walking & adventure holidays

Explore the Vallée des Merveilles - discover why Bronze Age man was drawn here.

Aside from the stunning Alpine scenery in the Mercantour, the major draw for the majority of visitors is the Merveilles Valley which conceals in excess of 35,000 Bronze Age rock carvings in magnificent surroundings.

The area, including the adjacent Fontanalbe valley, has invoked great mystery for centuries and its carvings were first studied rigorously by an Englishman, Clarence Bicknell in the early 1900s.

Today, a guided visit to the carvings brings the culture of early man to life, as he elected to site his place of worship in these magnificent surroundings, and in the shadow of the imposing Mount Bego.

The area is rich with chamois, ibex, marmots and eagles, plus a wide variety of flora (more than 2000 species are present) so there is rarely a dull moment.

Get back to nature with a stay in a teepee in the valley.

Testimonials

We have very fond memories. Thanks.

Ted Wrublesky July 2006

Season

June to end September

Departures to date

2012 : Jul 13, 20; Sep 1

Pricing

Standard weekly package :

Gite based, plus mountain refuges - £655

Hotel or Chambre d'Hote half board, plus moutnain refuges - £710

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

How to book...

Walking Grades

grade

Your Accommodation - On all our Mercantour based trips you will either stay in our gîte at La Zourcière, or if you choose our hotel or chambre d'hôte options we are very pleased to work with establishments in the area.

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 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.
Hotel Saint Sébastien is situated in just outside the small town of Roquebilliere. Again, family run, with large airy rooms, and has a restaurant and outdoor pool.
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.

Other accommodation options can be found here

What's included

8 day trip, 7 nights accommodation. including 2 nights in a mountain refuge. All meals provided.

Gîte Based : Self catering with a twist, with two evening meals cooked for you. We provide you with all your food and wine for the week, all inclusive, you just have to cook it! Nights 5, 6 and 7 will be gite based - otherwise, hotel or mountain refuge.

Hotel/Chambre d'Hôte full board : All meals, inclusive of packed lunches. Wine served with each evening meal. Other drinks at own cost.
Transport : To and from all venues. To and from Nice airport. For all guests, if anyone needs to buy any other tit bits, there are pleanty of small shops that we can stop off at during your stay.
Activities : Five days guided walking with qualified leaders, including Merveilles guide.

Itinerary

• Day 1 Arrive Nice airport, visit the Merveilles museum in Tende and transfer to la Brigue and the small family run hotel of Les Fleurs des Alpes.
• Day 2 Drive up to Casterino and start our walk into the Fontanalbe where you will have your first sight of the gravures. Continue on and down into the Vallee des Merveilles. Meet Christian, our guide for the gravures for the next day. Stay in the Refuge des Merveilles.
• Day 3 Guided tour of the gravures in the Vallee des Merveilles, and then finally over the Baisse de Valmasque to the Refuge de Valmasque, for our overnight stay.
• Day 4 Walk back to Casterino through the beautiful Valmasque valley.
• Day 5 Free day, transfer to the Valee de la Vesubie. Your accommodation either gîte based or hotel/chambre d'hôte
• Day 6 Join Mel and Liz for two stunning day walks in other areas of the park. The Old Salt Route – Col de Fenestre, and Pas de Ladres circuit.
• Day 7 Lacs des Millefonts, Col du Barn and the Téte des Margés ridge.
• Day 8 Leave trip in Berthemont or transfer back to Nice for hotel guests.

Suitable for

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.