Chamonix sits directly beneath Mont Blanc, Western Europe's highest peak, and has been the epicentre of alpine mountaineering since a local guide made the first documented ascent of the summit in 1786, a feat now considered the birth of mountaineering as a sport. The town hosted the first Winter Olympics in 1924 and remains one of the world's great mountain destinations, summer or winter.
The Aiguille du Midi
The Aiguille du Midi cable car climbs nearly 2,800 vertical metres from the valley floor to a needle of rock at 3,842 metres in under twenty minutes, one of the highest and most dramatic cable car ascents in the world, a glass 'Step into the Void' platform lets visitors stand over a sheer drop with nothing but glass beneath their feet.
From the summit station, the Panoramic Mont Blanc gondola continues across the glacier into Italy, a multi-hour journey suspended over crevasses and ice fields that ranks among the more surreal transport experiences in the Alps.
Mountaineering Heritage
The Mer de Glace, France's largest glacier, is reached by a historic cog railway and a network of stairs that has had to be extended nearly every year as the glacier retreats, a sobering, visible measure of climate change alongside the natural spectacle of the ice itself.
Chamonix's mountaineering museum and the many guide offices around town reflect a town culture built entirely around the mountain, even non-climbers can arrange guided glacier walks or via ferrata routes suited to a range of experience levels.
Recommended Stay · Chamonix · Town Centre
Hameau Albert 1er
A chalet-style hotel with a Michelin-starred restaurant and direct views of Mont Blanc, a short walk from the Aiguille du Midi cable car base station.
