Easter in the Mountains in the South of France?!!

Need a last minute holiday in France? - Easter is VERY early this year for sure - in Northern Europe we all seems to have suffered a severe dousing of rain and snow - and once the sun does come out we are looking for a bummer crop of grass for our hungry horses!

However one thing at a time - while it might have been raining here at 861m - up higher - and we do have higher! - the snow is astonishing - which has lead most of our ski resorts here - including La Colmiane, Auron, Isola 2000 etc and of course Le Boreon - for the wolf park and cross country skiing - never mind the perfect untrodden opportunities for snow shoeing in the Mercantour!! - staying open for the Easter weekend,

It seems as if people both here and in the UK have rather been hedging their bets - and there does appear to be accommodation available at this late stage in the game - including for our gites in Berthemont les Bains ......

We're also running a snow shoeing week from April 6th - once the holiday flights prices have subsided...this was meant to be a Mercantour Reflections week - but hey ho - let's not put those snow shoes away as yet.....it's perfect - as when the sun does come out it has been close to 20 degrees in the midday sun - just about okay to enjoy a tartiflette in the sunshine......

A last minute walking break in France - get it booked - fly to Nice and let us do the rest!!!

Vegetarians are very welcome......

Hope to see you soon.....

Liz
spacebetween

Spring has sprung - come take a walking break in France!!

The uncertainty of the French elections, plus the rather late dawning realisation that France may be affected by the global economic crisis, seem to be stopping the French from booking accommodation or walking holidays in France.


The British however, perhaps gee'd up by the excitement of the prospect of an extra Bank Holiday in early June, which falls the very week of school half term, seem to be very keen to move. Apparently a large number of holiday makers have transposed their summer holidays to the mega early Easter (early April - a month away!) and early June, rather than hanging on in there until July and August, when no doubt in the lure of the Olympics will keep them at home - here's hoping that Londoners in particular will be glued to a TV screen rather than taking their chances out on the roads - I imagine it will be bedlam!!




We happy chappies in France will be avoiding all that and are looking forward to welcoming the early escapees from the old country. To this end we've added some extra dates for our spring short breaks - trying to squeeze in holidays between the few expensive days for flights, plus if you must come and do via ferrata (yes that is me Liz on the VF!) you would be welcome to book just accommodation only here in Berthemont. The short break holiday packages - there's a handful of them appeal to families, couples and single travellers and include special interests, such as wolf watching, and for, later in the year, the Merveilles Valley and ogling the fantastic array of botany we have in the Alpes-Maritimes.

We had the very cold snap but are now back to enjoying blue skies and temperatures of up to 20 degrees (it's been foggy on the coast recently - yay!!). Long may it continue - the fair weather may have put paid to our winter walking and snowshoeing holiday season but one door shuts and another one opens....after the pizzazz of the Carnaval and the Lemon Festival which end shortly - March is usually a quiet month here in the Alpes-Maritimes - although there is often a good time to be had for Saint Patrick's Day.....thanks to the numerous ex-pats from the Emerald Isle and the French alike. This year it is on Saturday March 17 - also notably the day of the Wales/France match in the rugby Six Nations....so it could be a hot sort of evening!!!