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Chamonix 2 excursions in 1 day - Aiguille Du Midi & Mer de Glace timing question

Posted by on

My wife and I plan to do 2 activities in 1 day and I am aware it can be done and worth buying the 1 day multi pass
We intend to take the very first cable car i.e. 7:40am to beat the crowd and then do the Mer de Glace tram afterwards

As I played around online to get the multipass 1 day excursion, it ask me to make 2 reservations time, the first one I know what I will go for which is 7:40am .
Then the next one for Mer de Glace , I have 4 options.
9am, 11am, 1pm and 3pm

Obviously, 9am is not applicable as I am up there while 11am may be doable though maybe rush or otherwise, .it's either 1pm or 3pm
I am not sure how long is required to do up in Mont Blanc I assume 2-3 hours will be enough?
If 11am is rush, then would 1pm be safe to choose?

Also, how long is needed for Mer de Glace tram/ice cave? 2 hours? 3 hours? etc

I need to time it pretty well because afterwards, I need to take the bus back to Geneva.
It has 2 options for SwissTour bus. One is 5:15pm and the other is 6:30pm
As much as we prefer to go back early, is 5:15pm ok?
Or its still a bit rush and better to take the 6:30pm bus?

PS: Our base is in Geneva for 3 nights (kinda) in iBis hotel and 1 night in Chamonix which is a little weird and I will explain why. After arriving in Geneva around midday, we will tour in Geneva. Then the next day, we will check out (we store our luggage in ibis hotel front desk), and head to Annecy taking the 7:30am bus. Spend several hours there. Then we will take the bus from Annecy to Chamonix. Arrive near sunset. Sleep overnight there. Next day, is the full day excursion that I mentioned. Then we will take the 5:15pm or 6:30pm back to Geneva and check in back hotel again for 2 more nights, then next day we intend to go to Montreux, Interlaken etc before heading flying the next day. We had this arrangement because we want to go 2 places i.e. Chamonix, a couple of Switzerland cities but its a big hassle to carry the luggage around, and thankfully our hotel let us store our luggage while we stay 1 night in Chamonix with a backpack carrying for 1 night's need!

Posted by
1 posts

I would do the following:

Aiguille du Midi - 8 am
Mer de Glace - 1 pm
Return to Geneva -6:30 pm

Getting to the Mer de Glace is a multi-stage process, and you likely need to allow as much time as possible.

Also, it depends on where you want to eat lunch in Chamonix; the above works.

Otherwise, cut your time at the Aguille, download by 10 am, and eat up near the Mer de Clace.

Posted by
7300 posts

When is this planned?
If the Panoramic Mont Blanc is open on your dates, it easily beats the Mer de Glace, IMO, and the logistics are much easier.

And definitely take the later bus. Chamonix is a nice place to hang out if needed.

Posted by
647 posts

Agree with the above posters, and would add the following:

  • the train to Mer de Glace takes you to the terminal building. From there, you have a non-trivial descent to the level of the ice cave, and an even less non-trivial ascent back up afterwards. If you're not in at least decent shape, that climb back up will take a while.
  • the walk from Mer de Glace back to Chamonix Sud bus station is also probably 20 minutes or so, and it is possible to get turned around.
  • the descent from Aiguille du Midi is not timed. On a busy day you can wait at both the top and midstation.

And as noted, Chamonix is a lovely town to hang out in, so give yourself the extra
time there, in case of delays and if no delays just to enjoy. But you have the right
idea to do AdM first.

Of course, your plan could be entirely derailed by weather, which is a risk you have
to take, but I'd be checking weather the day before and considering alternatives if
needed.

Not to dis Geneva, I suspect it is a fine city to reside in, but it doesn't have all that
much to see.

If you spent 2 nights in Chamonix, you could do something like hike from the mid
station of the AdM over to the Mer de Glace station. Or take the Panoramique,
the Skyway into Italy, and the bus back through the tunnel.

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