Guided tours of La Battante Morzinoise
Description
Discover the work of sawing wood in an authentic sawmill, restored by members of the "La Battante Morzinoise" association! The smell of sawdust, the paddle wheel, the cogs and the beating saw. An ancestral heritage.
We invite you to explore the interior of La Battante, two temporary exhibitions: one on forests and wood presented by the ONF (National Forestry Office), and the other on the museum project, which is currently open for bids for completion in 2024–2025.
Have you heard of “La Battante”? That’s the name the old-timers of Morzine gave to their sawmills, powered by the energy of the mountain streams. “La Battante Morzinoise” invites you to explore the world of the sawmill—a true insider’s world! Gaze at the waterwheel, admire the gleaming machinery, and listen to the song of the saw—a sound that accompanied scenes of life in Morzine for centuries... In a world of planks, sawdust, cast iron, and steel, a member of the association will reveal all the secrets of this quintessentially mountain-region machinery.
Three types of tours are available, with public access to the interior on Wednesdays and Fridays:
1/ Self-guided tours 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, viewing the site from the outside beyond the perimeter enclosed by the wooden barrier, when the sawmill is not in operation.
2/ Basic tours on Fridays while the sawmill is in operation, including a chance to meet the sawmill workers and access to the ONF’s permanent exhibition on forests and wood.
• Guided tours on Wednesdays at 3:00 PM (French) and 3:30 PM (English)—registration required at the Tourist Office or online—featuring:
• an 18-minute video presentation on the history of Morzine,
• a guided tour of the machinery
3/ Group tours available upon request; contact the association by email