How To Get To Chamonix

Bus.

BlaBlaBus and Flixbus go non-stop Annecy<->Chamonix. But there are not that
many buses, and the Chamonix bus terminal, while centrally located, can take a
bit of time to get to depending on where you are. So consider buying tickets
ahead of time and making sure you scope out where the bus stations are.

Chamonix for the day can be hectic if you are trying to hit all the gondolas and
sights. In addition, Annecy for 4 nights might be a bit of overkill. You might
think about spending a night or two in Chamonix. It will give you an option or
two if the weather is dicey for going up the Aiguille du Midi, for example.

I would also consider spending the night in Geneva rather than either Annecy or Chamonix. Lots of dining options, and I highly recommend the museum of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Society. Very moving. And the jet d'eau and all the watch retailers are great fun.

We were there just as things were opening up after COVID and there were few buses and trains took a ridiculous amount of time. I found a BlaBla bus that arrived in Chamonix at 11 and departed for Annecy at 3 -- so we booked it last minute when the weather looked good. It was great. You may have more bus choices now that more things are working. BlaBla inspite of the name that doesn't inspire confidence was fine and I think flixbus is now running more routes again. The one BlaBla was our only choice. We had to be back that day to make our train back to Paris so the train was our plan B if BlaBla failed to show up for the return, but they were fine except for having a totally unmarked bus -- not painted in the usual BlaBla orange color and no sign in the window.
https://janettravels.wordpress.com/2023/03/27/quick-trip-up-the-aiquille-du-midi-chamonix/
Magical trip!!!
FWIW. while I think a night or two in Chamonix is a good idea, the worst food we have had traveling recently was Geneva -- I'd never go there again unless I had a particularly reason (we had arrangements for a private specialty tour)

Thanks everyone. We leave in 2 weeks so we will keep our reservation in Annecy as is. This is the very beginning of an 11 week trip so I want to limit short stays. At this point I don’t think we would have much luck changing to another location anyway. We are going to Wengen for 6 nights after we leave Annecy so I’m not too concerned about all the gondolas and we would skip it altogether if the weather isn’t good. I was just looking for an opportunity for a day trip. We are flying into Geneva and going directly to Annecy. We don’t plan to spend any time there. I will check out the buses and then decide if it is doable.

If you don't want to travel all the way to Chamonix for a day trip but want to walk in pretty Alpine scenery, you could take one of the frequent buses to La Clusaz (times are here https://www.laregionvoustransporte.fr/lignes/y62-y63-annecy-la-clusaz-le-grand-bornand, if you travel after 1 Sep you'll want the Rentrée (= back to school) timetable).

Then, until 6 Sep, La Clusaz has shuttles to Col des Aravis & Lac des Confins. Times are here: https://www.aravisbus.fr/les-horaires/la-clusaz/

From Col des Aravis, a short hike to La Tête or, a bit longer, Chalet du Curé, or, steeper, la Croix de Fer, will get you to stunning Mont Blanc views on a clear day.

If you want "cute alpine village", the bus to La Clusaz also gets you to le Grand Bornand, which you should hit on market day (Wed morning).

the views at the Aiguille du Midi are among the most spectacular in the world -- I'd absolutely do a day trip for that if the weather allows.

the views at the Aiguille du Midi are among the most spectacular in the world

I had heard this, Janet, but when we were in Geneva tickets were sold out well in advance. Plan ahead!

you can buy tix day of.

you can buy tix day of.

Not my experience, personally. Sometimes they might be easy to get, but they weren't for me.

To clarify (at least I think this is clarifying):

• you can buy a ticket for the Aiguille du Midi anytime, but it does not come with
  a specific reservation time to go up, which is required during the busy seasons.

• the reservations are what may "sell" out ahead of time online.

• but, if you are in Chamonix and go to the information window (this is the small
  freestanding building on the plaza away from the entrance queue to the gondola),
  you can get a reservation often for the same day, but usually later during the day.
  It is best to have your pass or ticket in hand, but they don't always require it.

If vacancies come up, they will not always be posted online, so going to the info
window is the best way to get a reservation timeslot if you are in Chamonix.

Thanks everyone!

We used a private transfer company from Geneva to Chamonix.

https://www.mountaindropoffs.com/geneva-to-chamonix-transfer/

Great service but pricy.

We took Flixbus back. Okay for the money.

We were just in Chamonix two weeks ago and found that the TI told us that the Aiguille du Midi was booked. Then we walked over to the Aiguille lift and they had dozens of times open....so we booked and enjoyed it!

BUT, the Le Flegere lift on the oppposite side, hiking the Grand Balcon Sud to Planpraz and then the lift up the Brevent gondola was gorgeous - you see Mont Blanc from the opposite side. So that hike is amazing. Or just go for the day and ride the Brevent gondola to the top and skip the hiking.

We were also in Annecy and went into Megeve - we loved Megeve more than Annecy or Chamonix. But all of these towns are stunning....

Thanks for the information Carla. How did you get around? Train? Bus? Car?

We walked in Chamonix, but we did have a car for Megeve and Annecy.

Have fun you two! I’m off to Paris in a week then on down to Bayonne on the 10th ending in Barcelona.

Given where the 2030 Winter Olympics will be held, my response to the thread title might be to form a bobsled team for the Cote d'Ivoire.

@Diane, I hope you have a great time!

We arrived in Annecy late this morning. There has been 1.3” of rain in the last 24 hours and it is going to continue until around 06:00 on Tuesday.