We get asked many times about food offered on the Tour du Mont Blanc, Walkers Haute Route & Traverse of the Gran Paradiso. And quite rightly so, it’s a very important element of your trekking holiday.
The enjoyment of eating local cuisine after a long hard day in the mountain is such an enjoyable part of the experience. You will be burning lots of calories each day so fuelling up during the day & when you get to each destination is essential & of course delicious!
One of the most important things in addition to fitness is your nutrition & hydration during the trek. Poor nutrition & hydration can severely affect your physical performance & it is important to get your nutrition & hydration right, you will be burning lots of calories & loosing essential fluid each day so it is imperative you carry the right kinds of food & enough water with you to avoid dehydration & malnutrition.
It is advisable to drink plenty of water before you sent off on each day’s trek so you are fully hydrated. A pack lunch can be bought from local supermarkets when staying in villages or from the accommodation if ordered the night of arrival. If you are not familiar with the kinds of food & drink that would be good when exerting yourself on a daily basis do some research beforehand and trial what works best for you.
So, what is on offer & what is provided when clients have dietary requirements.
On all of our treks guided or self-guided breakfast will be provided each day, 3 course evening meal is also provided on all nights apart from your first & last night, please see individual trek information for further clarification.
When trekking on the Tour du Mont Blanc or the Walkers Haute Route you will be trekking through 2 or 3 countries, France, Italy & Switzerland and each county has its own specialities. Its the mountains so its good calorific hearty food, plenty of local cheeses, dried meats, bread & pastries, sweat pies made with local fruit & fresh salads. Local specialities tend to be Fondue- melted cheese with lots of tasty bits to dip in, Tartifalette- baked potatoes, cheese & bacon, Rostie- grated potato, cheese, meet & egg & of course delicious Pasta & Pizza in Italy.
Breakfast: This varies depending on accommodation, some locations are more basic than others. But you can expect at least cereal, milk, break & jam. When staying in hotels they will offer a more substantial breakfast including yogurt, cheeses, cold meats, eggs & pastries.
Lunch: This is not included & you will need to purchase a picnic to carry with you each day. This can be bought from local bakeries or supermarkets or when staying in more remote locations it can be ordered from the refuge on the night of arrival. Allow approx. 10 euros each day for your picnic. Make sure you take plenty with you, don’t reply on stopping for lunch en-route although on some days this will be possible it’s always good to have your own provisions in case the refuge or café is closed or very busy.
Evening meal: when on the trek, this is provided & will consist of 3 courses, typically you will have soup or a salad for the starter, meat or vegetarian option for the main course and a dessert or cheese.
Dietary requirements: If you have any specific dietary requirements you must let us know at the time of booking & then we will inform each accommodation so they are prepared. It is advisable to remind them on arrival as they have many many guests each day & sometimes requests do get overlooked. The accommodations we use will do their best to accommodate specific requests however it is advisable if you are lactose or gluten free to carry additional food supplies, for example gluten free bread with you in your bag transfer so you can supplement the food provided if need be.
Drinks: Drinks with the evening meal are not included & we ask that all drinks bought at the accommodation are paid for at the time so we don’t have any additional bills to chase after you have departed.
For further information on any aspect of food & dietary requirements contact Sara at: info@montblanctreks.com
Find out more information on our Guided & Self guided treks see our website:
Walkers Haute Route: The Walkers Haute Route also features as one of the worlds top ten treks & is approximately 180km in length, the route crosses 11 high mountain passes with 12,000m of ascent through France and Switzerland the Haute Route walk makes for a fabulous challenge.
Tour du Mont Blanc: The Tour du Mont Blanc features in the world’s top ten 'must do' treks & it's not hard to understand why as this trek is outstanding with amazing views day after day.
