Our take
Supervised swimming at the bottom of the Truyère gorges, far from everything: the only authorised swimming beach on the lake, with toilets, a refreshment stand and watersports hire, in a wild cirque.
On the Grandval reservoir, the only beach where swimming is allowed on the whole lake: supervised in July and August, pedalos and paddleboards, in the Truyère gorges.
A beach with facilities on Lac de Grandval, a reservoir on the Truyère at the bottom of the Mallet cirque, in Fridefont (Cantal). A detail that matters: it is the only authorised swimming area on the whole lake, and it lies in an area closed to navigation. During the 2026 season, swimming was supervised in July and August from 12:00 to 19:00, every day except Tuesday and Friday. Access is free. On site, toilets and showers; in July and August, a refreshment stand for cold drinks and ice creams, and hire of pedalos, canoes, kayaks and paddleboards by the Garabit-Mallet leisure centre. Dogs are not allowed on the beach. Around it, the Truyère gorges and unspoilt nature.
Why we love it
- The only authorised swimming area on Lac de Grandval, closed to navigation
- The pedalos, canoes, kayaks and paddleboards of the Garabit-Mallet leisure centre, in July and August
- The setting of the Truyère gorges, at the bottom of the Mallet cirque
Top tip
In July and August 2026, swimming was supervised from 12:00 to 19:00, except on Tuesday and Friday: with children, plan around the supervised days. Combine it with the Garabit Viaduct and Chaudes-Aigues, about twenty minutes away.
Before you go
- Access and swimming are free. Watersports hire (paddleboard, pedalo, canoe) extra.
- Access is free, with toilets and showers on site
- The refreshment stand is only open in July and August: the rest of the year, bring something to eat and drink
- In July and August, pedalos, canoes, kayaks and paddleboards can be hired on site, from the Garabit-Mallet leisure centre
- Dogs are not allowed on the beach
Weather for the next 3 days
Today
12°/4°
3 mm · 18 km/h
Tomorrow
15°/2°
dry · 5 km/h
Tue 27
19°/7°
dry · 13 km/h
Source: Open-Meteo (CC BY 4.0). General lowland forecasts, to be cross-checked with specialist mountain forecasts at altitude.
Practical info
- Address
- 15110 Fridefont, France
15110 Fridefont - Monday12h–19h
- Tuesday12h–19h
- Wednesday12h–19h
- Thursday12h–19h
- Friday12h–19h
- Saturday12h–19h
- Today12h–19h
Opening hours
What visitors say
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