Walk

Mercantour National Park

Alpes-Maritimes & Alpes-de-Haute-Provence Updated 22 October 2026

Core zoneDogs strictly banned, even on a leash

Buffer zoneDogs tolerated on a leash

ExceptionsHerding dogs and guide dogs only

Fine€135 is generally cited for this type of offence, but this amount could not be reconfirmed specifically for the Mercantour in a recent check — treat it as indicative

Livestock-guard dogs — tracking tool (Haut-Verdon only)Pastorando (pastorando.com), launched in 2022 in Allos and later extended to Villars-Colmars and the Lignins sector (Colmars-les-Alpes), geolocates flocks (and therefore the guard dogs with them) via lead ewes fitted with GPS collars, with a position updated at least every hour. Encouraging results: bites fell from 14 (2021) to 0 (2023) in this sector. Note that this scheme only covers the Haut-Verdon (04), not the whole Mercantour or the Ubaye valley — the Mercantour National Park has been trialling a similar scheme since 2025, with a "pastoral mediator", but nothing operational is confirmed to date for the park's core zone itself

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The vibe

The Mercantour is one of the natural jewels of the Southern Alps — but it's also a national park, with one rule that has no exceptions: dogs are strictly banned from the park's core zone, even on a leash or carried in your arms. This ban, common to every French national park, has been in place since the Mercantour was created in 1979.

What to know before you go

Only livestock-protection or herding dogs, and guide dogs for the blind or assistance dogs, are allowed in the core zone. Everyone else should head for the buffer zone (the "aire d'adhésion"), which is less strictly regulated and where dogs on a leash remain welcome on many trails. Before you set off, check carefully whether your chosen route crosses the core zone or stays within the buffer zone — a map of the zones is available on the national park's website.

In the buffer zone, particularly in the Haut-Verdon sector (Allos, Villars-Colmars, Colmars-les-Alpes), a flock-tracking tool called Pastorando lets you spot the position of flocks — and therefore the guard dogs with them — in near real time, via lead ewes fitted with GPS collars. Launched in 2022, this scheme is reported to have cut bites from 14 cases in 2021 to zero in 2023 in this sector. It only covers this specific part of the Haut-Verdon, though, not the whole Mercantour or the Ubaye valley — even though the National Park has been trialling a similar scheme since 2025, with a "pastoral mediator", with nothing concrete confirmed to date for the park's core zone itself.

Coco's tip: head for the valleys and trails in the buffer zone — just as spectacular, and far more numerous than the core zone, which covers only a tiny fraction of French territory.

Nearby

The resorts and villages around the Mercantour (the Tinée and Vésubie valleys, Ubaye) offer plenty of hike starting points within the buffer zone, accessible with a dog on a leash.