Les Ecrins de Soulane

Directions (how to arrive at the hostel):

Chamonix is connected to the valley by a highway and a small railway line. It is also connected to Courmayeur in Italy by road via the tunnel under the Mont-Blanc, and Martigny in Switzerland by road and rail.

In the winter there are TGV lines that go directly to St. Gervais-les-Bains (Le Fayet), where you can switch to a small local train to ride up into Chamonix. There is also a TGV that leaves directly from Charles-de-Gaulle airport to Lyon, and you can transfer to St. Gervais-les-Bains (Le Fayet) from there. Via St. Gervais, sleeper trains to Paris are also easily accessible.

The Chamonix valley can be considered everything between Servoz and the Swiss border, or the towns of: Servoz, Les Houches, Chamonix, Les Praz, Argentiere, and Vallorcine.

If you plan to fly to Geneva and hire a car, the route to Chamonix is relatively straight-forward, covering a distance of 88 km. Chamonix is located 80 km southeast of Geneva, Switzerland, and driving time is about one hour via the Autoroute Blanche (A40) motorway. Chamonix is 226 km from Lyon and 612 km from Paris.

Geneva is the most convenient and accessible airport for tourists traveling to Chamonix. Cham-van.com provides shared and private minibus transportation between Geneva airport and the Chamonix valley throughout the winter season from 25€ per person. Chamexpress.com run a timetabled daily service to Chamonix from Geneva Airport every 45 minutes throughout the winter and summer seasons at 28€ per person. Alternatively Alpybus, which is based in Geneva offers a high frequency shuttle service to Chamonix with fares at 23.50 euro per person. Deluxe transfers offer a private, chauffeur driven service between Geneva and Chamonix all year round.