Chamonix sits on the valley floor at about 1,035 metres, straight under Mont Blanc, Western Europe's highest summit at around 4,800 metres. It is a real mountain town with a year-round population and a pedestrian centre, not a purpose-built resort.
The skiing is split across several separate areas up and down the valley, from the gentle slopes of Le Tour to the steep, north-facing Grands Montets, linked by free buses and the train rather than by lifts. Add the Aiguille du Midi cable car, the Mer de Glace and a busy bar scene, and non-skiers get as full a week as anyone.
Ease in on the sunny side: ride up to Brévent or Flégère from the centre for cruisy pistes and the full Mont Blanc panorama across the valley. Meet the non-skiers for lunch on a sun terrace, then wander the pedestrian centre and open the evening with a drink in one of the après-ski bars.
Split the group: confident skiers take the bus to Argentière for the steep, north-facing Grands Montets, beginners head to Le Tour for the gentle Balme slopes. Everyone regroups in town for a fondue — and the keen ones book a guide for tomorrow's Vallée Blanche.
Take the cable car up to 3,842 metres on a clear morning for the terraces and the Pas dans le Vide, while those with a guide ski the Vallée Blanche down the glacier. In the afternoon ride the Montenvers train to the Mer de Glace and its ice cave, then finish with tartiflette and a génépi.
A cable car climbs in two stages from the town centre to 3,842 metres, onto terraces that face Mont Blanc head-on. Brave the glass box of the Pas dans le Vide, and go up early on a clear morning before the cloud builds.
A roughly 20-kilometre off-piste glacier descent from the Aiguille du Midi back down towards Chamonix, past seracs and crevasses. Confident intermediates can do it in good conditions, but only ever with a mountain guide.
The red rack railway from Montenvers has been climbing to France's largest glacier since 1908. A lift and a flight of steps take you down to the ice cave, and the markers on the rock make the glacier's retreat impossible to miss.
The high, steep, north-facing mountain above Argentière, where Chamonix's serious skiers spend their days. The snow holds late into spring and the off-piste between the pistes is legendary — hire a guide before you leave the markers.
The sunny side of the valley, a lift ride from the centre, with the whole Mont Blanc massif spread out across the way. Cruisy intermediate pistes and sun terraces for lunch make it the easiest day out for a mixed group.
Chamonix's bars cluster along the pedestrian streets around Rue du Docteur Paccard and Place Balmat. Start with a pint at Chambre Neuf, the town's long-standing après-ski institution, then move on to a fondue or a beer from the local microbrewery, MBC.
The pedestrian heart around Rue du Docteur Paccard and Place Balmat, with the bars, restaurants and ski shops, and the Brévent lift a short walk away. The pick if your group wants to go out at night without thinking about the last bus.
A village about 8 kilometres up the valley, sitting right under the Grands Montets. Quieter and more low-key than town, with a loyal following of serious skiers — ideal for a shared chalet if most of you are after the steep stuff.
Down-valley at the entrance to the Chamonix valley, with tree-lined, gentler slopes and the Kandahar World Cup downhill. Family-friendly and generally cheaper than the centre, and a sound choice for a mixed-ability group.
Les Praz is a village a few minutes from town, right at the Flégère lift. Le Tour and Vallorcine, at the head of the valley, serve the gentle Balme area — peaceful, snow-sure and best for beginners and relaxed days.
Beaufort, Comté and Emmental melted with white wine and a splash of kirsch, eaten with cubes of bread on long forks. The group dinner by definition — lose your bread in the pot and tradition says you owe a forfeit.
Potatoes, lardons and onions baked under a whole Reblochon until the cheese collapses into the dish. Heavy mountain fuel, best ordered at a hut after a cold morning on the slopes.
Savoyard pork sausages simmered in white wine with onions, served with crozets or polenta. Less famous than the cheese dishes, but a local staple worth tracking down in a traditional restaurant.
Génépi is the bitter-sweet alpine herb liqueur poured as a digestif after every cheese feast. For something lighter, Chamonix has its own microbrewery, MBC, whose beers are on tap all over town.
The lifts typically run from mid-December to late April, and the high Grands Montets often keep going into early May. Christmas–New Year, the French school holidays (zones A, B and C, early February to early March) and UK half-term in mid-February are the busiest and most expensive weeks; early December, January after Epiphany, late March and April are noticeably cheaper and calmer. Altitude and north-facing slopes keep Grands Montets and Le Tour snow-sure well into spring, while snow on the valley floor is far less reliable. From June to September the valley turns into a hiking, trail-running and climbing capital, with the Tour du Mont Blanc and the UTMB passing through.
Geneva airport is about 1 h to 1 h 15 away by road, with shared transfers and buses running all day. In the valley the Mont Blanc Express train runs from Saint-Gervais to Vallorcine, and your accommodation hands you a guest card (carte d'hôte) giving free buses and trains between Servoz and Vallorcine — which is how you move between the separate ski areas. The centre is pedestrian and the areas are linked by bus and train rather than lifts, so a car is more hindrance than help.
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A realistic daily budget per person, in three styles.
Chamonix is expensive overall, especially in peak seasons, due to high demand for lodging and alpine activities.
