The Alps summer vacation: Geneva to Chamonix & Mont Blanc

Welcome to Geneva! Your adventure begins as you check-in at the Crowne Plaza Geneva Hotel which offers a free airport shuttle service. Late afternoon you’ll meet your tour leaders, Prof Rob Butler and Dr Taija Torvela who will give you a warm welcome and an overview of the exciting journey ahead. Take this time to settle in, meet fellow travellers, and get ready for a week of exploration. Free evening.

• Hotel: Crowne Plaza Geneva, Geneva
• Free evening

Start your day from Geneva with a scenic drive in a comfortable small coach through the beautiful Alpine foothills, which have been sculpted by ancient glaciers over millennia. Enjoy the dramatic landscapes as we make our way to the charming town of Samoëns for a relaxing lunch stop.  

Afterwards, we’ll continue our journey through the valley of the Arve, stopping to marvel at incredible folded rock formations involved in creating the Alps.  

By evening, we’ll arrive in Chamonix, where you’ll settle into our centrally located Relais & Chateaux hotel for the next two nights and enjoy a group dinner in the hotel’s traditional restaurant. 

• Hotel: 5-star Hotel Hameau Albert 1er, Chamonix
• Group dinner in the hotel’s traditional restaurant

We start the day with a cable car ride to Le Brévent, where you’ll be treated to sweeping views of the western Alps and Mont Blanc. After taking in the stunning scenery controlled by the underlying geology, and a coffee in the top station cafe, we’ll head back to Chamonix where guests can find a cafe for lunch or wander back to the hotel to enjoy the facilities.

The afternoon is an opportunity to discover Chamonix’s rich history by visiting the mineral and alpine museums. Mid-afternoon, we’ll meet up again at the SNCF train station (8 minutes walk from the hotel) and take the local valley train for a half-hour ride to Montroc where we will do a gentle 1km walk to Tréléchamps, a tiny but scenic village. Enjoy a cafe stop and appreciate the views before returning to Chamonix by train. 

Make the most of your free evening, either staying in the hotel or exploring the vibrant town of Chamonix and prepare for the next leg of our journey. 

• Hotel: 5-star Hotel Hameau Albert 1er, Chamonix
• Free evening

We’ll start early to beat the traffic through the Mont Blanc tunnel. Our first stop will be Courmayeur, where we’ll have a coffee in front of the awe-inspiring south face of the Mont Blanc range. From there, we’ll drive down the upper part of the picturesque Aosta Valley. Its numerous castles and ancient bridges chart the valley’s importance as a route through the Alps, since before Roman times. We head into the Gran Paradiso National Park and the alpine village of Cogne, where the group can explore the cafes and restaurants for a light lunch. We can spend the afternoon finding out about the region’s ancient history of mining in the region’s museum. 

By evening, we’ll arrive in the historic city of Aosta, founded in 25BC by the Romans. From the centrally located 4* Duca D’Aosta hotel, our base for the next three nights, you can explore the Roman and Medieval remains and browse the excellent range of shops. Each evening you’ll have time to unwind in the hotel or perhaps take a stroll to cosy bars, cafes and restaurants serving excellent local cuisine. 

• Hotel: 4-star Duca D’Aosta Hotel, Cervinia
• Group dinner in nearby restaurant, walking distance from the hotel

Today, we’ll enjoy the 1 hour drive up the Valtourneche valley to the mountain village of Breuil and take the cable cars up to the Plan Maison vantage point on the Swiss-Italian border. The journey takes approximately 10-15 minutes and provides stunning views of the Matterhorn. Prof Rob Butler will lead a fascinating geological discussion, explaining the forces that shaped these iconic mountains.

We will enjoy a group lunch at the Rocce Nera restaurant at Plan Maison before returning to Breuil by cable car, arriving mid-afternoon back at the hotel.

The rest of the day is yours to explore or relax before returning to Aosta and the Duca D’Aosta hotel.  

Enjoy a relaxing evening in Aosta, we’ll spend our second night in Aosta.

• Hotel: Duca D’Aosta Hotel, Cervinia
• Free evening

After driving down the dramatic gorge of the Aosta valley, passing ancient castles and segments of Roman roads, we will spend this day up in Val di Gressonney. The valley is an Alpine gem full of little Alpine farms. We will take another 25-minute cable car ride, from Staffal to Bettaforca, to see Monte Rosa and Lyskamm – another set of 4,000m Alpine peaks on the border between Switzerland and Italy. Monte Rosa is the second highest mountain in the Alps and western Europe, after Mont Blanc. Lyskamm at 4,532m, also known as Silberbast  (literally “silver bast”), is renowned for frequent avalanches, leading to its nickname the Menschenfresser  (“people eater”). We’ll be able to touch outcrops of former oceanic crust – and discuss how they came to be over 3 km above sea level.  

After a tasty group lunch at Restaurant Jutz, located at the midway point of Santa-Anna and a short stroll across the pastures to a tiny chapel, we can return to the valley. Our return down Val di Gressonney passes romantic waterfalls, villages and the odd Roman bridge! 

If the weather restricts the cable car and view, we will spend more time visiting the local historical castles. Return to Aosta for final evening, group dinner and overnight stay. 

• Hotel: Duca D’Aosta Hotel, Cervinia
• Group dinner

On our final day, we’ll drive back to Geneva via the historic Grand Saint Bernard Pass, stopping for coffee to admire the views of Switzerland’s third-highest road pass, at almost 2,500m (8,100ft). This scenic route offers more stunning views of Great St Bernard Lake and Mt Velan (3,727m) and its glaciers, and a sense of the journey’s historical significance. With a leisurely group lunch stop planned, we aim to arrive in Geneva by mid to late afternoon, marking the end of our incredible adventure through the majestic Alps. 

Note: If required for reasons beyond our control, GeoCultura reserves the right to substitute alternative accommodation of equal or higher quality or adapt the itinerary if required.