walking & adventure holidays

Gran Paradiso is Italy's highest - it is entirely in Italy and stands shoulder to shoulder with its neighbours, Mont Blanc in France, and the Matterhorn in Switzerland.What a three peaks challenge that would make!!

This range is the known as the Graian Alps, on the western of the Alpine chain. GP is the seventh highest and was first summited on September 4 1860 by J. J. Cowell, W. Dundas, J. Payot and J. Tairraz.

The mountain is today considered one of the most straightforward 4000+ m peaks. It is only the last 60 metres to the top that present a technical challenge.

Around the peak of the mountain the National Park itself covers 173000 acres of alpine terrain. Its unspoilt nature is thanks to Vittorio Emanuelle II who made the area his personal hunting reserve.

Todays' visitors continue to enjoy the network of former hunting trails which form the backbone of the walking itineraries.

Fortunately some years later, he created some protected zones where native animals such as the ibex could thrive in peace.

The area was finally made a National Park, Italy's first, in 1922. It is an astonishing place!