Most people take between 6 and 12 days to hike the Tour du Mont Blanc. Anything quicker requires Olympic speed walking or part trail running; anything longer would allow for frequent breaks and a relaxed trekking pace.
But how long would it take you?
Given that the main Tour du Mont Blanc trail is a distance of 166km / 103mi and includes a demanding 10,000 m / 32,700 ft of elevation gain, speed and fitness are important factors to understand how long it could take a hiker to complete the trail. However, preferences and time constraints ultimately dictate how many days it will take a hiker to complete the Tour du Mont Blanc.
Since 2018, we’ve produced 100’s of personalised hiking itineraries that have helped 2,000+ self-guided hikers confidently plan their Tour du Mont Blanc journey. To achieve this, we focus on the following 4 steps that help to determine how long it will take them to hike the Tour du Mont Blanc.
This blog post summarises these steps, which form part of the itinerary creation process our customers use to produce their very own personalised plan and GPS map file with The Hiking Club app.
So how long would it take you to hike the Alta Via 1? Let’s find out!
Step 1: Preliminary estimate
The following calculator is designed to provide a simple estimate of how many days it could take a hiker to complete the Tour du Mont Blanc. Please note;
The number of hours is for hiking time only and should exclude breaks and stationary time.
Consider fellow multi-day hikers as the ‘others’ when choosing relative speed rather than an average person.
After clicking ‘calculate,’ allow ~5 seconds for the result to display. Feel free to make new selections and recalculate as many times as required.
If interested, learn more about our time estimates and calculator here.
Step 2: Selecting preferences
The Mont Blanc massif from the Grand Balcon Sud.
The Tour du Mont Blanc offers a wonderful array of choices in terms of trail highlights and accommodation types. Some of these choices will change the number of days it will take to complete the Tour du Mont Blanc.
Our customers use our planning app to choose their preferences and create a draft plan for the Tour du Mont Blanc.
Learn more about each of the options below.
Trail highlights
The Alps offers a network of trails rather than a single path to follow. There are always trail junctions that allow hikers to choose a route based on the highlight, terrain, or accommodation options available.
The standard or "main trail" Tour du Mont Blanc is 166km / 103mi. However, many hikers choose to take one or more alternate routes along their journey.
Some of the more popular alternate routes include:
Views from Fenetre d Arpette down into Val Arpette
Col de Tricot: Cross a swing bridge over the run-off from Glacier de Bionnassay and reach a much higher pass with an inspiring landscape view showcasing the Mont Blanc massif and what is in store for the rest of the hike.
Col des Fours: Keep the height and continue to climb to reach the higher pass where views of the Mont Blanc massif are not restricted like at Col de la Croix. (It is also a shortcut as it bypasses Les Chapieux).
Col Sapin: Trail highlight with stunning views of southeast facing side of the Mont Blanc range. This section was previously part of the main trail; however, it was changed to the lower route over 10 years ago, which is much less demanding but misses out on one of the best landscape views on the tour!
Fenetre D'Arpette: The climb up to Fentre DÁrpette is one of the most relentless but hikers are rewarded with sweeping views of the Trient glacier as they cross the pass.
Les Grands: A staircase carved into the rock cliff rises out of the treeline and provides sweeping views of the Trient glacier and an opportunity to stop at Refuge Les Grands (no food available) on the way to Col du Balme.
Le Tour Glacier: Walk right up to the edge of the Le Tour Glacier.
Lac Blanc: A high alpine lake that has a high vantage point across the valley to Mer de Glace, the "Aiguilles de Chamonix" (Chamonix Needles), and Mont Blanc.
The example below shows how route choice (either Aiguilette des Posettes or Le Tour Glacier) will impact the overall hiking time.
Making a choice: Our planning app shows the different route choices available and trail statistics for reach
Accommodation types
If a hiker has specific accommodation preferences, it may impact how far they need to hike each day.
The following accommodation options are available on the Tour du Mont Blanc:
Refuge Bertone: An example of a mountain hut that offers dorm rooms (12 or 16 beds), bunk rooms (2 or 4 beds) and private double rooms.
Bivouac/Wild camping: Only permitted in some locations on the trail due to strict laws across Switzerland, France and Italy. Permitted areas are listed in our planning portal and GPS maps.
Campgrounds with amenities: include showers and toilets, sometimes shops and laundry.
Dorm rooms: 4-16 bedrooms are available in mountain huts and some accommodation providers in the alpine villages.
Private room with shared bathroom: Most villages have accommodation with these rooms available. Some mountain huts have private rooms, usually for an extra charge.
Private room with ensuite: Most villages have accommodation with these rooms available. No mountain huts have private rooms with an ensuite.
Mountain huts with no food or hot showers: Only one of these huts is located on the trail. Cooking facilities/utensils are available at these locations.
Refuge Albert Premier: Mountain hut offering a huge 140 beds next to the Le Tour Glacier
There are more than one of the above accommodation options in many of the destinations along the trail. However, there are some points where hikers will be limited by choice, so they either need to compromise on their accommodation preferences or adjust the number of days it will take them to complete the hike.
Step 3: Compromises
Most hikers have a maximum number of days available to complete the Tour du Mont Blanc. Sometimes, their choice of preferred hiking hours, pace, and preferences result in an itinerary with more hiking days than they have available. In these cases, here are the compromises that can keep a hikers Tour du Mont Blanc dream alive!
Be willing to take some transport
Chairlift option in the Le Tour ski area.
Most hikers want to walk every step of the Tour du Mont Blanc to experience all the trail has to offer. However, if a hiker doesn't have enough time to walk all the way, there is transport (bus, gondola, chairlift) that runs alongside the trail or skips entire sections, reducing the number of days it will take to complete the trail. In other cases, transport can allow a hiker to maintain their ideal number of hiking days while staying in their preferred accommodation type.
Be flexible with trail highlight preferences
There is 1-2 hiking days difference between the longest and shortest routes around Mont Blanc. If a hiker is unwilling to use transport to reduce their number of hiking days, ignoring route choices based on trail highlights in favour of the shortest trail combination can be a viable option.
Be flexible with accommodation type preferences
Some hikers start by off with a mandatory accommodation type, usually for private rooms or camping. As every accommodation location doesn't offer these types (or places become fully booked), seeking them out can increase the number of hiking days it will take to complete the trail. Being open to spending some nights in a dorm room can prevent this increase.
Choose to hike a section of the Tour du Mont Blanc
If a hiker doesn't want to take any transport, isn't interested in skipping trail highlights, and, is unwilling to compromise on their preferred accommodation types, doing a section of the Tour du Mont Blanc is a practical option to ensure the trip goes ahead within the available days. Given how well the trail is connected to transport, it's possible to join and leave the trail at multiple points allowing for a lot of flexibility in partial tours.
Step 4: Final plan
Using our planning app, you can design a Tour du Mont Blanc itinerary based on all the information above, including desired hiking days, route preferences, accommodation choice, and transport options.
Watch the below video to see how our planning app turns all of the options above into a fun and easily choose your own adventure experience for the Tour du Mont Blanc!
READY TO START PLANNING YOUR OWN TOUR DU MONT BLANC ADVENTURE?
Everything you need to plan, book, prepare and navigate your adventure.
This package includes;
Access a trail expert to prepare an itinerary that meets your needs.
This package includes;
Personalised itinerary designed by our trail expert
Author: Brendan Jones, Founder, The Hiking Club
A pizza-making, craft beer-loving, peanut butter connoisseur that has been exploring the great outdoors since completing the Duke of Edinburgh Award in high school. I started The Hiking Club to democratise hiking and the benefits that come from spending time in nature.