Day 1:
Your first day will start with an 8:00am breakfast. All your kit is going to be checked by the guides this morning so you’ll get everything you’ve brought with you including items you’re not sure about laid out in your room before heading off to eat.

Your guides for the week will arrive during breakfast, and your Course Directing guide will then sit down with you and explain how the week is going to work. After breakfast the guides will come to your rooms to check all your kit thoroughly to make sure you have everything you need, and equally importantly nothing you don’t (electric razors and huge blocks of wet wipes are unlikely to pass inspection). Ice axe, crampons, helmet, harness, and boots you can hire from us – anything else you’ll need to provide. Don’t worry if you’ve brought the wrong gloves or forgotten something, we can have a quick trip round the shops in town afterwards where there are some good cheap (and not so cheap!) gear shops.

When all this is done and everyone is happy we’re off over the border to Italy for our three day training climb of Gran Paradiso (4061m). We just need to get into position today though, so after an obligatory cappuccino it’s a two and a half hour steady hike of about 1000m height gain up to the hut. Evening meal, maybe a quick session on how to put crampons and harnesses on, then an early night. You won’t sleep too well as it’s you first night at altitude, but that’s kind of the idea!

Day 2:
Gran Paradiso is a tough but not very committing mountain, consisting mainly of a long pull up a not-too-steep glacier which is easy to reverse if someone’s fitness isn’t up to it. It is an essential test of preparedness for Mont Blanc however as the latter has the tricky section right at the start and we must be careful not to get above this with someone not strong enough to get back down again.

A 4am start is just what you need when you haven’t slept well, but that’s how we do it in the mountains so grit your teeth and just get on with it. After a not very chatty breakfast it’s kit on and away with as little fuss as possible. The ascent of the Gran Paradiso is 1400m from the hut to the summit, but we keep a steady pace as it’s the first climb and build in ice axe and crampon training along the way. It’s all about keeping a rhythm and not stopping too much, and the ascent should take about 5 hours in total; there’s a scary but easy traverse to get to the summit, but you’ll be in great hands with our guides to get you through.

Going back down is harder work than you think, but normally we get back to the hut around 1:30pm. You’ll be pretty much spent by now so the rest of the day is spent relaxing in the sun at the hut and taking a siesta before the evening meal. There is in fact plenty of time to get back down to the chalet, but we want you to relax and enjoy the hospitality of Italy just a little longer!

Day 3:
After a late breakfast by alpine standards (7am) there’s a leisurely descent in the morning sunshine through the stunning Gran Paradiso National Park. The guide may decide to do some rock scrambling training on the way down for fun, but either way we’ll stop for an obligatory cappuccino and ice cream before getting back to town!