L'Argentière-la-Bessée

Commune in Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, France

Coat of arms

Location of L'Argentière-la-Bessée

(2021–2026) Alain Sanchez^[1]Area

64.55 km² (24.92 sq mi)Population

(2021)^[2]

2,267 • Density35/km² (91/sq mi)Time zoneUTC+01:00 (CET) • Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (CEST)INSEE/Postal code

05006 /05120

Elevation945–3,243 m (3,100–10,640 ft)
(avg. 976 m or 3,202 ft)¹ French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

L'Argentière-la-Bessée (French pronunciation: [laʁʒɑ̃tjɛʁ la bɛse]; Occitan: L'Argentièra) is a commune of the Hautes-Alpes department in the Alps in southeastern France.

The town lies on the River Durance, which is used for kayaking, white-water rafting and other water sports. The Argentiere Canoe Slalom Course is in the Durance River south of the town. The town is located on the edge of the Écrins National Park. There is an SNCF station in the town with trains running to Briançon and Paris. The village has an old silver mine (which is where the name of L'Argentière derived from), which is now opened to tourists.

Population

Historical population
Year	Pop.	±% p.a.
1968	2,395	—
1975	2,434	+0.23%
1982	2,497	+0.37%
1990	2,191	−1.62%
1999	2,289	+0.49%
2007	2,304	+0.08%
2012	2,318	+0.12%
2017	2,279	−0.34%
Source: INSEE^[3]

References

^ "Répertoire national des élus: les maires" (in French). data.gouv.fr, Plateforme ouverte des données publiques françaises. 4 May 2022.
^ "Populations légales 2021". The National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies. 28 December 2023.
^ Population en historique depuis 1968, INSEE