2 – 6 day Mont Blanc Ascent Packages from Chamonix / France
Normal Route via Tete Rousse and Gouter Hut.
Other Routes available on Demand
Limited dates from June – September or April – May on Skis.
Mont Blanc is certainly one of the most popular climbs in the Alps. No surprise since it’s the highest peak of the Alps, offers beautiful routes with easy access and has a reputation of being “technically easy”. The latter is not really true: Prior experience with crampons and ice axe, excellent endurance and good acclimatization are essential to make the 2-3 day ascent a success. For the less experienced Mont Blanc candidates we recommend our 4-6 day packages (See our Itinerary & Trip Packages tab below) in order to acclimatize and get your crampon skills up to speed.
The Mont Blanc ascent is a relatively high risk undertaking. Rock fall (especially in periods of extended summer heat) and falls in steep terrain pose a constant risk which, for example, caused 16 fatal accidents in the 2017 summer season on the Normal Route via Goûter Hut alone! These are risks a good guide can mitigate but not entirely eliminate.
The Mont Blanc ascent is also an excellent 2 day addition to our Haute Route Glacier Trek, the Monte Rosa Peaks Traverse or other custom trips that we gladly quote you for.
Most commonly we use the Normal Route via Goûter Hut (2 guests per guide) or the more difficult “Traversée Route” (“Trois Monts”) via the Cosmiques Hut (1 guest per guide) but we can also take you on any of the more technical and remote routes on Mont Blanc including the more challenging normal route from the Italian side (“Aiguilles Grises”)
All our Mont Blanc trips are custom to accommodate your preferred time, route and lodging standard.
5 DAY MONT BLANC TRIP PACKAGE
This program is recommended for clients who are new to the use of crampons in steep glaciated terrain (or who haven’t done it in a long time). The acclimatization effect of spending one or two nights in high altitude (2750 m) before embarking on the Mont Blanc climb makes this program superior to our shorter programs in terms of optimizing your chances for success on Mont Blanc.
Option a) 2 Days of training / acclimatization with one hut night above 2700 followed by 3 day Mont Blanc ascent.
Day 1: Gondola ride to the Col de Balme and 2.5 hrs hike to the Albert Premier Hut (2750 Meters). In the afternoon ice climbing / crampon use / glacier travel instruction on the Tour Glacier.
Day 2: 5 AM start and ascent either of the Tete Blanche (3400 Meters) or the Aiguille Du Tour (3550 Meters). Descent back to the Col du Balme via the Albert Premier Hut and return to the valley for lodging. (Chamonix lodging not included in trip price)
Mont Blanc via Tete Rousse and Gouter Hut:
Day 3: Meet in Les Houches or Chamonix late morning. Gondola to Bellevue and short train ride to Nid D’Aigle. The first three hours of hiking are on an easy trail to the Tete Rousse Hut (3167m = 10400ft) for lodging. Afternoon is reserved to do some training on your crampons and relax for the two hard days to come.
Day 4: Roping on and early start the ascent to the Gouter Hut. A short glacier is followed by the traverse of the “Grand Couloir”, the most notorious and objectively dangerous part of the ascent (45 min). From there it will take about two hours of scrambling, sometimes with support from fixed cables, to reach the Gouter Hut (3800m = 12500ft). We usually drop our backpack and climb a bit higher on tomorrow’s ascent route in order to promote acclimatization and get an idea of the terrain that we will travel in the dark the next day. Strong parties could also consider reaching the summit on day 2, especially if the weather indicates deteriorating conditions for the next day. Lodging at the Gouter Hut.
Day 5: Start from the hut is approx. at 02.00 AM. The normal ascent time from the hut to the summit is about five hours, which gets you to the top between 7.30 and 8.00 AM. There is one shelter on the way, the Vallot Hut (4300 meters = 14100ft), which can be used for a quick stop to find shelter from the wind – mostly we do not stop there, though. The descent route follows the same way all the way back to the mountain train, which puts us back into the valley around 3.30PM or later.
Option b) 3 Days of training / acclimatization with two hut nights (Albert Premier & Trient Hut) above 2700 followed by our either of our 2 day Mont Blanc ascent.
Option c) 1 Day Skills training Mer de Glace (see 4 day program) combined with 2 days of training peak ascents as above followed by our regular 2 day Mont Blanc ascent.
Price / person (includes guide, guide expenses, gondola return tickets, 3 night hut lodging with 3 course dinners and breakfast, rental equipment):
€ 3820, US$ 4775 at 1 participant / guide
€ 2030, US$ 2550 at 2 participants / guide
€ 2050, US$2560 at 3 participant / guide (2 guides for 3 clients for the 3 Mont Blanc Days)
€ 1685, US$ 2120 at 4 participant / guide (2 guides for 4 clients for the 3 Mont Blanc Days)
