Your Words – We tell it like it is! Holiday Reviews by previous Exodus travellers
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Just returned from two weeks walking the Tour du Mont Blanc. It was a fantastic experience, at times hard work, but every drop of perspiration was worth the effort. Excellent group camaraderie; everyone got on very well and the two groups leaders – Shaun and Kieron – were first rate. The evening meals were very good, often restaurant standard. Would whole-heartedly recommend the trip. Just make sure you are fit enough for the challenge of the long climbs.
Most Inspirational Moment
Seeing the entire Mont Blanc massif from the other sides of the Chamonix and Aosta valleys.
Thoughts on Group Leader
Excellent. Shaun knew his stuff and didn't hold back from telling us when we would be challenged by the terrain. Guidance given when needed and always able to answer questions. Kieran - who looked after the logistics and cooking - was taylor-made for the role. He really should open his own restaurant.
Advice for Potential Travellers
Make sure you are fit enough before setting off. You don't need to be Superman / Superwoman but you do need to be prepared for long days of strenuous walking.
I had a fantastic time on the trek and made some great new friends. Some of the uphills were hard work, but the amazing scenery took my mind off it. We were lucky with the weather, most of the time it was warm and sunny. We had just light rain for a couple of hours on one day. Then on the last day just as we finished the trek and sat down at a local pub for a couple of beers. The rain started to hammer down for a while. I highly recommend doing the Tour du Mont Blanc Trek. I found the correspondence I had with Exodus before the trek was very good. If I had any questions they would respond to my emails right away. We stayed at camping sites in two men tents for the entire trip. The tents had plenty of room and each morning we were required to pack our tents up before we started that day’s trek. On the first day our guides Kieron and Mike showed us how to pack the tents up. After a couple of practices it became pretty easy to pack the tents up. And if someone had trouble with it, there was always someone there to help them out. At the end of each day when we arrived at the campsite, Kieron would have all our tents already set up for us.
Most Inspirational Moment
It is hard to just pick one moment for the trip. Every day there was something differrent and amazing to see.
Thoughts on Group Leader
Kieron our camp leader was amazing. He always had the tents set up for us at each camp site. Kieron also made us awesome meals throughout the trek. Mike was our guide during the trek each day. He was fantastic and full of knowledge about the local flora and fauna. Both Kieron and Mike had a fantastic attitude, they were always happy and smiling. If you had a question or needed help with something they were always there to help. Thank you very much Kieron, Mike and Exodus for such an amazing experience. Cheers
Advice for Potential Travellers
1. The ascents on the trek are very steep, so make sure you are hiking fit. If you are not very experienced at mountain trekking. Then you should start training three or four months before you do the Tour du Mont Blanc trek. 2. Purchase good hiking boots and break them in before the trek and good hiking poles. 3. Make sure you have a good lightweight, warm and waterproof coat and pants. Even during the summer days it can get cold at the higher parts of the trek. 4. Carry at least 3 litres of water, a hat and some good sunscreen lotion. 5. I travelled from Australia, so I had a long flight to get to Geneva. So I decided to arrive four days early before the trek to get over the jet lag. If you are able then I highly recommend arriving a couple of days early. 6. Take a small power bank with you for charging your phone. There is a charger in the back of the truck with multiple charging ports for charging phones. But sometimes the charging ports were all being used. So I found it easier to charge my power bank in the truck when there was a free port. My power bank would then have enough power to charge my phone three times.
The camping trek around Mont Blanc was great fun. Perfect combination of challenge, reward, and just a fun group of people to be with. Our guide, Mike, kept us on track on the trail with very convenient breaks at refuges and summits keeping a steady pace that all could manage while not micromanging the group. Kieron kept our camp put together in almost always changing locations and created lovely meals. The sites were all well chosen and almost all had some sort of shade/rain cover which was lovely.
Most Inspirational Moment
The quiet moments on the summits just enjoying this beautiful part of the world were my favorite.
Thoughts on Group Leader
Mike and Kieron made a great team and worked well together.
Advice for Potential Travellers
You will enjoy this trip much more if you are in good shape before the trip. Your knees with thank you for bringing and using hiking poles as pretty much each day is up to a col or summit for lunch and then down to a valley to camp. Doing this trip over 14 days allowed for a relaxed pace with several rest days added in. If your group hikes relatively fast you will have plenty of time at camp to explore the towns, play games with your fellow guests, or just hang out and read a book. If you need something to do all the time you may want to pick one of the more compressed trip styles-- which would mean covering more ground each day with less down time in camp.
What an amazing trip from start to finish. The weather was perfect which made the trip even more special. One day of mist and drizzle which spoilt the views but not the walking experience. Kieran’s camp was fantastic, not to mention his cooking. It was amazing what he could produce out of his tiny kitchen. Loads of beer and wine. Tents good. Big enough to sleep two but not with bags as well so I paid extra for single use. Sleeping bag, mat and pillow also good quality.
Most Inspirational Moment
The scenery was stunning throughout, but the last day, climbing from the campsite to the top of the Brevant was a huge challenge. Mike advised us that the first part of the decent was challenging because of the snow conditions and a couple of ladders. I thought that if it was so bad he wouldn't risk taking us. Felt amazing to have completed the day and the tour.
Thoughts on Group Leader
Mike, was a fantastic leader. Encouraging, enthusiastic knowledgeable and inspirational. I am in awe of the variety of things he does.
Advice for Potential Travellers
A must do trip. A tent for single use is worth the extra money. Do your training as it pays off. Go up the Punta Helbonner cable care from La Palud near Courmayeur. It is stunning.
An amazing adventure walking amongst the beautiful alps
What a fantastic trip. I didn’t really know what to expect but I was blown away by the beautiful scenery and camping amongst the Alps. Our group and camp leaders Mike and Kieron were fabulous – fun, helpful and just great to hang out with. I’d do some training for the walk as it can be demanding but our group leader made sure the pace was manageable. We had a great group of people and I recommend the camping tour as we all became quite close pitching in and hanging out together. The tents were roomy and comfortable and the campgrounds we stayed in were also quite comfortable. Kieron made us beautiful meals, we certainly were fed well!! I definitely give this tour 5 stars, it’s challenging, beautiful, and you’ll make some life long friends.
Most Inspirational Moment
The most inspirational times of the trip for me was making it to the top of some of those tough climbs and experiencing the most incredible scenery.
Thoughts on Group Leader
Our group leader Mike was amazing, as was our camp leader Kieron. Mike was knowledgeable, friendly and took great care of the group. I felt safe and looked after. The walking was sometimes challenging, but Mike set a pace on the tough parts to get us all to the top and the views were worth every step. Kieron was an amazing camp leader. His dinners were delicious and a cold beer was always waiting for us at camp. We had a lot of fun with our leaders.
Advice for Potential Travellers
My advice to other travellers would be to do some training for this walk. It is in the Alps and there are a lot of ups and downs which can be steep but in saying that the views are always amazing. I got a real sense of accomplishment on reaching the top of those big ascents. The camping was great I totally recommend going that way. The tents were big and comfortable for two people and it really brings the group together with everyone pitching in and hanging out. Loved it!!!
Before I left my girlfriend was teasing me about spending two weeks camping with creepy crawlies and having to eat tinned spaghetti hoops every night. In truth it could not have been more different. Kieron the camp leader was great, tents were put up for us, beers were cold, the food was healthy, tasty and home cooked and exceeded all expectations. The tents were modern and roomy, I paid extra for a single but they are more than big enough for two. Campsites were good and the mat, pillow and sleeping bag I rented were all just fine. We were really well looked after. The trek was superb too – I’m a really pleased I chose to do the full thing.
Most Inspirational Moment
I was surprised at how big, dramatic and beautiful the Alps are. I got some great photos. I also really enjoyed the group atmosphere and I loved the outdoorsy side to the whole trip. It felt healthy.
Thoughts on Group Leader
Mike was amazing! Made every member of the group feel included, had tonnes of knowledge about the area to impart and was all round a positive person to have leading us for the two weeks.
This trip offers more of the TMB route than most of the trips that I looked into, but it doesn’t do it all. If you read the trip notes carefully you’ll realise that there is a section in Val Ferret which may be missed out, and the section from Courmayeur to Lac Combal is bypassed. When we were on the trip we realised there were two other bits to be missed out. From Les Houches towards Brevent, and from Plan Praz to La Flegere. The good news is that, if you do want to do the whole tour then it can be done within the trip: Val Ferret – get your leader to take the bus all the way back up to Arp Nouva, where you stopped the previous day, rather than at an earlier stop point. There is plenty of time, this is what our group did. From Courmayeur – you can catch a bus to Courmayeur on your day off, walk the route to where it drops down to the path to Lac Combal, & then walk down to La Visaille where you can get a bus back to Courmayeur/the campsite. Les Houches – either persuade your leader to take the bus back to Les Houches & start from there, or walk the missing section on the final day off Plan Praz to La Flegere – add this onto the final planned day. You then take the cable car down from La Flegere rather than Plan Praz (the ticket works for both) & that’s the whole TMB done 🙂
The TMB is a fabulous tour & is thoroughly recommended. My insights would be:
Going clockwise really does work in terms of getting the hill-legs trained up as the steeper climbs then come later in the tour. Note that this does mean that you have to do some ladders on the first day but if you take your time they are fine.
The weather of course makes a huge difference & we were lucky enough to have mostly sunny days, with just a couple of days at the end which made us take alternative routes. The views are fantastic & there’s lots of wildlife about if you take a bit of time to look for it.
The campsites were generally very good. Just be prepared for toilets without seats, & even some that are the old-style hole in the ground (which we successfully avoided as the campsites weren’t busy when we were there).
The wild camps were lovely, particularly the one in Les Chapieux – this does require a wash in the nearby river, but the water is surprisingly ‘warm’
Most meals were in camp, but there were about 5 evening meals out which were very good.
For the swimmers there are opportunities to swim on the first day in the lake below Lac Blanc, & at Champex Lac.
I guess each leader/trip is different, but to give you a feel for it, a typical day is to wake up about 0630, get your kit sorted/bag packed, take your tent down, have breakfast, make your packed lunch so that you’re ready to go soon after 8. That is usually a ‘soft’ target as you’re generally just walking from the campsite, but one morning you do have to catch a bus. We were generally finished walking between 4 & 5pm.
Charging points for phones etc ! These were available at all campsites but Les Chapieux. I would recommend that you take a power pack & charge that up, rather than leaving your phone/watch on the charging point – only to be safe, we didn’t have anything stolen, but you are on a campsite & losing a power pack would be less distressing than a phone/watch.
Most Inspirational Moment
Walking over the Grand Col de Ferret & seeing the view down towards Courmayeur & the Col de la Seigne, with the Mont Blanc massif on the right hand side was just brilliant. You could sit there all day long !
Thoughts on Group Leader
Fred was great. He had a good sense of humour & was always willing to listen/adjust the following day's plans when we made suggestions.
Like a previous reviewer I found this much harder that Toubkal or EBC. The walks seem to be up all morning and down in the afternoon. Some of the downs were very hard on the Knees. Despite this the effort was well rewarded with the stunning scenary. Having to put your tent away before brerakfast required some effort, specially if you didn’t master the technique. Camp meals were always filling, and never went hungary. Although breakfast did get a bit repetitive. The group van always contained a cold beer at the end of the day, which was very welcome. I hired my sleeping bag and matt from exodus and the bag was nice and warm, but maybe the matts could have been a bit thicker. Really felt the rocks some nights. Would bring my own next time
Most Inspirational Moment
Finishing
Advice for Potential Travellers
Train harder than you think you need. Wifi in camps were not brillant, could be aproblem if you need it at all times. If your not feeling to good, and need a day off from walking, it can be a long trip. One of our group needed 5 buses on one day, to get to the next camp
Man what a trip!
in equal parts stunning and tough – the TMB absolutely delivered. Every day we were treated with a gruelling ascent, a toe bashing descent and simply incredible views all the way through. The tour guide and the camp manager were just fabulous too – the guide wasnt just an IML but also a trained biologist clearly deeply in love with Mother nature – to learn a little about the local flora and fauna whilst also feeling completely at ease and secure knowing your guide has your back was just lovely – it meant we could concentrate on putting one foot in front of the other and just enjoy the ride. Our camp manager Vega cooked us some seriously delicious food on only 4 camp stoves – it smelled so good she had random campers coming up to ask what she was cooking! The camps where all lovely – some perhaps a little more loud than others but overall, as far as a camping trip goes, it was pretty darn luxurious. Would do this again in a heartbeat
Most Inspirational Moment
Honestly just completing it was the biggest thing for me. I was quite worried ahead of the trip whether I would be fit enough - and there were definitely some times where I really had to push myself but thanks to the pacing set by our guide Jef, we all managed it and that last day, with the longest ascent all the way from camp to Brevent was super tough but getting to the top and being presented with some bubbly was the perfect end to an epic trip
Thoughts on Group Leader
Jef was awesome. Part mountain goat, he went running on the days off, casually just doing our walk of the day before in about 3.5 hours. He was also a trained biologist so we were treated to some lovely knowledge bites on local flowers and bugs. Always had a smile on his face and you just felt completely safe with him - he knew just how to get the best out of the group so no one ever felt like they were too slow. he is definitely one of the best if not THE best guide I have had on a walking trip. Thank you Jef!
Advice for Potential Travellers
Doing a bit of strength definitely helped me - it wont make it easier, but at least I didnt have to worry about muscle aches. The more walking you can do beforehand the better as your legs are just better prepared for the work they have to do - but mostly, just enjoy the experience... from the camps to the gruelling ascents - its such a treat, especially when its sunny. Oh - and speaking of sunny - factor 50 all the way, even if you are a professional tanner.. the sun is hot hot hot and strong strong strong!
