Trip Grades: Tailormade

The grading for our bespoke trips will, of course, depend on the activity you are choosing for your holiday. The image above shows our guests enjoying 'Via Feratta', which is an optional extra on our trips to the Italian Dolomites, essentially it is a form of rock climbing using cables and holds fixed to the rock, great fun! 

So, we have given our activities a grading system of five levels, steadily increasing in difficulty. We provide a description of each grade for walking; trail running, family trips, snowshoeing and cross-country skiing. It is very important to read this information and the individual holiday description, so that you are aware of the experience, fitness and technical ability required for your trip. Everyone has their own ideas about what is tough and what is easy, and describing our trips is without doubt one of our biggest challenges.

Please consider that there are many different and variable factors that contribute to the difficulty of a trip including: length of day, the number of consecutive days of that activity, amount of descent and ascent, terrain, altitude, weather conditions and type of accommodation. Then there are personal factors such as your current level of fitness, how long since you last participated in your chosen activity, your age, previous/current injuries, your frame of mind, the group dynamics, and we are sure you will be able to think up others!

Since some of these factors are changeable, any system of grades can only provide a general indication. Although we have tried to make our grading system as clear as possible, it cannot take into account your personal interests, abilities or experience.

With regard to your travel insurance, the distances and heights given in our grading are a guideline, and we strongly suggest that you check your chosen trip itinerary in detail to ensure that your holiday insurance covers you for the altitude which you are likely to reach and the relevant countries visited.

If you have any questions about the nature of a particular trip or its suitability, please contact us. At this point we are most likely to ask about other trips which you may have done, and also discuss your fitness and why you wish to book on the trip in question.

We always aim to support you in your desire to accomplish a goal, or to simply relax and enjoy time in the mountains, but most importantly we would like to be sure that you have the best time possible. This means booking the correct trip for your ability.

You will find the grades for each specific activity on the Trip Grades overview page.