The Best Hut-to-Hut Hiking Trips For Women (Worldwide)

What Are Hiking Huts?

Hiking huts allow you to enjoy the same, authentic experience of a multi-day hike — but with a more comfortable place to put your feet up at night. Hiking huts are situated along trails and serve as a resting point for climbers and hikers alike.

There’s no need to lug around a heavy tent, camping gear, or cooking equipment when you go hut hiking. These set ups often feature hot showers, running water, and meals with some offering more amenities than others. Most huts offer private rooms as well as larger, multi-person ones. Think of them like mini hotels or small inns — except you can only reach them by foot and your roommates will be other adventure-seeking explorers.

Hiking huts originated in the Switzerland Alps during the late 1800s and were used mainly as a form of shelter from weather. Their popularity spread across quickly, and you can now find many different types of advanced backcountry huts throughout Europe and North America. 

If you’ve never experienced hut hiking, now is the time to start planning your next trip!

#1 Banff Canada Hiking + Hut-to-Hut Backpacking

If you’re looking for an authentic backcountry hiking experience, you’ve found it in the remote areas of Canada’s Banff National Park. Make sure you prepare for this trek, as you’ll have a weighted pack on your back for 3 out of the 6 days of this journey. 

Adventure awaits, and that adventure looks like taking on the Canadian Rockies and trekking across glaciers and the Wapta Icefields. You’ll have a guide leading the way, as well as the essential gear provided: climbing harness, climbing helmet, sleeping bag, crampons, ice axe, ropes, and 70L backpack. Mountaineers are usually the ones taking advantage of a mountain hut at the end of a long day, but with all the details covered, you can join them and feel like a true mountain-women.  

Kick back each night in your alpine hut, soaking in the unbeatable views of stunning glaciers and peaks and looking down upon the valley you just conquered. Like-minded women will be by your side, as this adventure is reserved for only women travelers and takes place during the month of August. 

Trip Details

• Who This Is For: Experienced women hikers
• What It’s Known For: Crossing the Wapta Icefield
• Difficulty Level: Advanced
• Duration: 6 days
• Trip Information: Women’s Banff Canada Hiking Adventure – Explorer Chick 

#2 Hiking Hut-to-Hut Alta Via N.1 of the Dolomites

The Dolomites are one of Italy’s best kept secrets, but we’re here to share all of their splendor with you. Located in the Northern Italian Alps, the Dolomites are a protected UNESCO World Heritage Site. Take on the classic high route — part of Alta Via N1 with  a guided 6 day trek. 

4 of those days take place as a hut-to-hut hike where you’ll stay in, as the Italians call them “rifugios.” The Dolomites are home to a system of more than 1,000 rifugios, which translates directly to mountain hut.

You’ll meet in an alpine resort town that was home to the 1965 Winter Olympics and start your hiking trip off in the Sennes Nature Reserve. Bask in the beauty of the Dolomites — often referred to as the Pale Mountains — and the way they reflect the brilliant red hues of the sunset at the end of each day.

3 separate guided tours take place in June, July, and August. The trek features plenty of ascents and descents, and is recommended for intermediate to advanced hikers. If your dream hiking trip includes changing landscapes, stunning views, and local Italian cuisine, then Alta Via N.1 is for you.

Trip Details

• Who This Is For: First-comers to the Dolomites
• What It’s Known For: Being one of the most classic routes in the Dolomites
• Difficulty Level: Intermediate to advanced
• Duration: 6 days
• Trip Information: Hiking Alta Via N.1 – Getaway Part I 

#3 Hut-to-Hut Hiking in Slovenia’s Julian Alps

Ever dreamt of traversing the European alps? Maybe you were put off by the initial challenges it could pose, or the headache and stress that accompanies trying to plan out itineraries and find lodging. 

When you join an already mapped out hiking tour, the details are taken care of for you. While this women-only trek through Slovenia isn’t for the faint of heart, it’s a breathtaking, true alpine journey for the more advanced hikers.  

This trip spans a total of 8 days, but the hut hiking portion only makes up 3 of them. You’ll wander forest paths, flower-filled meadows, and take in the beauty of Mt. Triglav up close and personal. To capitalize on the beauty of a Slovenian summer, this hike takes place once in early July, and again in mid July.

When else will you have the chance to wake up early and sip coffee from your mountain hut, admiring the Slovenian wilderness around you? Bask in the beauty of turquoise waters and lavender fields — you’ve earned it.

Trip Details

• Who This Is For: Adventurous women seeking solo travel with like-minded people 
• What It’s Known For: Views of Mt. Triglav, Slovenia’s highest mountain
• Difficulty Level: Advanced
• Duration: 8 days
• Trip Information: Slovenia Alps Hiking Hut to Hut and More – Explorer Chick 

#4 Hiking Hut-to-Hut in New Hampshire’s White Mountains

Yellowstone and Yosemite come to mind when you think of a famous American National Park, but The White Mountain National Forest sees more visitors each year than the two of them do combined. The Presidential range is home to the highest mountains in the Northeast, and you’ll be rewarded with breathtaking sights as you hike above the tree line in the alpine zone.

The Appalachian Mountain Club maintains the five backcountry huts that you’ll stay in during your 8-day New Hampshire adventure. Enjoy the perks of staying in a staffed mountain hut and make the most of that valuable rest time — you’re going to need it.

You’ll summit peak after peak, but the most memorable will be Mount Washington, which is the highest peak in the Northeast. It boasts an elevation of 6,288 ft and is known for its extreme weather — but with a guide to lead the way, you won’t run into any trouble.

The White Mountains are also home to quite a bit of natural wonders — including The Old Man in the Mountain, Flume Gorge, swimming holes, waterfalls, and vast forests. You should have some hiking experience, as you’ll be logging 7-8 miles each day and experiencing lots of elevation gain on the trails. 

 Trip Details

• Who This Is For: Experienced hikers wanting to tackle the White Mountains
• What It’s Known For: Highest peaks in the Northeast 
• Difficulty Level: Advanced
• Duration: 8 days
• Trip Information: Hiking Hut-to-Hut in New Hampshire’s White Mountains | Sierra Club Outings 

#5 Patagonia W Trek Hut to Hut Adventure in Torres Del Paine National Park

Hike the famous W Trek and explore the wild and pristine natural wonderland of Chilean Patagonia. Experience breathtaking views of the towering mountains, lush pampas grasslands, thick beech forests, and glacial lakes. Stay in Refugios (hiking hostels) all along the trails for a remote backcountry feel combined with the comfort of a cabin. Enjoy kayaking amongst vast icebergs and glaciers, and be on the lookout for pumas!

Trek approximately 40 miles in 5 glorious days and enjoy the beauty of Torres del Paine with a lighter backpack and fewer back sweat stains.

This thrilling hut to hut hike in Patagonia is the perfect adventure for anyone longing for an amazing outdoor experience. Travelers will be able to see some of the most stunning views of Chilean Patagonia with its towering peaks, lush pampas grasslands, thick beech forests, and glacial lakes. They will also get the experience of kayaking amongst vast icebergs and glaciers and be on the lookout for pumas! This 7-day trek will offer a unique way to explore the wilderness and have an unforgettable adventure.

Trip Details

• Who This Is For: Experienced hikers who can handle lots of elevation gain, rugged terrain, and a pack
• What It’s Known For: Epic, varied terrain in the southernmost part of South America 
• Difficulty Level: Advanced
• Duration: 7 days
• Trip Information: Patagonia W Trek Hut to Hut Adventure in Torres Del Paine National Park

#6 Trekking to Mountain Hut Fluonalp by Sunrise

Not everyone is up for a week-long hiking trip, and that’s okay. Here in Lungern, Switzerland, you can embark on a 2-day hike filled with butterflies, pastures, and lakes. 

That’s right — butterflies. Your route will follow the “Butterfly Path,” which is home to the most species-rich butterfly region in Switzerland. Check out the informational boards along the way and learn more about these beautiful Switzerland butterflies.

You’ll stay the night in one of Switzerland’s mountain huts, Fluonalp, where you can fill up on Swiss cuisine before getting some sleep. Wake up early and follow the trails for an hour to witness one of the most beautiful sunrises of your life, with a view of the sun coming up over the Swiss Alps. You can return to the hiking hut for breakfast before you descend to the picturesque Lungern-Turren cable car.

Plan your trip between May and October for optimal weather and hut conditions. Since this hike is on the shorter side, it’s still suitable for families, couples, individuals, and not as advanced hikers. 

 Trip Details

• Who This Is For: Less-experienced hikers, or families, looking for a short trip
• What It’s Known For: The butterfly path filled with more than 115 butterfly types
• Difficulty Level: Beginner to intermediate
• Duration: 2 days
• Trip Information: A hike to Fluonalp by sunrise | Switzerland Tourism 

Go Hut-to-Hut Hiking With Explorer Chick!

We’re all about adventures, and we’re all about unique experiences. Hut-to-hut hiking is one of the best ways to authentically explore the wildlife and remote areas that the backcountry has to offer.

If you’re looking for an adventure-filled journey, lifelong friendships, and authentic backcountry hiking, then an Explorer Chick trip is the one for you. With treks in Europe, North America, and South America, there’s an option for everyone no matter your preference in difficulty, location, or budget.

Leave the tent at home and pack up your hiking boots, then it’s time to hit the mountains!