Please feel free to browse through their comments and pictures.
If you have already been on one of our holidays, please add a comment - we'd love to know your views and see your photos.
Sarah Hunter
From the first contact Sally at Undiscovered Alps was very helpful and answered any questions we had, which weren't that many as the website was really comprehensive and informative.
Sally always had the time to discuss any worries over choosing the right activities and provided good practical advice. On arrival we found our accommodation to be as good as described (except the view was better!!) and Sally was there to meet us and run through our itinerary and answer yet more questions!
We had a fun and action packed week with the highlights being the rock climbing and canyoning with Bernard. It was great to get up every day and have something exciting and challenging to do. Although we had to drive to get to most of the activities this gave us the opportunity to take in the spectacular scenery.
The end of the week came too quickly and we returned home feeling that we had all achieved something and tried out something new. In short it was a fabulous holiday and the kids (14,12 & 9 years) said it was the best they'd ever had!
We have loads of happy memories and definitely wouldn't hesitate to book another holiday with such a great little company.
Karima Harris
We spent a week staying in a lovely B&B in Les Forestons doing activities each day. The accomodation was basic but lovely and the French couple were very welcoming and also cooked for us a few evenings. It was absolutely perfect for two families with kids. The activities were great fun. It was great not to have to worry about arranging anything as it was all taken care of and all we needed to do was turn up. Our group(two families) did tree climbing, mountain biking, a day at a lake, high ropes, kayaking, bouldering and mountain walks. Two of our kids (aged 1 and 3) were perhaps too young for the majority of the activities but when doing the activities the people taking the activities tried to include the 3 year old. It is a beautiful part of France. Overally a great holiday.
Julia Widdowson
It seems like an age ago since we were in the Alps this summer but just wanted to thank both you and Bernard for an absolutely amazing week.
It was what we had hoped for and more! Giving us the independence we like but with information, guidance and amazing activities, we had one our best holidays ever.
Anyone reading this, don't hesitate to use these guys, they are brilliant!
Vicky Thomas
Had a amazing stay in the Sunflower, and our activities were all great fun. Our day off even turned into an adventure, due to a recommended walk from Sally.
The only part that we felt slightly unhappy about was that we had to drive either to; each activity, or take and leave our car at a meeting point. Before arriving this was not made clear, and in relation to value for money, we had expected collection from our place of stay. As our entire holiday involved driving around France, we had been looking forward to leaving the car parked for a couple of days! Maybe a minor point, but I hope you value all feedback
Thank you Sally for your warm welcome, and Bernard for making us feel extremely safe during our activity day.
Regards
Vicky
Jo Bennet
Me and andy by absolute fate started a new romance in april this year, so decided to book a holiday together in the summer! Going back 10 years, we both were both into mtn biking and the great outdoors, so Undiscovered Alps looked very inviting.
Between us we fancied some mtn biking, famous road climbs, a taste of what the alps had to offer, as well as some relaxing, nice food and some good fun, what a perfect holiday!
Well....perfect was the word, we did all the above and more including facing my via ferrata fears in an amazing dramatic gorge, canyoning in a beautiful alpine canyon, abseiling down a 25ft waterfall, climbing alp duez in 1 hour 30min, andy in 56min! 21 hairpins 14km uphill!!!
The accommodation was gorgeous and very french, providing gorgeous dishes, homemade pasta, raspberry tart, raspberries from the garden..delicious and such lovely hosts.
Would recommend to everyone! Such a smooth and stress free holiday...going to look at booking next year again.
Angie Lemon
This year my family and I were keen to try out a holiday that was different to our normal 'beach' type holiday. We have two boys aged 11 and 14 years who were wanting an adventure and looking for daring challenges. Holidaying with 'Undiscovered Alps' was our answer! All our activities were organised for us and Sally personally gave us an activity itinery when we arrived, together with lots of information about local activities including recommended restaurants,walks, and markets. We experienced amazing, exhilerating activities including Via Ferrata, White Water Rafting, Kayaking and Mountain biking. Our holiday highlight was paragliding off the side of a mountain- wow, that was an awesome experience for us all! We were guided by friendly and helpful instructors. Our accomodation was in a small, pretty, peaceful village called Ancelle, in the Southern French Alps so the scenery was outstanding. I would thoroughly recommend 'Undiscovered Alps' to anyone who likes to try something different and likes a challenge.
Stefan Drummond
Dear Sally, would just like to thank you and your team for the most fantastic 4 days in the Alps.
Having planned similar trips in the past, I would have no hesitation in recommending Undiscovered Alps as a company. From my first conversations with you, you listened to the needs of our group, our budget and then planned and executed a great break for us all. Each activity was well thought through, with excellent attention to detail, safe, personal and friendly instruction and probably some of the best hospitality and cuisine we have tasted. Please pass on our sincere thanks to all involved.
We have all returned with great memories and look forward to meeting up the mountain in the future.
Elroy Campbell
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
Wonderful accommodation. We were really sad to leave our very gracious hosts. They were the best! They provided the best meals (and the best company) we had on our entire visit to Europe. All the activities were special (trekking, cycling, horse riding and via ferrata). The two peaks we climbed were highlights for me. Our guide, Bernard, deserves, extra credit for getting us there. We were definitely not his easiest group.
2. What tips would you give other travelers booking this holiday?
Enjoy it!
3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, and minimized impacts on the environment?
Yes. Local residents provided all the accommodation and activities during the holiday. During the hiking, all rubbish was carried back out of the mountains with us.
4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?
A great experience. Outstanding. Very efficiently and thoroughly organised by Sally.
Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?
**** Some wonderful memories, I would not hesitate to recommend it to a friend
Simon Ashman
Wendy, I, Josh(10yrs) and Tom (9yrs) stopped off for a few days travelling up from the South coast. We stayed the first night at Ferme d`Emile in Poligny. excellent accomodation, food and views, followed by a few nights at La Combe Fleurie. Again the accomodation was excellent, with very good food, and again stunning views from our room.
We enjoyed tree climbing, canoeing at the nearby Lac Saute, and sampled the walking above nearby Chaillol with Sally and Annie.
Sally ensured everything ran smoothly for us and we had fantastic weather.
The only problem we had was that we couldn`t stay longer.
We can thoroughly recommend `Undiscovered Alps` to anyone of all ages!! There is just Soo much to do !!
Derek, Sam and Callum
[Derek says:] We had a fantastic holiday. We booked really late but Sally had everything organised and we just had to turn up, pitch our tents and light the stove! (Uh oh! Sally lent us hers!) All the activities were great, even the mountain biking(!) and it was fun meeting up with the other Undiscovered Alpeans on the activities and swapping notes. In the evenings there are many good friendly restaurants to frequent. It's a beautiful area. Sally is a wonderful organiser and her local knowledge really makes a difference.
We'll be back!
[Cal says:] it wuz gud!
[Sam says:] tres bon
Aisling & Ole
My daughter Aisling (9) and I had the most fantastic alpine trip last summer (2008). We've always loved hiking in Ireland and we were ready for more challenging adventures. Sally put together the perfect itinerary and hooked us up with some pretty unique people for the activities. We were very inspired by Silvie (see picture), who had an astonishing appreciation for and knowledge of nature. She even let us try her home-made mint tea between tree climbs ;-)
Sally did her absolute utmost to make this trip memorable and really took her time to make us feel special and welcome. Through her we got to meet a lot of locals and Aisling found her own special French friend, Coline, between tree-climbing, mountain biking, hiking, high ropes and rafting. Check our photo safari on YouTube (see link).
We’ll definitely come back and are planning to bring the whole family next time. A school trip is also in the pipeline.
The Horne Family
I’ve chosen 4 photos which capture the ambience for me. The first one is of our family on the top of the pass on the walk from the mountain retreat. We could hardly believe that we had made it to the top and were mightily relieved to see that the other side looked less challenging as a descent! Our sense of achievement was enormous – we had stayed overnight in the retreat with much merriment and little sleep and then walked the path with 7 adults and 11 children over 2400m high to reach our rendezvous at 5.00pm the next day – quite an adventure.
Swimming with the horses in the lake was quite an experience – even though I ride most days. The French have little caution – we just got in the water and swam past the pedaloes over to the island. I laughed all the way!
The canyoning trip was great fun both because the getting ready was a good laugh and for the adrenaline rush coming down the canyon. The French instructors made everyone feel safe whilst adding their own ‘twist’ to ensuring it was fun.
The Horne Family
I’ve chosen 4 photos which capture the ambience for me. The first one is of our family on the top of the pass on the walk from the mountain retreat. We could hardly believe that we had made it to the top and were mightily relieved to see that the other side looked less challenging as a descent! Our sense of achievement was enormous – we had stayed overnight in the retreat with much merriment and little sleep and then walked the path with 7 adults and 11 children over 2400m high to reach our rendezvous at 5.00pm the next day – quite an adventure.
Swimming with the horses in the lake was quite an experience – even though I ride most days. The French have little caution – we just got in the water and swam past the pedaloes over to the island. I laughed all the way!
The canyoning trip was great fun both because the getting ready was a good laugh and for the adrenaline rush coming down the canyon. The French instructors made everyone feel safe whilst adding their own ‘twist’ to ensuring it was fun.
Lou & James
We spent 10 days in the French Alps with Sally last summer, experiencing a range of activities from tree climbing to white water, each day brought with it something new and exciting all of which were superbly organised. The scenery is spectacular, Sally and her team most helpful and the activities, excellent! If you're looking for something different but great fun and invigorating, go for it! You won't regret it!
Maureen, Carl & Helen
We set Sally a real challenge organising a 2 week holiday for a group of 4 families including 11 children (aged 9-17 years) all wanting to do different things - but she came up trumps! It was an outstanding feat of organisation & between us we did 15+ different activities & all had a fantastic time. Sally's in depth knowledge of the area, activities & people as well as the personal service she provides is second to none. We would thoroughly recommend one of her holidays. Go for it!
Helen Jones
I first met Sally and the Undiscovered Alps team in 2006 when I was lucky enough to discover them and go over to spend a week doing the summer multi-activity break. Still, 3 years later, it's ranked as the best holiday I've ever had. The range of activities was fantastic, including; caving, ice-caving (personal fav!), mountain walking, parapunt, mountain biking and tree-climbing. We were knackered by the end of it but I've never felt so full of energy at the end of a holiday.
The region is just beautiful and in the summer the flora and fauna is just stunning. Sally is the most wonderfully charming host and will make sure that you are well looked after during your stay.
I was so impressed that I went back the following winter with another group of friends and we had a super long weekend break snowshoeing, cross-country skiing, and generally larking about in the snow. The accommodation Sally arranges is to suit your wishes. Over the two trips I stayed in a total of 4 places and they were all of a good standard. Also, I can honestly say that all of the people we met on both trips were very welcoming, warm and hospitable.
I can't recommend Sally and her team enough. They are an incredibly passionate group and love to share their outdoor passions with others, so if you feel like a break from rat-race where you can work off some steam and soak up some breathtaking scenery, then get yourself booked up with Undiscovered Alps.
NB: Make sure Sally books you a table at the Fromagerie whilst you're there as the fondue should not be missed!!
