Chamonix, France and the Gorgeous Alps

Before traveling to Paris last March, I spent a quick weekend in Chamonix.  Although I am not a skier, there was lots to do and see in this charming town.  There are beautiful views of the Alps and Mont Blanc from throughout the town.

My friends and I rented an apartment from Snostation, a rental company located in Chamonix.  We were a quick walk from the center of town and Chamonix Sud, another area with restaurants and shops.  There was also a grocery store within a 5-10 minute walk to pick up some essentials on arrival.  The ladies at Snostation were extremely helpful when letting me into the apartment and helping us out when the building's front door lock was broken (by someone else in the building!)  It was great to have someone who spoke English a phone call away for questions.  The apartment was well kept, and it even had a pretty view from the balcony.  

One fun thing to do on Saturdays is visit the farmers' market in the center of town.  If you are staying in an apartment, you will find everything needed for a fabulous après ski dinner.  The rotisserie chickens you often find in French markets were available, as well as cheese, charcuterie, vegetables, and baked goods.  Many vendors offered specialities from the surrounding Haute-Savoie region, as well as items that seemed a bit more Italian than French.  It is easy to forget how close Chamonix is to Italy!  (You can in fact ski there for a day while based in Chamonix.)  A highlight of the market was definitely the buckwheat crepes we ate for lunch.  Mine was filled with local goat cheese and honey and was completely delicious.

Even if you do not ski, you can still get up into the Alps via the Aiguille du Midi cable car. Yes, you will be traveling up the mountain with people with skis, snowboards, parasailing packs, and huge arrays of mountaineering gear (think icepicks), but all you need is warm layers and water.  The altitude is quite high and you ascend rapidly, so keep drinking that water! There are viewing platforms on several levels, looking several directions-with large signs to show you what you are looking at (Italy, Mont Blanc, etc.)  There are some places to sit and have a snack, but the altitude got to my group pretty quickly and we had no interest in staying up there for any extra time.  Despite the sort of terrifying ride, I highly recommend trying the cable car.  The views were just too amazing to miss.  (Note that this is a different cable car than the one recently featured in the news for stranding riders overnight.)