Why the Alpine Interface difference?
With so many different tour operators offering their services, how can one be sure to choose the right one for a particular trip? Everyone seems to offer 'expert guides' and 'the trip of a lifetime'.
We at Alpine Interface believe that any active holiday, be it walking, hiking, trekking or sea kayaking, is more than just the activity; it is a full immersion both linguistically and culturally into a new environment. And this is why the following points are very important to our guests and us:
- Hiking guide / Mountain guide
- Certification
- Meticulously Researched Itineraries
- Group Size
- Administrative Customer Care and Service
1: Hiking Guide / Mountain Guide
There are so many variables when traveling, but when on a guided trip, the single most important factor is your guide. He or she is your link to the country and culture that you will be visiting. They will make or break a trip: that is our most profound belief and has been our experience for nearly 20 years of guiding around the world.
Most will have undergone several years of training and assessment, before being awarded their certification.
We strongly believe that local knowledge is one of the main factors in providing a trip of the utmost quality. If your guide has never been to the area, and doesn't speak the language, you might as well have gone on your own.
When guiding such classics as 'The Walkers' Haute Route' or 'The Tour du Mont Blanc', we differentiate ourselves from other operators by using certified guides who have an intimate knowledge of the area, speak the language, and by taking alternative routes, stopping along the way to visit small, family-run dairy farms, and spend the extra time to seek out the elusive wild mountain goats, which hide along ridges and craggy summits.
As Alpine Interface Inc. has grown, so too have the number of destinations. By carefully searching the globe for committed professionals with the same penchant for quality, respect for the environment and outstanding guiding skills, Alpine Interface is striving to maintain the highest level of personal service yet offer competitive prices.
As Louis, director of Alpine Interface said: "When we aren't the local experts, we hire them!"
2: Certification
At Alpine Interface, the use of internationally certified guides is one guarantee that your trip leaders have the highest standard of training, expertise, and the necessary insurance to be operating where they are.
They will have up to date first aid training, and carry emergency radios and/or satellite phones linking them to the mountain rescue.
Throughout Europe, the UIMLA (Union of International Mountain Leader Associations) has set the standards for mountain leaders around the world, and is the required certification for leading walks in most member countries of the European Union and Switzerland.
Your trip leader is our representative in the field, he or she will be often trilingual, will have lived full-time in the area he or she is guiding, and will have an in-depth knowledge of mountain culture, natural history and the local customs and traditions of the area he or she will be guiding. Most of our European guides work full-time as guides, enhancing their knowledge and skills each year, by spending hundreds of days in the mountains, guiding clients, but also working as naturalists, photographers, and freelance writers.
The use of certified guides who work for remuneration in France, Italy, Austria, Spain, Belgium, Netherlands and in Switzerland is mandatory, why risk an abrupt end to your trip, when all it takes is a bit of research to ensure hiking with a certified guide and tour operators using only certified guides?
Please find below an excerpt from the British Mountain Leader website:
..."The UIMLA International Mountain Leader and the IFMGA Mountain Guide are the only internationally recognised qualifications for those leading groups in the mountains abroad. Holders of these awards can also work in the UK's mountains.
* The UIAGM/IVBV/IFMGA Mountain Guide's qualification is regulated in the UK by British Mountain Guides
* The UIMLA International Mountain Leader's qualification is regulated in the UK by BAIML.
Mountain professionals wearing the badges and carrying the carnets of these organisations have been trained and assessed to the demanding requirements of the internationally recognised qualification that they hold.
Should you settle for anything less than the best in a tough and demanding mountain environment?..."
For more information, please visit the websites of the British Mountain Leader Association (BAIML) and the French Association of Mountain Leaders (SNAM).
3. Meticulously Researched Itineraries
Alpine Interface, as our name indicates, wants to be an interface between all that is Alpine and you, the intrepid traveler, looking for a journey of a life time, or simply a week away to enjoy the bliss of hiking in the mountains or sea kayaking in the Adriatic.
All our trips have been carefully researched, using the expertise of many local guides throughout the world.
Our Himalayan trips such as the Kangshung Valley Trek, (the East face of Everest), stand out not only for the sheer beauty of the walk, but also because of the careful planning and logistical support, which this journey requires. Hand picking our team of Sherpas, with whom we have worked for many years, allows for a much richer experience for all involved.
Hiking with locals, who are able to communicate their passion for what they do, is far more enriching than being lead by inexperienced 'summer help', looking to earn an easy salary.
4. Group size
On most of our trips, we limit our group size to 8 guests. Most companies have a minimum departure size of 5/6 pax, we confirm our trip departures as soon as three guests have confirmed their participation.
If you like traveling in small (!) groups, come with us!
Small groups ensure flexibility, and real interaction with the country, culture and people. There is no 'follow me' - mentality on our trips.
5. Administrative Customer Care and Service
Direct telephone access to a regional manager, ready to answer any of your pre-trip questions, downloadable information, and constant contact during your planning phase, Alpine Interface Inc. assists you in choosing the right trip for your interests and ability level. We will answer all phone calls and emails promptly, to keep you informed about what is happening.
Speaking four of Europe's many languages, we can assist with most personal travel plans before or after our trip, and we can handle all necessary changes of travel plans. However, we only provide ground transportation.
Upon booking one of our trips, you will receive a comprehensive information package, including a detailed itinerary with elevation gains and descents for each day, practical tips and tricks for the area you will be visiting, a recommended reading list, background information of the area you will be visiting, and a topographic map of the area.
