Description
The Tour du Mont Blanc appears in the “Top 50 Treks of the World”. The TMB goes through three countries, France, Italy and Switzerland.
The usual starting point for the TMB is the town of Chamonix-Mont Blanc. Chamonix is considered to be the “World Capital” of alpine mountaineering.
The route passes through eight valleys on its way: the vallee de l’Arve (often known as the Chamonix valley), the val Montjoie, the vallee des Glaciers (Chapieux and Les Mottets), the val Veny, the val Ferret (Italian), the val Ferret (Switzerland), the val d’Arpette and the valley du Trient (Switzerland).
There are numerous variations of the TMB some of which are much more physically demanding. Part of the TMB follows the the GR5 (that starts at the North Sea and finishes at the Mediterranean). Part of the route is also used to join the Haute Route going from Chamonix to Zermatt in Switerland.
The highest points on the trek are the col des Fours (2665m) and the fenetre d’Arpette (which is one of the most difficult and challenging options)
Mont Blanc
Mont Blanc is the highest mountain in Western Europe at 4808m. It gives its name to the Mont Blanc massif which straddles the French-Italian border.
The Trek
Our Tour du Mont Blanc takes in the “Highlights” of the TMB. This allows you to fit the tour into a one week schedule.
The footpaths thread their way through lush alpine pastures (alpages) ablaze with a magical carpet of alpine flowers with panoramic views second to none.
History
The first Tour du Mont Blanc was probably completed by Horace-Benedict de Saussure, a Swiss naturalist who undertook a dozen trips to Chamonix to look at the Mont Blanc massif.
The first ascent was by Jacques Balmat and Doctor Michel Paccard on the 8th of August 1786.
Facts & Figures
The Tour du Mont Blanc in its entirety is approximately 170 km, 10,000m of ascent.
It is normally walked in an anti-clockwise direction over 7 to 10 days. It has also become famous for the annual trail running race, the Ultra-Trail du Mont Blanc.
