Mountain Adventure Holidays
Travel by train throughout Europe
As a company we wanted to have a greater focus on responsible travel to help protect the environment that we encourage you to join us in which is why we've created our NEW Low Impact holiday collection which can be identified by this new stamp.
Protecting our natural environment is an underlying thought in every holiday we plan and why we consider the travel options carefully, a and employ a ‘leave no trace’ ethos. Over the last year we have been busy researching and collaborating with other organisations to help make a change. Read our Sustainability Policy and find out about the steps we have taken so far.
Zellar is a sustainability platform designed to help organisations like ours measure, plan, activate, report and share their sustainability journey.
Zellar makes it easy for organisations such as Tracks and Trails to start their sustainability journey and take climate action. It has helped us to calculate and understand our carbon emissions and build an achievable plan to reduce them.
We are committed to implementing sustainable practices into our operations. With the help of Zellar, we are be able to record every sustainable action - whether it’s reducing emissions, switching to green energy or offsetting carbon. You can see our public profile here with a live sustainability score that demonstrates our progress.
Having evaluated the environmental impact on the the trips we run we focused on what we could do to make our holidays even more sustainable.
We're excited to announce our Low Impact Collection of holidays which provide rewarding adventure whilst working towards a lower impact on the environment; you will find these on our website under our collection of Low Impact Holidays. These trips allow for:
- Eco-friendly group travel: local guides, local services, small groups = lower carbon footprint
- Sustainable travel options, for example using a train or boat to arrive at the start point of the holiday
- Support to businesses that are truly 'local', using family run hotels and restaurants along our holiday routes
- Carrying your own kit thereby avoiding motorised luggage transfers, and feeling a greater satisfaction that you have completed a 'pure' journey
- Embracing hut-to-hut adventures, staying in huts that are often off-grid, relying on renewable energy sources for heating and cooking
- One hotel base that can be used for the entire holiday using public transport to travel around, rather than hopping from hotel to hotel
- A 'Travel by Train' voucher as a credit against your next holiday when you have chosen to take the train to join your trip
We will continue to add to this collection and make more eco-friendly choices for our trips and business practices when and where ever possible.
When choosing one of our holidays you get the option to plant a tree as a gift from us. Moving forward we are going to plant a tree for every person who books with us using a locally based enterprise.
The Million Trees Project is a Derbyshire, UK, based initiative which aims to plant a million trees by 2030. They will achieve this goal by working with local companies, like Tracks and Trails, volunteers and partner land owners. The initiative not only educates us about the need to plant trees but also encourages the local community to volunteer with the planting and recording of how many have been planted.
Trees absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere helping to slow the process of climate change. They also provide vital nutrients to the soil which improves soil quality and are important in providing a home to wildlife.
We will continue to plant a tree for every holiday booked as we feel it is important for our local environment.
We recently joined The Better Business Act; this act is intended to change the way businesses carry out their day to day activities in relation to carbon emissions. Businesses are encouraged to urge the Government to amend Section 172 of the Companies Act to make them legally responsible for change. According to the 'Better Business Act'; 77% of people in the UK want companies to be accountable and legally responsible for their impact on the environment. By joining we are demonstrating our allegiance to the change in the Act.
One of the biggest challenges facing the tourism industry when considering carbon footprint is finding reasonable alternatives to flying to your destination. It would be naive of us to think that suggesting alternative travel methods can easily replace flying. There are many aspects that need to be balanced out when planning your journey including time, cost, accessibility, convenience and reliability.
Whilst it is not always feasible to consider travel other than by air we wanted to explore the options for those of you travelling to our most popular destinations: Geneva, in Switzerland, and Oslo, in Norway - two major travel hubs for guests joining us on our Alpine and Scandinavian adventures.
When we talk about journeying we envisage this being from when you leave your home and start your journey to when you arrive at the start point of the holiday and meet your guide.
If you are able to make a journey of the ‘travelling’ element of your holiday then here are some suggestions of how. The relaxing nature of train travel and the ability to stop off and visit other places along the way could be a highlight of a short break.
It's also worth remembering that if you are over 67 years of age you are entitled to a 50% discount on both trains and buses in many places and you don’t need to use the apps to secure the reduced price - also a spouse is also entitled to the discount if travelling with you.
TRAVELLING FROM THE UK TO GENEVA, Switzerland?
Did you know that on average the train journey time from London, UK to Geneva, Switzerland is only 2-3 hours longer than the 4 hour journey it takes to travel by air? The train journey has just two stops, wifi is available onboard luggage is included and if you are travelling with children fares are lower or sometimes free - see www.rome2rio.com for details. Return train prices start from £180. Flight costs start from £110 return (2024) including luggage.
We've also found this excellent rail pass from eurail. A system where you purchase a pass for however many days you feel you'll need and then you can travel in Europe free. For example you can have one return pass with multiple stops valid for a month. There are some extra charges for seat reservations, but these are mainly on the high speed trails on the Eurostar.
The impressive Jet d'Eau Lake Geneva
Whilst researching train travel we sampled all of the holidays in our Low Impact Collection. For example to travel from London, UK, to Orsières in Switzerland to join our Tour des Combins our preference is to travel to Dijon, France, arriving mid afternoon, and take a tour around the city. After an overnight stay and a morning walk you could then hop back on the train and arrive in Orsières in time to take the local bus to the hotel for the welcome briefing. The total cost for the return train travel starts at £285 (2024).
Crossing the Corbassière glacier on the Tour Des Combins
There are options for travel to Norway from all major European cities by train all giving you the opportunity to explore another city on your journey to the start of the holiday. For example from the UK you can overnight in Copenhagen, in Denmark, however there are many possibilities. The easiest way to book is via www.raileurope.com or www.thetrainline.com.
Travel from London, UK, to Brussels, in Belgium, using the Eurostar www.eurostar.com these tickets can be purchased up to 6 months ahead of your travel date. From here you can book at train from Brussels to Gothenburg (Gotëborg), in Sweden, adding a stopover in Copenhagen, Denmark, using the German Railway website int.bahn.de. A full day on the train sees you arriving in Copenhagen for an evening walk around the city before dinner.
The final leg of your journey is from Gothenburg Central Station, Sweden, to Oslo, Norway and this can be booked using Vy the Norwegian rail network website www.vy.no.
Cross country skiing across the Hardangervidda
The train journey from London will take 2 days to complete without any stops; however taking in Copenhagen will add an extra day and costs from £160 (2024). This compares to the 2 hour 15 minute flight you can hop on from London at a cost from £100 (2024). Of course all this prices vary depending on how far in advance you can book your seat!
All the trains have Wi-Fi, charging points and restaurant cars, not to mention the stunning scenery that you will travel through.
We do not book travel for our guests, but we are always happy to help and advise on the best options. Each trip featured on our website has 'Trip Information' which includes a section on 'Arrival & Departure' where you can find information and links to help you plan your journey. Or speak to one of our team of experts by calling +44 (0) 20 8144 64442 or Contact Us via email on This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
