There are heaps of events held throughout the year in Chamonix, ranging from small and quirky local festivals, to world renowned sporting events. Music festivals are also hugely popular during the summer months and provide a great excuse to make a quick trip out to the Alps. In this section, we bring you information about the major annual events in resort, and don't forget to check out our weekly what's on calender.
Wondering what to do this Christmas and New Year? The festive season in the snowy Alps is always magical and every year there is some sort of celebration in resort to mark the occasion. Christmas is a far less commercial event in France than in the UK and so you won’t find things publicised for months in advance - but you can always be sure of a glass of vin chaud (mulled wine), a few carols and perhaps the odd firework or two! Many of the restaurants will put on a special festive menu with champagne and traditional French dishes, so book in advance if you want to treat yourself to a meal out.
Likewise, planning ahead is advised if you have your heart set on ringing in the New Year in a particular bar or club – many of them are ticket-only, so enquire in advance to avoid disappointment!
Christmas in Chamonix officially starts at the very beginning of December (occasionally the last weekend in November) when the Christmas lights are switched on. The night is marked with vin chaud, hot chocolate and music. From then on you can enjoy Christmas concerts, festive markets and live music throughout town as the resort gears up for Christmas and New Year.
Christmas Eve is usually marked with street parades, a carol concert outside the Tourist Office and a rather theatrical visit from Father Christmas. Christmas Masses are held all evening at the Catholic Church in the centre of town (Eglise de Saint Michel).
There doesn’t really tend to be any specific New Year’s Eve celebrations in Chamonix – all the bars hold their own parties, restaurants often lay on a special menu and perhaps some entertainment. Come midnight the hoards of tipsy revellers head down to the clock tower in the centre of town for the big countdown – not an official event as such, more of a long-held tradition. On the stroke of midnight you are advised to duck as champagne corks and fireworks are unleashed in celebration!
To find out exactly what Chamonix has in store this year have a look at our What’s On Calendar. You can read about the revelries of years gone by in our Après Ski Report, just use the drop-down box called ‘Archived Reports’ to go back to the date you are looking for. To get a feel for what Chamonix nightlife is all about, take a look at our Dining & Going Out Guide.
Talents Aiguilles - Weekend for Women (mid-Jan)
**NOT TAKING PLACE IN 2010**
Salomon and Chamonix join forces for a weekend series of events geared entirely towards women. There are a host of great activities organised both on and off the mountain - and it is all FREE OF CHARGE, including access to skiing at Les Grands Montets and ski lessons for all standards throughout the valley.
(Sorry guys, no concessions for blokes in tights and Freddie Mercury house-wife outfits as far as we know, although you could always give it a go - send us your pictures if it pays off!)
Highlights include:
Salomon Fashion ShowLive Concert - ladies be sure to download your invitation
Free entry to Chamonix's museums and exhibition centres
Wintersports activities accompanied by mountain professionals, including snow-shoeing and ice-climbing (equipment and instruction courtesy of Talents Aiguilles and their local partners
Le Kandahar - World Cup Downhill Skiing (late Jan)
Kandahar Ski Racer
Les Houches in the Chamonix valley is home to the Kandahar World Downhill Ski Championships. This race has become one of the main sporting events in the Chamonix valley and represents the excellent skiing reputation Chamonix possesses.
Created in 1928, the Kandahar was the first international alpine competition to combine downhill and slalom events. This combination still exists in the Olympic Games and the World Championships. Both are spectacular and very difficult, it the race remains a measure of excellence, even if over the past few years, skiers are increasingly less suited to such events.
The downhill race takes place every two years on La Verte piste in Les Houches during early February and over the years has attracted many big downhill competitors including: James Couttet, Karl Schranz, Emile Allais, Ingemar Stenmark, André Aamodt, Alberto Tomba and Bode Miller.
The Boss des Bosses is the longest running season worker’s comp in the Alps. Its roots go back to a gauntlet - doubtless luminous - flung at a Val d’Isere fop who impudently suggested that Val’s skiers were better than Chamonix’s. A team bumps competition settled the matter in Chamonix’s favour and now, twenty year’s later on, the comp is still moving from strength to strength. Most of those original competitors - once hard drinking, powder skiing, all-in-one wearing, bums for life - are likely living in suburbia, worrying about the implications of the new one way system to house prices and saving money for their off-springs’ university fees. Still at the helm is the man who rose to the challenge so many years ago: Mr Tom Banfield; sporting, as always, his trademark battered tan ski suit and a beard to make Gandalf feel inadequately whiskered. Along the way the Boss des Bosses – ‘bosses’ being French for bumps – has snowballed. First Verbier and Zermatt joined the contest, then Meribel, Courchevel and finally Val Thorens. In previous years Chamonix and Zermatt have dominated, at least since the departure of Verbier, who haven’t entered since 1997. For several years it formed the core event of the Chamjam music and snowsports festival, before that was unfortunately ended by excessive Chamonix regulations.
The Nissan Outdoor Games brings together athletes from all over the world to Chamonix for one of the best extreme sports film competitions on the planet.
Teams of five have five days to produce a five minute film. The teams are comprised of a skier, snowboarder, mountaineer, speed flyer and B.A.S.E jumper and the films showcase their skills and daring on the peaks and slopes of Mont Blanc.
Previous teams have included world record holders and world champions and each year the films produced are shown to an eager crowd in the centre of Chamonix town, an event not to be missed!
The Chamonix Freeride Days signals the end of the Chamonix ski season. The Grand Montets skiing area plays host to the event providing entertainment in the form of music, swimming pool, a waterslide, BBQ and lots of beer.
The event is essentially a last gasp effort by the locals and seasonaires to really hurt themselves on the rails or the big wall that are set up at Lognon ski area. If that fails to entertain, there is still drowning by waterslide, or attempting the slide topless as has been done by brave kids in previous years! It’s not a huge problem if you do not make it across the slide as there is a hot tub waiting for you to dip into!
In previous seasons, the Ecole de Ski Française (ESF) have set up a speed test to the left of Marmottons piste, however a helmet is required if you want to test yourself. There’s usually a DJ in place at the bottom of the Herse chairlift, where a BBQ, beer, and those huge tartiflette pans full of sausages and potatoes are free flowing. In 2005 there was a volleyball match too and if past years are anything to go by, and the weather allows, you might be lucky and see some daredevils leaping out of helicopters.
The event takes place on the last weekend of the season, which normally falls in early May.
The Millet Raid is the latest of the endurance events to arrive in Chamonix. The idea is to use the area around Mont Blanc as a playground and enjoy as many different activities in one event.
Over the four days of the competition the teams will run, cycle, climb, abseil, rope slide and orienteer around Chamonix. There are four Events included in the Millet Raid; Ultra Raid covers 130km in four days and climbs over 8500 vertical metres. The two day Expert Raid will cover 75km and climb 4400m and the Discovery Raid is a two day event covering 40km and climbing 2000m. There is also a Family Raid for teams of one adult and two children.
Get yourself down to the ice-rink and support the local team, usually on a weekly basis there is a match. The Chamonix Hockey Team actually do quite well and the matches can get quite riotous... As an alternative evening out maybe have dinner in the nearby Micro Brewery de Chamonix (aka 'The MBC') and then head over to the rink with a group of friends. There is a bar so you can get a few beers in whilst you watch the game. Remember to take some warm clothes and shoes, hats and gloves - you are going to be sitting in a large freezer in a ski resort, believe us - it's doubly cold!
Fête de la Musique is the celebration that takes place every summer solstice on 21st June in cities, towns and villages across France – Chamonix being no exception! More than a music festival, the Fête de la Musique is a free event that spills out from the bars and restaurants onto the streets and encompasses every type of music imaginable, from local amateur teen bands to professional classical musicians, from club DJ’s to traditional folk bands.
Starting in the afternoon, the event is a family occasion that is open to all. It is a great opportunity to wander round Chamonix, taking in the sights and enjoying the party atmosphere! There are often large stages set up outside the Tourist Office, in Place du Mont Blanc (by the Galerie Alpina) and in Place Balmat (by the Post Office). One of the treats of the Fête de la Musique is to book an outside table at one of Chamonix’s many restaurants and sit back to watch the action (we recommend booking in advance on this popular night).
As the evening wears on, the party steps up a notch and many of the streets and squares turn into open-air dance floors as DJ’s take their decks outside and turn the volume up. If you really want to experience the carnival atmosphere you should head down to the Rue de Moulin, a narrow cobbled pedestrian street where revellers squeeze in to dance to the music pumping out of the many bars and from the live bands playing anywhere they can find space!
Fête de la Musique is one of those certain nights throughout the year when the French authorities waive normal licensing laws, allowing the revelry to continue as long as there are people with the stamina to enjoy it – it is definitely one of the not-to-be-missed events of the Chamonix summer social calendar!
If you’re a fan of distance running then the Marathon du Mont Blanc is the ultimate challenge. Covering 42kms and climbing over 1000 metres, this high-altitude race is only for the super-fit! An annual event, the marathon takes place every June and attracts thousands of competitors and spectators. There are a number of extra events held throughout the weekend, enabling everyone to get involved. ... see "Marathon du Mont Blanc" for more
Every year, Chamonix hosts the World Climbing Championships (Coupe du Monde d’Escalade) during which the world’s finest speed and technical climbers descend on the resort for three days of astonishing climbing action. ... see "World Climbing Championships" for more
Every summer France is gripped by the biggest and best cycle race in Europe - Le Tour de France. The Alps have played a large part in the race over the years with the gruelling mountain climbs providing some of the most exciting spectacles of the event. The route changes slightly each year, taking in different towns and villages along the way. Even if the race doesn't pass near to where you are this summer you can guarantee that it will still be avidly watched in bars and cafés around the country with everyone joining in to cheer on the famous yellow jersey! ... see "Le Tour de France" for more
Fete de Guides de Chamonix (mid August)
Fete des Guides procession | Photo Credit - Hervé Thivierge
Each year during the middle of August the Chamonix valley celebrates the history of its mountain guides and their courageous achievements. Over a 4 day period the Guide Company (La compagnie des Guides) and the event sponsors put on a variety of attractions to raise money and awareness for the guides and to award those with outstanding achievements, as well as remembering those who lost their life on the mountain.
The main event of the Festival of the Guides of Chamonix (Fete des Guides de Chamonix) is generally started at the climbing wall at Les Gaillands, Chamonix. This is a ‘tickets only’ event held in the evening and offers live music, traditional food, games for children, fireworks and best of all, a performance on the cliff face by the local mountain guides.
The official ceremony is usually followed the proceeding day and commences with the laying of wreaths at the Chamonix cemetery. Guides in traditional costume, consisting of cords and ice axes, make a procession through the town to the church. The president of the company presents medals, blesses the tools of the mountain and announces the honorary guide of the year. There are a number of stalls present selling local fare & mountain related products. To find out the history and traditions of the mountain this event is well worth attending. You can learn more about the company of guides by going to the Maison de Montagne next to the church in Chamonix or visiting the Compagnie des Guides website.
The North Face : Ultra trail of Mont Blanc (end August)
Over the course of three days, participants cover a total of 166kms, 3 countries, 7 valleys, 71 glaciers and 400 summits, experiencing a difference in altitude of 9400 metres. This race is a true test of endurance, a combination of pleasure/pain, highs and lows. The trail begins and ends at Chamonix but you can catch sight of the runners as they pass through Les Houches, Les Contamines, Les Chapieux, Courmayeur, La Fouly, Champex, Trient, Vallorcine, and Flegere. Each of these areas celebrates the achievement of the runners by holding a fete with concerts, barbeques and general encouragement, clapping and cheering as the runners pass by. There is no monetary prize for being the first to complete the course as the philosophy of the trail is that everyone’s a winner – it’s a personal achievement and as such there is a wonderful sense of team spirit about the event. In 2005, the winner crossed the line in an amazing 21 hours and 6 minutes. For us lesser mortals, it is possible to take a similar tour of Mont Blanc over a period of 8 to 10 days, staying in mountain refuges and hopping on the odd bus if necessary! Many people come to Chamonix each year to do just that, the scenery is quite spectacular and you really do feel on top of the world.
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