Courmayeur and the Val d'Aosta walking tour

Day 1:

Arrival in Turin, my favourite Italian city: miles of arcades with bookshops, chocolate shops, excellent museums and historic cafes.  We will spend the first two nights in an elegant 4-star hotel in the pedestrian centre of the city.  We’ll meet in the hotel foyer at 19.00 and then have dinner in a very nice restaurant a short walk from the hotel.  (Dinner)

Day 2:

This morning you will be taken on a guided walk through Turin's centre visiting some of the city's Baroque splendour, the legacy of the Savoy kings who ruled from here for nearly six centuries.  After lunch, the afternoon and evening are free.  (Lunch)

Day 3:

Today we head north, following the course of the Dora River from Turin.  Will stop to visit the Fort Bard, an historic fortification that guards the entrance into the Val d'Aosta.  Here we will have a short stroll along the river and a coffee before going up to the Fort for a guided visit to the Museum of the Alps and having a light lunch.

Our base for the next three days is in a beautiful German-speaking village at the head of one of the small tributary valleys, dominated by a glacier and the looming form of Monte Rosa (the second highest peak in the Alps).  This valley is the heartland of the Walser people, German-speaking people who settled in the valley in 13th century.  Our accommodation is in a charming, family-run, 4-star hotel.  Dinner for the next three nights will be in hotel's restaurant.  (Lunch and dinner)

Day 4:

The walk today starts from the front door of the hotel.  We walk beside the river up to the head of the valley.  From here we take a cable car up to a high pasture with spectacular views of the valley and the encircling mountains.  After coffee, we follow walk up to a lovely 'rifugio' where we'll have lunch.  After lunch, we head back down to the cable car (10 kms, 5 hrs, 500 mts gain).  At the bottom, you'll have the option of taking a transfer back to the hotel or walking back along the river (4 kms, 1 hr).  (Lunch and dinner)

Day 5:

Today we will immerse ourselves in the local Walser culture.  This morning’s walk again starts from front door of the hotel but this time we head south, following the historic ‘Grand Walser Trail’, passing through old stone hamlets and pastures that have remained unchanged for centuries, stopping at a gorgeous hamlet on the trail (that dates from the 14th century) to have a light lunch.  We take the path down to the nieghbouring village in the valley. (9 kms, 4 hrs, 365 mts gain)

 We will be picked up from here and taken on a guided visit of an enchanting 19th century castle that was once the summer residence of Margherita, the first queen of Italy.  We’ll get a lift back to base where the evening is free.  (Dinner).

Day 6:

Today we head west up the Val d’Aosta to our next base, which tucked away in another valley on the edge of the Gran Paradiso National Park, Italy's oldest.  On the way, we’ll visit one of the best vineyards in the region for a comprehensive tasting of their very fine wines.  We will then have lunch in a small country restaurant with spectacular views.

From here it is a short drive to our next base, where we will stay in a beautiful 4-star hotel, a mountain hideaway that dates from the 1920’s that has been in the same family for four generations.  After settling in, the evening is free.  (Lunch)

Day 7:

This morning, we walk out of our hotel and follow a stream up towards the foot of Gran Paradiso, the only mountain over four thousand metres wholly in Italian territory.  After an initial climb, we are rewarded by extraordinary views, walking towards an amphitheatre of glaciers descending from an impressive chain of peaks from Mt Herbertet to the Gran Paradiso.

The walk follows a good trail beside the river, crossing alpine pastures and forests to the foot of the mountain.  We’ll have light lunch along the way (15 kms, 4.5 hrs, 283 mts gain).  We will have dinner back at our hotel.   (Lunch and dinner)

Day 8:

Today we will be taken on a guided visit the regional capital, Aosta city, a very interesting and town surrounded by snow-capped mountains, a thirty minute drive away.  Controlling one of the Roman empire’s main roads, Aosta had great importance in antiquity. 

Although it is still surrounded by its Roman walls and contains many monuments from this era, the character of the city is more southern French than Italian, thanks to the town’s allegiance to the house of Challant and it's vicinity to the French.  The locals speak 'patois' a French dialect. 

We’ll have a delicious lunch in a restaurant inside the Roman gate into town and then head back to our base, where the evening is free.  (Lunch)

Day 9:

Today we get a short lift up to the side of the valley to a pretty village.  From here we follow a trail into a neighbouring valley, with more spectacular scenery to a small stone hamlet, which was originally summer accommodation for the ‘pastori’ who walked their cattle up here to graze on the meadows. 

We’ll have a cut lunch and then retrace our way back to the village, where we can have a cold drink before getting a lift back down to base (12 kms, 5 hours, 566 mts).  Dinner tonight will be in a traditional restaurant in town.  (Lunch and dinner)

Day 10:

This morning we head to Courmayeur, our last stop and the tour grande finale.  Flush against the French border, Courmayeur, has combined upmarket ski facilities with an ancient Roman military base that controlled the perilous mountain roads that crossed the Alps.  Its piece de resistance is the towering Mt Blanc (Monte Bianco in Italian), Europe’s highest mountain, 4810 mts asl, that closesthe end of the Valle d’Aosta. 

On the way, we will have a guided visit to a Roman aquaduct and a recently restored castle/noble residence before having Sunday lunch a marvellous local restaurant down in  After checking into our now 5-star, family-run hotel (the best in the region) the rest of the afternoon and evening is free.  (Lunch)

Day 11

This morning we drive into the neighbouring Ferret Valley and enjoy a beautiful panoramic walk at the foot of Monte Bianco.  It is one of my all time favourite walks.

We start by walking beside the Ferret River before a long, gentle climb up to the ridge, we then walk back down the valley with extraordinary views up to the mountains.  We will have lunch in a ‘rifugio’ dedicated to one of Italy’s most loved mountaineers, and then head down to the river, where we will be picked and driven back to our hotel (12 kms, 4 hours, 400 mts gain).  The evening is free.  (Lunch)

Day 12:

This morning, for the grand finale of the tour, we catch the famous Mont Blanc/Monte Bianco Skyway (a spectacular cable car inaugurated in 2015) up to Punta Helbronner, 3470 mts, the highest point on the Italian side of the mountain.

After enjoying the spectacular views, you will have the option of taking another, smaller cable car across the dramatic glaciers of the Aiguille du Midi, to the French side of Mont Blanc. From here. the rest of the day is free.  You can stay on the French side for lunch, or return to the Italian side for lunch. On the way back down to Courmayeur, you will have the opportunity to visit the high altitude botanical gardens. 

In the evening, we will have our farewell dinner at our hotel’s excellent restaurant.  (Dinner)

Day 13:

This morning, we leave to 08.30 and head back to Turin (approximately 2 hours away) which has excellent national and international rail and air connections.