It’s always fun to hear from our guests. Sandy hiked with us on a Guided Tour du Mont Blanc and shared this glowing review of her experience. She offers some rave praise for her guides. Filled with insight and very specific details, reading her perspective is a great way to get to know us and learn a bit about what makes our guided tours special. 

Hi, thanks for the follow up!  I have been a while formulating my thoughts on this wonderful tour.  I enjoyed it immensely and am still re-living every moment, savoring all the precious memories.

Guides are the face of your company.  Let me commend you on your choice of guides namely Hayden Buck and Bruno Yates.  Their faces are lined with integrity, knowledge, compassion and both possess a huge amount of common sense.  What a team!  Both of them know the mountains, the routes and the customs of the people intricately.  They are very knowledgeable about many subjects and are very perceptive about people and actions.  They give great advice about many things including hiking techniques and proper nutrition for challenging days.  Both are extremely honest and forthright and definitely have your clients needs on top of mind.  Both are down to earth, have a great sense of humour and communicate well with people of all ages.  Their knowledge of mountain flowers is extensive and their inquisitive ways make a day’s journey fun for all.

Both are wonderful stewards of nature and everything they did let us know that they had chosen the correct profession..  They both love what they do and excel at it.  A joy  to experience.  I especially admire the way they assessed the hiking abilities of all our group immediately so they knew how to proceed after the first day.  I was the most senior and least fit and they always tackled the limitations honestly and professionally.  We worked together to make my experience enjoyable and fulfilling.  I appreciate their considerations and accommodations.

They took turns hiking with me as the others were a different pace and altered my routes where applicable.  This shows respect for my abilities but also respect for the advanced hikers as they too were able to challenge their abilities with the second guide.  Some of the other groups only had one guide and I can appreciate the problems that different hiking abilities would create.  So “Thank You” for realizing that 2 guides are a must for a successful hike.

I enjoyed all the hotels and refuges.  They were all different and each offered their own charm.  We had a great cross section and all the experiences were positive.  The choice of restaurants was incredible  and far exceeded my expectations of meal time on a hike.  Both Hayden and Bruno love food and it showed in their choice of restaurants and even on our daily lunches.  They made them all nutritious, fun and interesting.  Best of all, they even carried them in their own pack sacks.

Thank You for planning such a special trip, from the shuttles to the hotels, the routes and methods of travel to the trail heads – it was all exciting and worry free for me. It was a trip that I will never forget and so far have not quit talking about to everyone that I meet.  It was very empowering for me, a feat to be very proud of.  Eight complete strangers started the hike, but 10 days later we were leaving it as a family.  We shared many experiences, had many laughs and encouraged one another along the way.

A big thanks to our guides who made it all possible.  Thank You, too, for the “Alpinehikers” T shirt.  I wear it proudly and passionately.  Hopefully I can recruit new hikers for you and again join you in the future!

— Sandy Drury