There's fantastic mountain biking in the European Alps, but for maximum fun and satisfaction it's vital to pick the right holiday or destination to suit your skill level.
Mountain bike holidays offer more than just a break; more even than just a week of thrills and (perhaps) spills. A concentrated spell of riding, especially with expert guides on hand, almost always means you’ll learn and improve significantly.
It’s vital, however, to pick a trip that’s at the right difficulty level. If it’s too easy, and you’re never challenged, you won’t learn much, and the experience may be ultimately unsatisfying. Equally, if it’s too hard the main memories will probably be pain and frustration. Even if the rest of the group are sympathetic, that’s not a nice place to be.
There are now dozens, if not hundreds, of companies offering MTB holidays in the European Alps. As one of the world’s great mountain ranges, stretching through half a dozen nations, spectacular scenery is guaranteed, and the supporting infrastructure (accommodation and transport in particular) is the best in the world, but inevitably a lot of the riding is tough and many trips here are aimed at advanced riders.
In particular, many companies and resorts advertise trips with a downhill bias, or even entirely downhill, using mountain railways and lift systems to do the uphill work. This might sound perfect for the more casual biker, but the reality is that 99% of these are aimed at the more specialist/extreme end of downhill riding, where big bikes and body armour are essential.
It’s hardly surprising that uplift facilities are mostly found in ski resorts. Looking for ways to utilise them more fully in the summer (or all year if global warming continues!), resorts like Les Gets and Morzine have generally developed mountain bike trails on the steeper slopes first. As time goes on, more amenable trails are being added, but it’s still vital to look long and hard at brochures and websites to be sure of finding trips and/or resorts that cater for your riding level.
The highest peaks of the Alps (over 4000 metres) are in France, Italy and Switzerland and you might think that easier riding is to be be found in the slightly lower parts of the range. To some extent this is true, but it’s still heavily glaciated terrain that features a lot of very steep slopes. Also, because the peripheral areas may have been less intensely developed for skiing, you may find that there are fewer uplift facilities - so you could find yourself doing more, not less, climbing on the bike.
From personal experience, one area that offers a good compromise is the Tirol region of western Austria, which has much to offer intermediate mountain bikers - including the best cakes in the world for post- (or mid-) ride refreshment!
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