Trail Running the Tour du Mont Blanc
with Kraig Adams all-inclusive

Dates: July 31 - August 7, 2022

Price: 2850 EUR

30% deposit due to secure your reservation, remaining 70% due 60 days before the start of the expedition.

Full Money-Back Return Policy During Covid-19 (Click for details)

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One of the most famous routes in the world. A journey around Europe's highest mountain - The Mont Blanc

Kraig Adams is a filmmaker, hiker and minimalist living in New York City.

Kraig Adams is joining Vagabond Trails to explore and trail run the Tour du Mont Blanc (TMB). Along the way, Kraig will be sharing his tips and expertise as a filmmaker and as an avid hiker.

This is an eight-day and 100 miles/160 km journey with lots of ups and downs. To be specific, almost 32,000 feet/10,000 meters of elevation gain. The route takes us from Chamonix - France through Italy, Switzerland, and back to Chamonix.

Is difficult to describe the beauty of this route in words. You must live and feel the TMB to understand why this is one of the World’s top ten 'must do' routes. Just imagine the high alpine meadows, the glaciers, the snow-capped peaks, the lakes, the Mont Blanc itself, and, of course, the physical and the mental challenge that make this route one of the most beautiful trail running places in the world.

The trails are demanding but it does not require any technical climbing. The daily runs are challenging, but they are planned so that you can arrive at the next overnight accommodation and have time to relax, have a glass of wine, read a book and enjoy the alpine views.

For your comfort while running, your main luggage will be transported between your accommodation each day, meaning you’ll only have to carry a running vest with your essentials.

This trip is all-inclusive, with a shared transfer to and from Geneva airport, all accommodations and meals. We have handpicked the hotels and mountain huts to offer you comfort, great views, amazing food and friendly service. For the entire tour, you will be led by a certified International Mountain Leader.

We promise you that this will be a fantastic adventure in the heart of The Alps. Read what some of our guests say about us!

Itinerary

Day 1 | Chamonix

Transfer from Geneva Airport to Chamonix. Depending on your time of arrival you will have time to walk around the vibrant village of Chamonix, make last-minute gear shopping, or just relax at the pool and outdoor patio of our chosen hotel in Chamonix. In the evening we will have a group safety briefing, followed by dinner.

Day 2 | Chamonix – Les Contamines

Today is the official start of our epic journey. We leave Chamonix and take an undulated first trail from Les Gaillands towards Les Houches. Once in Les Houches, we climb up through the forest heading to Le Delevret and Col du Voze, where we start the downhill through the forests passing charming chalets and rustic farms as we head towards Saint Gervais Les Bains. After a gentle uphill through forests and alpine meadows, we will arrive at our overnight destination at the village of Les Contamines.

The route: 19mi / 31km - High gain/loss +5020ft/1530m | -4790ft/1460m approx.
Approximate time 4 - 6 hours

Day 3 | Les Contamines– Refuge de Mottets/Les Chapieux

Easy riverside trails take us to the church of Notre Dame de la Gorge. After the church, we have a long and steep ascent leading to Col du Bonhomme. Depending on weather conditions the pass might show snow patches. A little bit higher we reach the second col of the day the Croix de Bonhomme at 2440 meters of altitude, where we will enjoy amazing views of the valleys on both sides. A nice and runnable trail takes us downhill to Les Chapieux, from here we will have a mix of a flat trail to a steady easy uphill towards Refuge Les Mottets at 1864 meters, which will be our hut for the night.

The route: 15mi / 24km - High gain/loss +5413ft/1650m | -3083ft/940m approx.
Approximate time 6 - 7 hours

Day 4 | Refuge de Mottets – Courmayeur

The day starts with a steep trail, but the views will be our boost to continue and finally cross the border into Italy at Col de la Seigne. Once on the col, you will admire the views of the French and the Italian valleys. On the Italian side, we will have a long descent into Val Veny. If we are lucky, the valley will be cover in yellow flowers with sparking glaciers descending off Mont Blanc. A long flat path will take us to the start of the steep trail towards the ridge on Mont Favre, and then on to the Col Checrouit and then a final steep descent to Courmayeur. Tonight, we will enjoy the famous Italian pizza in one of our favourite pizzerias in town.

The route: 15.5mi / 25km - High gain/loss +4166ft/1270m | -6233ft/1900m approx.
Approximate time 6 - 7 hours

Day 5 | Courmayeur – La Fouly

We start the day with a vertical climb towards Rifugio Bertone. After admiring the views, we follow an almost flat, beautiful, easy but high trail towards Rifugio Bonatti. We will pass the beautiful Rifugio Elena, where we can enjoy a coffee or a drink and then continue our way towards the high Gran Col Ferret. We will contemplate the spectacular views of the Swiss and the Italian valleys from the col. A beautiful descent on a single trail will take us to our accommodation for the night at the end of Val Ferret.

The route: 18mi / 29km - High gain/loss +6430ft/1960m | -5734ft/1748m approx.
Approximate time 6 - 7 hours

Day 6 | La Fouly – Col de Forclaz or Trient

We start the day with an easy descent to the ancient village of Praz de Fort. We will get some water from the local fountains and continue our path to the start of the ascent towards Champex Lac. Leaving Champex Lac behind we head up through the forests on an easy-open path until Plan de l’Au where we start a steep ascent traversing around the mountain to La Giete. Once in the highest point we run downhill towards Col de la Forclaz and continue our descent to the last Swiss village and its iconic pink church in Trient.

The route: 19mi / 31km - High gain/loss +4855ft/1480m | -5577ft/1700m approx.
Approximate time 6 - 7 hours

Day 7 | Trient - Chamonix

We have a couple of uphills and downhills more until our final destination. On the way, we will have fantastic views of the Mont Blanc and the Aiguilles Rouges mountains. We traverse the mountain before we start our last descent towards La Flegere and Chamonix

The route: 17mi / 28km - High gain/loss +5741ft/1750m | -6430ft/1960m approx.
Approximate time 5 - 6 hours

We will close our journey with a celebration dinner and drink.

Day 8 | Chamonix

We enjoy a last breakfast together and then it is time to pack all the memories and head back home.

The entire tour is done in English.

*We reserve the right to change the itinerary without previous notice due to weather conditions, National Parks regulations or notifications and unforeseeable circumstances.

This tour is governed by the Terms and Conditions

How Challenging ?

High effort. This is a challenging adventure where we can expect 5 - 8 hours of running/hiking per day, with up to 1500 m/4900ft of elevation gain. Previous trail running experience is recommended.

Price and Details

The tour includes:

Everything described in the tour
All of the scheduled activities
Transport from Geneva Airport to Chamonix
Transport from Chamonix to Geneva Airport
All accommodation during the tour (7 nights)
Huts or refuges in shared rooms/dorms only
4* hotel in Chamonix and Courmayeur (single room supplement available for an extra price, applicable only here)
Luggage transfer
All main meals during the tour (7 breakfast, 7 packed lunch, 7 dinners)
All transport during the tour (except for those by feet!)
Guiding from a certified International Mountain Leader
Amazing trails & beautiful landscapes

The tour excludes:

Transport to Geneva Airport (e.g. flights)
Insurance. All participants are required to have their own insurance appropriate for outdoor sports; such as health, accident, mountain rescue, repatriation, cancellation, personal liability, etc.
Trail snack to eat on the go - dried fruit, nuts or energy bars to last you throughout the runs (further info in the packing list)
Alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages
Expenses for extra activities, such as; massages, spas, sauna, hot tub
Any accommodations for extra days in Chamonix

Early Bird Price: 2850 EUR

30% deposit due to secure your reservation, remaining 70% due 60 days before the start of the expedition. Full Money-Back Return Policy During Covid-19 (Click for details)

Participants:

Min 6 - max 13

Start: Geneva (Cointrin Airport)

End: Geneva (Cointrin Airport)

We reserve the right to change the itinerary without previous notice due to weather conditions, and unforeseeable circumstances.