Clockwise or anti-clockwise — and do you need the whole loop?

Almost everyone walks the Tour du Mont Blanc anti-clockwise from Les Houches. It is not a rule, but nearly everything — guidebooks, hut half-board timings, other walkers' schedules — is built around it.

Refuge du Col de Balme on the Tour du Mont Blanc, 2191 m
Photo: Guillaume Baviere from Uppsala, Sweden · CC BY-SA 2.0 — Wikimedia Commons
165.7 kmfull loop
65.7 kmwest half to Courmayeur
100 kmeast half back
2531 mhighest point

Why anti-clockwise

Three practical reasons, none of them mystical. First, the big set-piece views arrive as you crest a col rather than behind you: the south face of Mont Blanc opening down the Val Veny from the Col de la Seigne, and the whole Chamonix valley from the Col de Balme. Second, the hardest climbing is front-loaded, while you are fresh and before the schedule has slipped. Third, and most practically, you are travelling with the crowd rather than against it — which matters when you arrive at a hut hoping for a cancellation.

What changes if you go clockwise

On a loop the totals cannot change: 165.7 km and 10.4 km of ascent either way. What changes is the distribution. The long climb to the Croix du Bonhomme becomes a long descent; the Grand Col Ferret is approached from the Swiss side, which is gentler; and the Aiguilles Rouges ladders are descended rather than climbed, which most people find worse. You will also pass every anti-clockwise walker face-on, all day, every day. Some find that sociable. Some find it exhausting.

Walking half the loop

This is the underrated option. Courmayeur sits at km 65.7 and is connected to Chamonix by the Mont Blanc tunnel bus in well under an hour, so both halves work as a standalone trek with an easy way home:

If you only have a week and want the famous views, the east half has Bonatti, the Grand Col Ferret, the Fenêtre d'Arpette, the Col de Balme, Lac Blanc and the Brévent. That is most of the postcard.

Where to start

It is a circuit, so the start is a convention. Les Houches is the traditional one and has a railway station; Chamonix has the most transport; Vallorcine is on the same line and quieter; Courmayeur is the choice if you want to finish in France rather than start there. The stage pages work in either direction — reverse the order and swap the ascent and descent figures.

Try it both ways

Switch direction and section in the planner and watch the daily stages, times and hut availability change. It costs nothing to compare.

Open the planner →

Frequently asked questions

Which direction is the Tour du Mont Blanc normally walked?
Anti-clockwise from Les Houches: Les Contamines, the Col du Bonhomme, the Col de la Seigne into Italy, the Grand Col Ferret into Switzerland, then back over the Col de Balme and along the Aiguilles Rouges above Chamonix. Guidebooks, hut timetables and most signage assume this.
Is clockwise harder?
Not meaningfully — the total ascent is identical on a loop. What changes is the shape of the days: some long climbs become long descents, and you meet the anti-clockwise majority head-on all day, which some people enjoy and others find relentless.
Can I walk only half?
Yes, and it is common. Courmayeur at km 65.7 is linked to Chamonix by the Mont Blanc tunnel bus in under an hour, so either half stands on its own: west (~65.7 km, the French cols) or east (~100 km, Italy, Switzerland and the Aiguilles Rouges).
Where should I start if not Les Houches?
Anywhere with transport: Chamonix, Argentière, Les Contamines, Courmayeur, Champex or Vallorcine all work. It is a loop — the start is a convention, not a requirement. Vallorcine and Les Houches have railway stations, which makes them the easiest.