 Poster: A snowHead
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Just wanting to see what experiences people have or if someone can give me some good ideas about a Summer walking holiday in the French Alps please.
I'm thinking either a resort with Summer lift openings where I can do different walks each day and retreat back to an apartment, or possibly a well trodden itinerary which involves refuge to refuge hiking?
I expect the former is much more realistic. I am not a hiker. I'm 37 and consider myself relatively fit e.g. can run a 10k and regularly use my peloton, but I'm not athlete.
The idea is to get away and switch off/escape for a few days.
Thanks in advance
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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@Ryunis, we did this for the first time in the summer of 2022. We did 4 days in St Gervais, 4 days in Chamonix and 4 days in Les Arcs and i'd recommend any of those, but i'd suggest you'd want to do Les Arcs when it's actually opened for their summer season. We were there before and it was deathly quiet, lovely in many respects but also, a pain in others.
Are you absolutely set on France as the destination? We now live in the Zillertal in Austria and there's everything here you're after as well.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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I think most of the main resorts that are known for skiing will also work for summer walking. However as @swskier says the higher altitude purpose-built resorts may only be in full swing for a limited season.
St Gervais was mentioned; 2024 will be a bit strange since the main gondola is being rebuilt. However there will still be plenty of walking possibilities using the Tramway du Mont Blanc, the public buses, and the free navette service. (I assume they will be running a navette to replace the gondola, but I haven't seen that confirmed). And it is perfectly feasible to include walks in the Chamonix valley by taking the narrow gauge railway from Le Fayet.
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Chamonix is good because, using the lifts, you can do the " balcons' paths which go along the contours so you can be right up with the spectacular scenery without undue exertion.
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do a hut to hut walking tour!
basically spend 5-7 days traveling light between alpine huts (who cook your dinner and breakfast).
something like Tour du Mont Blanc or Tour de Vanoise would be reasonable suggestions.
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I'm a keen walker and would suggest Samoens (having stayed in a number of resorts in the summer). The best walks are a short drive from a village and you don't need ski lifts to access them. You can walk near waterfalls to mountain huts for lunch and return to more luxurious accommodation in the village in the evening. Well that's what we did anyway. We booked through Peak Retreats self drive...we also use them for ski holidays in winter.
You can of course also enjoy walks in ski areas accessed by summer opening lifts and some mountain restaurants will be open.
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@Ryunis, You are spoilt for choice. The obvious answer is the GR5 section through the Alpes (ignore the bit from the channel coast to the Voges. There is a guide book https://www.cicerone.co.uk/the-gr5-trail-2 that will give inspiration. I would reccomended staying in mountain huts rather than keep returning to an apartment. The huts tend to be open from the end of June when the snow has receded. With some research you can also plot a route weaving in and out of the France/Italian border where you may need to have an Ice Axe and rope with you. The huts are are marked on the maps and the iternet gives thrir URLs
All footpaths marked on the maps are numbered and marked on the ground and in areas very rapid vegitaion occurs are strimmed. They are much easier to follow than paths in the UK
In Bourg st. Maurice there is a bookshop at the SuperU where you can buy an assortment of wlaking, climbing and scrambling guides to the region.
As others have said the French ski resorts only open from early July to late August but the mountain huts are often open earlier. Personnaly I would aim for the earlier weeks where the weather is a bit better (IMHO) and the crowds much less. The French resorts (speaking from experience in Les Arcs) can get very busy in August.
It is becoming a tradition in Snowheads for anyone suggesting going to France for someone else to suggest going to Austria, but I'm going to buck that traddition and suggest the Sud Tirol. Have a go at the Dolomites Highway #1 https://www.altabadia.org/en/summer-holidays/trekking-hiking/doolomites-high-route-1.html . I've done bits of it and it is magnificent. Get some via ferrata kit and take the odd stairway up the cliff faces.
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I would absolutly avoid Chamonix. Why ? It is overcrowded to the point of stupid. I live here and we no longer have a quite season.
As others have said, parts of the GR 5 or the area around Briancon
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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| Haggis_Trap wrote: |
do a hut to hut walking tour!
basically spend 5-7 days traveling light between alpine huts (who cook your dinner and breakfast).
something like Tour du Mont Blanc or Tour de Vanoise would be reasonable suggestions. |
Good luck booking huts on the Tour du Mont Blanc though without going via an operator! From what i've read on Facebook groups, it's very difficult without booking months and months in advance.
In the Zillertal we have a shorter version, the Berliner Höhenweg. 86km usually spread across about 5 days. It's also very easy to do just sections of it and get a bus back to Mayrhofen as you cross multiple valleys which are well served by buses.
https://www.tirol.at/reisefuehrer/sport/wandern/wandertouren/a-wanderung-berliner-hoehenweg
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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You might notice I’ve put a very interesting tour earlier on in this thread behind Ste Foy into Valgrisanche and back , to note its lovely not overcrowded and the Italian huts are lovely unlike some of the French .
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You dont need to be seriously fit to do hut to hut trips. Mostly it would involve 10km or so walks, in general anything "difficult" can be avoided ie scrambling, exposed ridges etc. It is more satisfying than taking lifts up every morning, nothing beats the quiet of a mountain hut in the evenings or first thing in the morning. If you are thinking about this option then join one of the alpine clubs to get discounted stays, in the UK the main option is the Austrian Alpine Club but think you can join the French and Swiss ones too. There are reciprocal arrangements so, for instance, an AAC card will get you the discounts in France.
I would concur about avoiding Chamonix, far too busy. I would also avoid the big ski resorts. There are lots of small places, perfect for a peaceful few days. I could recommend a small spot La Berade, an isolated hamlet on the opposite side of the mountains to La Grave, under the Barre des Ecrins, not far from Les Deux Alpe but there are many such places. I remember fondly some great trips to the valleys around Arolla in the Swiss alps. The Südtirol is a good option plus as suggested Austria. The Zillertal is easy for access and popular but there are more remote spots. The Lechtaler Alpen are easy to get to (directly north of the Inn valley / St Anton) but are in fact pretty remote, few lifts, just huts and quiet valleys. Similar remoteish areas near Salzburg too.
Worth looking at the Cicerone Press who publish lots of guide books aimed at walkers https://www.cicerone.co.uk/books
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You know it makes sense.
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| swskier wrote: |
| Haggis_Trap wrote: |
do a hut to hut walking tour!
basically spend 5-7 days traveling light between alpine huts (who cook your dinner and breakfast).
something like Tour du Mont Blanc or Tour de Vanoise would be reasonable suggestions. |
In the Zillertal we have a shorter version, the Berliner Höhenweg. 86km usually spread across about 5 days. It's also very easy to do just sections of it and get a bus back to Mayrhofen as you cross multiple valleys which are well served by buses.
https://www.tirol.at/reisefuehrer/sport/wandern/wandertouren/a-wanderung-berliner-hoehenweg |
Can recommend that route I have done most of it, great scenery though some longish days.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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Not necessarily for the OP but, generally, for anyone seeking some mountain and lake hiking in Austria it would be well worth looking at the BergeSeen Trail in the Salzkammergut.
https://www.salzkammergut.at/en/long-distance-hiking-trail.html
Overall, there are 370km of hiking with participants able to select whichever stages suit ability and/or time. June or September would be my recommendation when it’s often sunny and warm without the peak season temperatures and tourists. September time is when most of the lakes probably offer the optimal swimming temperatures.
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Poster: A snowHead
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| Idris wrote: |
I would absolutly avoid Chamonix. Why ? It is overcrowded to the point of stupid. I live here and we no longer have a quite season.
As others have said, parts of the GR 5 or the area around Briancon |
I would avoid the French alpes and go somewhere a bit more pittoresque like Austria or Germany. French mountain huts are not great and the mountains look like slagheaps in the summer. July and August are far too hot. September to mid October are the best months but huts close in the autumn.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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@davidof, This simply isn’t true. The scenery is beautiful and unspoiled on the walks to the mountain huts near Samoens.
However the actual Samoens ski area is not that pretty out of season.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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@davidof, I agree that July & August are now too hot to be walking around the mountains. However I think that you do the French alps a disservice, yes the Chamonix valley is completely overrun and most of the ski resorts are hardly scenic but there are still lots of places somewhat off the beaten (or Instagram) track that offer great locations for alpine walking trips. The Bavarian alps can be overrun too, some of the worst traffic jams around Munich are on a sunny weekend evening in late September when half the city seems to be on its way home from the mountains!
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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| munich_irish wrote: |
| ... I think that you do the French alps a disservice ... |
I agree. Everywhere will get pretty hot in the afternoon in July and August, you just need to start early in the cool of the morning and relax with a beer when you finish. And of course walkers prefer wilder to more developed areas, so not ski areas themselves but most places have good walking nearby. For @Ryunis who says he is not a dedicated hiker, I would have thought most ski resorts with a summer season would work as bases for a week's walking, probably alternating easy and more challenging routes.
While the refuges on the Tour du Mont Blanc and other popular routes get booked up well in advance, there are other possibilities nearby that should be manageable. Things like the Tour du Beaufortain. As for Chamonix - well it depends how much you value a lively vibe when you get back to base. I would think it preferable (in terms of atmosphere) to a purpose built ski resort.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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| j b wrote: |
| munich_irish wrote: |
| ... I think that you do the French alps a disservice ... |
I agree. Everywhere will get pretty hot in the afternoon in July and August, you just need to start early in the cool of the morning and |
or walk at night
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Must be oooh 25 years ago, but I had a great time when my parents and I camped at Interlaken (a Eurocamp) and got the train up to Wengen/Grindelwald and did lots of walks around there. We mostly walked up the hills and got lifts back down, as my mum's knees were better going up than down.
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Wow thanks for the responses everyone. This community is an absolute goldmine of knowledge and experience.
Someone mentioned Interlaken. I stayed in Grindelwald in July 2009, whilst touring Europe after graduating from university. We debated sacking the rest of the travelling off and just staying there for 3 weeks but adventure got the better of us and we moved on. It was definitely the highlight of the trip.
Anyway, I think on balance I will look to book an apartment somewhere, use it as a base to return to and then, depending on how much I enjoy/struggle, I might look at hut to hit the hear after. I've stayed in refuges in the Winter but these didn't require booking, you just skied to them and bunkered down for the night.
It sounds like this isn't the same in the Summer?
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everytime i tried to find something in refuge in Austria was almost everything fully booked.
I do not have experience from France in Summer except last summer (one week in Flaine and one in Tignes)
I been in Austria for summer holidays every summer since 2015, and i think for the concept of based somewhere and make walking trips every day , Austria is better as France.
As already said, i think Zillertal is a top summer destination. So many thinks to do and to see.
Another idea is maybe Serfaus Fiss Ladis, especially if you like MTB
If you want walking from refuge to refuge you could book something organised
e.g.
https://www.alpinschule-oberstdorf.de/wandern/alpenueberquerung/
Not cheap but i suppose the accommodation ist quarantied
The minus is you have to achieve the target destination each day .
btw why not making a camino? i think camino del norte is a little bit more up and down, and the weather is not so warm because you are beside the Atlantik
Or go to Crete and combine walking with sea 
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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| turms2 wrote: |
btw why not making a camino? i think camino del norte is a little bit more up and down, and the weather is not so warm because you are beside the Atlantik
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yes good call.
The French way, trapsing through the northern Spanish step, does not look like fun.
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@Ryunis, It always used to be, except for the most popular huts, say on Mt Blanc, that you simply turned up and got a place for the night. In recent years that has become increasingly unadvisable. Certainly for the Austrian huts you can easily book online, I believe that works in Switzerland too, not sure about France. I have stayed in Grindelwald and it is a lovely spot with some excellent walks. One to be recommended is from Schynige Platte (get funicular up from Interlaken) along the limestone ridge back to Grindelwald, brilliant views across to the Eiger, Mönch & Jungfrau, it is a fair way but there are afternoon buses back from an alp high above the village. It used to be very cheap to hire lovely chalets for the week, I suspect no more. The tourist office will have a booking service.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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You can book most caf french huts online. The same for Italian, cai and most of the multitude of private ones.
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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| davidof wrote: |
| turms2 wrote: |
btw why not making a camino? i think camino del norte is a little bit more up and down, and the weather is not so warm because you are beside the Atlantik
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yes good call.
The French way, trapsing through the northern Spanish step, does not look like fun. |
the french way is easier i suppose, but in Summer probably tooooo hot...done a part of it '(1/3) and love it.
The best think in French Way is that you meet almost everyday the same people who started with you. And after 10 -12 days you could find yourself with other 10 people from everyplace around the world, eating tapas and trinking beer somewhere in Burgos.
However with over 30-35C it will be not so pleasant. And if you choose the Public albergues to sleep, you have to compromise with the smell of 40 pair of trekking shoes
Crete has some nice mountains for trekking, plus a couple of famous canyons, especially in the south side. It is also hot, but you could easily take a break and swimm thinking that to the other side is Africa.
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You know it makes sense.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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Really, any place will do for a base, given that you'd most likely be leaving early in the morning and returning later in the day. I personally like the Aravis massif area but then we're biased as we have a house in the region. Not too crowded, lots of variety in the hiking.
Are you going solo? In that case I'd pick a hotel with a dinner services option just to make life easier.
As for the hiking, it depends if you're comfortable above the treeline (solo?). Though the Alps are generally benign, the weather can move in fast, you could tweak a knee or ankle etc. It's also nice to get out of the sun so lower-altitude hiking is also fun.
You can't really go wrong with Samoens -- lots of high/low options, places to eat/drink/stay. Chamonix is pretty mobbed in the summer, however.
Someone mentioned the Beaufortain -- my son and friends did most of the Tour de Beaufortain hike last June in a leisurely week and loved it, staying in refuges a few times but mostly wild camping.
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Poster: A snowHead
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I've walked GR5 from Geneva to Nice (over a couple of holidays). I'd really recommend doing a bit of GR5, starting at Briancon and heading South. Much as I love the area around Samoens that's already been mentioned I think the scenery in the Southern part of the Alps is tremendous in Summer. This sector of the walk has a good mixture of valleys with villages, forests and open mountain terrain.
Fitness wise - you don't need to be an athlete to do a long distance walk. I did it with my wife and carrying camping equipment, but if we were to do it again I'd use B&Bs/Gite D'Etapes/Hotels in the villages. We ended up using them quite a lot anyway and I love the variety of people you meet in these places.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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| Quote: |
| French mountain huts are not great and the mountains look like slagheaps in the summer |
Here here! 
If scenery is your thing, the mountains round Tignes/Val D'Isere are best avoided in summer 
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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| Quote: |
I think on balance I will look to book an apartment somewhere, use it as a base to return to and then, depending on how much I enjoy/struggle, I might look at hut to hit the hear after. I've stayed in refuges in the Winter but these didn't require booking, you just skied to them and bunkered down for the night.
It sounds like this isn't the same in the Summer? |
During summer visits to Tignes, we've twice done a one night stay at the Col du Palet refuge, which is just over the back of the ski area. It's within easy reach (2- 3 hrs??) of Tignes on well marked paths.
We telephoned to book a day in advance each time but on both occasions (once in June, once in July) the refuge was very quiet, with only a few guests.
It's in a great location and feels like a proper wilderness experience. Facilities are perfectly adequate for a refuge - dormitory accommodation, communal eating area and decent toilets/washrooms. Food was pretty decent too.
Here's a pic of the refuge from the Col du Palet.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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@mountainaddict, Is that refuge on the GR5?
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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^^^It is indeed @johnE. From the refuge website:
"Depuis Tignes le Lac (2 094 m), emprunter le GR 5 (balisage rouge et blanc) en direction du Col du Palet (2 652 m)."
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You'll need to Register first of course.
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How about Corsica, around the Col de Bavella? Wild scenary, mountains, wild people.
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| Pili wrote: |
| How about Corsica, around the Col de Bavella? Wild scenary, mountains, wild people. |
Corsica is fantastic, but like the TMB around Cham , avoid the GR 20 overcrowded to the point people are trying to do it in may to avoid the crowding problems!
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| Idris wrote: |
| Pili wrote: |
| How about Corsica, around the Col de Bavella? Wild scenary, mountains, wild people. |
Corsica is fantastic, but like the TMB around Cham , avoid the GR 20 overcrowded to the point people are trying to do it in may to avoid the crowding problems! |
May is maybe a bad idea due to residual neve on the trail, autumn would maybe be better.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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FAQ
