Adventure
More than thirty activities across snow, mountain, rock, water, bike and air. We grade them honestly and name the professional qualification that applies, so you know who is taking you out and why.
Qualifications
In Italy, guiding and instructing are regulated professions. These are the credentials that matter here, and the only ones we work with.
Guida Alpina — UVGAM, the Unione Valdostana Guide di Alta Montagna, under Regional Law 7/1997 · IFMGA/UIAGM
The international mountain-guide qualification. Aosta Valley guides are entered on the UVGAM register; Courmayeur's Société des Guides, founded in 1850, is one of the oldest guiding bodies in the world.
Accompagnatore di Media Montagna — regional register, Valle d'Aosta
Licensed for non-glaciated terrain: trekking, snowshoeing, nature and wildlife itineraries.
Associazione Valdostana Maestri di Sci — the regional ski instructors' register, Regional Law 44/1999
Every instructor we place holds a recognised professional qualification and is licensed to teach in the resort you are skiing. Instructors are engaged through established local ski schools and tour operators, and we will tell you in advance which school your instructor comes from.
Guida ufficiale del Parco Nazionale Gran Paradiso
One of the nineteen official guides of Italy's oldest national park, listed under Law 394/91. The park was established in 1922.
Guida di rafting — Federazione Italiana Rafting; kayak and hydrospeed under the Federazione Italiana Canoa Kayak
Swiftwater rescue certified, river-specific licensing for the Dora Baltea.
Guida Alpina with the torrentismo sportivo specialisation, registered with UVGAM
In the Aosta Valley canyoning is led under the mountain-guide qualification carrying a canyoning specialisation, examined by the UVGAM.
Maestro di mountain bike (AMIB) on the trails; Federazione Ciclistica Italiana coaches on the road
Technique coaching plus terrain and trail-safety accreditation.
VDS tandem rating issued under the Aero Club d'Italia; pilots affiliated to the Federazione Italiana Volo Libero
Logged tandem hours and site-specific approval for each launch.
Impianto a fune under Ministry of Infrastructure supervision (ANSFISA)
A lift ticket rather than a guided activity — no guiding qualification applies. We book it and time it around the weather.
Tecnico / accompagnatore di turismo equestre — Federazione Italiana Sport Equestri
Riding qualifications sit with FISE. The mid-mountain guide ticket covers footpaths, not saddles.
Permesso di pesca — Consorzio Pesca Valle d'Aosta
Fishing here runs on a day or season permit from the regional consortium, which we arrange before you arrive.
Operatore certificato ENAC (Ente Nazionale per l'Aviazione Civile)
Commercial air-operator certification for helicopter and balloon flight in Italian airspace.
The signature winter journey
Four massifs. Three countries. One trip that moves with the conditions.
The Ski Safari is our answer to the biggest mistake visitors make here: staying put. Each morning we look at snow, wind, visibility, what has actually opened and how the group is going. The area follows from that, and a driver takes you door to door. Some trips keep one base and the same fire every night; others move valley when that makes more sense.
Confident intermediate and up · 5–7 days
The full valley on piste. Comfortable parallel turns on red runs is all it takes — this is a journey, not a test.
from €245 per person, per day *How we price
Mixed ability, children from 6 · 4–6 days
Shorter days and gentler resorts — Pila, Torgnon, Champoluc, La Thuile — with ski school in the morning, childcare arranged around it, and a long lunch. Parents can peel off for a harder afternoon.
from €210 per person, per day *How we price
Advanced, off-piste capable · 6–7 days
The same route led by an IFMGA guide, with the Zermatt and Alagna crossings, off-piste variants between the resorts, and a heliski morning if the snowpack allows.
from €320 per person, per day *How we price
34 activities
Snow & Ice
11 activities
Courmayeur · Cervinia · Pila · La Thuile · Monterosa Ski
One instructor, your group, and a regional pass good for over 800 km of piste.
A ski instructor chosen for what you actually need: calm confidence after a break, technical correction for an experienced skier, or focused work on carving, speed or race technique. Passes, hire and logistics can be set up before arrival. Cervinia links over the border to Zermatt, La Thuile to La Rosière, and Pila is a cable car straight out of Aosta.
Monterosa Ski · Courmayeur · Cervinia
The Monterosa massif is one of the great freeride arenas of the Alps. We know its aspects.
The day starts with the avalanche forecast, current snowpack, wind, aspect and the group’s level — not a line selected from a brochure. Avalanche transceiver, shovel and probe are standard equipment, and a transceiver check or rescue drill is included when appropriate. If a line is beyond you, we say so.
Monte Rosa · Ruitor · Valgrisenche
Heliskiing is offered in the Aosta Valley within the applicable regional operating framework — and this is its Italian heartland. France does not permit the same model: leisure passenger drop-offs and pickups in mountain zones are prohibited outside aerodromes.
Heliskiing is regulated in Valle d’Aosta. The operating area, helicopter operator, professional, snow and weather are checked for the actual day. We do not sell a drop that the conditions do not support. Drops are usually on the Rutor, in Valgrisenche and on the Monte Rosa flanks; group size per guide depends on the route and the operator.
Valgrisenche · Rhêmes · Valpelline · Gran Paradiso
Earn it. Quiet valleys, skins on at dawn, and a summit nobody else is standing on.
From a first day on skins to hut-to-hut traverses and ski ascents. Route, ascent pace, descent standard and avalanche conditions are considered together. Touring skis, skins, boots and avalanche equipment can be supplied and fitted; hut places, half board and the transport between valley heads are arranged.
Pila · Courmayeur · Champoluc
Park laps, powder lines, or a first heel-side turn that finally makes sense.
Technique on piste, park coaching or powder. Splitboard and off-piste days are treated as mountain days, not an extension of the park session. Freestyle coaching runs separately in the Pila and Monterosa parks.
Cogne · Valpelline · Valtournenche · Valgrisenche
Cogne is a world capital of frozen waterfalls. Cascate di Lillaz, Patrì, Repentance.
Cogne is one of the Alps’ important ice-climbing valleys. Beginners work on foot placement, tools and efficient movement on manageable lines; experienced climbers are matched to multi-pitch routes. Ice conditions decide the line on the day, not the month before. Tools, crampons, helmet and harness are supplied.
Cogne · Gressoney · Rhêmes-Notre-Dame · Brusson
An extensive cross-country network on the Cogne valley floor, inside the national park.
Classic or skating on groomed tracks through the Valnontey and along the edge of Gran Paradiso. A useful choice for mixed groups, recovery days and anyone who wants a proper mountain day without lifts.
Valsavarenche · Cogne · Saint-Barthélemy
The quietest way into a winter forest — and the easiest to say yes to.
Winter walking through forests and open alpine ground without needing ski technique. Route and pace can be adapted easily to the group, and evening outings can finish at a mountain hut.
Courmayeur (Val Vény) · Breuil-Cervinia · La Thuile · Pila
Ride behind the team, or take the runners yourself once you have the hang of it.
Learn how the team works, ride as a passenger or — where the operator offers it — take the sled after instruction. A strong family day when the group wants something other than lifts. Run by mushers who live here and keep their own teams.
Cogne · Torgnon · Saint-Barthélemy
An electric fat bike on prepared snow — wide tyres, and far more traction than you expect.
Wide tyres and electric assistance make winter forest roads accessible to mixed-fitness groups. The route still depends on grip, snow and riding ability.
Pila · Cogne · Torgnon · Chamois
The bit small children remember for the rest of the year.
Dedicated toboggan runs, snow parks and gentle sledging slopes, supervised, with equipment provided. Chamois — closed to cars by choice since 1955, reached by cable car — is entirely car-free and ideal for young families.
Trails & Peaks
8 activities
Valley-wide
From a two-hour walk to a lake, to a lung-burning col at 3,000 m.
Two hours to a lake or a full day towards a 3,000-metre col. We describe distance, height gain, technical difficulty, surface and exposure rather than hiding everything inside ‘easy’ or ‘hard’. The guide carries a first-aid kit and a weather alternative.
Alta Via 1 & 2 · Tour du Mont Blanc · Tour du Monte Rosa
The great long-distance routes of the region, with the logistics taken off you.
Multi-day walking without having to piece together huts, bag transfers, transport and food yourself. Guidance can cover the whole route or selected stages. The Alta Via 1 crosses the north side beneath the Matterhorn and Monte Rosa; the Alta Via 2 runs along the Gran Paradiso side.
Valsavarenche · Rifugio Vittorio Emanuele II / Chabod
Often chosen as a first 4,000-metre summit, but still a glaciated high-alpine route — and the only one whose entire massif sits inside Italy.
One of the more attainable 4,000-metre peaks in the Alps is still a real mountaineering day. Fitness, acclimatisation, crampons and roped glacier travel all matter. Previous glacier experience does not have to. Hut on day one, alpine start on day two, a glacier crossing on the rope and a short climbing pitch to the Madonna at 4,061 m.
Mont Blanc · Monte Rosa · Grivola · Dent du Géant
Mont Blanc, the Monte Rosa 4,000ers, the Dent du Géant. Objectives, not tours.
Objectives rather than sightseeing days. Fitness, technical base, acclimatisation and conditions must all line up. The fallback objective is planned as seriously as the main one. Your guide holds the IFMGA qualification and has the last word on conditions.
Valsavarenche · Valnontey · Rhêmes
Ibex, chamois, marmot, golden eagle and bearded vulture — in the park that saved them.
Ibex, chamois, marmot, golden eagle and bearded vulture, with someone who knows where to look in that season and how to keep a sensible distance. Gran Paradiso was founded in 1922 to save the last alpine ibex, and it worked.
Courmayeur · Cogne · Gressoney
Courmayeur sits on the Tor des Géants and UTMB course. The terrain is not gentle.
Routes matched to your pace and appetite for vertical, including recce days for Tor des Géants, TDS or UTMB entrants. Support and refuelling can be added to longer days, and we account for the altitude you do not train at.
Punta Helbronner · Rutor · Miage
Rope up and walk on ice, with the Mont Blanc massif standing over you.
A proper introduction to glacier travel: crampons, moving on a rope, reading crevasses and understanding the terrain. No previous glacier experience required on introductory routes. Starting from the top of the Skyway at 3,466 m or on the Rutor.
Gressan · Saint-Pierre / Vetan · Challand-Saint-Victor · Champorcher
Valley-floor hacks and high-pasture rides for confident riders.
Valley-floor rides, lessons for children and longer outings towards alpine pastures. Horse, rider and route need to suit one another.
Rock & Vertical
3 activities
Machaby (Arnad) · Ozein · Valle di Cogne · Mont Blanc granite
Single-pitch crags for a first day on rock, and Mont Blanc granite for those who want it.
First days on an accessible crag through to longer days on Alpine granite. Route and equipment are chosen to fit the climber rather than the photograph. Machaby above Arnad is a major gneiss climbing area in the Aosta Valley, low enough to climb well in the shoulder seasons.
Charvensod (Mont Emilius) · Courmayeur · Valtournenche · Gressoney
Steel cable, iron rungs and serious exposure — with none of the technical climbing.
Steel cables and steps take you into steep and sometimes exposed terrain without requiring independent rock-climbing skills. Comfort with height matters as much as fitness. Harness, helmet and lanyard set are supplied and checked before you start.
Val di Rhêmes · Valgrisenche · Cogne
Glacial erratics scattered across high pasture. Pads, chalk and no ropes.
Granite and gneiss blocks, crash pads and problems chosen for the group. No rope, but real technique, spotting and controlled landings. A good day when the weather higher up will not allow anything else.
Water
4 activities
Dora Baltea — Morgex down to Villeneuve and Aymavilles
Glacier melt off Mont Blanc, running grade II to IV depending on the section and the month.
Family sections and far more powerful water when levels rise. Snowmelt can produce stronger flows in late spring and early summer; the section is chosen for the current level, the group and age limits. Wetsuit, helmet and buoyancy aid are included, with a qualified guide in every boat.
Chalamy (Champdepraz) · Pacoulla and Bouro (Fontainemore) · Pontboset
Abseil waterfalls, slide polished granite chutes, jump into green pools.
Rappels, slides and optional jumps on routes ranging from first-time canyons to committed descents. Swimming ability and comfort in moving water are discussed before the route is chosen.
Dora Baltea
Hydrospeed — white-water swimming with a float: fins, a board, and the river at eye level.
Riverboarding at water level, kayak tuition or inflatable-canoe descents for people who want to learn to steer their own line.
Dora Baltea tributaries · high lakes
Marble trout, brown trout and grayling in cold, clear alpine water.
Permit, suitable water and equipment organised in advance. High-lake days can combine the fishing with a walk in.
Two Wheels
4 activities
Pila Bike Stadium · La Thuile · Torgnon
La Thuile is internationally recognised enduro and downhill terrain, and is back on the UCI calendar. Pila is the biggest park in the valley.
Lift-served riding from flowing blue trails to serious downhill tracks. Bike, full-face helmet and protection can be ready; coaching is matched to level. Trails are graded like pistes.
Saint-Barthélemy · Cogne · Gressoney
Ancient mule tracks and high traverses, ridden the way they were built to be walked.
Natural singletrack, old mule paths and longer traverses. Shuttle-assisted or fully self-powered — the amount of climbing is agreed before you start. It asks for confident riding on technical ground, and we say plainly when a trail is beyond the day.
Aosta · vineyards · valley floor
Climbs to the high pastures that would take much more time and fitness on a conventional bike — castles, vineyards and hamlets in one loop.
Electric assistance makes castles, wine villages and hilly roads workable for groups with different fitness. It is still a bike ride; the climb just stops deciding who can join.
Gran San Bernardo · Piccolo San Bernardo · Cervinia · Pila
The Great St Bernard, the Little St Bernard, and the brutal ramp to Cervinia.
Supported climbing days with follow vehicle, food, spares and mechanical help. Route and elevation profile are sent in advance so you know exactly what the day asks.
Air
4 activities
Aosta · Gressan · Valtournenche · Chamois
Run five steps off a mountain and watch the whole valley open up beneath you.
No previous flying experience is needed; the pilot checks conditions, clothing and practical suitability before take-off. The Aosta basin offers many good flying windows, but take-off and duration always depend on wind and local aerology, so the site is chosen on the day. Photos from the air are included.
Mont Blanc · Matterhorn · Monte Rosa · Gran Paradiso
All four giants in a single flight — and, where permitted, a landing on the ice.
Short scenic circuits or longer flights across several massifs. Any landing at altitude is offered only where regulation, operator, permission and conditions allow. Flown by ENAC-certified operators from Aosta, Courmayeur and Valtournenche.
Aosta valley floor · Gran Paradiso foothills
Dawn launches in still winter air, with the whole ring of 4,000ers turning pink.
Early departures when the air is calm enough, with route and landing dictated by the wind. Winter and the shoulder seasons can give exceptionally clear, stable mornings, but the flight remains entirely dependent on the weather window.
Courmayeur — Pontal d'Entrèves to Punta Helbronner, 3,466 m
Rotating glass cabins climbing to 3,466 m. No fitness required, no excuse not to.
High into the Mont Blanc massif without technical effort. One of the best ways to include non-skiers or non-climbers in a genuinely high-mountain day. In poor visibility it loses much of its panoramic value, so we keep it flexible and book it for the day the view is worth it, pairing it with lunch or a guided glacier day.
That is the normal starting position, and the reason we exist. Tell us your level honestly and we will tell you what this valley can give you — including the things you have not thought of.