Tag: Chamonix

Flaine

Posted on by Al Slinn

This month of March has been one of the busiest we’ve ever seen, with 9 corporate events running between Italy, France, Austria, and the UK. While we’ve been back to some renown destinations, like Courmayeur or St Anton, we are closing off the season in the less-known French ski resort of Flaine.

Although Flaine might not get the sparkly reputation of resorts like Chamonix, we do think it deserves some credit as it proved to be a solid destination for events. This article on onthesnow.co.uk does a good job listing Flaine’s perks. Here’s a summary of the main ones.

The historical side

Purpose built in the 1960s in a large bowl of powder facing West and aptly nicknamed the “big snowy bowl”, Flaine offers the widest range of skiing in the Grand Massif ski area. The resort is not the most picturesque and for some visitors the architecture is too much to take. But if you can ignore the concrete buildings and focus on the fluffy white stuff, you’ll find a resort with excellent facilities. The village centre is mainly car free, compact and convenient.

The cultural side

Flaine is regarded as a cultural landmark in France having been designed in the Bauhuas style by architect Marcel Breuer. As a result, it is a hub for modern arts and at the bottom of the slopes there’s a range of art by abstract artists, the most notable piece being a large Picasso sculpture of a woman’s head. In recent years, the resort has also undergone a number of refurbishments. The Totem, a hotel originally designed by Breuer, has been revamped and rebranded as the ultra-cool and minimalist Hotel Terminal Neige Totem.  

The economical side

Among Flaine’s many attractions, is that it’s a resort that won’t break the bank. There are plenty of low-cost accommodation options available to appeal to a hip crowd of skiers who are more appreciative of Flaine’s artistic credentials than previous visitors. Newer chalet style accommodation is also available.

We do hope to keep Flaine in our destination portfolio for the winters to come. Experiencing quirky or less well-known ski resorts is part of our job, and one that we certainly appreciate!

The Vallée Blanche

Posted on by Al Slinn

Even though our winter events include mainly on-piste skiing, it isn’t unusual for clients to ask for adrenaline-fuelled activities off piste. The Alps, especially Chamonix, are a beautiful terrain for all sorts of adventures. With the help of an experienced guide, you can spend a truly memorable day out there! Our top recommendation for expert skiers in the Chamonix Valley is, without a doubt, The Vallée Blanche.

As explained in this article by Chamonix All Year, skiing the Vallée Blanche is an incredible, high-altitude off-piste experience. This route descends from the top of the Aiguille du Midi, at 3,842m altitude, down to Chamonix, 2,800m below. It is most famous for its spectacular glaciated terrain. As such, you need a minimum of knowledge of alpinism and the local environment, and you must be well-equipped.

Access for Skiing Vallée Blanche

Historically, the best conditions to take on this route are from January to May depending on the snow cover. To access the starting point at 3,842m you must take two cable cars from the centre of Chamonix to the top of the Aiguille Du Midi.

The cable cars are included on your Chamonix ski pass if you have the full area Mont Blanc Unlimited pass. In high season you can also reserve a cable car in advance at a time to suit your itinerary – usually one of the first few for a full day and fresh lines!

Initiation: the Arête

The ridge that connects the Aiguille du Midi to the Vallée Blanche is a test of nerve ahead of meeting the departure point for your day’s adventures. Consider it your initiation for an adrenaline-packed day!

Not for those with a fear of heights, there is a 150m hike across a ridge line that takes you to a wide platform, which opens directly to the Vallée Blanche.

You can put your vertigo at ease as, once the snow base builds up, you will be faced with a rope to hold onto and a groomed / maintained path about 1m wide (not necessarily level). Crampons are therefore often recommended by your guide, to whom you may be attached as an added security.

Once you reach the natural platform simply strap on your snowboard, or step into your skis. Don’t forget the time for a quick photo! You are surrounded by the breathtaking peaks of the Chaine du Mont Blanc, now closer than ever.

In good company: your guide

The Vallée Blanche is an off-piste, unmarked route which takes place on a glaciated high-mountain terrain. Supervision by a qualified high mountain guide is the safest way to fully enjoy the snow and views. From experience, your guide will choose the best route for your level and share their knowledge and history of the surrounding mountains.

Public groups are limited to a maximum of eight people, allowing the guide to provide personalised advice and ensure optimal progression. You will also be grouped together, either with other skiers or snowboarders, so that you can take the optimum route for each style.

Alternatively, you can hire a private guide. This is ideal if you want to try an alternate route, mix skiers and snowboarders, or create a special itinerary to make your ski dreams come true!

Skiing & snowboarding: your level

Skiing the Vallée Blanche should not be your first foray into off-piste skiing, but you don’t have to be an expert either. There is something for all to enjoy as long as you can turn accurately and stop at will in unpredictable off-piste conditions.

You will also need a decent level of both cardio fitness and ski fitness. Not only is there roughly 25km of variable skiing conditions, there’s either lengthy stairs or a hefty hike out towards the end.

It is said that the technical difficulty of the Vallée Blanche (Classique) is similar to that of a red piste. Much like any popular piste in good conditions, there is the potential for moguls to develop. Moguls may slow the rhythm of snowboarders in particular, however skiers should also know how to navigate them with ease.

Snowboarders must also be wary of long flat traverses that may require poles. Meanwhile, skiers must know how to control their speed, side-slip confidently, and make parallel turns.

The way down: skiing Vallée Blanche routes

  1. The Classique. This is the easiest route technically and the most “tracked” or travelled line. It follows the slower route in the heart of the great labyrinth of glaciers: the glacier du Géant, the Tacul glacier and the Mer de Glace. Making your way across the arête, and the sometimes delicate passage of seracs before joining the Mer de Glace, constitute the main technical difficulties.
  2. The “True / Vrai Vallée Blanche”. This historic route is located between the Vallée Blanche Classique and Envers and offers a course in the heart of ice formations. This is a beautiful route famous for spectacular turquoise ice structures and small seracs. It requires a good level of skiing due to its constant proximity to crevasses.
  3. The Petit Envers. A nice alternative to the classic Vallée Blanche, penetrating between the “True Vallée Blanche” and the Envers du Plan glacier. This itinerary is a wonderful option for skiers who want to graduate from the True Vallée Blanche, without being too technical.
  4. The Grand Envers. Want to ski steep slopes reserved for very good skiers? This is the route for you. With slopes at 45° and the reputation for being the most beautiful (and difficult) route of the valley. Take off directly from the arête onto the Envers du Plan glacier. This route is technically demanding with a mix of slopes and passages between large seracs.

The final stretch: Montenvers train vs Buvette des Mottets

When the Vallée Blanche is coming to an end your guide will decide between two finishes, based on conditions.

  1. Either hike out of the Vallée Blanche to join the ski piste that will take you back to Chamonix,
  2. Or climb the steps to join the Montenvers train which will take back to Chamonix town centre.

If in late spring, you can’t ski back down to Chamonix due to snow conditions and you will have to take the train. You might also choose the Montenvers train for its history and views. But remember you’ll still need to take on roughly 400+ steps to reach the cable car, which will link you to the train station.

Alternatively, should there be plenty of snow, after fifteen minutes of steep tiresome hiking you will reach the Buvette des Mottets at 1,638m. Formerly on the edge of the glacier, it is now over a hundred metres away. The hike joining the two skiing sections is increasing each year, as the Mer de Glace retreats.

Once you reach the top you can stop for a drink or picnic with breathtaking views on the west side of the Aiguille des Drus. Then, head down a fun (boardercross-like) forest trail descent back to Chamonix!

The Kandahar

Posted on by Al Slinn

We are very lucky to have one of Chamonix’s most exciting sport events, the world-renown Men’s Alpine Skiing World Cup “Kandahar”, happen just a few meters from our office in Les Houches.

When the Kandahar happens, it’s our tradition to join the crowds and cheer all athletes. So, that’s exactly what we did last week during the races on February 3rd and 4th. What a great way to celebrate this discipline we love!

Here’s a bit of history about the Kandahar, as explained on seechamonix.com.

The Kandahar race is one of the main sporting events in the Chamonix valley and it showcases Chamonix’s excellent skiing reputation. Created in 1928, the Kandahar was the first international alpine competition to combine downhill and slalom events. It plays host to the slalom and giant slalom, which are both spectacular disciplines to watch.

The race takes place on La Verte piste in Les Houches at the beginning of the year. Extensive work has been carried out on the lower part of the course over the past few years, in order to enlarge the arrival area and widen parts of the piste. These amendments mean that Chamonix will now be able to host world cup slalom events, too. 

The reputation of the Kandahar has attracted many of the big downhill competitors over the years. These include: James Couttet, Karl Schranz, Emile Allais, Ingemar Stenmark, André Aamodt, Alberto Tomba, and Bode Miller!

Après

Posted on by Al Slinn

With the ski season well under way, we have already taken our groups to ski resorts across Austria, Switzerland, and France. Our clients do love skiing, but we can confidently say the best part of every ski trip is the après-ski! The combination of post-ski adrenaline, excitement to be in the mountains, good music and Prosecco is just magical.

Today, we have decided to check the best après ski spots in Europe according to Condé Nast travel. We are happy to say we’ve got most of them covered, even this winter season!

Verbier

For: a high low mix of international glamour and beer-soaked live gigs.

Everyone knows the après is on par with the first-class skiing in Verbier. The Swiss resort has a ski-hard play-hard mentality that sees early risers maximise slope time before piling into a long lunch, which invariably rolls onto a rosé-fuelled afternoon at Bar Le Rouge. If pounding tables in ski boots to live music is on the cards, head to Le Mouton Noir, Le Farinet for its live music and retractable, fair weather roof, and seasonaire hotspot pub Montfort. Where you choose to après, it’s Verbier tradition to visit a hole-in-the-wall bakery en route home, soaking up the rosé with a pain au chocolat.

Chamonix

For: a metropolitan take on the mountains

This French resort’s après scene is as vast and varied as its terrain. Except for La Folie Douce on the lower green Brevent piste, après mostly takes place back in town or at the foot of the lifts. Skiers energised after a full day on the slopes spill onto Marmottons’ terrace for panachés and Indie performers. At the north end of town, Chambre Neuf is the classic, where cool beer, bro-beanies and live music coalesce in sticky, sweaty rapture. Just opposite, ski guides and real-deal mountaineers debrief the day’s adventures at Elevation 1904, which swiftly loosens up into bar mode.

St Anton

For: A boot-stomping belter of a party

With over 305 km of varied piste to carve and conquer, St Anton is a hard-and-fast snowglobe of fun for skiers. Krazy Kangaruh is St Anton’s après original where Schnitzels, beer and table dancing convene for a party that kicks off around 11am. Fellow mountain party cabin, MooseWirt, pumps out the Euro tunes for ski boots pounding the tables under a giant disco ball. Basecamp collects those unwilling to go home and get changed. Bodo’s is the spot for a clipped cow-bell spin on karaoke and cocktail-fuelled dancing.

Val Thorens

For: mountain cabaret and subterranean clubbing

As the highest resort in les Trois Vallées, Val Thorens’ snow cover is as sensational as its après. La Folie Douce enjoys a near-sacred status in this resort, despite its spin on the Val d’Isere original, where performers lift the terrace onto tables from their chalet balcony stage. The Brits descend on the Frog and Roastbeef for happy hour and pub grub, or join the locals at Rhum Box for an unbuttoned après. For full-throttle clubbing, Malaysia is the Alps’ biggest club, with world-famous DJs oiling the crowds until the early hours.

Livigno

For: city-grade nightlife without the VIP nonsense

High-altitude Livigno offers some of Europe’s best skiing. From a sleepy, Lombardy village in the 1950s, the resort now offers a cornucopia of post-ski frolicking. Yes, there’s the salopetted-and-booted après at Alegra with its crowd-pleasing tunes, or the circus-themed Statlet, both at the bottom of the black Carosello run. But Italians do things a little differently. Rather than a beer-soaked après, they break up a day’s skiing with a long lunch or a red wine and chicchetti pit stop, then a shower, snooze and suddenly it’s aperitivo hour. At precisely this time, Milky’s Aperitivo Bar switches on the charm with Bombardinos or Aperol spritz, while Tagliede après ski is more about the relaxed pizza and Peroni.

Val d’Isere

For: the original, hardcore après

Val d’Isere’s après scene remains predominantly British and invariably wild. By 2pm, ski helmets are typically tucked over chairs at the original La Folie Douce, at the top of La Daille gondola, where a saxophonist loosens the crowd and cabaret dancers lure in diners from La Fruitiere and la Cucina. Just above the Olympic gondola, Cocorico’s heated terraces host a more home-spun style of show, with the tabletop dancing to live music and a short slide home that can barely be categorised as skiing. The party typically moves from the slopes to the foot of the runs around 4pm.

St Moritz

For: how the other half après

St Moritz is essentially one chic century-long party laced in curious traditions and star-studded lore. Most tales emerging from years of refined revelry lead back to Badrutt’s Palace, St Moritz’s fairytale turreted hotel, which recently opened its own mountain club, Paradiso. Here, a mix of serious skiers and gondola-riding designer creatures sip Champagne to Euro hits. Sternbar Marguns has been around a little longer, with its sun trap terrace and famously louche bar 2,838 metres high. Schneebar Pirates on the Rocks is another less ritzy spot at Corviglia’s top station, whose live music and laid-back allure feel out of step with everything St Moritz stands for. Finaly, the Roo Bar at Hauser is a St Moritz classic, whose cellar dance floor mops up the après crowds who’ve made it home to change.

Kloster

For: the fireside drinks that just occasionally get spicy

Kloster’s après takes its cue from the resort’s clientele – discreet royals and old money eager to pelt down its 320km tangle of pistes for a Swiss hot chocolate or lunch at Wolf’s Den. Most après take place in the cosy, amber-lit Pellegrini Bar and the traditional chalet-style Alpina Bar by the station. A curious blend of traditional chalet and school disco, Casa Antica absorbs the revellers, with its pocket-sized dance floor and cosy booths.

2030 Winter Olympics

Posted on by Al Slinn

Just yesterday morning, we were getting excited about a piece of news released by the Swiss newspaper Le Temps. Chamonix seemed involved in a bid to host the 2030 Winter Olympics, along with the Swiss canton of Valais and the Italian Aosta Valley.

Chamonix hosted the first Winter Olympics back in 1924. Having another edition of the Games here in the valley would surely be exciting to many.

However, just a few hours after the announcement, Chamonix released a statement denying its involvement in the Olympics. “Following up on the many articles in the Swiss and French press this morning […] the project of a common candidacy for the Olympic Games […] is not on the agenda”.

Searching for a candidate

As this article on the subject explains, the IOC (International Olympic Committee) is struggling to find a candidate for the 2030 Winter Olympics. This especially after its first choice, the Japanese city of Sapporo, “paused” its bid due to public anger following a bribery scandal involving Tokyo 2020.

With a bid from Vancouver lacking the support of either the Provincial or State Government, Salt Lake City seemed like the last choice. But officials in the US seem to prefer a bid for the Games in 2034 to avoid a clash with the 2028 Summer Olympics scheduled in Los Angeles.

Last month, the IOC had announced it would postpone choosing a 2030 host.

As professionals of the events world we love to stay updated on matters like the Olympic Games. We will have our eyes open for new bids, and we will definitely keep dreaming about a future Olympic edition in Chamonix!

A guide to Chamonix

Posted on by Al Slinn

Having been based in Chamonix for almost 20 years, we are obviously very fond of this town and all it has to offer. It’s always exciting to show our clients around this incredible destination! We work constantly to build local connections and discover new gems for our future events here.

That’s why we were quite curious when discovering an article recently published by The Guardian, where a local shares his tips for a stay in Chamonix. It puts together a guide to Chamonix that’s both very accurate and personal, and we definitely agree with its suggestions.

Here are some highlights from the article.

Food

Cool Cats in the Rue de Moulins is best in the summer when you can sit outside. But as it does artisan hot dogs and street food such as nachos, it can also be good when you’re coming off the mountain in winter.

Le‑Cap‑Horn, in the same street, is a good option for sushi but a bit more expensive. Being able to get good sushi makes Chamonix a bit special for a mountain town.

Inspiration

The mountains here are unique but I think what makes Chamonix special is that they are so accessible from the valley. And because this is the birthplace of alpinism, when you’re in the mountains you’re either on a historic route or you can see one. I enjoy just being in the mountains with good friends and family, but in town, the Maison des Artistes, an artist’s residence dedicated to musical creativity, has a concert programme that changes all the time and can be quite unusual.

Neighbourhood

Chamonix is incredibly international: people from all over the world are brought together by the mountains. This part of the Arve valley is divided into three main towns: Argentière, Chamonix and Les Houches. I live in a hamlet called Les Bois, between Chamonix and Argentière. Closest to me is another hamlet called Les Praz, which has a nice bar, Le Petit Social, for coffee or après ski.

On the other side is Le Lavancher and a 30-minute walk from that hamlet is la Buvette du Chapeau. This is a mountain cafe with traditional food (cheese, charcuterie, chanterelle omelettes) and desserts such as fruit tarts and faisselle (local fromage blanc) with blueberry jam.

Nightlife

Chamonix is a busy mountain town with lots of tourists so the nightlife is good. But my preferred way of spending an evening is getting the cable car to Plan de l’Aiguille and watching the sunset from the Refuge du Plan de l’Aiguille, which is a 15-minute walk from the cable car.

You can have dinner and stay the night there, too, but in summer I like to take a picnic and camp up there. It is my favourite refuge in the whole Mont Blanc range and the mountains are pretty steep from there on, so if I stay the night, I know I can soon be up and doing something interesting the next morning!

Stay

Pointe Isabelle, in the centre of town, is a hotel, bar and bistro with 72 rooms. It sits on a corner, so it’s a good place for apéro and people watching.

Best ski resorts in Europe

Posted on by Al Slinn

We always strive to take our clients to incredible ski resorts all over Europe – and, recently, we discovered we might have selected just the best ones.

In an article on the Evening Standard we found a list of the 8 best ski resorts in Europe. To our delight, they have all been part of our event destination portfolio for a long time!

Here’s a shortened version of the list, in case you’d like to take a peek.

Val d’Isère, France

Best for: High-altitude style.

Party place: Cocorico at Rond Point — riotous ski-in après at the bottom of the piste.

Val d’Isère gives you everything you want in a resort, including snow-sure slopes for all levels and lots of breathtaking off-piste. There’s the buzzing social scene, with lots of live music and (expensive) champagne flowing at La Folie Douce.

Zermatt, Switzerland

Best for: Mountain magic.

Party place: Hennu Stall on the Furi-Zermatt slope — order the metre-long “ski” of shots.

It’s hard to take your eyes off the Matterhorn here, one of Switzerland’s most gorgeous images. For a classy alternative to après ski, try the boat-shaped Snowboat Bar beside the River Vispa in the centre of town, where gorgeous sushi is served with a huge selection of cocktails.

Les Arcs, France

Best for: Families, powder hounds… just about everyone.

Party place: Red Hot Saloon in Arc 1800 — live music and late-night partying.

What Les Arcs lacks in glamour it more than makes up for in incredibly varied terrain — think fun slopes, steep blacks, air-thinning peaks and sheltered woodland runs. Extend your lift pass to include La Plagne and take advantage of the new high-speed chairlift to Champagny-en-Vanoise.

Courchevel, France

Best for: Glitzy celeb-spotters.

Party place: Funky Fox in Courchevel 1650 — the place to see and be seen.

Don’t let Courchevel’s bling blind you to the superlative skiing in this starry corner of the Trois Vallées. This winter, expert skiers can tackle a new black run, Eclipse, which plunges into Le Praz at a drop of 970m and a 30 per cent gradient. Not for the faint hearted.

Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy

Best for: Old-school glamour.

Party place: Janbo in the town centre — for late-night good times.

The classy queen of the Dolomites rivals anything in the Alps for its jaw-droppingly beautiful granite mountains. And now those pink-tinged peaks will be easier to reach with the new gondola linking Tofane with Cinque Torri’s fabulous Super 8 circuit — and, ultimately, the Sella Ronda circuit.

Verbier, Switzerland

Best for: Off-piste heaven.

Party place: Hotel Farinet in the town centre — look out for flame throwers and bar dancing.

Verbier offers an exhilarating taste of the high life — its off-piste is among the best in the world. The new high-speed Médran gondola between Verbier and Les Ruinettes will make life so much easier. This winter’s new Mont 4 Zipline, the highest in Europe, starts at 3,300m and whooshes you at 100km/h until your head spins.

Kitzbühel, Austria

Best for: Medieval beauty and World Cup racing.

Party place: The Londoner — an English party pub, not for the faint-hearted.

Every January, crowds descend on Kitzbühel to watch the World Cup’s most thrilling downhill race on the Hahnenkamm course. But there’s so much more, including an enchanting medieval centre and 233km of varied slopes. Mileage-hungry skiers can test the new circuit between SkiWelt and KitzSki, the longest in the world.

Morzine-Avoriaz, France

Best for: Village atmosphere.

Party place: Hotel Le Tremplin at the foot of Pléney — the annual closing party is not to be missed.

These neighbours in the Portes du Soleil make a perfect couple. You’ve got pretty Morzine with its traditional Savoyard chalets and can also hop on the cable car to futuristic Avoriaz and its high-altitude slopes.

A luxury chalet ski deal

Posted on by Al Slinn

It’s been two years since Covid turned the events and travel world inside out. No more company outings, incentive trips, or corporate travel allowed. What a nightmare!

We have been extremely grateful for events resuming slowly over the past year or so, and we have just had one of our busiest summers. Now, it’s time to offer a little incentive on ski trips!

We are proposing an amazing, luxury ski deal to our clients for this upcoming spring. It will be hosted in Chalet Wapiti, a modern and bright mountain luxury retreat.

Here are some details of our deal, based on 16 guests.

 Included at £1350pp (based on 16 pax):

  • Sun 12- Wed 15 March 2023
  • 3 nights at Chalet Wapiti, Chamonix
  • Exclusive use of the chalet
  • Return airport transfers from Geneva
  • Fully catered inc. open bar
  • 3-day ski passes
  • Ski or snowboard equipment hire
  • 2 dedicated ski instructors throughout
  • Ten80 Event hosting service

More about Chalet Wapiti:

  • 10 ensuite bedrooms
  • Spa and sauna facilities
  • Walking distance to town
  • Private chef
  • Chalet host
  • Ski boot heaters
  • In resort transport

Are you interested to know more? Contact us via email: info@ten80events.com or by calling: +33 (0) 672 659 2212 

We hope to see you there!

Mountains on Stage

Posted on by Al Slinn

There is a mountain film festival we look forward to every year: Mountains on Stage. If you are a lover of the mountains like us, you won’t want to miss this year’s edition.

Mountains on Stage is a film festival aiming to bring the mountains into cities with a selection of the world’s best mountain-related films. These include sports such as skiing, mountaineering, climbing or paragliding.

As explained on the festival’s website, Mountains on Stage was born in 2013, when founders Cyril and Manon met Yves Exbrayat – organiser of “Les Rencontres du Cinéma de Montagne de Grenoble” festival. The event gathered more than 3000 spectators each night during 5 nights.

Cyril and Manon decided to develop their own mountain film festival in Paris, using the same concept of Grenoble’s festival. The projection of mountain films would be followed by the intervention of their protagonists on stage. A true moment of sharing and exchanging. 

The festival was born in March 2013 and has since then grown year after year, in France as well as in Europe.

We will be watching the 2022 edition in Chamonix, where our offices are based, but films will be broadcasted all over Europe starting December 7th. If you are a mountain nerd like us, you might want to go check the nearest projection to you!

Safety in the mountains

Posted on by Al Slinn

The recent rescue of a 26-year old British man attempting to ascend Mont Blanc is only the latest example of safety issues in the mountains this year.

According to this article on explorersweb, The man was attempting to climb Mont Blanc wearing a tracksuit, hiking poles and a tarp. He was caught in a snowstorm and he had to call for help from the Bionnassay Glacier. Rescuers failed to find him in the storm and told him to find shelter, then lost contact.

He was found the next morning 3,100m up the mountain, still alive. However, with a body temperature of 25˚C, he was five minutes from death. Mountain rescue officials said he had dressed “as if out for a Sunday stroll,” as reported by The Daily Mail. He told police he wanted to climb the mountain as a “birthday present to himself”.

A growing problem

This is unfortunately not the first accident on Mont Blanc this year.

At the beginning of summer, local guides briefly stopped working on the mountain because of heavy rockfall, an issue driven by climate change.

The mayor of Saint-Gervais-les-Bains, a village at the foot of Mont Blanc, announced plans to charge a deposit of €15,000 to reach the peak via the Goûter route. The aim was to cover rescue and funeral costs of the climbing mishaps that increase every year.

However neither warnings, videos, nor financial threats were enough to prevent poorly equipped “pseudo-alpinists” from climbing Mont Blanc. Local authorities ended up closing the busiest refuges in the French Alps until further notice.

It’s likely that climbing Mont Blanc will continue to become more complicated for everyone. This is why it’s so important to put safety first when adventuring in the mountains. Hiring a guide is an excellent way to prevent accidents and make the most of a mountaineering trip. At Ten80, we have a large network of mountain professionals and we always point our clients in the right direction when planning their next adventure in the Alps.

Our stay in Lake Orta

Posted on by Al Slinn

As part of our event planning work, we often check new destinations and properties for future trips. So a few weeks ago, we embarked on a trip to northern Italy and visited on of its least-known lakes: Lake Orta. We expected beautiful landscapes, delicious food and the typical warm, Italian hospitality. But we didn’t expect to find hotel La Darbia: an incredible property which made our stay in Lake Orta absolutely magical.

As read in the description on the hotel’s website, La Darbia is situated above Orta in the middle of a wood and park area with ancient chestnut trees, maples and hornbeams. The residential ensemble blends into the terraced landscape, in constant dialogue with the ever-changing light and mood of Lago d’Orta.

All its 20 apartments open onto the garden with its Nebbiolo vineyard, saltwater pool and solarium. The views wander all the way to Monte Rosa. All units have a private outdoor area: on the ground floor a garden bordered by vines, on the upper floor a panoramic terrace.

One of the most impressive features of La Darbia was its food. For breakfast, just like all other meals, guests can enjoy local products and ingredients coming from surrounding farms. Jams and cakes are directly prepared by the chef. Freshly-baked croissants and bread come every morning from a nearby bakery, while fruits and vegetables are from the property’s gardens.

We loved the authenticity of La Darbia and its attachment to the local territory. There is no doubt this property would make a perfect venue for incentives and corporate events. It has entered our list of top properties in northern Italy and we can’t wait to take our clients for a visit to Lake Orta!

An escape to Ibiza

Posted on by Al Slinn

Before proposing a new destination or venue to our clients, we always go out and explore it first-hand. We call this practice a “recce trip”, where we visit a potential destination, eat in the best restaurants and test out some activities. Not the worst job in the world, is it? Our latest recce trip was an escape to Ibiza, a top destinations for our summer events.

We stayed in a newly discovered, lovely hotel at the heart of the island: the Rural Hotel Can Lluc. A real gem that we can’t wait for our clients to discover!

As the hotel’s website describes, Can Lluc stands in a highly prized area of ecological value and natural beauty, surrounded by pine forests and beautiful landscapes providing guests with peace and tranquillity.

The main house and outlying buildings, which are over 300 years old, have been restored while keeping the original features, from the stone walls and wooden roofs to the antique furniture.

The 20 rooms provide guests with the authentic feel of rural Ibiza, with beautiful views of the gardens and the surrounding countryside. For breakfast, guests can enjoy a full buffet made of natural and homemade food. What better way to start the day on this island that offers everyone so much choice?

While staying at the hotel, we even received a recommendation for a hidden beach where visitors need a password to access. These are the little things we love to discover during a recce trip! We can’t wait to take our clients for an escape to Ibiza to discover the hidden gems of the island.