Walking short breaks in France
| country: | France |
| location: | Mercantour, French Alps, Parcs sans Frontières |
| departures: | This trip can be taken between mid June and mid September. Please enquire for details of other year round breaks |
| price: | From £355 (4-5 days) excluding flights; price depends on trip and accommodation option chosen |
read 3 travellers reviews
the amazing things you'll be doing
Enjoy a few hard walking but enjoyable days, frontier hopping in the Mercantour National Park in France and Italy. All activities are lead by fully qualified mountain leader/specialist activity personnel.
Fly out on Sunday afternoon, spend your first night in a hotel in St Martin Vésubie, and then spend three days crossing the high cols into Italy and back, staying in CAF or CAI affiliated mountain refuges to return to St Martin Vésubie on Wednesday evening.
The route will take us from the Salese valley via the Pas de Prefouns on the Italian border, to the refuge at La Questa.
We then circle back on the old trail built by one of the Dukes of Turin specifically for hunting via the Baisse de Druos and the Lacs de Terre Rouge to the private refuge at Mollières, where we can enjoy Fred and Maurice’s own brand of local cuisine. From Mollières, we return via the Salese again and back down into St Martin Vésubie.
Accommodation is hotel and refuge based with full board in comfortable self catering gite, B&B or hotel options.
We also offer long Autumn weekends (4 days) - make a long weekend of it and enjoy two varied days walking in the Mercantour National Park.
Fly out on Sunday afternoon, spend your first night in a hotel in St Martin Vésubie, and then spend three days crossing the high cols into Italy and back, staying in CAF or CAI affiliated mountain refuges to return to St Martin Vésubie on Wednesday evening.
The route will take us from the Salese valley via the Pas de Prefouns on the Italian border, to the refuge at La Questa.
We then circle back on the old trail built by one of the Dukes of Turin specifically for hunting via the Baisse de Druos and the Lacs de Terre Rouge to the private refuge at Mollières, where we can enjoy Fred and Maurice’s own brand of local cuisine. From Mollières, we return via the Salese again and back down into St Martin Vésubie.
Accommodation is hotel and refuge based with full board in comfortable self catering gite, B&B or hotel options.
We also offer long Autumn weekends (4 days) - make a long weekend of it and enjoy two varied days walking in the Mercantour National Park.
day-by-day itinerary
| Day 1: | Arrive Berthemont les Bains for gite accommodation, or pick up in Nice. |
| Day 2: | Walk from the Salèse valley via Lac Negre, crossing the border at the Pas du Préfouns. Overnight at the C.A.I. refuge at La Questa. |
| Day 3: | Follow the old hunting track built by one of the Counts of Turin, past the Laghi di Valscura, and back over the frontier at Baisse du Druos. Continue down past the Lacs de Terre Rouge, over Col Merciere, and down to Mollières. Overnight in the private refuge in Mollières. |
| Day 4: | Return to St Martin Vésubie via Col Ferrière and Lacs des Millefonts. Overnight in St Martin Vésubie. |
| Day 5: | Transfer back to Nice. |
travellers' tales
Most memorable was tartiflette eaten by candlelight (cooked by the concert pianist and his wife who run the refuge) and the sound of the river in its rocky bed as we fell asleep. (more)
how this holiday makes a difference
 As permanent residents in the Mercantour, our company is fully integrated into the community in the Vésubie valley – using local guides and individually run hotels on the coast which ensures that all revenue generated is beneficial to the life of the area. In line with the published code of the National Park, our clients are encouraged to treat the region with respect and thus uphold the standards of conservation required in such a fragile area. Our gite As we await permission to fulfill our vision for our centuries old farm house and land, we are keen to implement as many environmentally sympathetic measures as possible. We encourage the preservation of our pure water which comes straight off the mountain and use our splendid climate for laundry drying outside. As much waste as possible is re-cycled, including pony manure which goes straight onto our vegetable patch. We aim to be as self sufficient as possible from your own garden. Gite guests are welcome to help themselves to fruit and vegetables. When meals are provided they are prepared with local produce only, often solely from the Vésubie valley. Vegetarians are willingly catered for. Energy efficient bulbs are used throughout the house. We try to minimise the use of paper in our office. Guests are encouraged to shop locally and of course to respect the integrity of the National Park. Working relationships We only work with qualified guides for all activities. These passionate locals create a genuine and rich experience for our visitors. They are paid the appropriate rate for professional guides. Our local accommodation partners are chosen for their warm welcome and a willingness to share their love for the region. Business development In the longer term we will use abundant natural resources (wood and sunshine) for heat and light as well as providing alternative accommodation on our land. A project for three bases in the Alpes-Maritimes is underway. This would provide an inspiring holiday venue for young and old alike. Access for the handicapped would be included. We are planning to use pack animals so our guests can share their adventures with a faithful companion, and leave directly from Berthemont. |
Tourism can be good and bad for destinations & local people. We carefully screen every holiday against our criteria for responsible travel. 'Look behind the brochure' to find how each holiday makes a difference (see left). We don't claim to be perfect - there is no global accreditation - but we've led the way since 2001 and screened 1000's of holidays. We invite every traveller to write a review about their experiences and responsible tourism. This valuable feedback is sent to the people who run the holidays. We keep a very close eye on it and take off holidays that don't live up to our standards. |