The Chamonix Executive Experience is a high altitude strategic retreat designed for senior leaders navigating complexity, growth and cultural change. Set in the French Alps, this experience removes executives from operational noise and places them in an environment where clarity, trust and leadership behaviour are impossible to avoid. Over four days, leaders engage in a structured journey that blends strategic dialogue, experiential leadership and cultural reflection, supported by expert facilitators and professional alpine guides.
TRIP TYPE
Multi Adventure
DURATION
4 Days
DESTINATION
France
1
Airport to airport delivery with private transfers between Geneva Airport and Chamonix, so your team stays focused from the moment they arrive.
2
Leadership facilitation and executive coaching paired with real alpine environments where trust, decision making, communication and accountability show up under pressure.
3
A closing structure that converts insight into action, including a twelve month strategic blueprint and an executive accountability framework.
WHAT'S INCLUDED IN THIS TRIP
WHAT'S NOT INCLUDED IN THIS TRIP
Day 1: Arrival and Executive Alignment
Executives arrive at Geneva Airport and are privately transferred to Chamonix. After check in, leaders gather for an opening alignment session focused on trust, intent and strategic priorities. The day ends with a group dinner in Chamonix for connection and informal dialogue.
Day 2: Adaptive Leadership in Practice
The first full day focuses on perspective and adaptive leadership. Participants either trek to Lac Blanc or take a cable car ascent, creating space for guided peer conversations in motion. At altitude, the group pauses for strategic reflection on presence, energy and leadership impact, followed by an afternoon working session that translates mountain insights into clear strategic focus and cultural priorities.
Day 3: Trust and Systems Thinking
The day begins with the Montenvers train to the Mer de Glace and a walk through the Ice Cave. Executives then step onto the glacier for a controlled Glacier School experience in rope teams, navigating scenarios where trust, communication and interdependence are essential. A focused working session connects the experience to organisational resilience, alignment and execution under pressure.
Day 4: Strategic Commitment and Accountability
Option A
Guided rock climbing at Gaillands, followed by the twelve month strategic blueprint and executive accountability session.
Option B
A reflective walk on the Petit Balcon Sud, followed by closing dialogue, strategic commitments, behavioural agreements and accountability structures.
The experience concludes with private transfers back to Geneva Airport.
OUR COMMITMENT
We are dedicated to ensuring that everyone involved in our services receives a fair living wage in their respective countries. We invest in our team members, fostering upward mobility within the adventure travel industry, expanding educational opportunities, and offering support wherever we can. By joining an LHO adventure you are directly impacting the incredible people and the remote communities that make these life-changing experiences possible.
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HEALTH & SAFETY GUIDELINES
We do our best to ensure your wellbeing on LHO adventures. That's why the facilities we use throughout our trips are required to meet our health and safety standards. We also follow the laws and protocols of every country that hosts our adventures. This extends to national regulations requiring Covid-19 testing, vaccination certificates, mask wearing or any other local guidelines that may apply. Contact us for the most up to date protocols related to your destination.
LEARN MOREWho is Emile Woolf Middle East and what is their role in the retreat?
Emile Woolf Middle East is our leadership and behavioural training partner for this experience. They support the design and facilitation of the executive and cultural sessions, helping translate what happens in the mountains into practical leadership behaviours, strategic clarity, and accountable action inside the organisation.
What makes this retreat purpose designed rather than a generic offsite?
Everything is built around clear outcomes for leadership, strategy, and culture. Activities are chosen because they reveal decision making, trust, communication, and accountability in real conditions. Nothing is included for novelty alone.
How does the retreat build trust quickly within a senior team?
Shared challenge creates a fast path to psychological safety. When leaders move together in unfamiliar terrain, communication becomes direct, support becomes natural, and trust forms through lived behaviour rather than theory.
How is leadership development delivered without it feeling like training?
The mountain environment does the heavy lifting. With experienced facilitation layered on top, leaders reflect in real time on how they show up, how they lead under pressure, and how the team makes decisions together.
What makes the experience stick after we fly home?
Daily reflections and structured working sessions turn insight into action. The experience closes with clear strategic commitments, behavioural agreements, and an accountability structure designed to keep momentum for the months that follow.
Is there space for human connection, not just workshops and activities?
Yes. Shared meals, informal conversations in motion, and small group dynamics are deliberately built in, because real culture change comes from relationships, not slides.
Is this a fixed itinerary or can it be tailored?
It is tailored. We use a proven four day framework, then adapt the flow, intensity, and emphasis based on your objectives, timing, and group profile.
Do participants need mountaineering experience?
No. No technical mountain background is required. All technical activities are led by professional alpine guides and supported by the Life Happens Outdoors team.
How physically demanding is it?
Moderate and adaptable. Participants should be comfortable being active outdoors for several hours, with breaks, on uneven ground. Day 2 can be done as a full hike or a lift assisted option. Day 4 offers a choice between guided rock climbing or a reflective mountain walk.
Is this suitable for mixed fitness levels within one team?
Yes. We design pacing and options so the group stays together while still feeling meaningfully challenged. Where needed, we use lift assisted routes, shorter loops, and clear regroup points.
What safety standards do you follow?
Safety is central. Mountain activities are delivered by professional alpine guides using appropriate equipment, briefings, and conservative decision making based on conditions.
What happens if weather is poor?
We adapt. If conditions do not allow a specific activity, we replace it with a safer option that still supports the objectives and protects the overall experience.
Where does the experience start and end?
Geneva Airport. Private transfers are arranged between Geneva Airport and Chamonix for the group.
What is the ideal group size?
It works best for small to mid sized leadership teams. We can scale up with additional guides and facilitation if needed.
Do you accommodate dietary requirements?
Yes. We collect dietary needs in advance and coordinate with restaurants and the hotel.
Do we need travel insurance?
Yes. Each participant should have appropriate travel insurance that covers the destination and activities.
How does booking work if dates are custom?
You submit an enquiry, we align on objectives, timing, and group profile, then we issue a proposal and deposit terms to secure logistics.
What is your cancellation and change policy?
Terms depend on lead time and confirmed suppliers. We provide clear cancellation and change terms in the proposal before any payment is taken.
Can we issue a company invoice and pay by bank transfer?
Yes. We can invoice the company and support bank transfer payments, subject to the agreed booking terms.
PAYMENT PLANS AVAILABLE
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This adventure is only available as a private trip and is customized to your requirements, experience and skill level. To get started, please fill out the form below. We’ll be in touch soon to put it together for you.
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We’re passionate about guiding you to epic adventures and beyond. If you have any questions at all, don’t hesitate to reach out. We’d love to hear from you.
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