Chamonix-Mont-Blanc

The valley capital at 1035 m, about two kilometres below the balcony path.

The place

The valley capital at 1035 m, and the reason half the world knows this massif exists. Gear shops on every corner, a hospital, trains, a mountain guides' office that has been running since 1821, and Mont Blanc directly overhead. The Tour passes about two kilometres above it on the balcony rather than through it.

Go down for a rest day, for the Aiguille du Midi cable car, or because your boots have finally given up. Many walkers also finish here rather than closing the loop over the Brévent to Les Houches, which is a legitimate choice — but the last day is one of the best, and ending in the town you could have reached by train on day one is a slightly deflating way to complete a circuit.

Getting there

Booking

This stop is not on the Tour du Mont-Blanc booking portal — it takes its own reservations, so there is no live availability for it in the planner. Contact it directly, early: the well-known ones fill months ahead.

Other places to stay nearby

• Refuge de la Flégère Refuge · 1877 m
  5.1 km back down the Tour, at 1877 m. Takes its own reservations — contact it directly.
• Refuge de Bellachat Refuge · 2136 m
  5.1 km further along the Tour, at 2136 m. Takes its own reservations — contact it directly.

For when this stop is full. These book themselves and are not on the Tour du Mont-Blanc portal — contact each directly and confirm before you rely on it.

Stages passing this stop

• Stage 11: Refuge de la Flégère → Les Houches