France · up to 3701 m

Aiguille du Midi (Chamonix)

The birthplace of alpinism, where skiing is still an adventure sport.

36

Bonvo Score

Open the interactive 3D mapGet the offline app
10
Marked runs
10 named
39.8 km
Total slopes
4
Lifts
2500 m
Vertical drop
3701 m
Top elevation
1201 m
Base elevation
Freeride 39.8 km

The story of Chamonix Mont-Blanc

Chamonix is not a ski resort; it's a mountain town that happens to have lifts. Sprawled beneath Mont Blanc, Western Europe's highest peak, it staged the very first Winter Olympics in 1924 and has been the world capital of alpinism since the Compagnie des Guides — the oldest mountain-guiding company on Earth — was founded here in 1821. The valley's separate ski areas (Brévent-Flégère, Grands Montets, Balme, Les Houches) each face the Mont Blanc massif like balconies at a theatre.

What Chamonix sells is vertical and wildness. The Aiguille du Midi cable car hoists you to 3,842 m, where the Vallée Blanche begins: twenty-odd kilometres of glacier descent past seracs and crevasse fields down to the Mer de Glace — the most famous off-piste run in the world, and one you do with a guide. Even the pisted skiing feels big: Grands Montets' north faces hold cold snow for weeks, and steep-skiing history has been written on the slopes in every direction.

The town matches the terrain: gritty, international, and buzzing year-round with climbers, wingsuit pilots and skiers comparing lines over cheap pasta and good beer.

Great for expertsGreat for off-piste adventurersGreat for scenery loversGreat for alpinists

Signature runs

Vallée Blanche

The world's most famous glacier run — about 20 km from the Aiguille du Midi to the valley, guided, wild, unforgettable.

Grands Montets north faces

High, cold, and serious: the Pointe de Vue and Bochard descents deliver some of the biggest lift-served verticals in the Alps.

Kandahar (Les Houches)

France's classic World Cup downhill, weaving through forest with Mont Blanc filling the sky ahead.

Local tips

  • ◆Book a guide for the Vallée Blanche and take the early bin — the arête descent at the top is calmer before crowds.
  • ◆The valley areas aren't lift-linked; use the (free with lift pass) valley bus or train and pick your area by aspect and weather.
  • ◆Brévent-Flégère is the sunny side with the Mont Blanc view; Grands Montets keeps the coldest snow.
  • ◆On bad-weather days, Les Houches' tree skiing saves the day — or take the Montenvers train to see the Mer de Glace ice caves.

Did you know?

Chamonix hosted the first Winter Olympic Games in 1924.
The Compagnie des Guides de Chamonix, founded 1821, is the world's oldest mountain-guiding organization.
When it opened in 1955, the Aiguille du Midi cable car was the highest in the world — and its top station still hangs at 3,842 m.

Mountain records

Longest run

Vallée Blanche classique

16.8 km · 2404 m vertical · Freeride (unpatrolled)

Steepest sustained pitch

Vallée Blanche classique

max 146.1% gradient · 16.8 km · Freeride (unpatrolled)

The 10 best runs at Aiguille du Midi (Chamonix), scored

Every run is scored 0–100 from its real shape — vertical drop, length, how well its steepness fits its difficulty class, and flow (flats and uphill sections cost points). How the Bonvo Score works →

  1. 183
    La Vallée Noire

    3.2 km · 943 m drop · avg 29.7% · Outstanding

    Freeride
  2. 279
    Moyen Envers du Plan

    4.8 km · 1435 m drop · avg 29.6% · Outstanding

    Freeride
  3. 376
    Grand Envers du Plan

    2.1 km · 738 m drop · avg 35.5% · Outstanding

    Freeride
  4. 473
    La Vraie Vallée Blanche

    3.3 km · 825 m drop · avg 25.2% · Outstanding

    Freeride
  5. 570
    Du col du Géant

    3.3 km · 651 m drop · avg 19.6% · Outstanding

    Freeride
  6. 660
    Vallée Blanche classique

    16.8 km · 2404 m drop · avg 14.2% · Excellent

    Freeride
  7. 760
    Les pentes du Rognon

    1.6 km · 569 m drop · avg 33.6% · Excellent

    Freeride
  8. 840
    Petit Envers du Plan

    1.5 km · 399 m drop · avg 21.2% · Very good

    Freeride
  9. 937
    Vallée Blanche

    2.7 km · 446 m drop · avg 16.3% · Enjoyable

    Freeride
  10. 1016
    Arête Équipée de l'Aiguille du Midi

    507 m · 96 m drop · avg 12.9% · Gentle

    Freeride

All 10 named slopes

SlopeDifficultyLengthVerticalAvg gradientScore
La Vallée NoireFreeride3.2 km943 m29.7%83
Moyen Envers du PlanFreeride4.8 km1435 m29.6%79
Grand Envers du PlanFreeride2.1 km738 m35.5%76
La Vraie Vallée BlancheFreeride3.3 km825 m25.2%73
Du col du GéantFreeride3.3 km651 m19.6%70
Vallée Blanche classiqueFreeride16.8 km2404 m14.2%60
Les pentes du RognonFreeride1.6 km569 m33.6%60
Petit Envers du PlanFreeride1.5 km399 m21.2%40
Vallée BlancheFreeride2.7 km446 m16.3%37
Arête Équipée de l'Aiguille du MidiFreeride507 m96 m12.9%16

Lifts at Aiguille du Midi (Chamonix)

3× cable car1× gondola
LiftTypeLengthRiseSeatsRide time
Panoramic Mont Blanc, Kleinkabinenbahn Vallée Blanche, Funivia dei GhiacciaiCable car9.5 km262 m12—
Aiguille du Midi 2Cable car2.5 km1378 m65—
Aiguille du Midi 1Cable car2.2 km1276 m68—
Mer de GlaceGondola540 m105 m——

Take Aiguille du Midi (Chamonix) offline — every run and lift on this page, in your pocket.

Download the resort once in Bonvo Ski Maps and every run, lift and your friends' live positions keep working in airplane mode. Free this season.

Download on the App Store

More ski resorts in France

Les 3 Vallées95

842 runs · 523.5 km · 173 lifts

Paradiski93

750 runs · 390.6 km · 161 lifts

Portes du Soleil88

664 runs · 367.5 km · 169 lifts

Evasion Mont Blanc97

434 runs · 289.9 km · 112 lifts

Les Arcs / Peisey-Vallandry90

406 runs · 190.2 km · 76 lifts

Espace Diamant (Les Saisies)86

274 runs · 181.3 km · 93 lifts

Official resort website: www.chamonix.com/