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Abondance |
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Abondance
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| Administration | |
|---|---|
| Country | France |
| Region | Rhône-Alpes |
| Department | Haute-Savoie |
| Arrondissement | Thonon-les-Bains |
| Canton | Abondance |
| Statistics | |
| Elevation | 840–2,420 m (2,760–7,940 ft) (avg. 930 m/3,050 ft) |
| Land area1 | 55.84 km2 (21.56 sq mi) |
| Population2 | 1,476 (2006) |
| - Density | 26 /km2 (67 /sq mi) |
| Time zone | CET (GMT +1) |
| INSEE/Postal code | 74001/ 74360 |
| Dialling code | 0450 |
| 1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries. | |
| 2 Population without double counting: residents of multiple communes (e.g., students and military personnel) only counted once. | |
Abondance is a commune in the Haute-Savoie department in the Rhône-Alpes region in south-eastern France.
It lies in the French Alps just south of Lake Geneva on the Swiss border. The people of this commune are referred to as Abondanciers.
Abondance has given its name to a variety of cheese made in the region, as well as the breed of cattle from whose milk the cheese is made. It is a small and quiet town with a bar, some hotels, a bank and some shops. Its main feature is the Abbey. The commune was founded around the year 1040.
Abondance was the first ski resort in the Alps to shut down due to lack of snow, due to alleged global warming. In the 2006–2007 ski season, the town lost money due to lifts being shutdown. The town's plea for government aid to support the resort was denied due to its unlikeliness to return to profit due to lack of snow. However, the resort reopened in the winter of 2009/10. Abondance is home to the international boarding school Sainte Croix des Neiges.