Mountain Expeditions is a UK company owned and run by Jon Gupta, specialising in Instructing & Guiding, seamlessly run Worldwide Expeditions & Expedition Specific Training.
We operate across 5 continents and believe a successful expedition is made up of the hundreds of small experiences gained from start to finish. We therefore ensure that every aspect of your trip is expertly organised and well-managed, whether it’s going rock climbing for the first time, winter mountaineering or joining a major Himalayan expedition!
Fully inclusive pricing
Great value expeditions
Personable approach & professional ethos
“We wouldn’t hesitate in recommending Mountain Expeditions whole heartedly. Thanks again for the experience of life time – a true mountain adventure! We would not choose anyone else for any future expeditions we hope to do.”
Bhupinder Singh – Private Kilimanjaro Expedition
1. Instructing & Guiding – We have rounded up all our UK mountain courses in this neat category. In spring, summer and autumn this includes all things mountaineering including Hill Walking, Scrambling and Rock Climbing, In the winter this includes all things snow, ice & mixed, in the form of Winter Skills, Winter Mountaineering and Winter Climbing.
2. Worldwide Expeditions – Our speciality, what we absolutely love and what are best known for! We have been guiding high altitude overseas expeditions for 10+ years. For a full list of our expeditions from Toubkal in Morocco to Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, all the way to 7000m Peak Lenin in Kyrgyzstan, please head to the M.E. Hub. We run a mixture of private expeditions and open expeditions throughout the year.
3. Expedition Specific Training – Drawing on decades of worldwide expedition experience from our Instructors, Expedition Leaders & Guides, we provide expedition specific training programs for individuals and groups. We often create programmes and plans which span a number of years to help you achieve your distant mountain objectives. The training is delivered across the UK in both summer and winter.
Mountain Expeditions was established in 2009 by Jon Gupta. Jon was guiding his first fully self-organised expedition to Kilimanjaro with a mixture of school and university friends making up the team. With an extraordinary amount of laughter and fun, the trip was a huge success and Mountain Expeditions reached its first (of many) summits.
Jon’s passion for expeditions and mountains started in 2005 when he was age 18 after spending over 2 months living deep in the remote jungles of Belize.
“Being part of a team of 22 I pushed myself harder than ever and learnt what expedition life was all about…I loved it and I’ve never looked back!”
At 31; his love for the mountains is still growing and he has accumulated more high altitude experience than anyone his age in the UK (including 3 summits of Everest!). Jon is a Montane Athlete, full member of the Alpine Club, an ambassador for the Youth Adventure Trust and a member of the Mountain Training Association and the Association of Mountain Instructors.
Jon holds the Mountain Instructor Award (MIA), both Summer and Winter Mountain Leader Awards (WML), the International Mountain Leader (Training) and the Wilderness Medical Training 4 day Advance Medicine certificate. In 2015 he presented on the primetime BBC2 documentary series India: Natures Wonderland, alongside actress Freda Pinto and wildlife expert Liz Bonnin. Jon has written numerous feature articles for online and printed magazines such as The Economist, Trek & Mountain and Sidetracked and has also appeared in films shown at Kendal Film Festival: Between Snow & Stars and Beyond the Highest Peak. Recently he was interviewed for the Montane Podcast Further Faster and featured as one of their 6 key athletes in the series Performance Edge.
“My expedition and guiding work involves creating flexible and tailored programmes for clients, whether for a single day, a couple of weeks or a major Himalayan trip. I enjoy creating personalised itineraries that are highly flexible to meet the needs of my clients, taking into account the ever changing weather and conditions of the mountains.”
As well as his own mountain climbing, Jon has pursued other interests associated with the outdoors. He is a keen diver (PADI Advanced), road cyclist and off-piste skier but closer to home he has developed a deep interest in the soft skills and dynamics of expeditions as well as in high altitude medicine.
It is not our aim to grow into a big company dominating the market, far from it, instead we aim to maintain the high standards and personal touch we have become well known for, whilst continuing to deliver superb expeditions – having a large proportion of returning clients bears testament to our overall approach. We are steadily growing and we now employ a few select Expedition Leaders to deliver our Instructing & Guiding, Worldwide Expeditions and Expedition Specific Training.
Mountain Expeditions has a clear and defined ethos – the small things matter. We believe that spending time in the mountains is more than simply standing on a summit, ticking a route or navigating to the right spot; it’s about all the individual parts of the journey which build up to that shared experience. Whether you join us as a member of a team or as an individual learning some new skills, you are part of the Mountain Expeditions family from the minute you sign up.
We want to provide you with a unique and unparalleled mountain experience. Our Expedition Leaders have developed their skills on personal adventures and by leading expeditions in some of the world’s harshest and most remote environments. This expertise allows us to offer a variety of training, expeditions and challenges to suit all abilities and goals.
Mountain Expeditions is very proud to employ a small number of the UK’s very best and most experienced Instructors, Expedition Leaders and Guides. They are carefully and personally selected to deliver our UK Instructing & Guiding, Worldwide Expeditions and Expedition Specific Training.
All of our leaders are chosen on their individual merits which we base on their mix of vast mountain experience, interpersonal skills and of course, qualifications.