Actu Montagne newspaper article (summer 2017)
Find Direct Mountain in this article from Actu Montagne magazine, summer 2017 Savoie Mont Blanc edition:
The mountain live
Launched in May 2016, www.directmountain.com is an internet site for mountain sports (mountaineering, canyoning, climbing, snowshoeing, ski touring, mountain biking, etc.). It currently groups together the offers (full-day or half-day outings, stays, etc.) of some 75 professionals (mountain guides, mountain leaders, instructors, etc.), most of whom are independent or work in small structures. "The idea came to me when I was talking to a friend who wanted to do an ice climbing course without going through a big structure like UCPA. He had spent a lot of time comparing offers from independent professionals on Google", explains Sylvain Hortoland, creator of Direct Mountain, whose headquarters are in Grenoble. But it is in no way a "booking.com" type offer comparator for mountain sports. "The idea is rather to put guides in touch with their future clients. The site must allow contact to be made, which is essential in my eyes. It is not possible to book a service directly. This is voluntary because I want there to be a prior exchange between the client and the professional, in order to ensure that the service that will be sold really corresponds to the client's expectations and abilities. This avoids unpleasant surprises. "