Chamonix centre
First-timersThe town: the Aiguille du Midi station, the Mer de Glace train, bars, gear shops and most beds.
Chamonix city guide
Things To Do In Chamonix
Under Mont Blanc: skiing in winter, alpinism in summer, and a cable car that lifts you to 3,842 metres in twenty minutes whether your body is ready or not.
8
Hostels in the city
8.3
Average, from 2,756 reviews
4,806 m
Mont Blanc, the highest in the Alps
3,842 m
The top of the Aiguille du Midi cable car
1924
The first Winter Olympics, held here
The birthplace of mountaineering, and still the centre of it
Chamonix sits in a narrow valley directly under Mont Blanc, and modern alpinism effectively began here in 1786 when two locals made the first ascent. It has been a climbing town ever since, and it feels more like a working base than a resort.
The Aiguille du Midi cable car is the headline: from the valley floor at about a thousand metres to a rock spire at 3,842 in twenty minutes, with a viewing platform, a glass box to stand in, and the whole Mont Blanc massif at eye level.
That speed is also the problem. Going from 1,000 to 3,842 metres in twenty minutes gives a lot of people altitude sickness — headache, nausea, dizziness — and the station has oxygen on hand for a reason.
The Mer de Glace, France's largest glacier, is reached by a rack railway from the town. It has retreated dramatically, and the staircases built down to it get longer every few years, which is a lesson in itself.
Two or three days, and it is expensive.
Where to stay
A valley town with satellite villages strung along it, all linked by free buses.
Les Praz and Argentière
Skiing and quietUp the valley: closer to the Grands Montets, quieter, and on the free bus into town.
Les Houches
Value and familiesDown the valley: cheaper beds, a gentler ski area, and fifteen minutes into Chamonix.
Orange labels are neighbourhoods, dots are the 8 top-rated hostels. Map © MapTiler © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Things to do
Things to do in Chamonix
The Aiguille du Midi, about €75 return, is the thing people come for: twenty minutes from the valley to 3,842 metres, a viewing terrace, a glass box called the Step into the Void, and Mont Blanc close enough to read the routes on it. Go early — cloud builds through the day — and book the time slot ahead in summer.
Take the altitude seriously. The ascent is fast enough that headaches and nausea are common. Move slowly at the top, do not run up the stairs, and come down if you feel bad.
The Montenvers rack railway, about €40, climbs to the Mer de Glace, France's largest glacier, with an ice cave cut fresh each year. The staircase down to it has been extended repeatedly as the ice retreats.
In summer, the hiking is the real draw: the Grand Balcon Sud, the Lac Blanc, and the start of the Tour du Mont Blanc.
In winter it is a serious ski area across several separate sectors, with a lift pass around €65 to €75 a day.
Free things
Free things to do in Chamonix
The valley trails are free and extensive. The Petit Balcon Sud runs above the town with the massif opposite and needs no lift at all.
The riverside path along the Arve runs the length of the valley, flat and free.
Valley buses and trains are free with the guest card your accommodation issues, which makes moving between Les Houches, Chamonix and Argentière cost nothing.
The town itself is free to walk, with the Alpine cemetery holding generations of climbers, and gear shops that function as a museum of the sport.
Watching the paragliders land in the field by the centre on a clear afternoon is free and better entertainment than it sounds.
Food and drink
Eating and drinking in Chamonix
Savoyard, which means cheese. Fondue, raclette and tartiflette at €22 to €30 a head, usually with a two-person minimum, and they suit a day in the cold considerably better than a day in August.
Restaurant prices are resort prices: a main is €20 to €30 and a pizza €14 to €18.
The supermarkets in town are the real budget answer, and most hostels have kitchens because everyone here knows it.
Mountain refuges serve lunch on the trails at €15 to €22, which is reasonable given where they are.
A beer is €6 to €9, higher on the terraces facing the mountain, and the après-ski crowd keeps the bars busy from four in the afternoon in season.
Nightlife
Going out in Chamonix
Après-ski rather than nightlife. Bars fill from four in the afternoon in winter as people come off the lifts, and the crowd is international — a lot of seasonal workers from Britain, Scandinavia and Australia.
The centre has the bars, mostly within five minutes of each other, and a couple of clubs run late in season.
A beer is €6 to €9 and cocktails €11 to €16.
In summer the crowd is climbers and hikers, which means earlier nights — alpine starts are at two or three in the morning and people plan around them.
May and November are the two dead months, when the lifts close between seasons and much of the town shuts with them.
Getting around
Getting around Chamonix
Valley buses and the local train are free with the guest card your accommodation gives you, and they run the length of the valley between Les Houches, Chamonix, Les Praz and Argentière. This is genuinely useful and a lot of visitors never realise it.
The town centre is walkable in ten minutes.
Geneva airport is about an hour away by shared shuttle at €30 to €50 return, which is the standard arrival. Trains involve a change at Saint-Gervais and take longer.
Annecy is about two hours, Turin about three through the Mont Blanc tunnel.
Lift passes are separate from transport and cost €65 to €75 a day in winter, with multi-day and multi-valley options.
Costs
What Chamonix costs
Expensive, and the lifts are why. Dorms are €30 to €55 in season and €22 to €38 in the shoulder months.
A main is €20 to €30 and a beer €6 to €9, so a day is €70 to €130 before you go up anything.
The lifts are the real budget: the Aiguille du Midi is about €75 return, the Mer de Glace about €40, and a ski pass €65 to €75 a day. Two or three of those adds €150 to €250 per person.
The free version is genuinely good though — the valley trails, the Petit Balcon Sud and the free buses cost nothing and the views are the same mountains.
May and November are cheapest because almost everything is closed.
Safety
Staying safe in Chamonix
This is a high mountain environment and the risks are real rather than theoretical. Chamonix has one of the busiest mountain rescue services in the world.
Altitude: the Aiguille du Midi takes you from about 1,000 to 3,842 metres in twenty minutes, which is far faster than the body adjusts to. Headache, nausea and dizziness are common. Move slowly at the top, do not exert yourself, and descend if symptoms get worse rather than better.
Weather changes fast and visibility can close in within minutes. Check the forecast and, in winter, the avalanche bulletin every day.
Do not go onto glaciers without a guide. Crevasses are covered by snow and are not visible, and this kills people every year including experienced ones.
Tell someone your route, carry more layers and water than you expect to need, and turn back earlier than feels necessary. Emergency number is 112.
Day trips from Chamonix
Three countries meet within an hour and a half of the valley.
Courmayeur, Italy
The other side of Mont Blanc, with better food and a different view of the same mountain.
Geneva
A different country, a lake city, and the airport most people fly into.
Annecy
A canal town on an alpine lake with swimming and a flat cycle path.
Mer de Glace
France's largest glacier, with an ice cave and a staircase that gets longer as the ice retreats.
What's on
What is on while you are there
An ultramarathon round Mont Blanc fills the valley every August.
5 Sep – 26 Dec
Chamonix Market Day
The Saturday market is the largest and most popular market in the Chamonix valley. Held every Saturday morning in the town centre on Place…
18–19 October
Bois Mon’t Blanc Wine Festival
More than 60 organic winemakers from across the Alpine Arc gather at this autumn festival set in a woodland clearing opposite Mont Blanc. Giant…
23–25 October
Chamonix Photo Festival
Chamonix transforms into a gathering point for nature photography lovers each autumn, when the valley is at its most visually striking. The festival brings…
2 October
The Picture of Dorian Gray
Oscar Wilde's tale of vanity and corruption comes to life in this adaptation, following the beautiful Dorian Gray as he trades his soul for…
2–4 October
30th Anniversary: CREA Mont-Blanc
CREA Mont-Blanc celebrates three decades of mountain science with a weekend packed with conferences, hands-on activities, and field trips at the Observatoire Mont-Blanc. Friday…
17 October
The Basel Friend Zone
A jazz fusion quintet with African roots takes the stage, performing original compositions that blend tradition with something fresh and modern. The music moves…
4 November
Les Goguettes as a Trio but Actually as a Quartet
Four comedians who revived the French chansonnier tradition and performed at legendary venues like the Olympia are back on the road with a completely…
8 October
Science Bar: Taste Comes to the Table
What shapes your food preferences — your brain, your childhood, your culture, or your grandmother insisting you finish that third helping of dessert? This…
Hostels
Where to stay in Chamonix
A decent scene for a mountain town, spread along the valley and linked by free buses. Live from Hostelworld.
La Folie Douce Hotels Chamonix
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RockyPop Hotel
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L'Arveyron Open House
Dorms from €43 a night
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Chamonix Lodge
Dorms from €28 a night
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Sustainable
Auberge de Jeunesse HI Chamonix Mont-Blanc Alpes
Dorms from €26 a night
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Vert Lodge Chamonix
Dorms from €23 a night
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Chalet-Gite Chamoniard Volant Hostel Chamonix
Dorms from €17 a night
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Gîte la Montagne
Dorms from €30 a night
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When to go
January to March for skiing, July to September for hiking. May and November are closed.
Jan
Deep winter. Best snow and short days
Feb
Peak ski season. Busy and expensive
Mar
Excellent skiing with longer days and more sun
Apr
Spring snow up high, and the season winding down
May
Closed. Lifts down for maintenance and much of the town shut
Jun
Hiking starts, but snow still lies on the higher trails
Jul
Peak summer. All trails open and the valley full
Aug
The same, with the UTMB race at the end of the month
Sep
The best hiking month. Clear air, thinner crowds, stable weather
Oct
Quiet and cheap. Higher lifts starting to close
Nov
Closed. Between seasons and very little open
Dec
Ski season opens and Christmas fills the valley
Bar height is temperature. Colour is how busy it gets:
quiet
busy
peak
Average valley temperatures — it is far colder at altitude, and the Aiguille du Midi can sit below freezing on a warm August day. May and November are genuinely dead months when the lifts shut for maintenance.
What your trip will cost
Pick how you travel. Per person per night, in euros.
Local transport is zero because valley buses and trains are free with the guest card. The doing line is lifts, and it is where the money goes.
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- Beds—
- Food and drink—
- Getting around—
- Doing things—
Chamonix travel questions
The ones we get asked most.
Will I get altitude sickness on the Aiguille du Midi?
Possibly. It takes you from about 1,000 to 3,842 metres in twenty minutes, which is far faster than the body adjusts to, and headaches, nausea and dizziness are common — the station keeps oxygen for that reason. Move slowly at the top, avoid exertion, and go back down if symptoms worsen.
Is the Aiguille du Midi worth €75?
If the weather is clear, yes — it is one of the great cable car rides anywhere and puts you level with the Mont Blanc massif. Go early, because cloud builds through the day, and check the webcams before you buy. In poor visibility it is €75 for a view of the inside of a cloud.
Do I need to pay for local transport?
No. Valley buses and the local train are free with the guest card your accommodation issues, running between Les Houches, Chamonix and Argentière. A lot of visitors never find this out.
When should I avoid?
May and November. The lifts shut for maintenance between seasons and much of the town closes with them. They are the cheapest months for exactly that reason.
Can I walk on the glacier?
Not without a guide. Crevasses are covered by snow and invisible from the surface, and they kill people every year including experienced mountaineers. The Mer de Glace ice cave, reached by the Montenvers railway, is the safe way to get onto ice.
How expensive is it?
Dorms €30 to €55 in season, mains €20 to €30, beer €6 to €9. The lifts are the real cost — the Aiguille du Midi at €75, the Mer de Glace at €40, a ski pass at €65 to €75 a day. Two or three of those adds €150 to €250 per person.
What is the best month for hiking?
September. The air is clear, the weather is more stable than midsummer, the trails are free of snow and the July and August crowds have gone. Early June often still has snow on the higher routes.
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