HOLIDAY OFFERS - Walking Holidays - Tour de Vieux Chaillol Classic

• Guided Holiday
• Self Guided Holiday

Tour du Vieux Chaillol - Classic

Guided or Self Guided Walking Holiday

Guided Option

PLACES AVAILABLE

Price: £799 per person (minimum 6 people)

Tuesday 1st July - Tuesday 8th July 2009

Self-Guided Option

Price: From £399 per person

Any time between 31 May and 31 October

The Tour de Vieux Chaillol

This is a classic walk taking in the four valleys visible from Champsaur's highest mountain, the Vieux Chaillol. Each of the valleys; Champoleon, Champsaur, Valgaudemar and Molines have their own unique characteristics; from the deep steep dramatic valley of Valgaudemar to the open rural landscape of Champsaur.

There are two pairs of golden eagles in the area, chamois, ibex and lots of marmots. The flora is also spectacular, with 60 different species of orchid, wild orange lillies, wild daffodils, gentians and thousands of other flowers I don't know the names of!

Have a look at the map to see the route.

Most of the tour traverses along the valleys on the GR 50 and GR 54 long distance trekking paths, so the paths are easy and not too steep but the days are long so you will need a reasonable level of fitness to do it comfortably. You cross one high mountain pass of 2607 metres which takes you from the Valgaudemar valley into the Champoleon valley. This is done over two days staying in the refuge Vallonpierre at 1534 metres but you will climb approximately 1150m in one day.

The classic route is five days long, so if you are plannng a week's holiday, you have one rest day, with a day's travelling either side. You can either spend this resting or you can take in one of the many variations.

If you would like more information on either the guided or self-guided trip, please contact us. Or if you would like to book a holiday, then please go to our booking page and fill out the request form.

Guided Holiday

1 July - 8 July 2009

Price: £799 per person for an all inclusive guided walking holiday. (minimum 6 people). Click here for price breakdown.

This is a week's holiday following the classic Tour de Vieux Chaillol Route with a small deviation - see below. It is 6 days walking in the mountains, including a rest day in the middle.

Your guide will be Matthieu Reynier, a local guide who knows the area really well. He's also a keen naturalist and has been observing the golden eagles for the last few years so is a great mine of information on all things nature related! We walk at an easy pace and tend to have lots of stops for photos, wildlife spotting and general enjoying the views moments.

We'll collect you from the airport, look after all your transport, food and accommodation (most of the accommodation is in gites and refuges so you will be sharing dormitory style rooms of between 2 and 8 people). We'll also have group maps you can have a look at. Where we can we will shuttle your baggage between refuges so for most of the time you only need to walk with a day sack. (it's not cheating!!)

The Route:
We follow the classic route but include our rest day on Day 4 with an easy walk up to the Refuge du Tourond, which is a superb mountain refuge and well worth a visit. There's a waterfall here with pools you can sunbathe by and swim in and there are also local walks you can do around the refuge if you want more walking. We then take in an extra col to get to the Gite in Chaillol the next day.

And for the final day while we're in the habit of bagging cols, we thought we'd take you over the Col de Viallet to Molines. This is a superb walk for the last day - spectacular views and a little bit off the beaten track. It also avoids the long traverse back to Gite les Paris on the classic route.

Have a look at the map to see the route. Follow the yellow dots and you'll see the diversion from the Gite Les Gondoins up to the Refuge du Tourond and then over the Col de Vanasque to the Gite in Chaillol and then over the Col du Viallet to Molines.

Click here to see the technical breakdown of each day.

If you would like more information this trip please contact us. Or if you would like to book a holiday, then please go to our booking page and fill out the request form.

Self Guided Holiday

Any time between 31 May and 31 October

Price: From £399 per person click here for price breakdown.

For the self guided option we will make all your reservations for you (full board accommodation with picnic lunches) and give you all the walking maps and route cards you need. We also shuttle your baggage between refuges so you only have to carry your day sack (it's not cheating - honest!)

You can either self drive to the start or we can organise transfers for you from Grenoble, Chambery or Marseille airports.

So all you have to do is book your flights and walk!

Have a look at the map to see the route.

The classic route is five days long, so includes 6 nights accommodation. If you are plannng a week's holiday, and would like to include a rest day or take in one of the many variations, that's no problem, please just let us know when you make your enquiry and we will revise the price for you accordingly.

Click here to see the technical breakdown of each day and the variations.

If you would like more information this trip please contact us. Or if you would like to book a holiday, then please go to our booking page and fill out the request form.