Gourmet Alpine Walking Holiday in the Alps

After a day out in the fresh alpine air, walking in the mountains admiring stunning views of the French Alps, there is nothing better than sitting down to a delicious dinner of freshly prepared local delicacies. This is the hiking trip of your dreams!

The Hiking:

On this guided walking holiday you will discover the magnificent Ecrins National Park, the Champsaur valley, with its 'bocage' (an ancient and now rare farming tradition using hedgerows) and pretty Alpine pastures, and the Valgaudemar valley, known locally as the little Himalayas with high altitude lakes, glaciers and flowery alpine meadows to explore.

The contrasting landscapes present a wealth of walking opportunities with something new to see each day. We have chosen the best (in our  opinion!) walks in the area to take you on a magnificent journey through the rolling alpine foothills overlooking Provence to the south and with views of the high mountain glaciers to the north, to hikes into the heart of the high mountains of the Ecrins National Park, all in close proximity to your two accommodation bases.

Expect to see chamois, ibex, golden eagles, vultures, deer, wild boar and maybe even a wolf as well as thousands of beautiful alpine flowers including some rare orchids. Your local guide and wildlife expert will be pointing out the exceptional flora and fauna of this region as you walk.

The Food:

We have hand-picked our favourite two accommodations for foodies in the Southern French Alps as your accommodation bases for this unique gourmet walking holiday in the Alps. 

One of the bases is the Luxury Farmhouse Guesthouse, a traditional stone farmhouse, completely renovated in a chic and modern style whilst retaining its original character. The chef here is Meg, a creative, culinary genius from Taiwan who has an amazing ability to re-invent traditional Alpine recipes with an Aisian touch. 

The other base is the Val des Sources which is a very traditional alpine hotel situated deep in the Valgaudemar valley. The cooking here is pure French Alpine tradition. Collette is the chef here and her insatiable knowledge, experience and skill in traditional Alpine cuisine is quickly apparent. Prepare to experience a culinary journey through the Alps, with each menu carefully put together and accompanied by the best wines, recommended by Claude, her husband and connoisseur. 

For lunches, we have scheduled in a couple of days in the itinerary to visit some of the best restaurants in the area and for other days you will have the choice of a gourmet picnic or standard picnic lunch to eat out in the mountains. As lunches are variable, these are at your charge.

Holiday Highlights:

• Varied and spectacular hiking through some of the best mountain scenery in Europe
• An exceptional culinary feast and gastronomic experience with hand-picked local chefs and restaurants
• Local and experienced guides and wildlife experts
• Hassle free - all you have to do is get here and enjoy
• Supporting responsible and sustainable tourism

Who Will Love This Trip?

If you are a regular walker or hiker who appreciates good food and loves the mountains, this trip is for you. You will need a good level of walking fitness to enjoy this trip and manage a full day out (with plenty of stops for photos and taking in the views) in the mountains but don't need to be super fit!  Please feel free to ask if you are unsure whether this trip is for you.

Itinerary

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We have arranged a pick up and drop off transfer from the town of Gap which is well served by a variety of train and bus links from the major airports and TGV fast train services.

BY TRAIN / BUS: 

WE OFFER A *3% DISCOUNT TO ANYONE TRAVELLING BY TRAIN INSTEAD OF PLANE. To claim your 3% discount, you will need to show us proof of train travel for routes of over 3 hours that could have been taken by plane. Please ask for modalities when you book. 

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 airports are Marseilles (MRS) and Grenoble (GNB). 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!

* train discount is not accumulable with other discounts.