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Hikers enjoying lunch overlooking the Aosta Valley, Italy

Top Tips for Hiking the Tour du Mont Blanc (TMB) as a Vegan

Published on November 14, 2025November 20, 2025 by SharonLeave a comment

Introduction

In July 2025, my husband, Mark, and I completed the Tour du Mont Blanc (TMB) – the iconic 170 km hiking route that circumnavigates Mont Blanc, crossing through France, Italy, and Switzerland.

It truly was a dream trip. But we had one extra challenge: doing it vegan!

The Alps are famous for cheese, fondue, and raclette – not exactly vegan-friendly fare. And with my dairy allergy, I have to be extra careful to avoid even small traces of dairy. But we were up for the challenge, and I’m so glad we did it!

In this post, I’ll share what we learned, plus all our best tips to help you plan your own vegan TMB adventure with confidence.

Planning is Key
Booking Accommodation
Email Ahead to Request Vegan Food
Research Vegan-Friendly Spots
Plan by Stage
What to Bring from Home
Managing Expectations
Final Thoughts

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Vegan Hiking Tips for the Tour du Mont Blanc

Planning is Key

Good planning and forward prep make all the difference!

I actually loved this stage – researching the route, finding vegan-friendly places to eat along the way, and reading lots of reviews. By the time we left the UK, I felt fully prepared and excited for the adventure ahead.

Maps and guide books for planning our TMB adventure

Booking Accommodation

The TMB is incredibly popular, with a short hiking window (usually July–September) and limited accommodation, especially in the smaller mountain hamlets. We booked in January 2025 for our July trip – and even then, some refuges and hotels were already full! Ideally, try to book 8–10 months in advance (even up to a year, if possible).

You can either:

Book independently – more flexible and potentially cheaper, but can be time-consuming and a logistical challenge to coordinate accommodation (and luggage transfers) along the TMB route.
Book through a tour company – more convenient as they handle all logistics, but can be a bit pricier.

We chose Mac’s Adventures to organise our self-guided TMB trip, and they were amazing! They arranged all our accommodation, daily luggage transfers, and even taxi transfers where needed, removing a huge amount of the stress and time it would’ve taken for us to do all this ourselves.

We appreciated that we could actually talk to someone on the phone about our vegan needs. Rhona from Mac’s Adventures was particularly helpful, suggesting we stay in larger towns where vegan options were better – and that advice made a real difference for us.

We chose their Complete Tour du Mont Blanc in Comfort package, which included mostly hotel stays, with one or two refuge-style nights, where hotels weren’t available. The booking process took about six weeks, and once confirmed, Mac’s Adventures provided an app with all our accommodation details and route maps. This app was invaluable for navigating, viewing alternative trails, and checking distances each day.

Overall, the package felt good value – especially considering how expensive accommodation can be along the TMB route. Some of our stays, like the Bouton D’Or in Courmayeur, exceeded our expectations and felt like such a treat after long hiking days.

Hotel Bouton d'Or, Courmayeur — *Hotel Bouton D’Or in Courmayeur was such a beautiful place to stay during the Italian stages of the TMB!*

Our elegant bedroom in the Hotel Bouton d'Or, Courmayeur — *The Hotel Bouton D’Or is so elegant, yet the family owners are so welcoming to TMB hikers!*

Would We Recommend Booking Through a Tour Company?

While we only have experience with Mac’s Adventures, we can wholeheartedly recommend them, especially if, like us, it’s your first time hiking the TMB.

Pros:

All logistics handled (accommodation, luggage transfers, any taxi transfers)
Expert advice to tailor your trip (e.g. choosing the most vegan-friendly stops)
Easy communication and great support before and during the hike
Handy app with route maps, and daily info all in one place

Cons:

Can be more expensive than booking everything independently
Less flexibility if you like to change plans on the go

For us, the peace of mind and time saved made it completely worth it – we could simply focus on hiking, eating, and soaking up those incredible views!

Email Ahead to Request Vegan Food

Once your accommodation is booked, email each place to request vegan meals – even if you’ve already noted it in your booking.

I recommend doing this 1–2 weeks before arrival, ideally in both English and French (Google Translate is a great help!) Every place we contacted replied within 24 hours, which was so reassuring!

👉 Tip: Clearly explain what “vegan” means – no meat, fish, dairy, eggs, or honey – as it’s not always well understood.

Here are two examples of the emails I sent:

– Sample vegan breakfast request email

Sujet: Demande de petit-déjeuner végan – Du vendredi 11 au dimanche 13 juillet

Bonjour à l’équipe de l’Hôtel Bouton d’Or,

J’espère que ce message vous trouve en bonne santé.

Mon mari et moi avons une réservation chez vous pour trois nuits, du jeudi 10 juillet au dimanche 13 juillet, dans le cadre d’un Tour du Mont Blanc organisé par Mac’s Adventures. La réservation est au nom de Mark Stephens, et nous sommes en formule petit-déjeuner uniquement.

Nous sommes tous les deux véganes et souhaitions vous en informer à l’avance. Cela signifie que nous ne consommons aucun produit d’origine animale, y compris la viande, le poisson, les produits laitiers, les œufs ou le miel. (J’ai également une allergie aux produits laitiers, donc je dois être particulièrement vigilante.)

Nous comprenons que les options véganes peuvent être limitées dans les Alpes, mais nous voulions savoir s’il serait possible de prévoir un lait végétal, comme du lait d’avoine ou de soja, pour le petit-déjeuner des vendredi 11, samedi 12 et dimanche 13 juillet (pour le café et les céréales) ?

N’hésitez pas à nous contacter si vous avez besoin de plus d’informations.

Un grand merci d’avance pour votre attention et votre aide !

Avec nos salutations les plus chaleureuses,

Sharon Collins et Mark Stephens
———————————-

Dear Hotel Bouton d’Or Team,

I hope this message finds you well.

My husband and I have a reservation at your hotel for three nights from Thursday 10th July to Sunday 13th July, as part of a Tour du Mont Blanc trip arranged by Mac’s Adventures. The booking will be under the name Mark Stephens, and we are booked on a bed & breakfast basis.

We are both vegan and wanted to inform you in advance. This means we do not eat any animal products, including meat, fish, dairy, eggs, or honey. (I also have a dairy allergy, so need to be extra careful.)

We understand that vegan options in the Alps can be limited, but we were wondering if it would be possible to have a plant milk, such as oat or soya milk, available for breakfast on the mornings of Friday 11th, Saturday 12th, and Sunday 13th July (for our coffees and cereal)?

Please let us know if you need any further information.

Thank you so much in advance for your kind attention and support!

With warm regards,

Sharon Collins and Mark Stephens

– Sample vegan breakfast & dinner request email

Sujet: Demande de repas végan pour notre séjour – Mercredi 9 juillet

Bonjour à l’équipe du Refuge Les Mottets,

J’espère que ce message vous trouve en bonne santé.

Mon mari et moi avons une réservation chez vous le mercredi 9 juillet, dans le cadre d’un Tour du Mont Blanc organisé par Mac’s Adventures. La réservation sera au nom de Mark Stephens, et nous avons réservé en demi-pension (petit-déjeuner et dîner).

Nous sommes tous les deux véganes, et souhaitions vous en informer à l’avance. Cela signifie que nous ne consommons aucun produit d’origine animale, y compris la viande, le poisson, les produits laitiers, les œufs ou le miel. (J’ai également une allergie aux produits laitiers, donc je dois être particulièrement vigilante.)

Nous comprenons que les options véganes peuvent être limitées dans les Alpes, mais nous nous demandions s’il serait possible d’avoir un lait végétal (par exemple lait d’avoine ou de soja) disponible au petit-déjeuner, pour le café et les céréales ?

Pour le dîner, pourriez-vous nous proposer un repas végane? Même un repas simple à base de légumes, légumineuses, céréales, huile d’olive, etc. serait très apprécié.

N’hésitez pas à nous contacter si vous avez besoin de plus d’informations.

Un grand merci d’avance pour votre attention et votre aide !

Avec nos salutations les plus chaleureuses,

Sharon Collins et Mark Stephens

———————————-

Subject: Vegan Meal Request – Wednesday 9th July

Dear Refuge Les Mottets team,

I hope this message finds you well.

My husband and I have a reservation at your hotel on Wednesday 9th July, as part of a Tour du Mont Blanc trip arranged by Mac’s Adventures. The booking will be under the name Mark Stephens, and we are booked on a half-board basis (breakfast and dinner).

We understand that vegan options in the Alps can be limited, but we were wondering if it would be possible to have a plant milk, such as oat or soya milk, available for breakfast (for our coffees and cereal)?

Also, would it be possible to provide a vegan dinner? Even a simple meal using vegetables, pulses, grains, and olive oil would be much appreciated.

Please let us know if you need any further information. Thank you so much in advance for your kind attention and support!

With warm regards,

Sharon Collins and Mark Stephens

Research Vegan-Friendly Spots

Before the trip, I researched vegan-friendly cafés, restaurants, supermarkets, and health food stores along the route.

My go-to tools were:

Google Maps – search “vegan” near your accommodation, and filter reviews for vegan mentions.
TripAdvisor – search for vegan restaurants in each location, then add ‘vegan’ into the review section to filter reviews.
HappyCow – a great app and website for locating vegan-friendly spots anywhere.

I pinned all my finds on a custom Google Map called TMB Vegan Food 2025. I also added supermarkets and health food shops where we could grab lunch supplies and snacks.

This gave me such peace of mind – I knew exactly where vegan meals were available, and which stages would be trickier and need extra forward planning.

Our vegan lunch at Le Carnotzet, Les Contamines — *Having missed lunch on the trail, we were so thankful for this late lunch feast at Le Carnotzet in Les Contamines!*

Plan by Stage

In general:

Larger towns (Courmayeur, Chamonix, Les Houches) have more vegan options.
Remote areas (Les Mottets, La Fouly, Champex-Lac) have very limited choices – it’s best to stay half-board and email ahead to request vegan meals.

If you’re planning your own vegan TMB adventure, you may find our Vegan Food Diary on the Tour du Mont Blanc (TMB) blog post helpful.

View of Refuge des Mottets — *Les Mottets was the most remote place we stayed on the TMB – we were so grateful we’d booked half-board!*

What to Bring from Home

Bringing a few essential vegan supplies from home makes all the difference:

Trail mixes (nuts, seeds, dried fruits, dark chocolate)
Vegan protein bars (e.g. Trek, Nakd)
Vegan meal bars (e.g. Real Meal)*
Dehydrated expedition meals (e.g. Firepot vegan range)**
Vegan treats (e.g. chocolate, oat bars)
Vegan multivitamins (especially with B12 and calcium, as most plant milks served were unfortified ones)

* We didn’t take these but they would have been so handy for the remote stages of the Tour. We’ll definitely bring a couple each next time!

** Even though we didn’t end up needing these, it was comforting to know we had a couple of backup meals in case of emergency.

Vegan snacks we took with us for the TMB — *Our stash of vegan snacks from the UK – we packed some of our favourites that aren’t easy to find in the Alps.*

Managing Expectations

Vegan options are limited in the Alps – especially in remote areas.

Don’t expect much choice, especially in the refuges. We were just thrilled that they could offer us a hot, hearty meal, and it saved us from resorting to our emergency supplies!

Always pack your own lunch and snacks, so you’re never caught short.

Honestly, we went into the trip with very low expectations food-wise, but thanks to planning and preparation, we were more than fine. (As you’ll see in our TMB Food Diary!) We enjoyed some truly delicious vegan meals along the way, and our packed lunches were often little feasts in themselves.

Vegan packed lunch on the TMB — *A typical vegan packed lunch for us on the TMB. If sandwiches weren’t available, we’d take a loaf of fresh bread with us and dip it in jam! (Hummus was a rare find.)*

Final Thoughts

If you’ve been dreaming of hiking the Tour du Mont Blanc but worrying about doing it vegan – go for it!

With a bit of forward planning and realistic expectations, it’s absolutely doable. You’ll be rewarded with breathtaking scenery, a huge sense of accomplishment, and (yes!) some delicious meals along the way.

Here are two more posts we wrote about our experiences on the TMB, which you might find helpful if you’re planning your own vegan adventure:

Have you already hiked the TMB as a vegan? If so, I’d love to hear your top tips, favourite vegan finds, and any advice you’d like to share with fellow hikers – please share them in the comments below!

With love,

Sharon xx

3 Healthy Meals for £3 a Day – an affordable way to eat well!

Published on November 30, 2024August 3, 2026 by Sharon4 Comments

Welcome to my 3 Healthy Meals for £3 a Day series – a collection of simple, quick, affordable and delicious plant-based recipes for everyday life.

I originally created this series to show students and anyone on a tight budget that eating healthy, delicious plant-based food doesn’t have to be expensive. Over the years it’s become one of my favourite collections on the blog, filled with recipes that are simple enough for busy weekdays and affordable enough for everyday cooking.

With basic kitchen setups and limited budgets in mind, here are the criteria I used for selecting each recipe:

✨ Easy to Make – Each recipe is beginner-friendly, with straightforward steps perfect for those with little or no cooking experience.

✨ Quick Prep – Find recipes that take just 5 minutes, plus ‘cook once, eat twice’ meals that can save you time later. No recipe requires more than 30 minutes of hands-on time!

✨ Basic Equipment Only – No fancy kitchen gadgets required!

✨ Balanced Nutrition – Each recipe is packed with plant-based protein, complex carbs, fibre, healthy fats, and an array of vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants.

✨ Quality Ingredients – Staying on budget doesn’t mean sacrificing quality; I choose ingredients that taste great and don’t contain artificial additives or sweeteners.

✨ Long-Lasting Ingredients – I’ve prioritised ingredients that are shelf-stable or fridge-friendly for weeks, and can be used across multiple recipes to minimise waste.

✨ Great Taste – And most importantly, I only share recipes that my family love and make regularly. Every recipe has also been given the thumbs-up by my trusted team of recipe testers!

How I Costed the Recipes

I’ve based most of the costings on Tesco prices, as that’s where I currently do my main grocery shop. The prices reflect the full cost of ingredients, but many are often on special offer or discounted for Clubcard members, so you could make these meals for even less!

If you’re not already a member of your local supermarket’s loyalty scheme, it’s definitely worth signing up. These membership schemes often include discounts on essentials, and I find they save me hundreds of pounds each year!

The only ingredients I haven’t included in the costings are salt, pepper and oil, as these are pantry staples for most households.

The Recipe Collection

I’ve organised the recipes into three categories based on how I usually eat them – Breakfasts, Lunches, and Dinners – but feel free to mix it up and eat them whenever you like! If you’re a fan of savoury breakfasts, try a tofu scramble or beans on toast. Dinner leftovers make excellent next-day lunches.

Breakfasts

Lunches

Canned Vegetable Soup with a Protein Boost, 98p
Coronation Chickpea Smash Sandwich with Rocket, 91p
Herby Tofu ‘Cream Cheese’ Bagel, £1.26
Scrambled Tofu on Toast, £1.32
The British Classic: Baked Beans on Toast, 49p
Tofu ‘Egg Mayo’ Sandwich, £1.00
Vegan High Protein Mediterranean Sandwich, 99p

Dinners

Chickpea & Sweet Potato Coconut Curry with Rice, £1.00
Easy Vegan Chilli Non Carne with Rice, £1.00
Quick and Easy Vegan Chow Mein, £1.55 / £1.34
Red Lentil Dhal with Coconut and Sweet Potato, served with Chapattis, 80p / 53p
Speedy Vegan Spaghetti Bolognese, 80p
Super Greens Pasta with Balsamic Glaze, 90p

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✨ Get Creative ✨

Don’t hesitate to get creative—these meals are wonderfully versatile, so feel free to tweak and adapt them to suit your tastes. I’d love to hear your feedback and see your delicious creations! Simply tag your photos with #bitofthegoodstuff on social media, and they’ll find their way to me. You can also connect with me on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest.

I hope you enjoy these budget-friendly recipes as much as I do!

With love,

Sharon xx

Bit of the Good Stuff Plant-Based Nutrition Coaching

Published on July 25, 2019September 24, 2025 by Sharon4 Comments

Last Saturday at Bath Vegan Festival, we publicly launched Bit of the Good Stuff Plant-Based Nutrition Coaching 🌱 We have been busy working behind the scenes on this new venture for some time now, and we are delighted to finally be in a position to share it with you!

Where it started….

Since we started our own plant-based journey as a family back in 2011, we’ve shared hundreds of recipes on the Bit of the Good Stuff blog. This was followed by the launch of our first cookbook in November 2016, and it’s been an absolute joy to hear how useful people have been finding both the book and the blog!

And while we are keen to continue sharing new recipes on the blog, we also want to be able to help people on their plant-based journey in a more personal way. With this in mind, in 2018, we trained to become qualified nutrition advisors. Sharon qualified as a Nutritional Therapist, and Mark as a Sport and Exercise Nutrition Advisor.

Since then, we’ve been working with friends and volunteers to develop and refine our coaching sessions. It’s been a lot of fun and very rewarding to help people on their journeys, whatever their plans and aspirations for a more plant-based lifestyle.

Why we’re doing it…

There are three equally important reasons why we are keen to promote plant-based living:

The Environment – The impact of meat and dairy agriculture on the environment is now mainstream news. Reducing consumption of animal products is one of the key components of reducing carbon emissions. Going plant-based is the single most significant thing we can do, as individuals, to reduce our environmental impact.

Our Health – Plant-based living is also good for our health. The incidence of many of the now prevalent diet-related diseases like obesity, type 2 diabetes and heart disease can be reduced by adopting a more plant-based lifestyle.

The Animals – Going plant-based is the most powerful action we can take to reduce animal suffering. Each year, in the UK alone, 900 million farmed animals are killed for food or as by-products of the dairy and egg industries.

The Launch!

It was incredibly special for us to launch our new venture at Bath Vegan Festival (in our home city!) We’d like to say a big thank you to Victoria and Wes at Vegan Events UK for organising the day, and to everyone who came to chat to us at our stall. Everyone we met was so friendly, kind and supportive!

Huge thanks also to everyone who came to Mark’s talk. What a fantastic turn out! Mark really appreciated everyone who endured the stifling heat to listen to his talk on plant-based nutrition; and all the positive support and feedback!

And finally, we would like to extend a massive thank you to Catriona Archer for her beautiful design work. Catriona’s principal business is Interior Styling, but her eye for design extends way beyond interiors. It was Catriona that designed our first cookbook, so it’s brilliant to have the same ‘look and feel’ running through our new business.

And while we’re excited to be starting something new, we’re also really looking forward to blogging lots more delicious recipes and ideas for plant-based living!

Thank you for your continued support,

Best Wishes,

Sharon and Mark xx

‘Butter Chicken’ … Vegan Style!

Published on March 15, 2019September 24, 2025 by Sharon7 Comments

Jump to Recipe

Hey lovely people! Today I’m sharing a vegan version of the classic Indian dish Murgh Makhani (‘Butter Chicken’). While the chicken, cream and butter have been replaced with plant-based alternatives, there has been no compromise in flavour or consistency. The dish is filled with beautiful Indian spices and is really flavourful, but mild enough (heat wise) to be appealing to all members of the family.

As well as being a tasty, cruelty-free version of traditional ‘Butter Chicken’ it also happens to be packed full of nutritional goodness. It’s rich in B vitamins, vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin E and a whole array of minerals, including iron, calcium and zinc. It is also super high in protein. A single serving contains around 35 g and that’s without the rice or flat bread! Unlike the traditional dish, this vegan version is low in fat and contains zero cholesterol. It’s a winner all round!

The inspiration for this dish came from this month’s Vegan Life magazine. As soon as I spotted the recipe for ‘Butter Chicken’ (p53) I couldn’t wait to give it a try. The author of the recipe is the incredibly talented Sasha Gill who blogs at The Sasha Diaries and has recently authored her debut vegan cookbook Jackfruit and Blue Ginger … all the while studying medicine at Oxford University!

The recipe I’m sharing today is an adaptation of Sasha’s original recipe. Rather than heading out to buy new ingredients, I decided to use the spices I already had available in my pantry. I was also a bit short on time, so I tweaked the method to enable me to have it on the table within 30 minutes. The resulting dish was so tasty that I quickly jotted down the amendments I made, then re-made it a few days later to check it wasn’t a fluke. Nope. It was equally delicious the second time.

After pan frying the onion, garlic and spices for a couple of minutes, I blended all the sauce ingredients in my high speed blender. Literally within seconds it was silky smooth! I poured the sauce back into the pan and heated it through. Job done!

Instead of chicken, we used seitan (as recommended by Sasha), which is chewy, succulent and soaks up the flavours of the sauce really well. Lately, I’ve really got into making seitan from scratch. Not only is it easy to make, but I find it works out far cheaper than the store-bought meat alternatives. This recipe cost me £3.11 to make, which equates to 78p per portion. Bargain!

Recipe Card

Nutritional Breakdown

N.B. The above values are estimates. The actual nutritional values will vary depending on the brands and ingredients used.

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Big thank you to Sasha Gill and Vegan Life magazine for the inspo! ✨

If you make this Vegan Style ‘Butter Chicken’ (or any other recipes on my blog), I’d love to hear your feedback and any suggestions for adaptations! Tag your photos with #bitofthegoodstuff on social media – I always love to see your creations! You can also connect with me on my social media channels here: Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest.

With love,

Sharon xx

Chinese Egg-Fried Rice … Vegan Style!

Published on February 15, 2019September 24, 2025 by SharonLeave a comment

Jump to Recipe

In today’s post, I’m sharing a recipe for a Chinese “Egg-Fried” Rice that’s perfect for serving any night when you need a quick and easy meal on the table. Not only is it tasty, but it’s also packed full of nutritional goodness. It’s especially rich in protein, vitamins A, B and C, and an array of minerals. It’s also much lower in fat than traditional Chinese egg-fried rice and contains zero cholesterol.

And, most importantly, it’s cruelty free! No hens or chicks were harmed in the making of this meal!

A few years ago, I discovered that tofu makes a fantastic egg replacer for Chinese egg-fried dishes. Crumbled, seasoned and stirred through rice or noodles, its texture and appearance have an uncanny resemblance to egg, which is pretty weird when you consider that tofu is made from beans!

I like to use calcium-set tofu as it’s a quick way to boost the family’s calcium levels. Here in the UK, the one brand of tofu that I’ve found to be calcium-set is Cauldron Foods Organic Tofu. (And fortunately, this is the one that’s widely available in our supermarkets right now!) According to the FAQ page on the Cauldron Foods website, a 100g serving (¼ pack) of their tofu provides around 40% of the recommended daily amount of calcium.

Back in 2014, I shared a recipe for Vegan Egg-Fried Noodles, but my family’s favourite Chinese Egg-Fried Rice still hadn’t made its way onto the blog. It was high time for me to put that right! Since Thursday is typically ‘Rice Night’ in our house, I made sure to photograph our dinner last night before we devoured it. That way, I would have some pictures to share alongside the recipe today.

The dish is really simple to make. While the rice is cooking, pan fry some veggies and crumbled tofu, then whisk together the marinade and pour it into the pan. When the rice is cooked, stir it through the veggies then it’s ready to serve.

The choice of veggies to include in the fried rice is entirely yours. I add red pepper and green peas as they’re so colourful. Mushrooms are great for savouriness and some chewy texture. If you wish, you could even add in some vegan meat alternatives like Iceland’s “No Chick” strips or Oumph’s “The Chunk” to make a vegan style “Chicken” Fried Rice.