Tour through high alpine basins, glacier passes, and panoramic summits in wild Val Formazza. Expect sustained climbs and long descents across classic Alpine ski touring landscapes on the Italian–Swiss border.
Half board is included in huts and hotel: generous breakfasts and hearty mountain dinners. Expect rustic alpine cuisine and traditional Italian specialities.
Go on your own, or add the extra safety with one of our local and highly certified guides.
One night in a comfortable alpine hotel in Riale and five nights in traditional high mountain huts with shared rooms.
Val Formazza near the Swiss border offers quiet glaciers and classic summit routes. Over five touring days, you travel hut to hut beneath peaks like Corno Cieco, crossing between Italy and Switzerland. Designed for experienced ski tourers with strong fitness and confident downhill skills, the tour can be done self-guided or with an optional certified mountain guide for added support.
Details
ItineraryArrival in Riale (1729 m), a traditional Walser village at the head of Val Formazza. Check into your alpine hotel and review the week’s route and weather conditions. Equipment check and optional meeting with your mountain guide.
Parking is available in Riale for the duration of the tour.
Short transfer to Canza (1412 m). Begin the ascent via Sagersboden toward the Vannino Dam (2194 m). Continue to Rifugio Margaroli, located in a spectacular high alpine basin. Optional avalanche refresher or short afternoon tour toward Busin Pass.
Ascend toward Vannino Pass (2717 m) with expansive views over the Sabbione Basin. Stronger skiers may descend toward Sabbioni Lake and attempt Sabbione Peak (3182 m). The day finishes at Rifugio Claudio e Bruno (2708 m).
Climb the famous Corno Cieco (3373 m), a true highlight of the region. Enjoy breathtaking views toward the Bernese Alps before descending via the Gries Glacier to Griessee Dam (2386 m). Cross into Switzerland and reach Corno-Gries Hut.
Descend briefly into Switzerland before ascending toward Passo San Giacomo (2313 m) at the border. Continue to Punta Elgio (2837 m) for panoramic views before descending to Maria Luisa Hut and returning toward Riale area.
Final summit option toward the Nefelgiu Horns (2934 m). After a rewarding descent back to Rifugio Margaroli, enjoy a long final descent into Canza. Short transfer back to Riale for your last evening in the valley.
After breakfast, individual departure from Riale.
Location And Getting ThereVal Formazza is located in the northern Piedmont region of Italy, close to the Swiss border. The nearest airports are Milan Malpensa and Zurich. From Milan, the drive takes approximately 2–2.5 hours.
If travelling by public transport, trains connect Milan to Domodossola, followed by a bus into Val Formazza. A rental car offers the most flexibility. Parking is available in Riale.
AccommodationExamples of accommodation on this tour:
Hotel Aalts Dorf, Riale
www.aaltsdorf.it
Rifugio Margaroli
www.rifugiomargaroli.it
During your ski touring week in Val Formazza, you stay one night in a traditional alpine hotel in Riale and the remaining nights in authentic high mountain huts. Expect cosy shared rooms, simple but comfortable facilities, drying rooms for gear, and welcoming dining areas. Evenings are spent enjoying hearty Italian alpine cuisine in a warm and friendly mountain atmosphere.
Included Services
Add to this tourWhen booking this tour online, you will get the option to add the following services:
GuaranteeThis tour is fully covered by the Danish Travel Guarantee Fund (Rejsegarantifonden), ensuring financial protection and security for all participants. The guarantee covers situations such as company insolvency, securing refunds for canceled trips or necessary repatriation. Importantly, this protection applies to travelers of all nationalities, not just Danish citizens. By booking with a company registered under the Danish Travel Guarantee, you can embark on your adventure with confidence, knowing your investment is secure and your travel experience is safeguarded, regardless of your country of residence. Learn more here.
WeatherThe ski touring season typically runs from March to April when snow coverage is stable and daylight hours are long. Temperatures range from -10°C on cold mornings to +8°C on sunny afternoons. High alpine weather can change rapidly, especially on glacier sections.
Spring often offers excellent firn conditions and quieter mountains.
Difficulty
This is an advanced hut-to-hut ski touring traverse. Daily ascents range from 800 to 1,500 metres. You should be comfortable with long touring days, glacier terrain, and variable snow conditions. Good fitness, confident downhill skills, and avalanche awareness are essential. A certified mountain guide can be added for additional safety and route optimisation.
FAQIf you cancel your tour 60 days or more before the departure date, you will lose your deposit. If you cancel your tour between 60 and 45 days before the departure date, you will lose 50 per cent of the total tour price. If you cancel your tour within 45 days of the departure date, you will lose the full amount. If you fail to turn up on the first day of your tour, Outdoor Europe may not be able to make arrangements for you to join the rest of the tour, and you will lose the full payment. If, for any reason, Outdoor Europe has to cancel your tour, you will be offered an alternative tour or a full refund.
You can book your tour directly on the Outdoor Europe website. Choose the tour from the dropdown menu, select the date you would like to start, and the number of participants in your group. You can either pay a deposit (60 days or more from the start of your tour) or pay the full amount. Click ‘book’ and follow the instructions. Once we have confirmed your payment, you’ll receive your confirmed tour itinerary within 10 days. There may be seasonal variations in the time it takes us to arrange everything. Please note that programmes on the tour pages are only examples — there may be several differences in the final programme you receive.
When booking your tour, you can choose to pay by credit/debit card or direct bank transfer. Direct bank transfers will generally take longer to process, while credit and debit card payments are processed instantly. You are, by default, asked to pay a deposit of 25% of the total cost of the tour. If you choose this option, you will be asked to pay the remaining 75% one month before your tour. Please be sure to follow the payment links you receive in your invoice or reminder email, which we will send you when the second payment is due.
This depends on the individual tour and when you book it. When hiking in the Alps, most people stay in dorms or shared rooms as the availability of single, double and family rooms are limited. We can only guarantee your own room on certain tours such as in the Lys and Ayas Valleys — but only if you book in time. If this is your preference, we will do our best to ensure you get your own room, but please expect to spend some nights in shared accommodation if there is limited availability.
Unfortunately, we are not able to offer this service with all our packages. Often, the huts or hotels we work with are in locations that can only be reached by foot or helicopter. Indeed, when choosing a tour that includes baggage transport, there may be one or two exceptions depending on the route. This will appear clearly on the tour page and in the program you receive when your booking has been confirmed.
All our tours include the day of arrival and the day of departure. This means that a six-day tour will include five nights of accommodation, a seven-day tour will include six nights, and so on. On the first day, guests are usually expected to arrive in the afternoon. And the program does not include any activities except for a briefing by our representative on the first evening. On the day of departure, guests are free to decide if they want to leave directly after breakfast or go on a shorter tour before their journey home.
Most of our tours will include Half Board (HB) services, which means breakfast, a three-course dinner, and a light-packed lunch. Please check the individual tour page for details, however, as variations occur with certain tours.
We specialize in self-guided tours. These tours are designed for travelers who love the independence of hiking, skiing, or running on their own but want to know that everything else is taken care of. In some cases, we are able to offer luggage transport to lighten your load as you enjoy the Great Outdoors.
Whether you’re already a group of friends, business colleagues or a sports club looking for an active mountain adventure, we can design and organize your Alpine tour for you. We also offer guided group tours for individual participants on fixed dates.
Yes, absolutely! Outdoor Europe can design the perfect mountain adventure for you and your friends or colleagues. Whether you want to hike, ski, run, cycle or climb, we have the expertise and experience needed to create a bespoke package for any level of experience or physicality. Please contact us if you would like us to create a customized package for your group.
There are few better ways to spend time with your children than with an active holiday in the mountains. Sharing a mountain adventure with your child is a memory that will last a lifetime. We try to design child-friendly variations (marked ‘family’) of all our Alpine tours. Children can hike, ski or bike a lot longer than you might expect, as long as you make it entertaining for them. However, they will respond instantly to the way you behave, so please consider whether you are able to create a safe environment for your children when faced with the many different challenges of an alpine environment.
Yes, we are able to offer a discount for children on most of our tours, provided they are not yet 13 years of age on the first day of the tour. Please see the individual tour page for our child discounts.
Many single travellers chose Outdoor Europe due to our high level of service and our expertise in self-guided mountain tours. And the safety of one of our representatives will only ever be just a phone call away. However, please expect additional costs, as our prices are based on two persons — the industry standard for outdoor tours of this nature. Private rooms and other services are often more expensive for individual travellers. You can find information about any additional costs for individual travellers on the tour page.
We are all different. Some of our clients are 70+ and have lived an active lifestyle all their life. Others may be twenty years younger and have barely left their office chair. It is very difficult to judge the physical and mental ability of a person on the basis of a phone conversation. If you are in doubt, each tour is rated for level of physicality, which you can learn more about here. You are of course welcome to call us and we will do our best to advice you. Find your level of physicality here (link to Find your level page).
Our local partners know every square inch of this beautiful Alpine region. During the introductory briefing, you will receive an app, physical maps and a phone number to call if you need advice. In some cases, you’ll be able to forward your location to a local guide with the press of a button. This may prove helpful if you become lost.
We recommend that you speak to your insurance provider to ensure your existing policy covers mountain-based activities such as hiking, skiing, and mountain biking. Please note that any costs relating to emergency situations and the potential need for evacuation are the sole responsibility of the client.
We are all different. Some of our clients are more than 70 years old and have lived an active lifestyle all their life. Others are twenty years younger and have barely left their office chair. It is very difficult to judge the physical and mental capabilities of a person on the basis of a phone conversation. If you are in doubt, each tour is rated for the level of physicality involved, which you can learn more about on our Find Your Level page. You are, of course, welcome to call us, and we will do our best to advise you.
Enjoying the mountains with your best friend can be a joyful experience, which is why we try to make our tours dog friendly wherever possible. Unfortunately, it is not always possible due to local rules. Selected tours are marked ‘Dog Friendly’ on the tour page. This means that your dog can stay with you in your private room or, in a few cases, the hut will have a separate or external room for dogs. Please refer to the individual tour page for more information.
Whether you're a large family, a work team or a sports club, we will help you create a perfect group adventure.
Almost like being there. Check out the gallery.
Let us help you organise your next outdoor adventure. Fill out the form below, and we will contact you with a non-binding offer within 24 hours.
Dreaming of an active holiday in Europe?
Receive a non-binding offer within 24 hours
Receive an offer
Hiking in Europe
Ski touring in Europe
Trail running in Europe
Alpinism in Europe
Snow shoeing in Europe
Germany
Austria
Switzerland
Italy
Spain
France
Portugal
Turkey
Slovenia
Croatia
Ireland
Scotland
Greece
Iceland
Malta
Norway
Slovakia
Sweden
My Booking
My Booking
EN 
DA 
DE 
IT 
FR 
JA 
ES 