Chamonix Mont-Blanc

Chamonix is the Alps’ original mountain town: busy, lived-in and face-to-face with Mont Blanc. The valley’s ski areas are split rather than fully linked, but each has a strong character - Brévent–Flégère for sun-soaked vistas, Balme for rolling, confidence-building terrain, and Grands Montets for serious vertical and snow quality. It’s a year-round hub with excellent dining, bars and guides, and the setting gives even routine lift rides a sense of occasion.

For advanced skiers the draw is the high-mountain atmosphere and off-piste heritage - notably the Aiguille du Midi and the Vallée Blanche (a glaciated itinerary that’s not a marked piste and should be done with a qualified guide). Intermediates and mixed groups are well served by the groomed terrain across the valley; buses link the sectors, with Brévent–Flégère the only inter-connected pair.