Mont Blanc holiday, Tour du Mont Blanc

Planet

Activity:
Few holidays have as little detrimental impact on the environment and local residents as a walking and trekking trip. Erosion on and adjacent to popular paths is a growing problem in certain places and therefore our trip leaders encourage clients to stick to advised routes in order to minimise this. We do believe in leaving no more than footprints and have a strict policy with proper disposal of litter. We understand that this sense of responsibility is even more necessary in the case of Mont Blanc than some other trekking sites as the mountain does not have National Park status and regulations to protect it. Our staff are trained with environmental stewardship in mind and protective guidelines are then passed on to our clients through briefings in order to keep our impact neutral.

Water:
Water is a really important issue with trekking trips- especially as this trip reaches at altitude of over 2,500m at the highest pass of the route, Lac Blanc, which might be quite challenging. Whilst we must stay hydrated, it is also vital that we have a system for providing clean water without causing lots of waste with plastic bottles. We suggest that instead of repeatedly buying bottled water, guests should use fresh water springs on the way to re-fill a singular container. These springs are clean and are a wonderful resource for reducing plastic waste, or guests can simply re-fill at the campsites, mountain huts or village inns where they stay.

UK Office:
It all starts at home so we have first worked at reducing our carbon footprint in our UK Offices. Through energy conservation measures and recycling policies, we are proud to be actively reducing the waste produced and our impact on the environment. We support various projects all over the world to try and give something back to the places we visit.

People

Accommodation & Meals:
For accommodation and eating out we use smaller business that benefit the local community by keeping investment in the area. We spend the duration in a locally owned chalet within minutes of Mont Blanc, therefore reducing our need for transport and carbon footprint; and meals are usually communally organised which is more efficient and less impactful. Where meals are provided, we try to use local supplies if possible and encourage clients to do the same when they shop independently: for example, there is a Saturday market in Chamonix with plenty of local shops and cafes en route. We stop almost daily in locally run refuges where our trekkers usually have a coffee and a big slice of cake. It does not sound like much but these are all locally owned establishments and our business is an excellent source of income for them.

Group Size:
This small group tour has a maximum of 16 participants, meaning that we have a low impact on the environments and communities we visit and are able to ensure that we do not disrupt or lead to the displacement of local people. The small number also allows us to stay in unique, family-run hotels that cannot benefit from coach tours and other mass tourism due to their limited sizes.