Things to do · Chamonix · France
16 best things to do in Chamonix
16 sights and experiences ranked for a first visit, with honest notes on time, cost and crowds.
Updated By the AMZBooking editorial team
Photo: Kristoferb, CC BY-SA 3.0
Quick answer
The essential sights in Chamonix are Aiguille du Midi, Montenvers railway and Mer de Glace and Vallée Blanche descent. Of the 16 picks below, 5 are free, 1 work on a rainy day and 8 suit children. Allow about 5 days to see the highlights without rushing.
Key facts
- Top sight
- Aiguille du Midi
- Free sights
- 5
- Good on a rainy day
- Église Saint-Michel
- Time to see the highlights
- 5 days
At a glance
| Sight | Area | Time needed | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aiguille du Midi | Chamonix Sud | Half a day | Expensive |
| Montenvers railway and Mer de Glace | Chamonix centre | Half a day | Expensive |
| Vallée Blanche descent | Chamonix Sud | Full day | Expensive |
| Panoramic Mont-Blanc gondola | Chamonix Sud | 1–2 hours return from the Aiguille | Expensive |
| Le Brévent | Chamonix centre | 2–3 hours | Expensive |
| Lac Blanc | Les Praz | Full day | Mid-priced |
| Place Balmat and the Saussure statue | Chamonix centre | 15 minutes | Free |
| Lac des Gaillands | Chamonix Sud | 1–2 hours | Free |
| Cascade du Dard and Glacier des Bossons | Les Bossons | 1–3 hours | Free |
| Parc de Merlet | Les Houches | 2–3 hours | Mid-priced |
| Mont Blanc Tramway | Les Houches | Half a day | Expensive |
| Tandem paragliding | Chamonix centre | 2 hours including the lift | Expensive |
| Domaine de Balme | Le Tour and Montroc | Half a day or full day | Mid-priced |
| Grands Montets ski area | Argentière | Full day | Expensive |
| Église Saint-Michel | Chamonix centre | 20 minutes | Free |
| Petit Balcon Sud trail | Argentière | 2–4 hours | Free |
The 16 best things to do
Viewpoint · Chamonix Sud
1.Aiguille du Midi
Two cable car stages climb from the edge of town to the summit station at 3,842 metres in about 20 minutes, one of the highest vertical ascents of any cable car in the world. Terraces face Mont Blanc and the Alps of France, Switzerland and Italy, and the glass-floored 'Step into the Void' box hangs over a drop of about 1,000 metres.
Check the summit webcams and forecast first and take the earliest cable car you can; clouds often build by late morning, and the high altitude means warm clothes even in August.
- Time needed
- Half a day
- Cost
- Expensive
- Book ahead
- Book a timed slot online in July, August and on clear winter weekends, when queues at the base station can be long.
- Iconic
- Views
- Photo spot
- Couples
Nature · Chamonix centre
2.Montenvers railway and Mer de Glace
A red rack railway climbs from its own station beside the main SNCF station to Montenvers at 1,913 metres in about 20 minutes. From the terrace you look over the Mer de Glace, a 7-km glacier flowing from the Mont Blanc massif towards the Drus. The ice has thinned dramatically, so reaching the ice cave carved each year involves a long descent of stairs, marked with signs showing past glacier levels.
Allow time for the stairs to the ice cave and back, and look out for the signs that mark where the glacier surface stood in past decades.
- Time needed
- Half a day
- Cost
- Expensive
- Iconic
- Kids
- Nature
- Views
- History
Experience · Chamonix Sud
3.Vallée Blanche descent
The famous off-piste ski route from the Aiguille du Midi descends about 20 km across glaciers to the Mer de Glace and back towards Montenvers. It is not a marked run: it crosses crevassed terrain that demands a qualified mountain guide, solid off-piste skiing and avalanche equipment.
Book through the Compagnie des Guides or another guide office, which supply the safety gear and know current snow and glacier conditions.
- Time needed
- Full day
- Cost
- Expensive
- Book ahead
- Guided places fill in February and March; reserve a few days ahead and keep a weather back-up day.
- Active
- Iconic
- Views
Experience · Chamonix Sud
4.Panoramic Mont-Blanc gondola
In summer, small gondola cabins continue from the Aiguille du Midi across the glaciers of the Vallée Blanche to Pointe Helbronner on the Italian border, a ride of about 35 minutes over crevasses and seracs at well above 3,000 metres. From Helbronner the Skyway Monte Bianco descends to Courmayeur.
Ride it in the morning, as the line is often stopped by afternoon wind and cloud.
- Time needed
- 1–2 hours return from the Aiguille
- Cost
- Expensive
- Views
- Photo spot
- Couples
Viewpoint · Chamonix centre
5.Le Brévent
A gondola from the top of town to Planpraz and a cable car on to the summit at 2,525 metres face Mont Blanc head-on across the valley, so this is the best place to see the whole massif. Planpraz is also the main launch site for tandem paragliding flights and the start of balcony trails.
Go in the afternoon, when the sun lights up the Mont Blanc side of the valley.
- Time needed
- 2–3 hours
- Cost
- Expensive
- Views
- Photo spot
- Outdoors
- Kids
Nature · Les Praz
6.Lac Blanc
A small lake at about 2,350 metres in the Aiguilles Rouges nature reserve, famous for the reflection of the Mont Blanc massif in its water. The usual route starts at the top of La Flégère cable car and takes about 1.5–2 hours each way on a rocky path with some ladders and metal steps near the top.
Start early in July and August; the trail and the hut terrace fill up by midday.
- Time needed
- Full day
- Cost
- Mid-priced
- Outdoors
- Active
- Nature
- Views
- Photo spot
Landmark · Chamonix centre
7.Place Balmat and the Saussure statue
By the river in the town centre, a bronze statue shows Jacques Balmat pointing Horace-Bénédict de Saussure towards the summit of Mont Blanc, which Balmat and Michel Paccard first climbed in 1786. It is the natural meeting point at the end of Rue du Docteur Paccard, the main pedestrian street.
Follow the statue's pointing finger on a clear evening and you will see the summit of Mont Blanc lit pink at sunset.
- Time needed
- 15 minutes
- Cost
- Free
- Free
- History
- Photo spot
Park · Chamonix Sud
8.Lac des Gaillands
A small lake on the southern edge of town with a reflection of the Mont Blanc massif, picnic lawns, a café and a granite crag where climbing schools teach beginners. It is a flat 30-minute walk from the centre along the Arve.
Come at sunset and watch climbers on the crag while the peaks turn pink above the lake.
- Time needed
- 1–2 hours
- Cost
- Free
- Free
- Kids
- Outdoors
- Views
Nature · Les Bossons
1.Cascade du Dard and Glacier des Bossons
A forest path from the southern end of town climbs to the Cascade du Dard waterfall and continues towards the Bossons glacier, whose icefall descends lower than almost any other in the Alps. The Chalet du Glacier des Bossons, reached by a chairlift and a short walk, overlooks the ice.
The waterfall path is short and shaded, a good option for a hot afternoon with children.
- Time needed
- 1–3 hours
- Cost
- Free
- Free
- Nature
- Kids
- Outdoors
Zoo · Les Houches
2.Parc de Merlet
A mountainside wildlife park above Les Houches where ibex, chamois, marmots, deer and mouflon roam large wooded enclosures, with paths and views across to Mont Blanc. It is open in the summer season and is a favourite with families.
Bring proper shoes; the paths through the park are steep in places.
- Time needed
- 2–3 hours
- Cost
- Mid-priced
- Kids
- Nature
- Outdoors
Experience · Les Houches
3.Mont Blanc Tramway
France's highest rack railway climbs from Le Fayet near Saint-Gervais via Col de Voza to the Nid d'Aigle at about 2,380 metres, close to the Bionnassay glacier and the start of the classic climbing route up Mont Blanc. From Les Houches, the Bellevue cable car connects with the line part way up.
Combine the Bellevue cable car with the tramway to reach the Nid d'Aigle without driving round to Le Fayet.
- Time needed
- Half a day
- Cost
- Expensive
- Kids
- Views
- History
Experience · Chamonix centre
4.Tandem paragliding
Licensed pilots fly tandem passengers from Planpraz on the Brévent side, gliding down over the valley floor to land in the fields near the town centre. Flights last roughly 15–30 minutes depending on conditions and give a view of the Mont Blanc massif no lift can match.
Book with an established school and keep a flexible day; flights are cancelled in strong wind or poor visibility.
- Time needed
- 2 hours including the lift
- Cost
- Expensive
- Active
- Views
- Couples
Nature · Le Tour and Montroc
5.Domaine de Balme
At the head of the valley above Le Tour, this broad area of open slopes rises to the Col de Balme on the Swiss border. In winter it has the valley's gentlest and sunniest skiing; in summer the lifts serve easy walks across flower meadows with views down the length of the valley to Mont Blanc.
It is the best ski area for beginners and mixed-ability groups in the valley.
- Time needed
- Half a day or full day
- Cost
- Mid-priced
- Outdoors
- Kids
- Active
- Views
Nature · Argentière
6.Grands Montets ski area
Above Argentière, the Grands Montets is the valley's most challenging ski area, with long, steep runs and off-piste routes beside the Argentière glacier. It is popular with strong skiers and freeriders, and has some of the most reliable snow in the valley.
Hire a mountain guide for off-piste terrain; glaciers and avalanche risk make the area serious once you leave the marked runs.
- Time needed
- Full day
- Cost
- Expensive
- Active
- Outdoors
- Views
Religious site · Chamonix centre
7.Église Saint-Michel
The Baroque-style parish church in the centre has an onion-domed bell tower typical of the Savoy valleys, with the peaks rising directly behind it. The surrounding square and old cemetery hold memorials to climbers and guides.
Photograph the bell tower from the bridge over the Arve with the Aiguilles behind it.
- Time needed
- 20 minutes
- Cost
- Free
- Free
- Architecture
- History
- Rainy day
Nature · Argentière
8.Petit Balcon Sud trail
A gentle trail that runs along the lower slopes on the sunny side of the valley between Argentière and Les Houches, mostly through forest and meadows, with regular views of Mont Blanc and the glaciers. It can be joined at many points and walked in sections, with buses or the train back.
Walk the section from Argentière to Chamonix and return by train, a good option when the high lifts are closed by cloud.
- Time needed
- 2–4 hours
- Cost
- Free
- Free
- Outdoors
- Nature
- Kids
Pick by interest
| Interest | Best picks |
|---|---|
| History | Montenvers railway and Mer de Glace, Place Balmat and the Saussure statue, Mont Blanc Tramway and Église Saint-Michel |
| Views | Aiguille du Midi, Montenvers railway and Mer de Glace, Panoramic Mont-Blanc gondola and Le Brévent |
| Outdoors and nature | Montenvers railway and Mer de Glace, Le Brévent, Lac Blanc and Lac des Gaillands |
| With children | Montenvers railway and Mer de Glace, Le Brévent, Lac des Gaillands and Cascade du Dard and Glacier des Bossons |
| On a rainy day | Église Saint-Michel |
What to book ahead
- Aiguille du Midi: Book a timed slot online in July, August and on clear winter weekends, when queues at the base station can be long.
- Vallée Blanche descent: Guided places fill in February and March; reserve a few days ahead and keep a weather back-up day.
Plan the rest of your trip
Questions travellers ask
+What is the number one thing to do in Chamonix?
Aiguille du Midi. Two cable car stages climb from the edge of town to the summit station at 3,842 metres in about 20 minutes, one of the highest vertical ascents of any cable car in the world.
+What can you do for free in Chamonix?
Place Balmat and the Saussure statue, Lac des Gaillands, Cascade du Dard and Glacier des Bossons, Église Saint-Michel and Petit Balcon Sud trail. More free things to do.
+What is there to do in Chamonix when it rains?
Head indoors to Église Saint-Michel.