Reviews

Mont Blanc Highlights Sept 28 2024

I recently returned from an unforgettable hiking trip with Exodus, exploring the breathtaking Mont Blanc highlights, and I can’t recommend it enough! From the moment we arrived in Chamonix, we were enveloped by the stunning beauty of the Alps. Our chalet was a true gem, offering incredible views of Mont Blanc that made every morning feel magical.

Chamonix itself is a vibrant hub, bursting with life, charming shops, and delicious eateries. Even though we experienced a couple of cloudy and rainy days, the weather didn’t dampen our spirits or our hikes. In fact, the dramatic skies only added to the allure of the landscape, enhancing the beauty of each trail we traversed.

A standout moment of the trip was our free day when we took the Aiguille du Midi cable car to the summit of Mont Blanc. The views from the top were absolutely breathtaking, a highlight that I will cherish forever.

Our guide, Jeffry, was exceptionally professional and organized, making sure that everything ran smoothly throughout our adventure. His enthusiasm and knowledge of the region really brought the experience to life. Additionally, we were so well cared for by our chalet hosts, Tom and Sol, who made our stay comfortable and welcoming. Their hospitality truly made us feel at home.

Overall, this hiking trip was a perfect blend of adventure, breathtaking scenery, and wonderful company. I can’t wait for my next adventure with Exodus!

I recently returned from an unforgettable hiking trip with Exodus, exploring the breathtaking Mont Blanc highlights, and I can’t recommend it enough! From the moment we arrived in Chamonix, we were enveloped by the stunning beauty of the Alps. Our chalet was a true gem, offering incredible views of Mont Blanc that made every morning feel magical.

Chamonix itself is a vibrant hub, bursting with life, charming shops, and delicious eateries. Even though we experienced a couple of cloudy and rainy days, the weather didn’t dampen our spirits or our hikes. In fact, the dramatic skies only added to the allure of the landscape, enhancing the beauty of each trail we traversed.

A standout moment of the trip was our free day when we took the Aiguille du Midi cable car to the summit of Mont Blanc. The views from the top were absolutely breathtaking, a highlight that I will cherish forever.

Our guide, Jeffry, was exceptionally professional and organized, making sure that everything ran smoothly throughout our adventure. His enthusiasm and knowledge of the region really brought the experience to life. Additionally, we were so well cared for by our chalet hosts, Tom and Sol, who made our stay comfortable and welcoming. Their hospitality truly made us feel at home.

Overall, this hiking trip was a perfect blend of adventure, breathtaking scenery, and wonderful company. I can’t wait for my next adventure with Exodus!

I recently returned from an unforgettable hiking trip with Exodus, exploring the breathtaking Mont Blanc highlights, and I can’t recommend it enough! From the moment we arrived in Chamonix, we were enveloped by the stunning beauty of the Alps. Our chalet was a true gem, offering incredible views of Mont Blanc that made every morning feel magical.

Chamonix itself is a vibrant hub, bursting with life, charming shops, and delicious eateries. Even though we experienced a couple of cloudy and rainy days, the weather didn’t dampen our spirits or our hikes. In fact, the dramatic skies only added to the allure of the landscape, enhancing the beauty of each trail we traversed.

A standout moment of the trip was our free day when we took the Aiguille du Midi cable car to the summit of Mont Blanc. The views from the top were absolutely breathtaking, a highlight that I will cherish forever.

Our guide, Jeffry, was exceptionally professional and organized, making sure that everything ran smoothly throughout our adventure. His enthusiasm and knowledge of the region really brought the experience to life. Additionally, we were so well cared for by our chalet hosts, Tom and Sol, who made our stay comfortable and welcoming. Their hospitality truly made us feel at home.

Overall, this hiking trip was a perfect blend of adventure, breathtaking scenery, and wonderful company. I can’t wait for my next adventure with Exodus!

We recently returned from an unforgettable hiking trip with Exodus, exploring the breathtaking Mont Blanc area. From the moment we arrived in Chamonix, we were surrounded by the stunning views of the Alps. The room in our Chalet directly faced Mont Blanc, making the morning views picturesque.

Chamonix itself is a vibrant location, bursting with activity, charming shops and delicious restaurants and cafes. Even though we experienced a few rainy and cloudy days, the weather didn’t dampen our spirits on our hikes. In fact, the dramatic skies only added to the allure of the landscape, enhancing the beauty of each trail we hiked.

A fabulous trip in so many ways!!

Hiking on Mont Blanc, even late in the season was an experience not to be missed. The weather, though mixed, never stopped our itineraries and we had glorious sunshine on several days. Chamonix and the mountain range are awesome, naturally, but it was the combination of the area with the most welcoming and caring chalet team and the warm artistic vibe of the Art Deco Chalet Bediere that gave this trip such a special place in my heart. Jeffry Oonk, an erudite biologist as well as an experienced and patient mountain guide gave expert guidance and confidence on every section (some quite challenging) of the trails; his instruction, patience and good humour, coupled with a quiet “Well Done” at the end of each trek, was so up-lifting. Clare and Liz made Chalet Bediere a warm and welcoming place; they both went to huge efforts to provide a happy atmosphere, excellent and varied meals and some of the most delicious cakes for afternoon tea, you could imagine. I’m so happy that I was assigned to this particular chalet, with such a brilliant team. We had a small but fabulous group of five; conversations on the hikes and in the chalet were stimulating and full of banter and laughter. I honestly was gutted to leave and end the experience. Thank you to both our chalet team and my group for the most memorable week 💖

A wonderful week's walking from our base in Chamonix - the art deco styled chalet La Bedière

A great week’s walking in the mountains around Mont Blanc. First off, a big thank you to the team – Jeffry, Liz and Clare – who were excellent. We had pretty good weather given that it was the end of the season. In fact the first day was spectacular – blue skies and sunshine – making for some memorable photos. Jeff is an exemplary guide, showing amazing dedication to his job. He gave us all the information we wanted and more – he’s quite fond of plants me thinks, and knows a lot about them. Our walks always started with a through warm up session, and then the ascent could begin. Quite steep sometimes, but Jeff was always on hand to help anybody of a more nervous disposition on the more challenging sections. And if all that wasn’t enough – he has a good sense of humour too. Liz and Clare were expert chalet hosts – the breakfast was just right, and there was even porridge offered on some days. The lunch items were varied and tasty, and the cake waiting for us at the end of each walk was very welcome. Really nice food for dinner too. Plenty of variety throughout the week. The chalet La Bedière is based in Chamonix and for me is the best of the three on offer unless you really like hot tubs. Nicely furnished, amazingly warm and good sized bedrooms and bathrooms. Centrally located – just ideal.

Mont Blanc Highlights

Overall a wonderful week.
Jeffrey our hiking guide was the best ever as expressed by experienced group travelers. It was my first group hiking experience and he helped me so much giving so many pointers and encouragement. The Chalet Chocolat was adequate. We had the most spacious room. But the Chalet was tough around the edges and could use some modernization. The meals were overall good. Some dishes were excellent but some not so great. Needed more protein for dinner and a little more variety at breakfast.

Fantastic time - Mont Blanc Highlights

Mont Blanc is truly spectacular. Our guide Adrian was exceptional and fun! He changed our hiking schedule as necessary to ensure the best experiences and amazing views . We stayed at Chalet Chalupa in Les Houches. The short bus or train ride into Chamonix was very easy, with our guide showing us all the necessary stops. Our hosts were kind and always helpful. The only improvement I would suggest is offering two dinner options.

Mont Blanc Highlights

Just home from a fab week based in Les Houches, where we felt so at home in a comfortable, happy environment, meeting people from all over the world. Laura, our chalet host looked after us so well with good home made food, suitable for physical demands of the trekking.

Wonderful week in Chamonix

Just returned from a wonderful week in and around Chamonix. Our group leader Adrian was fantastic at selecting the perfect route for weather condition and amazing views. He enhanced the group experience challenging and entertaining us. The chalet was comfortable with a lovely bunch of people and a kind and helpful chalet host Laura .

Disappointing

I want to try to write a balanced review, so will start with what we enjoyed and what was good.

We stayed in Chalet Chocolat, which was comfortable and well located for going into Chamonix. We especially liked having the use of the hot tub in the evening after hikes. Trip organisation was good overall, with smooth transport to and from Geneva. Our group leader, Maria, was kind and personable; we were unlucky with the weather but he did a good job of keeping the mood upbeat and looking after a group of varying fitness levels.

The chalet experience overall unfortunately ruined the trip. I don’t know what was going on with the hosts (I won’t name them as I don’t want to single them out), who have some glowing reviews from previous guests, but it just seemed as though they had had enough and didn’t want to be there. They did what they were required to do but nothing more. Surly, unfriendly and generally as though they couldn’t be bothered and that we the guests were kind of annoying. Perhaps our expectations were too high, I’m not quite sure. Mealtimes were rushed, with it feeling as though we needed to just clear off the table as soon as possible so they could tidy up. One evening they had friends staying and were having their own little social gathering through the kitchen window – on that occasion they were in such a hurry that the main course got slammed down before we had all finished our starters. The food was sometimes nice but on the whole quite uninspiring. My vegetarian options were especially poor and on two occasions given to me burnt, with no apology or offer of an alternative. We had to constantly interrupt them from being on their phones to ask for small things like some more water for the table. One day we ran out of milk – again with no sort of apology, just “here you can have this oat milk instead”. These are all tiny things that it seems silly to complain about, but against the backdrop of the experience everything just mounted up. On the final day, no goodbye or anything, just a request that we be out of our rooms by 8am so that they could start cleaning. Exodus perhaps needs to look at giving their chalet hosts a bit more ground support – this couple seemed deeply unhappy in their job and I would always look to the company in a situation like this to find a way to make things better for everyone!

Honestly, for price point of this trip we expected a much better experience. We have stayed in chalet accommodation previously for far less money and had a lovely time. Based on the experience this time around we are unlikely to book with Exodus again.

Advice for Potential Travellers

Go into Chamonix and buy snacks and alcohol from the Super U - much cheaper than the honesty bar in the chalet. Multipack crisps are charged at €1.50 per packet and a small bag of fruit and nuts is €3! There is no proper drying room but you can use your bathroom heater to create your own quite effectively. Take a hairdryer if you like to have one - there was one in the chalet but only because a previous guest had left it there.

Reply from Exodus

Thank you for taking the time to submit a review about your recent Exodus holiday, Laura. We’re delighted to hear that you enjoyed the hot tub after your hikes and that the trip organisation, including transport to and from Geneva, was smooth. It’s great to know that Maria was a fantastic group leader, maintaining a positive atmosphere despite the weather challenges. However, I’m truly sorry to learn that the chalet experience did not meet your expectations. Your feedback regarding the hosts’ attitude and overall service is concerning, and I want to assure you that we take this feedback seriously. We share your disappointment in hearing that your experience with the hosts, did not align with the high standards you’ve come to expect from Exodus. Creating a warm and welcoming atmosphere for our guests is of utmost importance to us, and it’s disheartening to learn that we fell short in this regard. While we understand that our hosts typically receive positive feedback for their service, it is troubling to hear that their demeanour during your stay felt distant and unfriendly. We recognise that our hosts juggle many responsibilities behind the scenes, and while their busyness may have affected their engagement with guests, it’s certainly not the impression we want to leave with our travellers. Regarding your concerns that the crew seemed unhappy or unsupported, I want to clarify that many of our crew and leaders are longstanding members of our team, returning season after season, which is reflective of the supportive environment we strive to provide for our crew. Please rest assured that these matters will be thoroughly investigated, and we will take the necessary steps to remind our hosts of the importance of actively engaging with guests. We believe fostering a more inclusive and friendly environment is crucial to enhancing our guests’ experiences, and we are committed to addressing this issue moving forward. Thank you once again for your constructive feedback. We are dedicated to improving our tours and providing memorable experiences and hope that you would afford us the opportunity to welcome you back for a journey that truly reflects the high standards we aim to uphold.

Mont Blanc Highlights

Wow! What an amazing trip! Breathtakingly beautiful! Tim expertly led us through some stunning trails. Clare and Liz were perfect chalet hosts.

Excellent!

A huge thank you to our fantastic hosts Sol and Tom as well as to our wonderful, knowledgeable tour guide Tim. This was a great week!