Guided Walking Holiday through the Foothills of the Alps

Holiday Highlights:

• Discover one of the richest areas of wildlife and fauna in the Alps on this Alpine trek
• First hand experience of the evolution of Alpine history
• Exclusive access to remote Alpine refuges
• A logistics person to port your baggage, cook your dinner, prepare breakfast and picnics each day so you only need to carry a day pack
• Locally produced food and beverages
• Ethical holiday - learning and appreciating local Alpine culture and contributing to the local economy and communities

The Mountains of Buech Devoluy - Foothills of the Alps

Situated on the edge of the Ecrins national park and north of Provence, the Devoluy massif is a spectacular limestone mountain territory dominated by the Pic de Bure mountain. On the top of the Pic de Bure is one of three space observatory stations in the world, thanks to its clean air and lack of light pollution.

It is a territory steeped in history. At the beginning of the 1900ds the area was a thriving Alpine hub with many farming villages nestled into the steep valleys and mountain plateaux. Now abandoned to nature and reforestation schemes, wildlife has taken over and the abundance and variety of its flora and fauna make it one of the richest regions in the French Alps.  

The natural riches are incomparable: diverse forests and woodland with larch and pine trees, alpine pastures, sunny rocky outcrops, dramatic limestone cliffs, canyons and waterfalls, refreshing torrents... and roaming amongst all this you can find wild boar, roe deer, stags, mouflon, chamois, foxes and even wolves. Bird lovers will be in their element with golden eagles, black grouse, black woodpecker, eagle owls and many more  to be spotted. It is mountain scenery to die for!

Holiday Overview

Your guide will take you on a journey on hiking trails through this wild area, staying in renovated refuges in the old abandoned Alpine villages of previous thriving farming communities. On this walking holiday in France you will discover a variety of landscapes, wildlife and get a real feel for the Alpine culture of before. A truly enriching holiday in the French Alps.

You will be walking in mountainous territory with rocky paths, forest trails and through Alpine pastures. Each day you will be walking an average of 6 hours with around 500m - 600m of ascent. Have a look at the detailed itinerary for more information for each days walking.

Every evening a logistics person will meet you at the refuges to prepare dinner and port your baggage for you so you only need your day sacks and picnic each day.

Who Will Love This Holiday?

Any walker or hiker who loves discovering new and wild places with a passion for the Alps, beautiful mountain scenery, nature and the mountains will love this trip. There are no technical sections but a good level of fitness is required to be able to enjoy the walking and trekking as you will be out all day, every day! 

Discover the ancient Alpine way of life whilst walking and hiking, watch and listen to the wildlife and take in the immense calm and peace and quiet each evening in the remote mountain refuges. If you are looking for a walking holiday in France, this is must do trip to add to your bucket list!

Whilst this trip is aimed at adults, we welcome families with teenagers used to walking and hiking to join. This trip can also be adapted for private trips for families or groups so please do get in touch for a tailor made family walking holiday or an exclusive group walking holiday.

For other walking holiday ideas, have a read of our blog, the 7 best hikes in Europe and browse our walking holidays section.

Itinerary

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Your trip starts in the pretty Alpine town of Gap which you can get to by plane, train, bus or car!

BY TRAIN / BUS: 

Gap has a local SNCF train station. There are direct train links to Gap from Grenoble TGV station there is also an overnight sleeper train from Paris to Gap.

There is also a regular coach service which operates from Aix-en-Provence TGV directly to Gap. 

You can plan your train journey using the Oui SNCF website. This works from all major European cities.

BY PLANE:

The nearest airpots are Marseille and Grenoble.  From Marseille airport there is a regular coach service directly to Gap every two and a half hours. From Grenoble you would need to get the airport shuttle to the train station and then a train from Grenoble to Gap.

Please ask us about transport options when you enquire as we have become pros on getting people to this beautiful region!

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