Self-Guided Trekking
With a self-guided trekking holiday, we do all the work to put together your ideal trip. We’ll take the effort out of planning the itinerary and juggling multiple nights’ accommodation in different places. And you can lean on our expertise from years of trekking in the Alps to help choose the perfect itinerary for you or your group.
Self-guided means that you’ll be trekking on your own during the trip, without a hiking guide. We’ll accompany you through the planning stages, take care of the bookings, and provide you with detailed navigation notes. During the trip we’ll be available to give advice by email or by phone, and we can schedule a mid-trek call to check-in and make sure all is going well.
Self-guided trekking holidays are subject to our self-guided terms and conditions so please have a look at these before booking. If you want to know more about our self-guided treks or make a booking enquiry, just send us an email at bookings@whitemarmotte.com or use the form below. Alternatively, see our contact page for more ways to get in touch.
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Trip choice
Suitability
Pricing
Trip notes
Booking
What is included?
Each self-guided trekking holiday is unique and fully tailored to your needs, so the price and the product varies depending on the options you choose. We normally include airport transfers, but some customers prefer to make their own way to the start point. On request, we can provide baggage transfers, rest or sightseeing days, restaurant bookings, lift tickets, tourist attraction reservations, guidebooks, and almost anything else you can think of.
Note that flights and insurance are not included in any of our packages.
A typical self-guided trip would include the following:
What trips are available?
Our self-guided trekking programme consists entirely of bespoke, made-to-measure products, so the exact trip you choose is up to you. If there is a trek you’re interested in, please do send us an enquiry and we’ll do our best to make it happen. If you don’t know where to start, the group trips on our summer trekking page can provide the basis for a personalised trip. We specialise in full and mini versions of the Tour du Mont Blanc, the GR54 Tour du Oisans, and the Chamonix-Zermatt Walker’s Haute Route. All these trips can be done in either direction. Read on for a selection of our popular trips.
4-Day Tour du Mont-Blanc West
Hike from Italian Courmayeur to the Chamonix Valley in France along the most famous long distance trekking route in the Alps. You can spend three nights in refuges for a real high mountain experience, or choose hotels for a little more luxury. Other sections of the Tour du Mont Blanc are also possible, and you can choose which direction to trek in.
Full Tour du Mont-Blanc
Tackle the most famous long distance trek in the Alps in its entirety. The full circuit tends to take around ten days, but we’ve also put together a condensed seven-day package and a five-day trail running version so you can take your pick. A wide variety of accommodation means you can choose between mountain refuges, cosy gites and valley hotels according to your tastes. We recommend booking early!
Tour des Oisans/Ecrins
The 12 day hike on the GR54 Tour de Oisans/Ecrins takes in some of the most varied and remote trekking terrain in the French Alps. Normally starting in Bourg d’Oisans, the route makes a clockwise circuit through progressively wilder mountains. You’ll pass through La Grave, Serre Chevallier, Vallouise, Valgudemar, Valbonnais before crossing the Col de La Muzelle to return to the start point. We also offer a four-day Ecrins Long Weekend package.
Chamonix to Zermatt – Walkers’ Haute Route
Hike the beautiful and varied trails that link two of the most famous and historic mountain towns of the Alps. Typically done in around twelve days, the challenging route crosses a succession of high passes and spectacular panoramas. This should be on every trekker’s bucket list.
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Is self-guided trekking suitable for everyone?
Unlike a guided trek, on a self-guided trip you need to take complete responsibility for yourself, including navigation, fitness and coping with adverse weather. You will need to take the decision to turn back or skip a day if necessary, and work out how to get yourself back on track. You need to be comfortable navigating with a map and compass as well as with modern devices, and you need to equip yourself to cope with wind, rain, cold and possibly snow, as well as looking after yourself on a long, hot day with limited water supplies on the route.
We do provide telephone and email support, but we can’t guarantee an instant response as we may be in the mountains ourselves on other trips. You may also pass through areas with no mobile telephone coverage, including at some of the accommodation. Once you embark on the trek you need to be able to be self-sufficient until the end.
If you are new to multi-day trekking, it might be better to join a guided trip. You can book privately or look at one of our group trips.
How much does the trip cost?
Every trip is different, and the costs vary depending on the length of the trip, the accommodation and the options you choose. To give you an idea, here are a few trips we have organised recently with guideline prices. Please note that these are not guaranteed prices for these trips – contact us or email bookings@whitemarmotte.com for a proposal for your specific trip.
Summer 2024 example packages:
Ecrins Long weekend: approx. 500€ per person
- Four days trekking, four nights accommodation
- One night in a refuge (dormitory), three nights in hotels
- Two nights half-board, two nights B&B
- Full planning and booking service, detailed trip notes ebook, GPX files and paper mapping
- Price based on two people sharing a room. Airport transfers not included
Fastpacking Tour du Mont Blanc: approx. 1000€ for one person
- Five days on the trail, six nights accommodation
- Refuge and gite accommodation (dormitories)
- All breakfasts and evening meals included
- Full planning and booking service, detailed trip notes ebook, GPX files and paper mapping
- Airport transfers included
- Baggage transport provided between nightly accommodation (4 baggage transfers)
Full GR54 Tour des Oisans/Ecrins: 1100€ to 1300€ per person
- Eleven days trekking, ten nights accommodation
- Mixture of hotel and refuge (dormitory) accommodation
- All breakfasts, eight evening meals and seven lunches included
- Full planning and booking service, detailed trip notes ebook, GPX files and paper mapping
- Approx. 1100€ per person based on two people sharing rooms or 1300€ for one person
- Airport transfers not included
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What do the self-guided trekking trip notes include?
Every one of our packages includes a fully personalised set of detailed trip notes. We provide this in ebook format suitable for Kindle and other eReaders or reading apps, as well as in pdf format. We also provide gpx files for your favourite navigation app or gps device, and appropriate paper mapping for the route. The main trip notes document inlcudes the following:
How does the booking process work for self-guided trekking?
To start planning your perfect self-guided trip, just send an email to bookings@whitemarmotte.com or use the form below.
The process starts from your initial enquiry. We’ll take a look at your requirements and confirm whether we can arrange the trek. If necessary, we might ask for some more information via email or we can schedule a call to discuss any options. Once we’re clear on how you want the trek to look, we’ll produce an initial proposal document setting out the itinerary, what is included, and a guideline price. From there, we can fine tune the details until you’re happy with everything.
At this point, we’ll send over a final proposal document and pricing. If you want to go ahead we’ll ask for a deposit and reserve the trip. Once we’ve confirmed the various parts of the booking with our local providers, we’ll send over the confirmed itinerary with details of accommodation, transport and any other included services. We recommend waiting until you receive this document before booking your flights.
The balance payment will be due two months before the trip starts. We’ll also send the trip notes, gpx files and joining instructions around this time. Depending on where you live, we’ll either post the paper map(s) to you or leave them at your first night’s accomodation.
We are available to answer questions throughout the planning and reservation process. Because every trip is unique, the amount of interaction varies greatly between customers, but rest assured we’ll be working with you throughout to put together the best possible package for you and your group.
Quick enquiry form
Please note that self-guided trekking holidays are subject to our self-guided terms and conditions so have a look at these before booking.
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