There's no denying that the world's most popular peaks and routes are renowned for good reason. From the sensational Mont Blanc to the legendary Everest Base Camp, these are trips that are truly once-in-a-lifetime experiences. The Alpine circuit delivers breathtaking mountain scenery and centuries of mountaineering history, while the trek to Everest Base Camp offers an rare glimpse into high-altitude culture and the world's most dramatic mountain landscape.

Yet beyond the crowds that these iconic destinations draw, lie European mountain ranges, trails and cultures that are waiting to be discovered by travellers willing to venture beyond the beaten track. Our KE adventure holidays are deliberately designed to take you away from the crowds, offering experiences that are just as awe-inspiring than that of the iconic destinations. These carefully selected alternatives don't just match the popular treks but offer an experience that feels personal, genuine and full of adventure.

While trekkers continue to enjoy the trails of the French and Swiss Alps, the High Tatras remain untouched by mass tourism and receive relatively few visitors each year. Tucked away between Poland and Slovakia, the High Tatras’ rugged landscape delivers spectacular scenery, turquoise lakes and excellent trails that largely remain under the radar.

On our High Tatras Trekking walking holiday, travellers trek and scramble through one of Europe’s best-kept secrets, summit Poland’s highest peak and stay in beautifully placed alpine huts only inaccessible on foot. For those who seek a true wilderness and a hidden corner of Europe at a fraction of the cost of the central Alps, this is the perfect alternative.

North Macedonia stands frozen in time and offers some of the least explored trails in Europe. At KE, we take travellers to explore this beautiful and unfrequented country on the very best scenic trails in the Mavrovo and Galcicia National Parks. Beyond the trail, the culinary experience is just as rich as the hiking.

Travellers enjoy home-cooked meals with a local family, sample traditional dishes at Saint Jovan Bigorski Monastery, taste the herb rakija and eat at a renowned restaurant with a reputation from residents that dates the Former Yugoslavia and Tito’s era. These immersive experiences allow travellers to discover an authentic taste of a hidden European destination.

Deep in the heart of the Balkans lie mountain ranges blissfully unknown to most travellers. Montenegro's eastern border conceals the jagged peaks of the Komovi Mountains, while the country's centre harbours the wilderness of Bjelasic, both great examples of spectacular scenery without the crowds.

Our Through the Heart of the Balkans walking holiday reveals these forgotten landscapes along ancient caravan routes. Travellers sleep in nomadic shepherd huts perched on alpine pastures and walk within the rocky spires, green pastures and scattered hamlets to experience a quiet way of life that feels lost in time. From Montenegro, the journey crosses into Serbia, where travellers witness Europe’s largest colony of griffon vultures and overnight stay in a Serbian Orthodox monastery for a rare glimpse into the Serbian Orthodox life.

Romania's Transylvanian Alps are one of the continent’s most pristine mountain wildernesses, where brown bears, chamois, marmots and raptors remain abundant. KE leads travellers through this wild landscape of ancient castles, fascinating history and folklore on a hut-to-hut trekking holiday far from the crowds.

On the Trekking The Transylvanian Alps walking holiday, travellers sleep in some of the most remote locations in all of Romania. This includes Romania's highest refuge, which is perched in isolation and the extraordinary Podragu Mountain Hut (2,136m), completely off-grid in a mountain basin. It wouldn't be unusual to wake to chamois grazing outside your window - a scene impossible to experience in Europe's more mountain-developed ranges.

The Across the Julian Alps to Triglav explores Triglav National Park in Slovenia, a place where trekkers can leave the modern world behind in a dramatic, crowd-free moutain terrain. One of the highlights is summing Mount Triglav (2,864m), reached via the legendary Skrbina Pass and the Valley of the Seven Lakes. After a week in alpine solitude, the journey ends at Lake Bled, which is a gentle return to civilisation and absolutely not to be missed!

While Instagram feeds overflow with overcrowded Alpine peaks, there's a mountainous gem hiding in plain sight on Europe's eastern edge. Armenia - landlocked, transcontinental, culturally rich and refreshingly untouched by mass tourism.

On our Armenia’s Trekking Highlights trip travellers weave between rural villages and dramatically positioned monasteries like Khor Virap, backdropped by Turkey's Mount Ararat, and Geghard, carved into rocks. The final day in Armenia is marked by the summit of Mount Aragats (4,090m), Armenia's highest point and a peak very few people will see!

And finally… At 78 degrees north, closer to the North Pole than to mainland Europe, Svalbard exists in a realm of extremes - a frozen archipelago where the sun disappears for months and human presence feels like an intrusion. Here, remoteness takes on an entirely new meaning.

Our 11-day self-supported crossing demands everything. Every step forward across the white expanse becomes an act of dedication and endurance in the Arctic silence. As expeditioners move through the awe-inspiring landscape, they must also maintain vigilance as polar bears move through their territory. It doesn't get more extreme than this!