Explore the Tour du Mont-Blanc with Sabrina Pace-Humphreys

Take a shared shuttle transfer, arranged by Run the Alps, from Geneva Airport to a 4-star spa hotel in Chamonix. There’s time to relax before meeting the rest of your group and your guides, then heading into town for dinner.

Today we head to Bourg-St-Maurice, a Roman town and important hub of mountain travel. Our journey takes us through the Mont Blanc tunnel into Italy, then over the historic Petit St Bernard pass, back into France! We’ll stop here for a run around this wild pass, before continuing our ride down to our hotel. There’ll be time to enjoy a walk around the pedestrian-only downtown, before having dinner with our group at the hotel.

After breakfast at our hotel, we’ll take a taxi up to the Village des Glaciers, a small farming hamlet at the end of the road. From there, we’ll run on the Tour du Mont Blanc trail into Italy via the Col de la Seigne pass. We’ll have views back into the Beaufortain mountains of France, and across Italy and into Switzerland. We can stop for a drink at Rifugio Elisabetta on our descent to Lac Combal. A taxi will meet us at La Visaille to take us to the quaint town of Courmayeur. 

Tonight we’ll go out for dinner together in one of our favorite restaurants in Courmayeur.

We’ll start with a taxi up to Val Ferret, then run back to Courmayeur via the best trail running section of the whole TMB! A short climb brings us onto the smooth single track traverse, with incredible views of the Mont Blanc massif all the way. We’ll pass two Rifugios – Bonatti and Bertone – where we can stop to refuel. A final descent through beautiful forest brings us back to the center of Courmayeur. 

This evening there’s no group dinner, but we’ll share recommendations of our favorite places to eat. If you’d like to unwind even more, you can also opt for a post-run visit to the spa in Pré-Saint-Didier.

Today we cross over the highest pass on the TMB, the Grand Col Ferret, going from Italy into Switzerland. From Arnuva at the top of the Val Ferret, it’s a long climb to the col, thankfully with the option of a last Italian cappuccino in Rifugio Elena on the way! From the top, there are incredible views back across Italy to the Col de Seigne, and to the extensive Swiss Alps in the other direction. A descent on smooth dirt single track brings us to the working farm of La Peule, where we can stop for a drink. Then it’s exciting single track the rest of the way down to the village of La Fouly in Swiss Val Ferret, from where a taxi will take us to the lakeside village of Champex-Lac.

It’s back to France today! A taxi ride of about an hour brings us round to Argentière, France, at the top of the Chamonix valley. On the way, there’s the option to stop to visit the organic dairy farm of La Ferme de Vallorcine, run by trail runner friend of Run the Alps, Victorien. From Argentière, we’ll run the gentle single track of the Petit Balcon Sud back to Chamonix. There are plenty of options to extend or shorten the running route – or take the day off if you prefer! 

This evening we’ll enjoy a celebratory dinner in one of our favorite Chamonix restaurants.

After breakfast, it’s time to say goodbye to Sabrina and your group, and head off to your next destination.