Choosing a ski pass in Chamonix is a little more complicated than in many ski resorts. The valley's ski areas are not linked by lifts or pistes into one continuous ski domain, but they are unified by passes that cover several areas and by a bus service that connects them. In practice, most skiers would not switch between several areas on the same day, so the main advantage is being able to choose the best mountain for each day's weather, snow and skiing.
For most skiers, the main choice is between Chamonix Le Pass and the more extensive Mont Blanc Unlimited pass. There is also a separate Les Houches–Saint-Gervais pass if you're only planning to ski there, along with cheaper local tickets for some beginner areas.
The important thing is not automatically to buy the biggest pass. Think first about where you're actually going to ski, whether you want to visit the Aiguille du Midi or ski the Vallée Blanche, and whether you intend to spend a day in Les Houches, Courmayeur or elsewhere in the wider Mont Blanc area.
For most visitors, the choice is simpler than the number of permutations available initially suggests.
Choose Chamonix Le Pass if your priority is skiing the main Chamonix areas and you don't need Les Houches, the Aiguille du Midi or the wider Mont Blanc resorts.
Choose Mont Blanc Unlimited if you want the complete Chamonix experience: particularly the Vallée Blanche/Aiguille du Midi, Les Houches, or the opportunity to explore areas such as Courmayeur and Evasion Mont-Blanc.
Choose the Les Houches pass if you're spending a day there or staying locally and don't need the rest of the valley.
And if you're a complete beginner, check the local beginner-area prices before buying any of them.
The important point is that Chamonix's ski areas are unified by the pass system and connected by valley buses, rather than by one continuous network of lifts and pistes. That flexibility is part of its appeal: you can choose a different mountain for each day without needing a separate pass, although most skiers will spend the whole day in one area. The most expensive pass isn't automatically the right one. Decide what you actually want to do during your holiday first, then buy the pass that covers it.
Unlike many resorts, Chamonix has a number of distinct ski areas. So the best pass for you depends on the type of terrain you like to ski, the abilities of your party and how much you're prepared to travel.
Chamonix ski pass prices for 2026/27
Chamonix uses dynamic online pricing, so there isn't necessarily one price that everybody pays for the same ski pass. Online prices can vary according to the dates, demand and how far ahead you book. Buying earlier is generally cheaper, while the standard ticket-office tariff provides the upper reference price.
For reference, these are the high-season adult prices in winter:
Ski pass
1 day 2026/27
6 days 2026/27
Chamonix Le Pass
TBC (€74)*
TBC (€360)*
Mont Blanc Unlimited
TBC (€100)*
TBC (€480)*
Les Houches–Saint-Gervais
€59
€277
The figures above are the standard high-season reference tariffs rather than the cheapest online prices, i.e. the most you would pay. Online Chamonix passes can be cheaper when bought in advance. Prices marked with ()* are last winter's prices shown for guidance, awaiting new season's rates to be released.
Which Chamonix ski pass should you buy?
Here's the simplest way to look at the options.
Your plans
Best pass
Mainly skiing Brévent-Flégère, Grands Montets and Le Tour-Balme
Chamonix Le Pass
Skiing Chamonix plus Les Houches
Mont Blanc Unlimited
Planning the Vallée Blanche / Aiguille du Midi
Mont Blanc Unlimited
Want a day in Courmayeur or the wider Evasion Mont-Blanc area
Mont Blanc Unlimited, subject to pass-duration conditions
Staying in Les Houches and only skiing there
Les Houches–Saint-Gervais pass
Complete beginner spending the first few days on nursery slopes
Local beginner-area ticket may be cheaper
For a normal week's holiday, the real decision is usually Chamonix Le Pass versus Mont Blanc Unlimited.
Don't assume Unlimited is automatically better because it covers more. If you're going to spend your entire holiday skiing Brévent-Flégère, Grands Montets and Le Tour, Chamonix Le Pass can give you everything you need for considerably less.
Mont Blanc Unlimited becomes much more attractive if you want the Aiguille du Midi, Vallée Blanche, Les Houches or the freedom to explore beyond the central Chamonix ski areas.
Chamonix Le Pass
Chamonix Le Pass is the standard lift pass for skiing the main Chamonix valley ski areas.
It covers Brévent-Flégère, Grands Montets and Balme/Le Tour-Vallorcine, together with a number of beginner areas including La Vormaine, Le Savoy, Les Planards and Les Chosalets. The operator currently describes the pass as covering around 110km of marked pistes.
It's a good choice if your holiday is centred on Chamonix itself and you don't expect to use the wider attractions included with Mont Blanc Unlimited.
Don't think of it as an intermediate or piste-skier's pass. Chamonix Le Pass gives access to some of Chamonix's most challenging skiing, including the lift-served terrain at Grands Montets. The difference between Le Pass and Unlimited is primarily where you can go, rather than how well you ski.
What Chamonix Le Pass does not include is equally important. It doesn't include Les Houches–Saint-Gervais, Courmayeur, the Evasion Mont-Blanc ski areas or the principal sightseeing sites such as the Aiguille du Midi and Montenvers–Mer de Glace.
What's happening at Grands Montets in 2026/27?
The rebuilding of Grands Montets continues following the 2018 fire. The existing Plan Joran gondola is due to operate again this winter, while the first section of the new Grands Montets lift system—the 10-person gondola from Argentière to Lognan—is scheduled to open for the Christmas 2026 holidays.
The new upper lift from Lognan to the Grands Montets summit is not due to open until winter 2027/28, so the summit itself remains inaccessible by lift during winter 2026/27.
Mont Blanc Unlimited
Mont Blanc Unlimited, normally shortened to MBU, is the much broader ski-and-sightseeing pass.
It includes all the skiing covered by Chamonix Le Pass and adds Les Houches–Saint-Gervais, together with access to several other ski areas and major mountain attractions.
For many first-time visitors to Chamonix, the biggest reason to choose MBU isn't simply the additional pistes. It's the inclusion of places such as the Aiguille du Midi, Montenvers–Mer de Glace and Tramway du Mont-Blanc.
Depending on the length of your pass and current partner conditions, MBU also opens up skiing in the wider Evasion Mont-Blanc area, which includes resorts around Megève and Saint-Gervais, as well as Courmayeur in Italy and benefits at Crans-Montana in Switzerland. Some of these advantages begin only with passes of two days or more, and some require you to activate an extension or visit a local ticket office before skiing.
This isn't therefore one enormous linked ski area. It's better to think of MBU as a pass covering a collection of ski areas and mountain attractions around the Mont Blanc region. The areas are connected by the valley's road and bus network rather than by lifts, so most visitors use the pass to choose a different area for a particular day rather than moving between several areas during one day's skiing.
Does Mont Blanc Unlimited include Courmayeur?
Yes, subject to the conditions attached to your pass.
For normal stay passes, Courmayeur access starts with MBU passes of two days or more. You must first use the pass on a lift in the Chamonix valley and may need to have the Courmayeur extension loaded onto your hands-free card.
Once activated, the stay-pass benefit currently provides access to the Courmayeur ski area during the validity of your MBU pass.
It's a particularly appealing option on a week's holiday because Courmayeur provides a completely different day's skiing on the Italian side of Mont Blanc. Just remember that you need to travel there—the ski areas aren't connected by lifts or pistes, and Courmayeur is not a practical area to combine with a normal Chamonix ski day.
Does Mont Blanc Unlimited include Megève?
MBU passes of two days or more can give access to the Evasion Mont-Blanc ski area, subject to the current conditions.
This includes a large area around Megève, Saint-Gervais, Saint-Nicolas-de-Véroce, Les Contamines and the Portes du Mont-Blanc sectors covered by the agreement. Again, this involves travelling away from Chamonix rather than skiing directly from one area to another.
For most people staying in Chamonix for six or seven nights, we'd regard this as a useful option rather than something you necessarily need to build into every holiday.
Chamonix Le Pass or Mont Blanc Unlimited?
The price difference can look significant, particularly for a family, so it's worth deciding how much of MBU you're actually likely to use.
If your ideal week is a day at Brévent-Flégère, a couple of days around Grands Montets, another at Le Tour and perhaps revisiting whichever area has the best snow, Chamonix Le Pass is probably enough. You can use the included bus service to reach the different areas, but most skiers will normally spend a full day in one area rather than trying to move between several of them.
If your plans include the Vallée Blanche, Aiguille du Midi, Les Houches or Courmayeur, MBU starts to make considerably more sense.
There is also a middle ground. You don't necessarily have to buy the same product for every day of your holiday. Depending on current prices, someone who wants five days of normal Chamonix skiing and one Aiguille du Midi day may find it worth comparing a shorter Chamonix Le Pass plus a separate MBU or sightseeing ticket against the price of six days Unlimited.
Dynamic pricing means there is no single answer, so compare the actual online prices for your dates before buying.
Are the Chamonix ski areas connected?
The Chamonix ski areas are connected by the lift-pass system and valley transport, not by a continuous network of lifts and pistes.
Brévent and Flégère are connected to each other by lifts, but the principal Chamonix ski areas are otherwise separate. The valley's bus service links them, and both Chamonix Le Pass and Mont Blanc Unlimited include access to the relevant ski shuttle network.
For example, you cannot ski from Brévent to Grands Montets or from Grands Montets to Le Tour through a network of pistes and lifts. You would normally finish skiing in one area, take a bus or other valley transport, and start the next day in another. Although it is technically possible to visit more than one area in a day, most skiers would not find that worthwhile.
This is one reason why comparing Chamonix purely by kilometres of piste with a large interconnected resort such as the Three Valleys can be misleading. Chamonix works differently: you choose the best area for the day's weather, snow conditions and type of skiing, then travel there.
The upside is variety. Brévent-Flégère, Balme, Grands Montets and Les Houches all have quite different characters, and the pass lets you choose between them without buying a separate lift ticket for each area.
Do you need Mont Blanc Unlimited for the Vallée Blanche?
If you're skiing the classic Vallée Blanche from the Aiguille du Midi, Mont Blanc Unlimited is normally the most useful ski pass because it includes access to the Aiguille du Midi cable car.
The Vallée Blanche itself isn't a piste or conventional ski area. It's a high-mountain glacial off-piste itinerary, so the lift pass simply gets you to its starting point.
You should not confuse buying MBU with buying a guided Vallée Blanche experience. Guiding, specialist equipment and any other services are separate.
Unless you have the appropriate glacier, route-finding and high-mountain experience, skiing the Vallée Blanche with a qualified mountain guide is strongly recommended.
If the Vallée Blanche is one of the main reasons you're coming to Chamonix, factor that into your choice between Le Pass and MBU from the outset.
Les Houches–Saint-Gervais ski pass
Les Houches sits at the lower end of the Chamonix valley and has its own ski area and local lift pass.
For winter 2026/27, the standalone product is particularly relevant to day skiers and visitors staying in Les Houches who don't need access to the rest of Chamonix. The official product currently offers four-hour and one-day options with dynamic online pricing.
The ski area has around 31km of marked pistes, with a good mixture of wooded slopes and open mountain skiing. The Les Houches pass also includes the relevant winter access on the Tramway du Mont-Blanc.
If you want to ski both Les Houches and the main Chamonix areas during the same multi-day holiday, Mont Blanc Unlimited is generally the more practical product.
Importantly, Les Houches is not included in Chamonix Le Pass.
Are the ski buses included with a Chamonix ski pass?
Both Chamonix Le Pass and Mont Blanc Unlimited currently include access to the valley's ski shuttle and bus network. This is an important part of how the Chamonix ski areas work: the pass unifies access to several separate areas, while the buses provide the practical connection between them.
You can use the network to reach Brévent-Flégère, Grands Montets, Le Tour-Balme and other areas, but most skiers will normally choose one area for the day rather than trying to ski several areas in succession.
The wider transport benefits attached to MBU can be more complicated. For example, particular train journeys or external resort connections may require separate tickets, reservations or proof of your ski-pass purchase even where a preferential arrangement exists.
Don't assume that MBU functions as an unrestricted public-transport pass. Check the current conditions if you're planning a specific journey outside the normal Chamonix ski-bus network.
Complete beginners don't necessarily need either of the main Chamonix lift passes. Talk to your ski school before buying any passes, if you're having lessons (highly recommended if you're a beginner).
Several smaller areas around the valley have slopes specifically suited to learning, including La Vormaine at Le Tour, the Savoy slopes in central Chamonix, Les Planards and Les Chosalets.
Some of these areas offer cheaper beginner tickets sold locally at the lift ticket office. At higher-altitude beginner areas, special rates may also be available under particular conditions, for example when taking lessons with a ski instructor.
This can make a substantial difference during the first few days of a ski holiday.
If you're spending day one learning to snowplough on a nursery slope, there is little point paying for a pass covering Grands Montets, Brévent, Italy and high-mountain sightseeing that you won't use.
Once you're comfortable using chairlifts and skiing longer green and blue pistes, moving onto Chamonix Le Pass or MBU makes more sense.
The standard Chamonix age categories currently classify adults as 15 to 64, with reduced prices for children aged 5 to 14 and seniors aged 65 to 79. Children under five are entitled to a free pass, although you'll need proof of age and the free ticket normally has to be issued at a lift-pass office.
Separate conditions apply for skiers aged 80 and over, with veteran products generally issued at the ticket office.
Chamonix also offers Family/Tribu pricing. The normal formula is based around two adults and at least two children aged 5 to 14, with provision for additional children under the family tariff up to the stated limit.
For families, it's particularly worth comparing the family price rather than simply multiplying the individual adult and child tariffs.
Discounted ski passes
The most reliable way to reduce the cost of skiing in Chamonix is simply to buy online before you arrive.
Compagnie du Mont-Blanc now uses dynamic pricing for its online ski passes. Prices vary with demand, the skiing period and how early you buy, with the operator specifically encouraging advance booking to secure lower prices. Discounted online products can also have stricter conditions and may be non-changeable and non-refundable.
Don't just concentrate on the headline discount, though. The biggest saving can come from buying the right pass in the first place.
A beginner may save by using local nursery-slope tickets. A good skier staying exclusively in Chamonix may not need MBU. Conversely, somebody planning the Aiguille du Midi, Les Houches and Courmayeur may find that Unlimited is much better value than buying everything separately.
It's also worth thinking realistically about how many days you're going to ski. A six-day pass only represents good value if you actually want to ski for six days.
Name of pass
Access
Offer
Family ski passes
All areas
2 adults and 1 child (5 to 14 years) pay full price, second child pass is discounted, third, fourth and fifth children go free
Forfait débutant Soleil or individual passes at Le Savoy, Les Planards, La Vormaine, Les Chosalets and Planpraz
Early bird discounts
All areas
Money off if you buy your tickets before end of November - excludes Christmas, New Year and February school holidays
Early and late season discounts
All areas
Money off when you come before 19 December 2026 or after 10 April 2027
Veteran discounts
All areas
Money off for skiers over the age of 80
Pedestrian passes
Certain lifts
Money off the prices of ski passes for snowshoers, alpinists and non-skiers
Concessions and discounts on Chamonix ski passes
Free ski passes in Chamonix
You heard it right, you can use the lift-system for free in Chamonix—but only if you're under five years old.
You'll still need to pay €3 for a hands-free card to get through the turnstiles though, luckily this can be used on subsequent visits to Chamonix as you grow up to be a big kid.
Pedestrian passes in Chamonix
You don't need to be skiing to use many of Chamonix's lifts.
Pedestrian tickets are available for major sightseeing attractions such as the Aiguille du Midi and Montenvers–Mer de Glace, as well as selected mountain lifts where pedestrian access is permitted.
This is particularly useful for mixed groups where some people are skiing and others aren't.
For skiers buying MBU, many of the major sightseeing sites are already included, which is worth remembering when comparing it with Chamonix Le Pass. A non-skier, however, usually doesn't need to buy a ski pass simply to visit the mountains.
If you're planning to spend more than 21 days in the mountains this winter, you've got two options to save money on your lift journeys:
buy a season pass (or annual pass if you're planning to stay for the summer)
buy a Mont Blanc Rapid card
Season Pass
A season pass costs roughly the equivalent of a three week ski pass, so it's excellent value if you're staying in the valley for a while. You pay a fixed price and then ride the lifts as often or as little as you like.
To get the best price, you'll need to buy your season pass before the end of November.
Pay As You Go
A Mont Blanc Rapid card is a pay-as-you-go service where:
you buy a €50 card upfront and you get around 20% off the cost of a daily lift pass on all of the Compagnie du Mont Blanc lifts
every seventh day is free
your account is debited weekly, rather than you having to pay at the kiosk each time you go up
Ski pass insurance in Chamonix
Ski-pass insurance is generally offered as an optional extra rather than being automatically included in the price of your pass.
Whether you need it depends on the cover you already have through your travel insurance, bank or specialist winter-sports policy. Check carefully rather than automatically buying duplicate cover.
In particular, make sure you understand what your existing insurance says about off-piste skiing, rescue costs and guided or glacial skiing if those are part of your Chamonix plans.
Chamonix has far more accessible high-mountain terrain than a conventional piste-only resort, so appropriate winter-sports cover is worth taking seriously.
Chamonix lift passes can be bought online before your holiday, from resort ticket offices, and electronic kiosks in locations in resort.
If you already have a compatible reusable hands-free card, you'll normally be able to recharge it rather than collecting a new one. If not, a €3 reusable hands-free badge is currently required. Keep it after your holiday if you intend to return.
Online orders can also be collected from automatic Pick-Up Box terminals around the resort, including in some hotels.
For passes of ten days or more, a photograph is required under the lift-company's current conditions. Some special tariffs, including free child passes, veteran products and disability concessions, may only be issued at a staffed ticket office.
Vallorcine offers 8km of marked cross-country ski trails, suitable for beginners and intermediates. The circuit loops round from Vallorcine to Le Buet, meaning that you can start from either village, both of which are easily accessible by train.
Les Grands Montets cable car (otherwise known as GM) is located an easy walk from Argentière town centre and is also on the main bus line, as well as being very near to Argentière train station.
The Aiguille du Midi summits at a height of 3,842m and is the starting point for the famous Vallée Blanche off-piste route. There is a dedicated lift pass office here which can sell you tickets not only for the Midi but also any of the other lifts in the valley.
La Flégère is a large south-facing ski area accessed by a cable car from the village of Les Praz; you can reach this lift pass office at the bottom of the cable care in just 10 minutes by bus, train or car from Chamonix town.
Find out all about what is happening in the Chamonix valley and how to make the most of your time here. The latest news, reviews of fun activities, current events and the trendiest restaurants, as well as interviews with leading locals, insider's guides and our top choices for things to do, see and experience in the valley. Plus, during the winter season, our famous snow reports and dump alerts all in the same place.
Chamonix hosts a wide range of sporting events throughout the year. The biggest ones include the Mont Blanc Marathon in June and the UTMB trail running race in August. In March, the Unlimited Festival brings ravers to the mountains while Musilac Mont Blanc takes place a month later. At the end of July, the Cosmo Jazz Festival hosts concerts all around the valley.