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‘This is probably the wildest place in the whole of the Vallée des Belleville,” says Roland, our guide, sweeping one arm across a bank of saw-toothed peaks as though conducting a great, brawny orchestra. My husband, two sons and I are midway through a four-day stretch of the Grand Tour de Tarentaise hiking trail in the French Alps, and we’ve stopped near the top of Varlossière, a roadless side valley among a great arc of mountains that runs to the west of the ski resorts of Val Thorens, Les Menuires and Saint-Martin-de-Belleville. Hiking up here from Gittamelon, a rustic, summer-only mountain refuge in the neighbouring Vallée des Encombres, we’ve paused to exhale breath, and to inhale the primeval views.

High peaks loom either side of us, their shocking green flanks underscored by an elegantly designed bothy and its shepherd-dwelling twin, and we can hear the rush of water far below. It’s midmorning but the moon is low and large in a cloudless sky, adding to the otherworldly scene. Climbing higher, an eagle flies past almost at eye level, no more than six metres away. Though we meet three other hikers on the other side of the Col du Bonnet du Prêtre, the 2,461-metre (8,074ft) pass that leads from Varlossière to the Nant Brun valley – and detect from sheep bells that at least two shepherds must be somewhere among the great folds of these hills – it feels as though the landscape is ours alone.

That may not be the case for long. Soaring temperatures across Europe this summer have fuelled a rush to the mountains, social media funnelling many visitors to the same honeypots and creating infrastructure pressure points; in Italy some farmers in the Dolomites have resorted to installing turnstiles and charging tourists €5 to pass, incensed at having their meadows trampled.

Navigating these challenges is no easy task for Europe’s mountain resorts, which are increasingly encouraging summer tourism as the climate crisis signals a limited lifespan for ski tourism. One of the biggest issues is that many of these new summer visitors are first-timers, unfamiliar with the mores of mountain adventuring: treading gently on the environment, respecting local countryside codes, wearing suitable kit, knowing how to read a map rather than an app (we had no wifi or phone signal for two days of our hike), and packing enough food and water. In France, call-outs to mountain rescue services by inexperienced hikers have risen so sharply that workers now trawl social media looking for potential disaster hotspots in advance.

In an attempt to tackle these issues, the Vallée des Belleville tourist office has introduced a range of summer initiatives to support new hikers, from kids’ mountain skills activity days to free wildlife talks and events. Lower-level footpaths and bike trails for children, pushchair-users and visitors with reduced mobility makes it safer for those groups to access the mountains, and easier for local communities to manage the larger numbers that tend to make use of them. And while challenging marked trails through more remote corners of the mountains are fairly easy to follow, visitors are encouraged to hire a guide (something we are glad of at Col du Bonnet du Prêtre, when Roland tracks down the shepherd owner of an aggressive dog and persuades him to move away from the trail).

It is at our accommodation each night, in mountain refuges, that we really see support for new hikers in action, though. Several have been designed specifically with families and first-timers in mind, including Refuge Plan Lombardie, where we end our 12-mile (19km) hike from Gittamelon.

We are not first-timers, but staying here is a good opportunity to remind ourselves of the rules of refuge culture, and for the boys to hang out with other children. Though we hike in, it’s possible to park about 20 minutes’ away and walk from there, something several guests with preschoolers have done, grateful for the treasure hunt-style sculpture trail the refuge has installed along the route to entice younger visitors uphill.

Though we have seen less than a handful of hikers during the day, we find Refuge Plan Lombardie as packed as a marmot’s burrow. Approaching it in the soft glow of the afternoon, earlier arrivals have already nabbed the terrace’s deckchairs with a view. Instead, we collect beers and lemonades and find a free bench to enjoy them before swapping our boots for the refuge’s borrowed Crocs, and finding our allocated bunk beds.

Refuges like this are more than just places to sleep. Full of city folk temporarily escaping to higher ground, they’re the human equivalent of a centuries-old rhythm of transhumance, where families bring sheep and cows up to the high pastures for the summer months. At dinner, we share a table with a mother from Chambéry who has brought her four-year-old son for his first visit to a refuge. “My friend gave me a list of the most family-friendly ones and I’ve decided to start a new tradition of visiting one every year with my son. I want him to love them as much as I do,” she told us between bites of a Savoyard blueberry version of Eton mess.

The previous evening, in cosy Gittamelon refuge, we’d shared similar tales, and a dorm, with three generations of a Belgian family who were following the same trail as us but in the opposite direction. And the evening before that, we’d followed suit with other families, playing cards at Refuge du Lac du Lou, a modern, child-friendly refuge just 90 minutes’ hike above the resort of Les Menuires.

Between Lac du Lou and Gittamelon we’d hiked with Estelle Roy-Berthaud from Les Menuires tourist office, following the trail through harebells, cotton grass, neon-coloured lichens and, much to the boys’ delight, thickets of wild blueberries. Stopping for lunch with Mont Blanc spearing the horizon in the distance, I ask her how the valley is managing increasing summer numbers.

“Summer tourism is a relatively new concept here, so we are not seeing the overtourism issues experienced by more well-known summer destinations in the Alps,” she says. “We’re also protected by not having too many places to stay. In winter, we have around 27,000 beds, but in summer this reduces to just 8,000, so this naturally restricts the number of people in the valley.”

Further along the trail, at Plan Lombardie, I wake in the night and slip out of one of those beds. Outside, the sky is luminous with stars, while the peaks and folds of the land are now entirely black beyond the winking of a distant light – a shepherd’s stove, perhaps, or the torch of a camper. The Belleville valley still feels wonderfully wild tonight.

Transport from London to Chambéry was provided by Flixbus; return fares from £89pp. Half-board accommodation at Refuge du Lac du Lou from €39 children/€69 adults, Refuge Gittamelon €46pp, and at Refuge Plan Lombardie from €32 children and €52 adults. Hiking guides from €25 for a half-day (guides-belleville.com). More information at lesmenuires.com

Solo
travel is trending, with a growing number of Kiwis packing
their bags and setting off on adventures alone – and South
Australia is taking notice. With its blend of world class
wine regions and vibrant cultural experiences, the state is
fast becoming a top destination for independent travellers.
From December 2022 to December 2024 there was nearly a
quarter more (24%*) visits from New Zealanders travelling
alone.

Katina Vangopoulos, owner of Adelaide based
Flamboyance Tours, saw a sharp increase of solo traveller
bookings in the 2024-25 year. Her walking tours cover
history and culture, food and street art and provide an
immersive experience led by locals.

“Solo travel has
definitely increased for us. Our Paint and Palate Street Art
Tour is the most popular choice among solo travellers,
attracting a diverse range of age and gender. We’re seeing
more solo female travellers than ever before and walking
tours like ours are a safe, social and fun way to connect
with other travellers.”

Jay Patel of Another Kind
Group, owns three restaurants in Adelaide. “Over the past
year, we’ve noticed a significant increase in solo diners
across all of our restaurants – Press* Food and Wine, Peel
St, and Leigh Street Wine Room. Whether they’re visiting
from overseas or interstate, these guests are embracing the
solo dining experience with confidence. Many are eager to
immerse themselves in South Australian hospitality, often
opting for bar seating where they can interact with staff.
They appreciate the opportunity to receive personalised food
and wine recommendations and are generally open-minded when
it comes to their dining choices. In fact, most tend to
favour set menus, allowing them to sample a wider variety of
dishes. This growing trend is pushing the hospitality
industry to tailor its offerings to cater to solo travellers
and diners.”

What’s on offer
if you are travelling solo

In South Australia, solo
doesn’t mean alone. From the moment you arrive, you’re
welcomed like a local. Market stallholders at the Adelaide
Central Market offer samples and greet you with familiarity,
while bartenders pour local wines and share stories from
behind the bar. It’s easy to feel part of the place, even
if you are travelling on your own.

South Australia is
also LGBTQIA+ inclusive, with an increasing number of tour
operators officially accredited with the Welcome With Pride
Program. Accessibility is also a priority, with
inclusive tourism experiences that offer comfort and peace
of mind throughout your stay.

To help you get started
the South Australian Tourism Commission have curated solo
travel guides, designed like a local’s handwritten
map, full of personal recommendations and hidden gems. The
thoughtful resources help you find not just the right places
to eat, drink, and explore, but the kind of experiences that
fill your cup and linger long after you return
home.

Travel tips for solo travellers

For
Kiwis keen to experience South Australia on their own terms,
it’s now easier than ever to make the journey. Flying into
Adelaide is relaxed and straightforward, from there, it’s
just 15mins into the CBD, giving you the freedom to explore
at your own pace.

Air New Zealand
offers daily direct flights from Auckland to Adelaide, with
a new Christchurch–Adelaide service
launching 27 October. Qantas will also
begin non-stop flights from Auckland to Adelaide four times
a week from 31 October. There’s also a handy guide
to solo travel on the South Australia Tourism
website.

* Tourism Research Australia, International
Visitor Survey December
2024.

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