Swiss Alps

Origin Expedition

Switzerland

The Original Guardians

September 2026 · 10 Days · 12 Participants

Secure Your Spot

$5,000 deposit · Fully refundable within 30 days

Planet 5 exists for those who want to be closer.

Closer to the landscapes that shape the planet. Closer to the cultures that have lived alongside them for generations. Closer to experiences that cannot be replicated, purchased, or performed.

Switzerland is where the Alps began. Not as a mountain range, but as an idea. The birthplace of alpinism, where climbing became culture and peaks became pilgrimage. Glaciers that have carved these valleys for millennia. Farming families whose ancestors built the stone walls you walk beside.

This is not a destination. It is the original.

Philosophy

The New Luxury Is Participation

For today's most discerning travelers, luxury is measured in proximity, access, and participation. In knowing the difference between passing through and being invited in.

This expedition embodies that shift. Helicopters to glaciers most will never stand on. Land Rovers through high passes closed to public traffic. Private lodges in valleys with no roads. Dinners with families who make cheese the way their great-grandparents did.

Not itinerary. Through-journey.

The Experience

The Journey

Helicopter to the High Alps

Land on glaciers that few will ever see up close. Stand where the ice meets the sky. Access peaks and passes that would take days to reach on foot, in minutes.

Private Alpine Lodges

Sleep in isolated mountain huts and historic chalets converted for small groups. Stone walls, wood fires, views that have not changed in centuries. No hotels. No crowds. Just mountains.

The Aletsch Glacier

The largest glacier in continental Europe. Walk its moraines with glaciologists who have studied its retreat for decades. Witness scale that photographs cannot capture.

High Passes by Land Rover

Cross passes that remain closed to ordinary traffic. Routes that connect valleys the old way, before tunnels made everything fast and forgettable.

Farming Families of the Valais

Share meals with families still working the land using methods passed down through generations. Cheese made on the alp. Wine from vineyards carved into impossible slopes. This is not performance. This is daily life.

The Matterhorn at Dawn

Some mountains become symbols. Stand before this one as first light hits the summit. Understand why it drew climbers from across the world and never let them go.

Secure Your Place

$5,000

Fully refundable within 30 days if this journey is not the right fit.

Reserve My Spot

100% of your deposit goes directly to our local partners preparing your expedition.

We only want people on this expedition who genuinely want to be there.

What Makes This Different

Everything we offer is something you cannot book on your own.

Private helicopter access. Lodges in valleys with no roads. Meals in homes that do not take guests. Land Rovers on passes closed to traffic. Small groups of four or five, never twelve walking together.

Access over spectacle. Presence over programming. Small scale over reach.

The Details

When

September 2026

Duration

10 Days

Group Size

12 Maximum

Level

Moderate

What Happens Next

  1. Secure your spot with deposit
  2. Monthly updates as we finalize details with our partners
  3. Spring 2026: Dirk visits our partners in Switzerland. Expect exclusive updates, photos, and previews from the field.
  4. Final details and pricing confirmed by June 2026
  5. Balance due 60 days before departure
Secure Your Spot

100% of your deposit goes directly to our local partners preparing your expedition.

To collect art is to choose what you live with. To travel well is to choose how you move through the world. Planet 5 offers a way to do both with intention, through art, guardianship, and experience, without noise, without posturing, and without compromise.

This is the art of being there.