La Route des Alpes c.1925 by Roger Broders | Vintage French Alps PLM Travel Poster

La Route des Alpes – A Spectacular PLM Touring Poster by Roger Broders

Travel from the Mediterranean coast to the heights of the French Alps with La Route des Alpes – Services Automobiles de Tourisme, a remarkable 1925 travel poster by celebrated French artist Roger Broders. Created for the historic Paris–Lyon–Méditerranée railway, the poster promotes PLM’s automobile touring service along one of France’s most scenic mountain routes.

The phrase across the bottom, De la mer à la haute montagne, translates to “From the sea to the high mountains.” This concise slogan captures the journey’s extraordinary geographic range, beginning near the brilliant Mediterranean coast and continuing through valleys, spa towns, Alpine passes, mountain villages, and celebrated resort destinations.

A large illustrated map occupies the center of the composition. A vivid yellow route line begins near Nice and winds north through the mountains, connecting destinations across the French Alps before reaching the Lake Geneva region.

Among the locations marked along the route are Nice, Puget-Théniers, Barcelonnette, Briançon, Le Lautaret, Bourg-d’Oisans, Grenoble, Grande Chartreuse, Chambéry, Aix-les-Bains, Annecy, Geneva, Thonon, Évian, Albertville, Chamonix, Saint-Michel, and Aiguilles.

Rather than presenting the map as a purely informational diagram, Broders transforms it into a vast, elevated landscape. Purple and lavender mountain ranges stretch toward snow-covered summits, while the yellow road curves across the terrain like a ribbon.

In the lower foreground, an open PLM motor coach carries a group of elegantly dressed travelers. The passengers gaze toward the expansive route while a uniformed guide or driver raises one arm, apparently pointing out distant landmarks.

The touring vehicle is painted in gray, burgundy, red, and black and displays PLM insignia and route information. Its open seating reinforces the experience of scenic travel, allowing passengers to view the mountains, valleys, gardens, and towns along the way.

Dense flowering plants surround the coach, their red, pink, orange, purple, and white blossoms adding a luxurious decorative border. Dark evergreen branches frame the upper portion of the scene, creating the impression that the viewer is looking outward from a garden or shaded overlook.

At the lower right, the route reaches the glowing shoreline of Nice. This small but vivid coastal detail establishes the connection between the French Riviera and the Alpine interior, making the poster both a road map and a visual promise of extraordinary landscape variety.

Broders masterfully combines transportation advertising, cartography, landscape illustration, and tourism promotion. The map provides useful information, while the panoramic viewpoint and fashionable travelers communicate comfort, sophistication, and adventure.

The poster also demonstrates how railway companies expanded beyond trains to offer coordinated motor services. PLM’s touring coaches enabled travelers to explore destinations and mountain routes that were not directly accessible by rail.

This museum-grade reproduction is ideal for collectors of Roger Broders posters, PLM railway advertising, vintage road maps, French Alps artwork, automobile touring history, French Riviera travel, and Art Deco-era graphic design.

Display it in a living room, office, library, study, mountain cabin, ski lodge, hotel, travel agency, automobile collection, or transportation-themed interior. Its intricate route map and rich colors make it a fascinating piece that rewards close viewing.

Why Collectors Love This Print

• Created by renowned French travel artist Roger Broders
• Produced for the historic Paris–Lyon–Méditerranée railway
• Promotes PLM’s automobile touring service through the French Alps
• Features an illustrated route from Nice toward Lake Geneva
• Includes numerous famous French and Alpine destinations
• Shows an open motor coach filled with fashionable travelers
• Combines cartography, transportation, and landscape design
• Beautiful palette of purple, yellow, red, green, blue, and black
• Floral foreground and evergreen framing add decorative richness
• Captures the romance of early motor-coach tourism
• Connects the Mediterranean coast with high mountain scenery
• Appeals to railway, automobile, map, and travel collectors
• Ideal for libraries, offices, ski lodges, and travel rooms
• Makes a distinctive gift for French Alps enthusiasts
• Available in multiple fine-art, framed, canvas, and metal formats

Available Print & Display Options

• Fine Art Prints
• Framed Fine Art Prints
• Gallery-Wrapped Canvas
• Black Floater Frame Canvas
• White Floater Frame Canvas
• Brown Floater Frame Canvas
• Natural Floater Frame Canvas
• Metal Prints

Choose a fine-art print for traditional presentation, a framed print for a finished display, canvas for added depth and texture, or metal to enhance the poster’s vivid route line, colorful flowers, and panoramic mountain landscape.

Artwork Details

• Title: La Route des Alpes – Services Automobiles de Tourisme
• Artist: Roger Broders
• Date: 1925
• Country: France
• Commissioning Railway: Paris–Lyon–Méditerranée
• Railway Abbreviation: PLM
• Promoted Journey: From the Mediterranean coast to the high French Alps
• Artwork Type: Vintage railway, automobile, map, and tourism poster
• Primary Subject: PLM motor coach overlooking an illustrated Alpine route
• Featured Destinations: Nice, Puget-Théniers, Barcelonnette, Briançon, Le Lautaret, Bourg-d’Oisans, Grenoble, Chambéry, Aix-les-Bains, Annecy, Geneva, Thonon, Évian, Albertville, Chamonix, and surrounding Alpine communities
• Secondary Imagery: Travelers, guide, flowers, evergreen trees, mountains, route map, snow-covered peaks, and Mediterranean coastline
• Style: French Art Deco, pictorial cartography, and vintage destination advertising
• Dominant Colors: Purple, lavender, yellow, red, green, blue, orange, black, and white
• Mood: Adventurous, scenic, informative, elegant, and expansive
• Recommended Spaces: Living rooms, offices, libraries, studies, ski lodges, mountain cabins, hotels, travel agencies, and transportation collections

Disclaimer

This artwork is a Museum Grade Reproduction of a Historical advertising poster.

This listing is for a decorative reproduction and not the original 1925 poster. Minor variations in color, cropping, scale, and reproduced texture may occur according to the selected size, material, and display format.

The routes, services, geographic labels, and transportation information shown are historical and should not be relied upon for modern travel planning.

Yesterday’s Posters is an independent seller and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Roger Broders, PLM, SNCF, any named destination, French railway or tourism authority, associated estate, institution, company, or rights holder.