Overview
Four-Day Ski Touring Adventure in the Queyras – A Brilliant Experience
I recently returned from a fantastic four-day beginner/introductory ski touring trip in the stunningly beautiful Queyras region of the French Southern Alps. It was a truly memorable experience, helped enormously by the professionalism and enthusiasm of our three guides. They were excellent throughout—highly skilled, extremely professional, and great company—ensuring the trip ran smoothly and safely while making it an enjoyable adventure for everyone involved.
The accommodation along the route was excellent. The Refuge de la Blanche stood out in particular: a wonderful mountain refuge in a spectacular setting, with brilliant food that was some of the best of the trip. The Refuge d’Agnel (our second refuge) was more basic by comparison, and while perfectly adequate for a ski touring hut, the food was okay compared with the other refuge.
All in all though, it was a fabulous experience and a great way to explore this quieter, less crowded part of the Alps.
One piece of practical advice: I arrived a day early, on the Friday morning, ahead of the trip starting on Saturday morning. I travelled by overnight sleeper train from Paris, and arriving the day before removed the stress of any potential delays. The trip organisers guarantee a guide pick-up only if the train is on time; if you’re more than 30 minutes late on the Saturday morning you would need to make your own way to the ski hire shop (about 3 km away in Guillestre) and then from there you would need to arrange a taxi to the start point car park roughly 40 minutes away.
On the Friday night I stayed at the delightful, traditional family-run L’Auberge d’Eygliers hotel, just a six-minute walk from Mont-Dauphin railway station. The Dutch couple who own the hotel were extremely welcoming and accommodating—they even got up at 7am to prepare breakfast before the start of the trip. When I returned the following Tuesday afternoon, they very kindly let me use a shower and freshen up before catching the overnight train back to Paris, which was hugely appreciated. I must add the food was excellent - I ate there on the Friday evening and two ski friends from the trip joined me on the Tuesday night before catching the night train back!!
Overall, a superb ski touring adventure in a spectacular area, with excellent guiding and great refuges. I would highly recommend Sally's Undiscovered Mountains for an adventure in the Queyras region and for this particular style of multi-day touring to anyone looking for a rewarding alpine experience.
