How to spend a weekend in Chamonix in Autumn
Chamonix Mont-Blanc. A beautiful, wonderful hiking/skiing village where thousands of like-minded individuals from across the world visit every year. If you love nature, this is the place for you. There are so many different hiking tracks to take and different ski-lifts to go on. The mountains provide different levels, so whether you are beginner, intermediate or advanced, you will be able to complete whatever trail suits you. One thing about Chamonix that I (as a beginner) did not realise, is that some of the trails close depending on the season. Of course this may seem like obvious information, however, as a first-timer, it was news to me. This became an issue with me when I had decided that, in October, I wanted to do a weekend get-away to Chamonix. I had a lot going on and wanted to be in the mountains. Doing a 3-day excursion meant that I was only able hike on the second day. However, I made it work. If you are looking to do something similar, then here is how to spend a weekend in Chamonix in Autumn.
Day 1
Day 1 will depend on what time your flight is and where you are staying in Chamonix. We arrived into the village around 2pm local time. As you have travelled a lot already, I would suggest going to get some food in a restaurant, have a drink and relax.
If you are staying in the main village you will have more access to restaurants for dinner. However, if like me, you decided to stay in an airbnb near by, you may want to cook dinner. If you choose this option, make sure you get some food from the local market before heading to your accommodation as you may not want to go looking for a nearby supermarket.
Once you have checked in, relax and get ready for the morning for your hike. You will want to wake up early as a lot of hikes last around 3 hours or more.
Day 2
The big day has come! Time to hike. As previously mentioned, autumn means a lot of the trails are closed as well as the ski lifts. However, that does not mean ALL of them have closed. Depending on when you go, you can ask the information desk what trail they recommend doing. They will ask about your skill level and how long you are looking to hike for. As we started a bit later than I wanted to, we opted for a hike that didn’t take as long (in reality it took us 5 hours).
The trail we went on involved going on a cable car. Once we got off we spent around 30-45 minutes hiking to a lake (i’m sure there is a technical term for it) and back. After which we went on our way on the main hike. It is pretty simple to follow as you just continue reading the signs. As the sun sets earlier in autumn, I would suggest trying to hike as early as you can. This is because although there is a estimated time for hikes, it could take you a lot longer. You may need to stop off and rest for a bit, or you may want to take in the views. Make sure you also wear correct footwear and clothes.
After completing the long and sweaty, yet incredible hike, we headed back to the accommodation. We ended up going back into the village for some dinner and had some wine. Be careful about bus times though as the later it get’s, the more likely you have to book a bus to get home. We were very lucky as the bus that came had enough space for us, but if it didn’t we would have been stuck.
Day 3
Due to our limited time, we spent the third day exploring the village. This may seem silly since we had already been there for 2 days, but we did not have much time to do so before. Also, as it did not take long, it was perfect for us. Depending when your flight is, you could have a look at other activities to do before leaving. There are some spas located in Chamonix that we looked at doing, but did not have enough time to do.
The most important thing is to take in the nature and have fun. I know this trip seems very short (and was), but as someone who just wanted to escape for a couple of days from their regular life, it was perfect. I’d love to go back for the skiing season, although theres no doubt that it will be very busy. This trip was also relatively affordable, another reason as to why Autumn was better for us.
My last tip for a trip like this would be to research the place. There was a lot we didn’t know regarding transport and hiking times as beginners. Make sure you ask the information desk too, that’s what they’re there for!
