Mountain Biking in St Gervais

All these areas let mountain bikers take the uphill effort out of the day and ride the mixture of man made and natural trails below them.

St Gervais is the closest ski area from Chamonix, being less than 30 minutes in a car, about 90 minutes by a combination of the SNCF train to Le Fayet followed by the Tramway du Mont Blanc, or a downhill ride from either the Prarion or Bellevue lifts in Les Houches.

Getting back to Chamonix by bike is remarkably easy too, with the options of either using the Tramway du Mont Blanc which then gives you another 800 or so meters of descending back into the Chamonix valley at the end of the day, or cruising down to Le Fayet and jumping on the SNCF train to get you back to the centre of town in comfort.

The purpose made trail network from the St Gervais lifts is still in its infancy, currently consisting of a easy beginner green loop at the top of the hill and a longer blue flow trail below the Bettex to Mont d'Arbois lift. The green loop is a great introduction for beginner riders young and old, with gentle gradients and rolls all the way round its 1.7km loop.

Whilst more confident riders can still find plenty to amuse themselves there, the main attraction is the excellent blue graded "Whizz" flow trail dropping over 400m to Bettex. With well designed and constructed berms and rolls you can ride from top to bottom with minimal pedalling or braking, instead playing with the features and finding new ways to jump between corners on each lap. The well maintained surface means you can have just as much fun on a hardtail bike as on something with more suspension travel. Just watch out for the short boardwalk sections...

Away from the bike park trails, a quick look at the official bike map shows a range of trails snaking their way around the mountain, opening up possibilities to link from here to the neighbouring areas of Les Contamines or Megeve. With the importance of skiing and forestry work to the local economy it is no surprise that the IGN map for the area shows even more 4x4 tracks linking the hamlets and villages, providing the potential for long days on easy terrain surrounded by stunning views, or long days exploring the narrow singletrack that links these paths, whichever takes your fancy.

Unlike the lifts in Chamonix, the St Gervais lifts run on a fairly tight schedule, so the St Gervais to Bettex lift runs for 5 minutes, every 30 minutes on the hour, whilst the Bettex to Mont d'Arbois also runs for 5 minutes every 30 minutes but at quarter past the hour letting you make the full journey in one go. Whilst it can interrupt the flow of your day having to wait for the lift, it does give excuse (should it ever be needed) to stop for ice cream more frequently.

Lift pass prices range from 10.40€ for an adult single uplift to 17€ for the full area day mountain bike pass. Holders of the Mont Blanc Unlimited pass need to validate their pass at the St Gervais lift before use, but if you already did this during the ski season you can walk straight on.

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Find out more about summer pass prices and which options you have.