What is the Panoramic Mont-Blanc Gondola:
The Panoramic Mont-Blanc is a 5km long gondola ride above the seracs and crevasses from the Aiguille du Midi (3,842m, France) to the Punta Helbronner (3,466m, Italy). Each gondola can take a maximum of 4 people and they come in threes.
This was another activity on our list for our 2018 visit to Chamonix however we knew early on it was off the cards due to the damage it sustained during Storm Eleanor in January 2018. Read more about that here. The Panoramic Mont-Blanc only reopened in June 2019.
A Brief Re-Cap:
If you haven’t already, now would be a good time to read our blog about our visit to the Aiguille du Midi from Chamonix as this gives the background on how we ended up at the Aiguille du Midi ready to take the Panoramic Mont-Blanc Gondola.
If you don’t have the time (or the inclination) to read that blog that’s cool, just know we had purchased tickets for a (return) trip to the Aiguille du Midi and from there we decided to do the Panoramic du Mont-Blanc also.
We got some great advice when we were buying our tickets for the Aiguille du Midi cable car. The lady who served us told us that we should go straight to the Panoramic Mont-Blanc Gondola when we got to the Aiguille as the light and view from the gondola would be best early in the morning. She also told us we could buy our tickets up at the Aiguille and that the first gondolas started at 9am.
Note: It is recommended that you carry your Passport with you on the Panoramic Mont-Blanc Gondola as you cross from France into Italy. Should something happen when you are in Italy (e.g. weather deteriorates, gondola breaks down etc.) and you are prevented from returning to France via the gondola you may be forced to descend into Italy and return via road to France (Chamonix) instead and this is where having your Passport becomes necessary!
The Panoramic Mont-Blanc Gondola:
Once we got to the Aiguille du Midi we visited the Panoramic Mont-Blanc ticket office and purchased our tickets (€32 per person). We then went straight to the gondola departure point. There were about 9 people ahead of us and it was 8.50am, perfect, not long to wait for the 9am start time.
Sneaking a look at the view:
It was cool to see climbers getting their gear on next to where we were waiting:
It wasn’t long before we were in a gondola and on our way! We had two other people with us.
At the beginning of the ride it was fascinating to see people below hiking/climbing - they looked tiny, like ants! Can you spot them in these photos?
From the get go the view was amazing. It was so still and quiet. The gondola moves slowly and stops regularly so you have plenty of time to take in your surroundings and to take photographs of course!
We are in Italy!
I think the trip across took 25 minutes but to be honest I was so entranced by the landscape that I didn’t take note - it was spectacular.
When we got to Punta Helbronner we visited the different terraces, taking our time, observing the scenes around us and of course taking a tonne of photos!
To the left of Dent du Géant:
Here you can see the Dent du Géant (4,013m) and you can also see the Matterhorn (4,478m) in the distance in some of the photos:
This next photo is to the right of the Dent du Géant:
And continuing around in a clock-wise direction, looking down into Italy:
The view of Mont-Blanc (4810m):
And continuing clock-wise, you can see where we came from, the Aiguille du Midi:
We had a lovely cup of coffee in the cafe which was very reasonably priced and they made the most of the view with giant glass windows:
It was time to head back and check out the Aiguille du Midi. We had the gondola to ourselves on the way back which was lovely, another advantage of going early!
Final Thoughts:
The Panoramic Mont-Blanc gondola ride is one of the BEST things we have ever done and was money well spent. We were blessed with perfect weather conditions and this for sure enhanced our experience. The advice we received suggesting we take the gondola first and then return and visit the Aiguille was excellent, our whole experience was wonderful. If you get the chance DO IT - you will not regret it.
More Chamonix Blogs!
If you liked this blog then check out some of our other Chamonix Blogs:
- Reaching New Heights at the Aiguille du Midi in Chamonix.
- Back in Beautiful Chamonix.
- Hiking to the Stunning Emosson Lake & Dam in Switzerland from Chamonix.
- A Short Hike to Chalet du Glacer des Bossons.
- Running & Hiking the Petit Balcon Sud Trail.
- Hiking to the Statue du Christ Roi in Chamonix.
- Tips When Visiting Chamonix in Autumn.
- The Best of Chamonix.
If you've any questions, suggestions or just want to say hello, contact me via the Contact Form, Instagram (@noroadlongenough) or By Email noroadlongenough1@gmail.com