The Tour du Mont Blanc in 5 days
165 km and 9,451 m of ascent in 5 days: 32.9 km and +1,890 m a day on average. Very fit hikers: here is what this tour looks like, day by day, computed on the real route.
Updated
- 5days, 4 nights
- 32.9 kma day on average
- +1,890 mof ascent a day
- 14h15of walking a day, without breaks
Route profile
Start and finish in Les Houches, classic direction, no variants, every night at an open place to sleep. The Grand Col Ferret, the high point of the tour at 2,537 m, comes on day 3.
Day 1
Les Houches → Les Chapieux
- Distance
- 35.4 km
- Ascent / descent
- +2,260 / −1,708 m
- Walking
- ≈ 15h23
- High point
- 2,478 m
Col du Bonhomme© Rémih · CC BY-SA 4.0 Day 2
Les Chapieux → Rifugio Bertone
- Distance
- 34.1 km
- Ascent / descent
- +2,221 / −1,802 m
- Walking
- ≈ 15h16
- High point
- 2,512 m
Col de la Seigne© Rémih · CC BY-SA 4.0
The figures for the following days come with your myTMB tour.
Days 3 to 5, in detail
Build your tour to see every day, choose where to sleep each night, move the stage ends and download the GPX files.
Who is the 5-day TMB for?
This is a trail running or fastpacking format: at a hiker’s pace every day would exceed 12 hours of walking, so you need to run part of the route. You should already have strung together several days beyond 30 km and 2,000 m of ascent with a light pack, and know how to handle mountain weather.
The hardest day of this split is day 1: 35.4 km, +2,260 m, about 15h23 of walking. In myTMB, the pace setting (easy, hiker, fast or trail) recalculates every time to suit you.
Our tips for a 5-day TMB
- Travel light: 5 to 7 kg all in. Sleeping in hostels or hotels, no tent or stove.
- Start early: summer storms often break in the afternoon, and your days are long.
- Note the valley buses and shuttles: they are your plan B if a day gets too long.
What your tailor-made tour adds
- Every day in detail, all the way back to Les Houches
- Where you sleep each night, among the huts, hostels, hotels and campsites at the finish
- Stage ends you move with one gesture, everything recalculates
- Your start village, your direction and your variants
- GPX files for each stage and a printable roadbook for your group
Frequently asked questions
How many kilometres a day for a 5-day TMB?
On average 32.9 km and 1,890 m of ascent a day, about 14h15 of walking at a hiker’s pace, without breaks. The longest day (day 1) is 35.4 km, the shortest (day 4) 27.4 km.
How fit do you need to be to hike the TMB in 5 days?
This is a trail running or fastpacking format: at a hiker’s pace every day would exceed 12 hours of walking, so you need to run part of the route. You should already have strung together several days beyond 30 km and 2,000 m of ascent with a light pack, and know how to handle mountain weather.
Where to sleep on a 5-day TMB?
Every day ends at a real place to sleep: hut, hostel, hotel or campsite. Of the 4 nights in this split, 3 can be spent in a hut. The planner lists the places to sleep at each finish and lets you pick yours.
Can you start somewhere other than Les Houches?
Yes. This split starts in Les Houches in the classic (anticlockwise) direction, without variants. myTMB recalculates it from Courmayeur, Champex or another village, in either direction, with the variants you choose.