walking & adventure holidays

mercantour reflections

Enjoy the wealth of the Mercantour's pristine turquoise lakes which mirror the Park's peaks

Rich, varied, and equally as stunning as anywhere else in the whole of the Alpine chain, the area boasts a unique combination. That of rugged soaring peaks and ridges rising to over 3000 metres on the Italian border, from which the valleys drop down and culminate in typical Provençal countryside – witness the change in eco-systems from Alpine to Mediterranean, all within a radius of 30km!

The Mercantour is blessed with more than 100 lakes at high altitude. These glittering lakes are the remnants of glacial activity eons ago. The turquoise colour of the lakes and the reflection of the surrounding mountains are a sight to behold.

In the spring when the high passes are clear of snow you can walk from valley to valley admiring the shimmering water, among carpets of alpine flowers. In the autumn the scenery changes its mantle as the larches turn to brown creating a mini New England in the South of France.

Chamois, and ibex are a regular sight, as are the noisiest creatures in the Park, the marmots, best enjoyed in the spring when they awaken from their winter slumbers. The increasingly rare mouflon can also be seen with a little luck and patience.

In the air golden eagles are regularly seen, and occasionally the magnificent lammergeier vulture.

Testimonials

What we really wanted to do without delay was to say a big "thank you" to you both for all you did to ensure we had a lovely holiday. Being such a slow coach I very much appeciated the deviation from the planned routes and Alan appeciated being able to do something more challenging.As for the Chalet with Christine and Luc just what is there to say! Wonderful -super-great!

Dorothy Scapens - Winter Walking - Feb 2008

Season

EarlyApril to endOctober.

Departures to date

Join a group - Jun 14; Jun 21; Jun 28, July 19, Aug 16; September 6

Pricing

Standard weekly package :

Gite based - £365

Hotel or Chambre d'Hote B&B - £475

Hotel or Chambre d'Hote half board - £635

For non-standard periods and programmes, contact us to discuss the options. Read about our flexible way of working.

Walking Grades

grade

attributes	1	2	3
physical fitness	x	x	x
confidence with heights	x	x	x
technical ability	x	x	x
mountain experience	x	x	x

Our grades are explained in "essential info"

Your Accommodation

Gîte

Enjoy the beautifully secluded situation of La Zourcière in the small hamlet of Berthemont les Bains in the Vésubie valley. The gîte sits on the ground floor of the house and is fully self contained. There are shops about 10 minutes drive from the hamlet, and an organic farm just 200m down the road from the house. Follow this link for more details.

Hotel or Chambre d'Hôte

Le Chalet or La Bonne Auberge are situated in the town of St Martin Vésubie, a thriving small community that has been the centre of life in the valley since the 12th century. There are plenty of local shops and restaurants to choose from, and the Bonne Auberge has its own restaurant.
Le Grand Chalet is a homely chambre d'hôte run by Christine and Luc and is situated overlooking the small village of St Dalmas Valdeblore. A good week of outdoor activity is well fuelled by Christine's great cooking, crafted from home made (mainly organic and local) ingredients. Vegetarians are welcomed.

Other accommodation options can be found here

What's included

Seven nights accommodation.
Gîte Based : self catering, no meals or drinks included.
Hotel/Chambre d'Hôte B&B : Breakfasts only - evening meals can be taken at local restaurants, and packed lunches can be purchased at local food stores.
Hotel/Chambre d'Hôte Half Board : All meals, inclusive of packed lunches. Drinks at own cost.
Transport : To and from all venues. To and from Nice airport, aside from gite guests who decide to hire a car during their stay in Berthemont. We offer supermarket visits for self catering guests who do not wish to hire a car.
Activities : Five days guided walking.

Itinerary

Day 1 Arrive Berthemont les Bains for gite accommodation or pick up in Nice.
Day 2 La Madone de Fenestre. Cime de l’Agnelliere via Pas de Ladres.
Day 3 Valdeblore - Lacs des Millefonts - Col du Barn and the Téte des Margés ridge.
Day 4 Free day. Excursions to Nice can be arranged, or there are short day walks starting at St Martin Vésubie or Berthemont.
Day 5 Salèse - Téte Sud des Bresses from the Salèse valley, with magnificent views of the Alpes to the North, including, on a clear day, Mont Blanc.
Day 6 Le Boréon - Lacs Besson and the Haute Boréon. Cime Guilié if conditions allow.
Day 7 La Gordolasque - Lac Autier, and the Baisse du Basto.
Day 8 Depart from Berthemont les Bains gite, or drop off in Nice.

Suitable for

Adults and young persons over 14 years.

Your welfare & protection

As a small enterprise, it's very important to us that our guests are professionally looked after during their stay with us.
Your protection : our operational base is in France, and our company in France is registered as a tour operator (habilitation touristique) and holds business failure cover and public liability cover.
Your welfare : all our activities are led by fully qualified local Mountain Guides and International Mountain Leaders (Accompagnateurs), thus ensuring that you receive not only top professional care, but that you will also benefit from their in-depth local knowledge of the regions that we operate in.

This web site is serviced by Futureservers. Contact John Short at john@webok.co.uk.
Copyright : Spacebetween Alpine Adventures Ltd registered in England, company No : 5154532.
SARL Spacebetween registered in France, siret No : 47784956600013 Habilitation Touristique No : H.A. 006.06.0007
Selected photographs courtesy of Rene Lombard