Experience the best of the Tour du Mont Blanc in just 5 days—without sacrificing comfort! This compact trek features four days of breathtaking hiking, luggage transfers, cozy hotel stays, and all meals included. Shared dinners and seamless transfers by public bus (or taxi if needed) ensure a low-impact, relaxing journey with a terrific local guide. This is perfect for those who want to explore the highlights of the Mont Blanc massif while enjoying comfort every step of the way.
Our adventure starts at the tourist office in Les Houches, the start and finish line of the TMB. Then you meet your guide and board transportation to Les Contamines, where we’ll spend our first night and get ready for the next day’s hike.
Meals: Dinner
Accommodation: Hotel Le Christiania or similar
First day on the trail today! We begin the day with a gentle walk along the Bon Nant stream to warm up the hiking legs and pass by the ancient Notre Dame de la Gorge church. With the trail suddenly climbing, being immersed in the deep forest, we experience the first highlight of the day—the millennia-old Roman bridge that’s as vital now as it was then.
Meals: Breakfast, lunch, and dinner
Hiking: 19 km (12 mi), 8.5 hours
Elevation: +1,300 m (4,200 ft)
Accommodation: Hotel Angival or Basecamp in Bourg St. Maurice
A minibus brings us from the little town of Bourg St. Maurice back to the trailhead at Ville de Glacier, where cows roam around and some of the best cheese is still locally manufactured and available for purchase. The hiking trail takes us immediately up into the higher regions, where the wind noticeably picks up and the view of the surrounding peaks gets better. Snow storms even in August and September are not unheard of here!
There’s a well-trodden path here—after all this, there’s a border crossing from France into Italy, over the Col de la Seigne. From here, you can see all the way to the Swiss border on a good day! If you’ve had enough of the uphill walking, you’re in luck—a long and gradual downhill brings us to Rifugio Elisabetta (with amazing Italian hot chocolate) and to the flat area known as Las Combal. Another gradual descent brings us back to civilization, and with a short bus ride, we’ll arrive in Courmayeur. Dinner will be at a traditional pizzeria.
Meals: Breakfast, lunch, and dinner
Hiking: 22 km (14 mi), 8.5 hours
Elevation: +1,300 m (4,200 ft)
Accommodation: Hotel Croux od Del Viale in Courmayeur
We’ll reach the end of the Italian Val Ferret and begin our hike up towards the Swiss border. It’s a wild place, and be sure to check out the surroundings while climbing higher! From here, we’ll be able to see some of the most important mountains in the history of alpinism, and it’s here where we can come across large herds of ibex, grazing and relaxing.
Once we finally reach the top of the climb, we’ll get a 360-degree view of some of the Alps’ tallest mountains and the Great St Bernard region of the Alps. Grand Col Ferret is also ideal for a lunch break to prepare ourselves for the long descent towards La Fouly that awaits us. On the way down, we’ll likely pass by large populations of marmots, always standing guard on rocks to watch out for predators.
Meals: Breakfast, lunch, and dinner
Hiking: 14 km (9 mi), 7 hours
Elevation: +800 m (2,600 ft)
Accommodation: Hotel du Glacier or similar in Champex-Lac
This is an underrated—and a gorgeous—stage of the TMB, the traverse from Champex-Lac to Trient over la Bovine. It’s from here where you can see far up the Rhone Valley to the tallest mountains of the Bernese Oberland (think: Grindelwald and the Eiger). If we’re lucky enough, we’ll even get to pet the cutest cows and experience how the local culture has been shaped by the mountains and the animals that inhibit these places. The descent from La Bovine past Col de Forclaz brings us to Trient, famous for its pink church, where we board our minibus to arrive back in Chamonix.
Meals: Breakfast and lunch
Hiking: 15 km (9.5 mi), 7 hours
Elevation: +800 m (2,600 ft)
Included:
Not included:
For both the classic 10-day and the compact 5-day Tour du Mont Blanc hiking tour, great fitness and extensive experience of longer day hikes are mandatory. The weather also plays a major role in how relaxing the hike can be, but there will always be a very experienced and professional guide by your side! Please be aware that you’ll be passing some exposed sections, so it’s not recommended for those with a severe fear of heights. For more day-to-day details, check out the itinerary, but you can expect the following:
This refers to the 10-day tour—yes, dormitory-style rooms are standard on this trip. If available, the guides will typically book small dorms with 4-6 beds.
Here’s a list of the equipment you need to bring:
Dress comfortably and for the weather in clothes you can move in. We suggest bringing clothing appropriate for the season. Layers are best and don’t wear jeans.
Group sizes and prices:
Tour du Mont Blanc hiking tours can be arranged for larger groups. Contact us to make arrangements.
Min. age requirements:
To get to Chamonix, the starting point of your 10-day Tour du Mont Blanc hiking tour, most people fly into Geneva International Airport (GVA), one hour away. For the 5-day tour, the starting point is Les Houches, just 10 minutes away from Chamonix.
Once you arrive, there are several ways to reach your destination, including public transport. Looking to make the airport transfers hassle-free? Check out Mountain Drop Offs—they provide door-to-door service in their comfy and spacious shuttles. Use the code 57HCHX to get a 5% discount!
You will meet your guide in the morning of Day 1 of the 10-day tour. Please keep in mind that you will have to overnight in Chamonix the day prior to the tour, as well as on the last day of the tour, as it’s a full hiking day. The starting point of your adventure is the Planpraz cable car station (accessible by foot from Chamonix center).
As for the 5-day tour, the first day is all about arrival.
We highly recommend that you cover all your bases with both emergency medical and travel protection. To make your booking and traveling experience as carefree as possible, we partnered up with Redpoint—the official 57hours insurance partner!
Redpoint tailors their protection packages for adventure travel, offering a comprehensive travel program, even in remote locations. Trip cancellation, natural disasters, pandemic coverage, medical evacuation, primary medical expenses—regardless of the travel interruption that may happen, Redpoint will have you covered.
Once your booking is confirmed and your trip is paid in full, you will be offered to purchase Redpoint’s protection. If you need any help or require more information, let us know and we will be happy to help!