La Vallée Blanche: Chamonix Pros and Cons

Chamonix, France is a world famous ski resort for many reasons, including the Vallée Blanche, which is a glacier that you can ski down from the Aiguille du Midi on Mont Blanc. There are plenty of other pros to Chamonix, as well as some cons. In this video, we'll cover the pros and cons as we take the tram up to the Aigulle du Midi and ski back down to town.

VALLEE BLANCHE:
It's strongly recommended to hire a guide for the Vallée Blanche. It's a glacier, so there is danger posed by crevasses. You should also bring avalanche safety gear. Your guide may be able to provide it if you don't have any. For snowboarders, the Vallée Blanche is flat at parts, so a guide may take you down a different route than the one shown here. You can hire a guide in person at the Compagnie des Guides, or online.

To get to the Vallée Blanche, you need to take a tram. The ticket for the tram is not included with the regular Chamonix ski pass or the Ikon Pass. You'll have to buy a separate pass for a single ride at a designated time. The current price is 83 Euros. The walk from the exit of the tram to the area where you begin to ski or snowboard is one of the most memorable parts of the day. You meander along a glacier while holding onto a rope while tied to others in your party.

My guide was Christophe. He was awesome. Patient, knowledgeable, and a resident of Chamonix for years. And he's a great painter! You can contact him at [email protected].

CHAMONIX CON - MOUNTAIN LAYOUT:
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As a ski area, one downside of Chamonix is that it's a collection of disconnected mountains. While the Flégère and Le Brévant ski areas are connected, they're a significant drive from the Balme, Le Tour and Vallorcine ski areas, and from the Grand Montet ski area, as well as the Houches and St. Gervais ski areas. There are plenty of much larger ski resorts in Europe that have terrain that doesn't require a bus or car to explore completely.

CHAMONIX PRO - THE TOWN
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Chamonix has a more developed town than many ski resorts. There are countless restaurants, bars and cafes. You can find stores that you'd expect in a ski resort town, and many that you might not expect. The town makes Chamonix a great option if someone in your party doesn't ski or snowboard.

CHAMONIX CON - ACCESSING CHAIRLIFTS AND GONDOLAS
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Because the ski areas are disconnected, you'll need to drive or take a bus or shuttle to the different bases. Alternatively, many people walk, but if you walk to Le Brévant, you have quite an uphill journey.

CHAMONIX PRO - VARIETY OF RESTAURANTS
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Because Chamonix is such a developed ski town, it has a wide variety of restaurant options, ranging from French to Chinese to Indian. My guess is that there are more options than at a town like Zermatt, which is a much larger ski resort.

CHAMONIX PRO - GETTING THERE IS EASY
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Chamonix is just as accessible from Geneva as other ski resorts, and in fact, is closer than many of them.

CHAMONIX PRO - SKI TERRAIN
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The various ski areas that make up Chamonix have a diverse variety of lines to ski or snowboard down the mountain. It's European above-the-treeline skiing. You won't be disappointed.

CHAMONIX PRO/CON - IKON PASS EFFECT
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Because the Ikon Pass works at Chamonix, there are a lot of Americans and Canadians at the resort and in the town. American and Canadian English can be heard everywhere. If that's something that comforts you, the Ikon Pass effect is a true pro for Chamonix. But if you want to travel to Europe and feel like you're skiing or snowboarding at a resort that's far from home, it's a con.

CHAMONIX PRO - ACCOMODATION OPTIONS
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Because Chamonix is so developped, it has plenty of hotel and apartment rental options, including a La Folie Douce Hotel for those who want an easily accessbile après-ski scene. But note, the scene is not as crazy as it typically is at resorts like Val Thorens.