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| Chamonix-Mont-Blanc | ||
| Department | Haute-Savoie | |
|---|---|---|
| Residents | 8.648 (2018) | |
| height | 1,030 m | |
| Tourist info web | www.chamonix.com | |
no tourist info on Wikidata:  | ||
| location | ||
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The community Chamonix-Mont-Blanc lies at the feet of the Mont Blanc in the department Haute-Savoie in the French Alps. The glamorous tourist center of Chamonix is an important winter sports resort and as the starting point for the historic first ascent of the Mont Blanc also a capital of mountaineering.
background
Alpinism
Chamonix is the birthplace and one of the capitals of mountaineering: in 1760, the Geneva physicist Horace Bénédict de Saussure announced a prize for the first ascent of Mont Blanc. After several unsuccessful attempts, the 20-year-old mineral seeker Jean-Jacques Balmat and the doctor Dr. Michel-Gabriel Paccard from Chamonix. This date is considered to be the birth of alpinism, and then the other Alpine peaks are conquered. In 1924, the first Olympic Winter Games took place in Chamonix.
Chamonix is still at the center of many today Events all about alpinism.
getting there
| Distances | |
| Courmayeur | 23 km (I) |
|---|---|
| Martigny | 45 km (CH) |
| Geneva | 82 km (CH) |
| Annecy | 102 km (B) |
| Lausanne | 127 km (CH) |
By plane
The nearest international airports are in Geneva airport
(IATA: GVA), approx. 88 km and in Lyon the Lyon Saint-Exupéry Airport
(IATA: LYS) , 220 km).
By train
Chamonix train station is on the St Gervais - Le Fayet / Vallorcine line Martigny (CH).
By bus
In the street
The Chamonix Valley is in the northwest of the Mont Blanc and borders on that in the north Valais. The region of the is closed on the east side Aosta Valley (Italy).
- Of north from Switzerland (Valais) and from Germany: through the Rhone Valley to Martigny and over the less pronounced mountain pass Col des Montets (1,461 m) to Camonix.
- Of south (Italy) through the Aosta Valley to Courmayeur on the southeast side of Mont Blanc and then through the Mont Blanc tunnel to Chamonix.
mobility
Tourist Attractions
Monuments
- Monument to Jacques Balmat. One of both First climber des Mont Blanc, erected in the center of the village in 1887: Balmat shows the initiator Horace Bénédict de Saussure the way to the summit with his finger. The monument is already classified as the most famous in the Alps and, together with the mountain itself, is certainly the most famous photo motif from Chamonix. Michel-Gabriel Paccard, the second first to climb the mountain and the head and engine of success, has had his monument on the banks of the Arve since 1986.
Museums
- Alpine Museum (Alpine Museum, Special exhibitions), La résidence 89 avenue Michel Croz, 74400 Chamonix-Mont-Blanc. Tel.: 33 (0)4 50 53 25 93. The museum is housed in hotel buildings from the beginning of the 20th century and focuses on the development of alpinism from its beginnings with the first ascent of Mont Blanc to modern winter sports in Chamonix: historical images, photographs, maps, etc.Open: daily from 2 p.m. to 7 p.m., also in the mornings during school holidays.Price: Adults 5.-.
- Musée des Cristaux - Espace Tairraz (Crystal and Mineral Museum), 615 allée du Recteur Payot, 74400 Chamonix-Mont-Blanc. Tel.: 33 (0)4 50 55 53 93. The museum shows the minerals of Mont Blanc, mainly smoky quartz and rose quartz.Open: daily from 2 p.m. to 7 p.m., also in the mornings during school holidays.Price: Adults: 5.-.
activities
Regular events
- Ski world cup. Takes place every year at the end of January / beginning of February. A downhill and a super combination will be held for the men.
- Climbing World Cup Chamonix. Every year in mid-July the start of the world cup season for climbers.
In summer
Mountain railways
In general, the climate at the mountain stations of the mountain railways on Mont Blanc is always high alpine and has nothing to do with the weather at the valley station. Strong winds, rapid weather changes, fog as a result of the clouds and sudden thunderstorms or even snowfall are possible all year round, the temperatures are always the same in summer considerable lower than in the valley area.
A windproof jacket or anorak and a sweater should be carried by everyone who wants to leave the protected mountain stations of the cable car and want to stay longer in the outside area of the visitor platforms. This also applies to hot days in midsummer.
The mountain railways are always busy during the season, so making a reservation in good time can make sense.
- The most famous mountain railway is the cable car Telephérique de l'Aiguille du Midi on the rock needle of the Aiguille du Midi, (3,842 m), opened in 1955 and for a long time until the opening of the cable car to the Klein Matterhorn (1979) it was the highest cable car in the world. Intermediate stop is Plan de I'Aiguille - 2310 m. Travel time from the valley around 20 minutes, ascent and descent € 45.60 (as of 2012). There is a restaurant upstairs and several viewing platforms.
- From the Aiguille du Midi you can continue your journey by cable car with the small cabin lift Vallée Blanche over a distance of almost five kilometers to the Pointe Helbronner (Italian side) and the complete crossing of the Mont Blanc massif through a high alpine glacier world and through the region of the four-thousand-meter peaks is possible. Driving time about half an hour, price 70.- €. The route of the train follows roughly the course of the Mont Blanc tunnel a few thousand meters below.
- If you want to go further, you can also use the on the Italian side La Palud mountain railway (Funivie Monte Bianco) after Courmayeur depart. The conclusion of a real one vertical round trip is as a return trip by bus through the Mont Blanc tunnel possible through the mountains. At the high point of the tunnel under the Aiguille du Midi, the vertical distance is around two and a half kilometers, while the horizontal distance from station to station is around sixteen kilometers.
- Opened in 1909, the picturesque narrow-gauge Montenvers rack railway (Chemin de fer du Montenvers) to the mountain station (1,913 m, 45 ° 55 ′ 54 ″ N.6 ° 55 ′ 4 ″ E) at the end of Mer de Glace, that is the largest French glacier with a length of 7 km, an area of 40 km² and a thickness of 200 m. An ice grotto accessible to tourists can be reached from here; historic Grand Hôtel at the mountain station;
- Price for a return ticket for adults: approx. € 23; Travel time by train approx. 20 minutes; Operation, depending on the weather, from spring to autumn.
- Cable car up Plan Praz (1,999 m), from here with the cable car to the summit Le Brevent (2,525 m, 45 ° 56 ′ 7 ″ N.6 ° 50 ′ 16 ″ E), located opposite Mont Blanc and with a view of its west side, starting point for hikes.
In the winter
In the Chamonix valley there are a total of five ski areas: Les Grands Montets, the Aiguille du Midi, Col de Balme, La Flégère, le Brévent and the resort in Les Houches. The majority of the rides are at altitudes above 2000 m, which means that the region is very snow-sure. The ski areas are not connected to each other on the piste, but there are shuttle buses between the valley stations of the mountain railways.
The "Mont Blanc" ski pass is valid for a total of 700 kilometers of slopes in the neighboring valleys and also in Courmayeur (Italy).
| Surname | phone | Altitude |  |  |  |  |  |  |  | Σ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chamonix ski region | 1,035 - 3,842 m | 2 | 13 | 16 | 16 | 34 | 70 | 48 | 152 km |
There are three ski areas that can be reached directly from Chamonix:
- The ski area La Flégère in the west of Chamonix is considered a family ski area with mostly easier slopes.
- Le Brevent, also located in the west of Chamonix, has mainly medium to very difficult slopes and is therefore recommended for more sporty and ambitious skiers.
- The Aiguille du Midi (3,842m) is the terminus of the highest cable car in Europe: after the descent over an exposed and often dangerously icy mountain ridge into the glacier basin 300 m below, the legendary valley descent into the Vallée Blanche and through the Mer de Glace through a magnificent mountain panorama begins and glacier world. Alpine experience is essential here, and a mountain guide is recommended.
In the south of Chamonix lies the ski region of Les Houches, in the north and out Argentière there is access to the "les Grands Montets" region.
shop
kitchen
nightlife
accommodation
Inexpensive accommodations (here: less than € 100) are virtually unavailable in Chamonix and in the neighboring towns, both in the summer and winter seasons, without a timely reservation in advance.
Learn
Work
security
health
- Pharmacie de l'Aiguille du Midi, Ferrari (pharmacy), 262, avenue Aiguille du Midi, 74400 Chamonix-Mont-Blanc. Tel.: 33 (0)4 50 53 40 93.
- Pharmacie du Mont-Blanc, Piot (pharmacy), 3, rue Vallot, 74400 Chamonix-Mont-Blanc. Tel.: 33 (0) 4 50 53 12 61.
- 1 Chamonix Hospital (Hôpitaux du Pays du Mont-Blanc), 509, route des Pelerins, Les Favrands, 74400 Chamonix. Tel.: 33 (0)4 50 53 84 00.
Practical advice
| Brief information | |
| surface | 116.53 km² |
|---|---|
| Phone code | 33 (0)4 |
| Post Code | 74 400 |
| Time zone | UTC 1 |
| Emergency call | |
| central emergency call | 18 |
| ambulance | 15 |
| police | (0)4 50 53 75 02 |
| Chamonix Mountain Rescue | (0)4 50 53 16 89 |
- Chamonix Tourist Office (Office de Tourisme de Chamonix-Mont-Blanc), 85 Place du Triangle de l'Amitié, 74400 Chamonix-Mont-Blanc. Tel.: 33 (0)4 50 53 00 24, Email: [email protected]. Open: in summer daily from 9:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and from 2:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. In winter Mon. to Sat. from 9 a.m. to 12.30 p.m. and 12.30 p.m. to 6 p.m., Sun. from 9 a.m. to 12.30 p.m.
- Compagnie des Guides de Chamonix Mont-Blanc (Mountain guide office), 190 place de l'Eglise, F 74400 Chamonix. Tel.: 33 (0)450 53 00 88, Email: [email protected].
- Chamonix post office, Place Balmat (center). Open: Weekdays 8.30 a.m. - 12.15 p.m., 2.00 p.m. - 6.15 p.m., Sa 8.30 a.m. - 12.00 p.m.
