I was planning to include 3 days in Chamonix on my itinerary, towards the end of May. One day to ride the cable car to Aquillie di Midi, and another day to do some hiking. I contacted the Chamonix tourism office and their response was that in late May you cannot do hikes in the upper regions - to Lac Blanc, etc. Only hikes at the valley level. Wondering if anyone has been to Chamonix at this time of year and if hiking is open? If not, this may not be worth going, since it is a long trip back to Paris from Chamonix. Thanks.
Posted by
Estes Park, Colorado, USA
34 posts
I believe the response from the tourism office is related to the level of snow pack. Similar to the mountains in the west and Rockies of the USA, many higher elevation trails around Chamonix are not open in May after a big snow year. If you have not been to Chamonix, the cable car ride up to Aquilie de Mide is almost worth the trip though, if the weather is good.
Posted by
OP
San Francisco Bay Area
79 posts
Thanks Compay. Yes the Aquillie di Midi is open in May, but probably not the higher elevation hikes. Not sure what kind of winter they have had there this year with snow. I'm still up in the air whether it's worth it????
Posted by
Long Beach, California, USA
3391 posts
We hiked to Lac Blanc in July and even then there was so much snow that you had to hike from La Flegere up to the lake, rather than going up one more lift and hiking down, which we had done in years past. In May I'm sure you won't be able to do much hiking.
Posted by
New York City, NY, USA
5678 posts
I agree that the cable car is fantastic. I did the walk where you get off half way down and walk across the train that takes you back down to Chamonix. Did you find this link? It describes some of the other walks. You could also keep tabs here and make a decision closer to your time of travel. Have a plan B and a plan C. :)
Posted by
OP
San Francisco Bay Area
79 posts
Anita & Pamela... thank you for the information. Pamela the website links were very helpful. As much as I would like to visit Chamonix, I'm just not sure it would be worth it in late May. I'm still up in the air on whether to go or opt for another place to visit.