The ❄️ snow on the ski pistes starts to soften under the golden ☀️ spring sunshine, and slowly disappears from alpine town and village centres . . . and then the ski stations shut . . . 🌷 spring flowers shoot up overnight . . . and 🌳parks and 🌷 gardens re-open . . . and then it is the season once again for hiking . . . a season when we can sometimes start … Continue reading SPRINGTIME ACTIVITIES au Pays du Mont-Blanc (and beyond)
You have perhaps heard that saying ☔️ “ there’s no such thing as bad weather; just badly dressed people “ (I heard this several times on a couple of work trips to Icleand!) . . . that may well be, but even the strongest of resolves can be broken by days and days of 🌧 rainy weather in the mountains (especially when you can no longer actually see those … Continue reading RAINY DAYS au Pays du Mont-Blanc
It was quite by chance in the spring of 2014 that we discovered that we could enjoy the 📷 « Wildlife Photographer of the Year » exhibition fairly close to home, right near the Pays du Mont-Blanc! I had always enjoyed visiting the London-based exhibition at the Natural History Museum (NB « Wildlife Photographer of the Year » competition / exhibition is developed and produced by the Natural History Museum, London), and was … Continue reading « Wildlife Photographer of the Year » (Forte di Bard, ITALY)
When I had my first baby seven years ago, I had just moved to a new town in the 🏔 Pays du Mont-Blanc, away from a network of friends . . . I rather short-sightedly thought that this would be an instant opportunity to make new discoveries, and to have new adventures. In effect, it was . . . but at times I was also incredibly … Continue reading BABY & TODDLER activities au Pays du Mont-Blanc (and beyond)
Whether you live 🏔 au Pays du Mont-Blanc or you are visiting at this ❄️ WINTER WONDERLAND ❄️ time of year, then this is the post for you! We all need FRESH IDEAS for family days out over the holidays (and ideas that don’t only involve winter sports!) and – lucky for us – the 🏔 Pays du Mont-Blanc is located at the crossroads with 🇩🇰 Switzerland and 🇮🇹 Italy and close to other parts of 🇫🇷 Haute-Savoie and … Continue reading WINTERTIME activities for families au Pays du Mont-Blanc (and beyond)
Throughout the year in 🇨🇭 Geneva (and also from October until May in 🇫🇷 Cluses & Annecy) many of the 🖼 museums and their temporary exhibitions are FREE on the FIRST Sunday of the month! In addition, the museums often put on some wonderful workshops & guided tours for children and families (also FREE) on this day. See here for more details about this fantastic initiative! NB – this initiative does … Continue reading GENEVA & NYON – FREE museums on first Sunday of the month!
We are lucky to have some 🖼 wonderful museums 🏔 au Pays du Mont-Blanc, many housed in architectural gems (old, new and renovated). . . and as well as their permanent collections, they also offer temporary exhibitions and workshops for children and families over the school holidays! And if we venture further than the 🏔 Pays du Mont-Blanc – 🇫🇷 to Cluses, to Annemasse, to la Maison du Salève, to … Continue reading MUSEUMS & EXHIBITIONS au Pays du Mont-Blanc (and beyond)
Every Wednesday afternoon during the French school holidays, the Centre de la Nature Montagnarde in Sallanches organises worshops for children aged 6 to 12 years called Les P’tits Experts de la Nature. Children are given a certificate booklet when they do their first workshop and they collect a stamp for each completed workshop. During their 2-hour workshop, they become little “experts” in different fields of nature! My son … Continue reading Les P’tits Experts de la Nature workshops (Sallanches)
A visit to La Maison du Salève makes for a wonderful family day out . . . originally an 18th century farm from the Chartreuse de Pomier (La Ferme de Mikerne – see here for more history), the building has been renovated to host a cultural centre recounting the history of the Salève mountain and its environs (a permanent interactive exhibition) and temporary exhibitions . . . and … Continue reading La Maison du Salève (Présilly)
📆 WEDNESDAYS are once again – au Pays du Mont-Blanc – a day free from scholastic duties (for young children, at least!). A day to perhaps explore a new ⚽️ sport or 🎨 leisure activity, to relax at home or to head to garderie. To join ⚽️ local sports clubs, or to sign up for activities at the MJC Chamonix, FJEP Passy, MJC Saint-Gervais or Le Palais in Megève, you will largely need to … Continue reading LES MERCREDIS – sport, workshops & creative activities (and relaxation!) for children au Pays du Mont-Blanc
Le Chalet des Créateurs in Saint-Gervais-les-Bains is a fabulous venture, bringing together: a gallery showcasing local creative talent (45+ créateurs, with collections changing with each season); a boutique with unique hand-made, local goods/gifts to buy; a centre providing workshops for children and adults throughout the year (and especially during the school holidays); there are plans to set up workshps for local artists; A little history Charlotte Paget is the protagonist … Continue reading Le Chalet des Créateurs (Saint-Gervais-les-Bains)
A contingent of the MBFF team (the youngest member and myself) headed off last week on a voyage of art exploration and discovery . . . to the newly painted multi-storey car park in Saint-Gervais-les-Bains: 2KM3. This new art project really is a masterpiece: an alternative museum of street art, a FREE museum, a museum open every day of the year! Parking one’s car has … Continue reading 2KM3 – when a car park becomes ARTWORK! (Saint-Gervais)
The MBFF team are 🇮🇹 big fans of Italy for holidays! As a destination from the Arve Valley, it is easy to get there through the Mont Blanc Tunnel and we can also book hotels and apartments last minute! Italians LOVE children (and not just well-behaving children; ALL children!), the food is very family-friendly (and delicious!), and there is endless nature, history and culture to explore. We … Continue reading Forte di Bard (Italy)
🖼 La Fondation Pierre Gianadda in Martigny is one of my all time favourite museums! There are some fantastic temporary exhibitions organised here (every 6 months the main exhibition is changed, and past exhibtions have included: Klee, Goya, Rodin, Giacometti, Moore, Modigliani, Claudel, Chagall, Braque, Dégas, Manet, Dufy, Miró, Gauguin, Bonnard, Van Gogh, Picasso, Morisot . . . ), the building itself is an architectural gem (to … Continue reading La Fondation Pierre Gianadda (Martigny)
The Musée Montagnard is housed in one of the oldest 18th century houses in the centre of Les Houches and has been arranged to show three typical rooms of such a house: the pèle (bedroom/living room), the outa (kitchen) and the sarte (pantry). The museum houses a rich collection of traditional furniture and objects, largely provided by M. Albert Laprade, the eminent architect-urbanist, who was keen to protect the heritage of … Continue reading Le Musée Montagnard (Les Houches)
We first visited 🐶 Barryland – Musée et Chiens du Saint-Bernard with a dog-loving and inquisitive 3 year old and a sleeping (mostly!) newborn baby in a pram . . . this visit coincided with the arrival of St-Bernard puppies! Last year we visited again and this visit coincided with another litter of cute puppies, but also with the most wonderful 🐣 Easter egg hunt in the grounds … Continue reading Barryland – Musée et Chiens du Saint-Bernard (Martigny)
NOTE – the Centre de la Nature Montagnarde in Sallanches is undergoing a huge renovation project, and is set to re-open in 2010. While it is shut to the public during the works, you can visit the affiliate site (rue de Doran, old médiathèque site). Set in the historic 14th century Château des Rubins, just behind the Eglise Saint-Jacques in Sallanches, the Centre de la … Continue reading Centre de la Nature Montagnarde (Sallanches)
Chamonix has a great selection of museums, and these museums often offer creative workshops or guided tours for children during the school holidays (the Tourist Office will have a list of those scheduled during your stay). In Chamonix town itself you will find; the Musée Alpin; the Espace Tairraz (Musée d’Alpinisme et des Cristaux); the Maison de la Mémoire et du Patrimoine Janny Couttet (see below for … Continue reading Chamonix Museums
One of MBFF’s favourite museums in Geneva is the MEG (le Musée d’Ethnographie de Genève) . . . we watched as it was being built and we were excited when it opened its shiny new doors to the public! The adventure starts before you even enter the museum – the architecture is modern and audacious (designed by Graber Pulver Architekten AG) and there is a pretty landscaped garden (Hager … Continue reading MEG – Musée d’Ethnographie de Genève
One of the largest museums in 🇨🇭 Switzerland, the 🖼 MAH – Musée d’Art et d’Histoire, displays over 650 000 sculptures, 🏺 objects and 🖼 paintings over 5 floors. Built in 1910 by the architect Marc Camoletti, the museum is located in the old town, and so is a short walk from plenty of other family delights. We thoroughly enjoyed our last visit here, concentrating on just a couple of … Continue reading MAH – Musée d’Art et d’Histoire (Geneva)
🐧 Geneva’s Natural History Museum (Muséum Genève) has been our go-to museum on ☔️ rainy days for the last 7 years! We have, over the years, pushed a 💤 sleeping baby around the exhibits here, watched our toddlers crawl / run / topple over, and we have spent plenty of time running after them too! What a wonderful museum this is! Set across 4 floors, the permanent exhibitions include: … Continue reading Muséum d’Histoire Naturelle (Geneva)
