Hi! My husband and I will be visiting Chamonix as part of a larger trip through France in June 2024 and I'd like to know if it's realistic to take the Aiguille du Midi cable car to the very top to see the views of Mont Blanc and explore the station, then take the cable car halfway down to Plan de l'Aiguille and hike the Balcon du Nord to the Montvers/Mer de Glace glacier with enough time to explore the ice caves before the last train back to Chamonix. Is this too ambitious for one day or has anyone successfully done the hike and explored both points of interest at either end without feeling incredibly rushed? Thanks!
Posted by
Paris
7300 posts
You don't need long at the top of Aiguille du Midi (and it can be unpleasant with the high elevation), and the Balcon Nord is a 2.5-3 hour hike, so it sounds reasonable if you pack a picnic. The area of uncertainty for me is the distance between the ice caves and the Montenvers station - I haven't been in many, many years and I assume that with glacial retreat, the ice caves are waaaaay downstairs.
Posted by
Chicago
647 posts
It is probably doable, but if you are going to go up, I would say that you
should consider taking the Panoramique across the glacier into Italy as well.
If you do that, your options are to either take the same back, which would
allow you to continue your proposed itinerary, or take the Monte Bianco
gondola down into Courmayeur and then bus through the tunnel back to
Chamonix town.
You will need to reserve a time to go up the AdM, but you cannot make a
reservation to come down. There can be queues to do the descent.
You also can potentially do this in reverse; i.e., take the train to the glacier,
then hike to the AdM midstation and go up from there. It has the advantage
of missing the crowds at the bottom of the AdM. You shouldn't have to wait
too long to catch the Montevers train.
And balso is correct about the hike between the train station and ice cave;
it is quite a descent/climb these days due to the retreat of the glacier.
I'd have a plan B up my sleeve since crowds and weather are going to be
unpredictable until the day or two before. And check operating times; by
late June, daylight lasts a long time and if you are willing to start early and
finish late, you should be fine.
Posted by
Atlanta
5196 posts
...have a plan B...crowds and weather are going to be unpredictable... until the day or two before. ...if you are willing to start early and finish late, you should be fine.
Definitely have a plan B. It is doable with an early start and late conclusion.
Posted by
Reno, NV, USA
2547 posts
We took the cable car to the Aiguille du Midi the first day in Chamonix and then did the hike from the Plan de l’Aiguille to the glacier the next day. Some of our tour group had trouble with the altitude at the Aiguille du Midi so be aware of that factor. It took us considerably longer than a few hours to do the hike to the glacier the next day as we were taking our time enjoying the views and taking photos as it is such a spectacular hike. Take your time and soak in those views. If the weather is not good, I wouldn’t bother with the hike. We also went down to the glacier at the end of our hike. There are a lot of steps down as Balso mentioned. I would not include the cable car to Italy on the same day as there is simply not enough time to do the hike and the glacier unless you really plan to hoof it.
Posted by
OP
Los Angeles
12 posts
@shoeflyer how long is the bus from Courmayeur back to Chamonix and how often does it run? I'm very intrigued by this idea! Might do that one day, and the ice caves another day. Thanks!
Posted by
Chicago
647 posts
Bus schedules for next summer are probably not out yet. It's not very far distance-wise, but
you have to account for possible traffic at the entrance to the tunnel. If you take the Skyway
Monte Bianco into Courmayeur (which, incidentally, is in Italy, so carry your passport), you can
plan to have lunch someplace and make the bus back eventually. This year's schedule has
a 45 minute duration, which I think is probably assuming some delay at the tunnel.
If the Panoramique is running, it is a (in my opinion) a must-do experience.
You would, though, need to be aware of traffic. If there was a large backup going through the
tunnel, the alternative would be simply to take the Panoramique back over to the AgM.
Posted by
82 posts
And a plan B as the weather may not allow for the gondola.
Posted by
Maryland
24 posts
I'd say you'd have to get a very early start. Even though it's light until 9-10 pm, the last trains down are quite early, maybe 5 pm. We were there inJune 2019 and wanted to do the Aiguille du Midi up, hike, and then I think either a train or a different cable car down (sorry I can't remember specifics, but it was a plan Rick suggests in the RS guide). We did not get an early start - it's vacation, after all - and had to wait 2-3 hours to take the Aiguille up. Totally ruined our plan.