The closest town on the French side of the border to Mont Blanc, Chamonix is the perfect base whether you are exploring the region in summer or winter. Home to some of the best skiing in the Alps, as well as great hiking and mountain biking routes when the weather is warmer, Chamonix also has plenty of tourist amenities, such as accommodation and restaurants.
The town and winter sports resort of Chamonix is located in the Haute-Savoie departement at the foot of Mont Blanc, the highest mountain in Europe. Unsurprisingly famous for its stunning scenery, the area is as popular with tourists in the summer months as it is during the winter skiing season. Extreme sports are becoming a more and more common sight in this part of France, with activities like white water rafting, climbing, paragliding and canyoning on offer during the summer, and extreme skiing and ice climbing available in the winter months.
Chamonix itself is just as much of an attraction as the surrounding scenery. A charming Alpine village in its earlier life, there are still signs of this historic community in amongst the modern hotels, bars and restaurants. Take the tourist train around the streets of Chamonix or call in at the Alpine Museum if the weather is bad, to learn about the men and women who have conquered, and been defeated by, these mountains.
As well as the dozens of ski runs in and around the resort of Chamonix, snowboarding is also popular, along with more extreme winter sports such as ice climbing and extreme skiing or speed-riding, using a paragliding chute to steer yourself down off-piste slopes. The resort provide ski taxis for those unable to get downhill themselves, allowing them to sit comfortably while someone else “drives” their sled, or you can always rely on more traditional methods to get where you need to be and take a day trip on a husky-drawn sled.
Standing on the border between France and Italy, Mont Blanc is the highest mountain in Western Europe at 4,800 metres in height. While getting to the peak of Mont Blanc or Monte Bianco in Italian, should be left to expert climbers, tourists can still get quite a significant way up its slopes by a variety of methods, from cable cars and trains to hiking. There are a number of ski resorts on Mont Blanc’s lower slopes, including the ever-popular Chamonix.
If you are determined to join the 20,000 people a year who make it to the peak of Mont Blanc, you should make sure you are an experienced and well-prepared climber, as even the easiest ascent, the Voie des Cristalliers, has its difficulties and dangers. Inexperienced climbers and hikers should settle for one of the two other ways to get close to the peak, the Tramway du Mont Blanc from Le Fayet and the cable car from Chamonix.
The Tramway du Mont Blanc is a single gauge railway from the town of Le Fayet to Bellevue, half-way up the slopes, and then onto the Nid d’Aigle, starting point for many ascents and a great viewpoint for those who are going no further. There is even a restaurant at this final stop, for the ultimate meal with a view. Mountain bikers may prefer to get off at Bellevue to have a go at the cycle-only trail down the valley to Les Houches. Keen hikers can take an easier path from the Bellevue or the Nid d’Aigle to the Bionnassay glacier, rather than tackling the climb to the peak.
The cable car from Chamonix takes visitors as far as the Aiguille du Midi, at a height of 3,800 metres. Not only can you enjoy spectacular views once you get to the top, but keep your camera handy all the way up, as the scenery gradually changes from the gentle slopes of the valley to the steep rocky cliffs higher up Mont Blanc. At the top there is a restaurant and a gondola lift ride over the Glacier du Géant to the Pointe Helbronner in Italy.
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