amateur competitor, always chasing performance and fun. Being able to make a living from my passion is a chance I seized in 2016 by becoming an instructor. Since then, I never tire of taking you flying around the region, surrounded by a great team who are just as passionate! Looking forward to meeting you and sharing an airborne moment together! Passionate and optimistic, his motto: there's always room to spare ;)
After discovering paragliding on the cliffs of Gréolières in 1988, then at Menez Hom in 1989, I was lucky enough to learn within the Club Airevasion in Polynesia in 1992. A passion that quickly led me to distance flying, competition, and naturally, teaching. Present on the competition circuit from 1993 to 2011, I joined the French national team from 2006 to 2010. And this international experience is an undeniable asset, which I can now share with my students. After working at Signes with Envol de Provence, then Verdon Passion in Moustiers-Sainte-Marie, I'm now based in Annecy, an ideal region for free flying and teaching it. Co-manager of Les Grands Espaces and technical director of the school, "Les Grands Espaces", I remain passionate about long flights, new discoveries, and connecting with pilots who come from all walks of life to join our courses.
A longtime outdoor sports enthusiast, I eventually fell into paragliding, which immediately struck me as a wonderful way to experience nature. At the heart of my paragliding practice, hike and fly touring in the mountains takes center stage. I care deeply about introducing you to this passion for free flying and supporting you in your progression.
An endearing pilot, talented in acro, but a bit scatterbrained. If you find something, (keys or a phone, socks or a cap) just put it in Elie's box :-)
For over 20 years... Try it and you'll be hooked! His kindness and passion for teaching are well served by his charismatic presence.
Her talent is matched only by her kindness and availability. World Champion, European Champion, reigning French Champion, she completed a remarkable flight of nearly 10 hours and over 350 kilometers on May 23, 2025. This flight let her break two women's European records in 2025,