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| Travelling
to Chamonix |
| This
page has been designed to make the travel planning process as
painless as possible, and we update information and links often.
For all EU residents there is no requirement for visas to travel
to France, but other nationals should check with their embassies
before travelling. If you require a visa, you need to stipulate
that you are flying in an out of Switzerland if you chose Geneva
airport, and Chamonix is in France. Also note that some Alpine
courses operate in Italy and Austria. |
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| Flying
to Chamonix |
| Most
people travelling to Chamonix, fly to the nearest international
airport, which is Geneva in Switzerland. From the airport, it
is just a one and a quarter hour transfer to Chamonix Mont Blanc
(full details in the transfers section below). Most of our European
clients are from the UK, and most international clients fly
direct to Geneva or via the UK, so this section outlines all
the options for selecting flights from the UK to Geneva. The
map below shows all the airports which have airlines operating
from there who fly direct to Geneva. Short haul indirect flights
are offered by Lufthansa and KLM, but we have ignored these,
as there are plenty of options for direct flights anyway. It
is worth comparing all the prices of the different operators
at all your nearby airports to get the best deal. For example
if you live in Manchester, you may get a better deal on Easyjet
at Liverpool. Also note that the budget airlines are not always
the cheapest, as the likes of British Airways and Swiss often
have some special deals on offer. |
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Contact
details of the airlines
Click on the links to connect to the
airline websites...
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| The
main differences between the airlines is the standard of service
and extras that are included. If you need a meal on a one and
a half hour flight, then you must be prepared to pay for it.
All the operators listed above land in the Swiss sector of the
airport. If you travel by Air France, you land in the French
sector, and need to walk through to the international arrivals
hall to meet your transfer. |
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| Airport
Transfers |
| To
book a transfer, all you need to do is e-mail us the following:
1)
your full flight details so we can trace if it is delayed at
all, 2) contact details for the party leader, and their mobile
number, 3) the total number of people in your group, 4) details
of drop off and collection points in Chamonix. We work with
several licenced transfer partners and will source you the cheapest
transfer, then e-mail you confirmation and meeting and contact
details for the driver. The
transfer from Geneva International Airport to Chamonix takes
approximately 90 minutes. All transfers booked through us will
drop you off and collect you from our Chamonix office, unless
otherwise specified. |
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| Driving |
| From
the Channel ports of Dover, Calais, or Boulogne, it takes approximately
eight hours to drive to Chamonix. This option can work out as
the most economical method of travel for groups of two or more,
especially if you are extending your stay to explore the region,
and so avoid the cost of a hire car. The motorways in France
are toll roads called "Autoroutes" or the "Peage".
It costs upwards of £50 each way to travel to Chamonix
on the toll roads, but you more than save this in fuel, time
and sanity! When you are in Chamonix you can always park for
free, and the Reps will show you the best places in terms of
safety and proximity to your accommodation. Below is a table
outlining the quickest route on the toll roads to Chamonix. |
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| Distance
km |
Instruction |
Road |
Toward |
0
2.3
7.7
38.3
79.8
111.5
148
181.5
216.9
247.3
270.2
305.4
342.9
381.1
401.1
450.9
492.6
537.1
579.3
605.7
638.2
683.4
686.4
735.9
766.7
800.6
834.4
870.2
890.1
906.1
908.1
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Depart
Calais, F
At Guines, turn left onto
At A16-A26, turn right onto
At I' Audomarios, stay on
At Bethune, stay on
AtA1-A26, stay on
At Masnieres, stay on
At Gauchy, stay on
At Laon/Chambry, stay on
At Vallee-de-l'Aisne, stay on
At A4-A26, turn left onto
At A4-A26, turn right onto
At Sommesous, stay on
At Troyes-Nord/Charmont, stay on
At A5-A26, bear left onto
At Chateauvillain/Bar-sur-Aube, stay on
At A5-A31, bear right onto
At Til-Chatel, stay on
At Dijon-Sud, stay on
At A6-A31, bear left onto
At Chalon-sur-Safine/le Creusot, stay on
At Macon-Nord, stay on
At A6-A40, turn left onto
At Tossiat, stay on
At Hautville-Lompnes, stay on
At Frangy, stay on
AtA40-A401, stay on
At Cluses-Centre, stay on
At Passy-le-Fayet, bear left onto
Turn left onto
Arrive Chamonix, END
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Local
road(s)
A16[E402]
A26 [E15] "TOLL ROAD*
A26 [E15] TOLL ROAD*
A26[E15]*TOLLROAD*
A26[E15]*TOLLROAD*
A26 [E15] TOLL ROAD*
A26 [E15]'TOLL ROAD*
A26 [E15] TOLL ROAD*
A26 [E15] TOLL ROAD*
A4 [E17], [E50] TOLL ROAD*
A26 [E17] TOLL ROAD*
A26 [E17] TOLL ROAD*
A26 [E17] TOLL ROAD*
A5 [E17], [E54] TOLL ROAD*
A5 [E17], [E54] TOLL ROAD*
A31 [E17], [E21] TOLL ROAD'
A31 [E17], [E21] TOLL ROAD"
A31 [E17], [E21] TOLL ROAD'
A6[E15]TOLLROAD*
A6 [E15] TOLL ROAD*
A6 [E15] TOLL ROAD*
A40 [E21], [E62] TOLL ROAD'
A40 [E21], [E62] TOLL ROAD'
A40 [E21], [E62] TOLL ROAD'
A40 [E21], [E62] TOLL ROAD'
A40 [E21], [E62] TOLL ROAD'
A40 [E21], [E62] TOLL ROAD'
N506[E25]
Local road(s)
n/a
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n/a
n/a
Reims
Reims
Reims
Reims
Reims
Reims
Reims
Reims
Metz
Troyes
Troyes
n/a
n/a
n/a
Dijon
Dijon
n/a
Lyon
Lyon
Lyon
Geneva
Geneva
Geneva
Geneva
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
n/a
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| Coach
travel to Chamonix |
| Without
a doubt, this is the most unpopular way to travel to Chamonix,
but for a direct service between London and Chamonix, it is
the only method. The journey takes approximately 15 hours, and
the service departs from London Victoria coach station, and
arrives at the Chamonix SNCF train station, a seven minute walk
from the Icicle office. You can book the coach service with
National Express, or direct with Eurolines coaches. |
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| Train
travel to Chamonix |
| The
Eurostar train takes only three hours from London Waterloo to
Paris Gare du Nord. From there you can walk or take the metro
to Gare du Lyon or Gare du Austerlitz to catch the TGV (high
speed train) to Bellgarde or Le Fayet. From here you can take
the local train direct into Chamonix. The TGV section of the
journey takes about three hours, and the final section about
30 minutes. The key variable is the connection time between
the links, however the French railway network is very efficient,
and is a viable alternative to flying or driving. Tickets can
be bought online at SNCF.com, which has an English language
section of the website. |
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