In the pipeline
Alpine Exploratory's exploration 2026-27

Alpine Exploratory exists as a system for exploration, systematised yet thoroughly human. This is the Exploratory system. For the moment we apply ourselves to the Alps, Scandinavia, the UK and Ireland.

January 2026
We are settling into our scheme of adding 3 or 4 new routes per year, which is letting us realise our dream to explore more of the world. The more we see, the more there is to see. We keep our focus on the intense and extensive Alps and we gradually spread across Scandinavia, the UK and Ireland.

New for 2026!

Jura Crest Trail West, Switzerland

Swiss Jura
First season 2026
Pete Ellis and Steph Ward walking in 2025

The Jura Crest Trail is roughly 16 stages between Dielsdorf (outside Zurich) and Nyon (near Geneva). We start by offering the 8 stages between Vue des Alpes and Nyon, the West, which both Pete and Steph have visited separately during 2025. This will be a pan-Swiss trail that's less of a challenge than our Via Alpina and in an intriguing part of Switzerland, more rolling and pastoral, but still with hills.

Now available! The Jura Crest Trail

The Arran Coastal Way, Scotland

Scottish Highlands
First season 2026
Pete Ellis and Ben Hughes walking in 2025

The Arran Coastal Way jumps out as a circuit of Arran, that island to the West of Glasgow. Easy to reach, and hilly, Arran is a popular holiday and walking destination. Our route is 7 stages long. Pete and Ben have each walked this route in 2025, Pete in Spring and Ben in Summer.

Now available! The Arran Coastal Way

Dolomites Highlights, Italy

Italian Dolomites
First season 2026

Alpine Exploratory is thrilled to bring in its week-long Dolomites Highlights trip... which does exactly what it says on the tin! Ever since our first Alta Via 1 season in 2012, we have wanted to be able to offer Dolomites highlights in one trip. The AV1 contains some highlights, and others are reachable in the area (the Tre Cime) but cannot be thought of as a roll-call of the highlights itself. Similarly, the AV2 and AV9.

Now, with the AV9 as our base for much of this trip, we offer the Dolomites Highlights and hope that it will give the visitor a lot of the main Dolomites sights in one trip... Passo Sella, Corvara, Marmolada views, Falzarego, Cortina, and Tre Cime. All in hotels!

Now available! The Dolomites Highlights

Planned for 2027!

Munich to Venice, Austria and Italy

Austrian and Italian Alps
First season (provisionally) 2026
Pete Ellis walked in 2024
Ben Hughes walking in 2025

2024 was the time for us to cross the Alps North to South, and we will check over this route in 2025. This is the Munchen-Venedig, or Munich to Venice. It's also known as the Traumfpad, ' Dreamway'. There are various routes which achieve the objective. In Germany it's a big trek, a natural link over the mountains, a fixture in people's map of mountains in their minds.

The full Munich to Venice would be 4 weeks long, of which the first and last weeks are relatively flat, and of which the middle two weeks are the most interesting. Our route crosses the Adlerweg just South of Innsbruck and carries on to the Zillertal area outside Mayrhofen, then takes in some of the AV2 in the Dolomites before crossing to the AV1 to its finish near Belluno.

(Cross the Alps a little faster by trekking our Alta Via 1, flying into Munich and out of Venice. Take the train from Munich to Dobbiaco, hike the AV1 from Dobbiaco to Belluno, then take the bus from Belluno to Venice.)

Jura Crest Trail East, Switzerland

Swiss Jura
First season (provisionally) 2027
Pete Ellis walking in 2026

In 2026 we will extend our Jura knowledge by walking the JC East, with a trip by Pete planned, and thus in 2027 or failing that 2028, we will offer the full Jura Crest Trail.

The Maritime Alps, part of the GR52, France

Southern France
First season 2027
Info and booking available provisionally October 2026
Simon Stevens visited in June 2024
Pete Ellis walked in July 2024
Lucy Harvey walked in July 2024

In 2024 we visited the Maritime Alps, those hills within a week's walking or so to the North of Nice in the South of France. Pete Ellis, Lucy Harvey and Simon Stevens have all visited separately in June/July 2024, and we have a plan for how we'll offer this week-long partial-GR52 trail for 2027.

The Southern location gives us a mountains-to-the-sea adventure in warm heat. The scenic mountain railway runs from Turin to Ventimiglia in Italy; and the towns of Nice, Monaco and Menton are in reach at the end.

(One key hut will be closed in 2026 for a refit, and because of the weight of new trips we're introducing, we'll put this GR52 back to a 2027 start. Please ask us about it in the meantime!)

The not-so-far future...

... and knowing that the far future comes pretty soon.

The Alpe Adria, Slovenia and Italy

Slovenian and Italian Alps
Pete Ellis walking in 2025

The Alpe Adria in full is a 43-stage hike in the Eastern side of the Alps, through Austria, Slovenia and Italy. Our Pete Ellis tackled the 7 stages where the trail enters the Julian Alps of Slovenia and passes into Italy, a particularly attractive part to us. We are thinking carefully about Pete's impressions, as we assess which treks to look at a second time.

The Lechweg, Austria and Germany

Austrian and German Alps
First season (provisionally) 2027
Pete Ellis walking in 2025

This route of about 9 stages and at a less challenging level of hiking, follows the river Lech through the Lechtal, in the West of Austria, and emerges in Germany at Füssen. Füssen is the home of the famous castle Neuschwanstein. Lech itself is a smart village, a bus ride from St Anton on the Adlerweg. Pete Ellis walked this week for Alpine Exploratory in 2025 and we are thinking about a trip! It will need a second vist, and we are plotting this, potentially for Summer 2026.

The Jamtlandsfjällen circuit, near Åre, Sweden

To add to our coverage of Sweden, besides the Kungsleden, we are thinking of a trip near the famous ski town of Åre. Pronounced more like Ureh, Åre is on the train from Stockholm and the relatively nearby main town of Ostersund. This three-hut trek is well-known within Sweden.

The Julian Alps, Slovenia

To encourage our Julian Alps Hut-to-Hut in Slovenia, a lovely route in a charming area, we will look into variations of the route: we have two in mind, one to extend slightly the route and the other to bring in a new route between Bled and Bohinj. The town of Bled is easily reached from Ljubljana.

The full Kungsleden, Sweden

We offer the first week of the Kungsleden, and we are enticed by the full Kungsleden which carries on for about 3 more weeks. The whole Kungsleden would be 3-4 weeks of remote hiking in its full length from Abisko to Hemavan. Apart from at bigger stops, the accommodation is self-catered and tents.

The Laugavegur, Iceland

To the East of Reykjavik we find this 4-day trek from Landmannalaugar to Þórsmörk. The self-catering huts might limit the appeal of this route, but we hope that the volvanic landscapes will be enormously attractive. At this stage, we will just have a look, having been to Iceland for our 2019 team trip.

Please ask us for more information on any of our routes. Thank you.

Guided & self-guided holidays