Tour du Mont Blanc – day by day

We spent the night at a campsite next to the Bellevue lift station in Les Houches.

In the morning, instead of starting from the valley floor, we took the lift up and began our Tour du Mont Blanc from the upper station.

Most hikers follow the classic route.

We chose the higher variant.

Harder. Better views.

The trail climbed along the slopes below the Bionnassay Glacier. For most of the morning, snowy peaks filled the horizon.

One of the highlights was crossing the famous suspension bridge above the glacier valley.

The weather was good, the views were wide open, and the excitement of finally starting the trek made every climb feel easier.

A long first day.

A lot of elevation gain.

By evening we reached Les Contamines and Camp du Pontet.

Hot showers. Laundry facilities. Plenty of space.

A comfortable place to end our first day around Mont Blanc.

The climb towards Col du Bonhomme started early.

As we gained altitude, snow began appearing on the trail.
First a few patches, then entire sections covered in snow. We didn’t have microspikes yet, which made some parts slippery.

Near the pass, the weather changed completely. Rain moved in, the wind picked up and the temperature dropped. We ended up wearing almost every layer we had brought with us.

The descent, however, turned into an unexpected adventure. Already dressed in rain pants, we decided to slide down one of the snowy slopes instead of carefully walking down it. Cold and wet, but a lot more fun than expected.

Later in the afternoon the clouds finally started to break apart. The mountains reappeared and the views improved with every kilometre.

We arrived in Les Chapieux late in the evening, tired and hungry.

Fortunately, a small pizzeria next to the campsite was still open.

We spent the night at Aire de Bivouac des Chapieux, a simple designated camping area for hikers. There were no showers or reception, but after a long day on the trail, that hardly mattered.

A long day, so we started early.

Most hikers took the shuttle bus for the first kilometres. We walked.

First along a quiet road with mountain views.

At the first river crossing there was a bridge.

At the second – nothing.

We crossed the river using slippery rocks hidden under fast water. Some people tried using a narrow snow bridge instead, but it looked ready to collapse at any moment.

Later the trail climbed higher towards Col de la Seigne.
Higher up: more snow.

At the pass, we crossed from France into Italy.

Climbing was fine. Descending was worse.

Eventually we sat down and slid downhill on the snow for almost 100 meters. Again wearing rain pants.

The final kilometres to Courmayeur felt endless, but the scenery made them enjoyable.

At the campsite: laundry, drying gear, pizza and tiramisu.

The tiramisu was perfect.

After the long previous day we decided to take a short detour to Courmayeur.

Although the TMB doesn’t require you to go into town, we wanted to buy supplies for the next stages of the trek. We stocked up on food, treated ourselves to some excellent Italian cheese and cured meats, and bought microspikes for the snowy sections ahead.

By the afternoon, we were back on the trail.

And this turned out to be the most beautiful stage of the entire TMB.

After Rifugio Bertone, the trail climbed high above Val Ferret and offered continuous views of the Mont Blanc massif.

For hours.

Absolutely stunning.

We reached Camping Tronchey around 9 PM.

The location was beautiful, although the facilities were among the most basic of the whole trek. Hot water required tokens we didn’t have, and reception was already closed when we arrived.

One downside of this section for tent campers is the lack of camping options along the trail. Wild camping is not allowed, and the campsite in Val Ferret sits far below the main TMB route. This means losing quite a bit of elevation at the end of the day, only to climb back up again the following morning.

After the trek, we learned that many hikers avoid this by staying on the high trail all the way to Rifugio Bonatti. From there, they descend to the bus stop at Bivio Rifugio Bonatti, take a bus down to Camping Tronchey or Camping Grandes Jorasses, and return to the same point by bus the next morning before continuing the hike.

Unfortunately, we didn’t know about this option at the time, so we descended earlier and missed part of the spectacular high route between Courmayeur and Rifugio Bonatti.

Still, after a day like this, none of that really mattered.

After spending the night in Val Ferret, we first had to get back to the main TMB route.

Rather than walking several kilometres along the road, we took a short bus ride up the valley and continued from there.

The trail then climbed steadily towards Rifugio Bonatti and Grand Col Ferret.

Snow appeared again as we gained altitude.

This time there was much more of it.

For two hours we crossed snow-covered slopes below the pass. The microspikes we had bought in Courmayeur the day before proved invaluable. Without them, some sections would have been slow and uncomfortable.

At Grand Col Ferret, we left Italy behind and entered Switzerland.

The views from the pass were spectacular. Wide valleys stretched below us, while snow-covered peaks surrounded the horizon.

A long descent followed.

Instead of taking the easier route through the valley, we chose a higher mountain path towards La Fouly. It was quieter, more scenic, and added a few extra kilometres to an already long day.

By the time we reached the campsite, it was already around 9:30 PM.

One of the longest days of our Tour du Mont Blanc.

The day started in the clouds.

For much of the morning, the trail wound through larch forests hidden in fog. Visibility came and went, giving only occasional glimpses of the surrounding mountains.

One section followed a small stream, with water flowing directly along the trail.

Several organised hiking groups happened to be on the same stage, so parts of the trail felt surprisingly crowded.

As the weather improved, the views gradually opened up. From higher up, we could look down towards the Martigny Valley stretching far below.

Near Col de la Forclaz, we passed a campsite that didn’t look particularly inviting, so we decided to continue to Le Peuty instead.

It turned out to be a good choice.

The campsite was small, peaceful and surrounded by mountains. We arrived early, around 4:30 PM, which left plenty of time to relax and enjoy the afternoon.

The showers (2 EUR) required a separate token and lasted exactly six minutes. When the time was over, the owner literally banged on the door.

A calm and easy-going day before returning to France the next morning.

The day started with rain and low clouds hanging over the valley.

For much of the morning, the trail led through forests on the Swiss side of the TMB. Compared to the previous days, the scenery was less dramatic, but still enjoyable.

As we climbed higher, the weather gradually improved.

At Col de Balme, we crossed from Switzerland back into France. The clouds finally lifted and the views opened up. From the pass, we could see deep into the Chamonix Valley and towards the Mont Blanc massif.

One of the best viewpoints of the day.

The descent towards Argentière was long but straightforward, with plenty of mountain views along the way.

By the afternoon we reached Camping Glacier d’Argentière, a nice and big campsite. Spacious, comfortable and well equipped.

That evening an Italian couple arrived with a mobile pizza oven and started making fresh pizzas right at the campsite. After another round of laundry and drying gear, we settled in for the night before one of the most anticipated stages of the trek.

One of the most memorable days of our Tour du Mont Blanc.

The trail quickly climbed above 2,000 metres and became more challenging than most previous stages. Ladders, metal steps and rocky sections added a bit of adventure along the way.

Clouds drifted around the Mont Blanc massif throughout the day, occasionally revealing the summit before hiding it again.

We also spotted several ibex on the trail. Watching them move effortlessly across steep rocky slopes was impressive.

Like many hikers, we decided to make the detour to Lac Blanc. The lake was still partly surrounded by snow, and our microspikes came in handy once again.

Lac Blanc was beautiful, but perhaps a little overhyped. The views were great, but not necessarily better than many others we had enjoyed along the trail.

The entire stage offered fantastic mountain scenery and felt very different from the forested sections we had crossed in Switzerland.

By the afternoon we descended to Chamonix. Looking back, staying higher in the mountains might have been a better option, but we needed food and water for the final day.

We ended the evening with burgers in the town centre, surrounded by crowds of tourists enjoying a very different kind of mountain experience.