UKC

So I have a question about the Chamonix  to Aguille du Midi cable car.

I'm planning on doing mont blanc via the trois mont route in mid July and will need to use the cable car twice. Once for acclimatisation and once for the summit.

My plan is to buy a 7 or 8 day multipass to adjust plans for weather and do other mini trips whilst there.

Problem is I can only book one slot when I order the pass and I can't book another slot on the cable car to Aguille du midi until I have used the booked one.

My fear is if I book the acclimatisation trip now, by the time I can book the summit trip it might be full. Do t know if this is typical or not. Logic tells me to book the submit trip (gamble on weather and hope to adjust nearer to the time) but I don't know if I can queue and use the cable car for an acclimatisation trip without booking if I already have a booked trip later in the week.

Anybody have experience with this.

Thanks

In reply to montyjohn: Unless it’s changed in the last couple of years, no need to book. Just turn up and join the queue, obviously it’s best to get their early when it’s just climbers queuing and not tourists. Get there before the first bin is due to go and you shouldn’t be waiting too long and you get full use of the day at altitude. 

In reply to montyjohn:

Unfortunately, the CMB sells a day ticket which enables a day tourist to go up the midi, Brevent & take the train to montenver all in the same day.

Obviously this increases passenger numbers queueing very early for the midi trying to cram all three trips into one day.

Therefore, it’s virtually impossible now to get a early bin without either booking or queueing very early.

Or pray for a bad weather day if just want to up there to acclimatize when nobody else will want to go up.

In reply to montyjohn:

Woulndt it be more interesting and cheaper to acclimatise in another area?

In reply to Martin Haworth:

In reply to walts4:

Maybe I've been thinking about this the wrong way round then. Maybe it's best to book the acclimatization trip as that can go ahead whatever the weather, and an early spot is important.

When it comes to summit, I don't really mind what time I get up there as all I need to do is make it to the hut. It would be a disaster tho' if the sun was shining and they were simply fully booked.

Thanks both

In reply to MG:

I've got a couple of reasons to acclimitise at Aguille du Midi. First, maximum height with minimum effort. Some might call it laziness, I call it saving my self for the big day.

Plus, I can acclimitise there whatever the weather. Big bonus.

Finally, if the weather is good and I'm feeling up to it, I'd like to climb to the west ridge at Mont Blanc du Tacul. Should make it easier on sumit day not "seeing" it for the first time at night.

In reply to montyjohn:

If all you need to do is get to the Cosmiques hut you'll be fine. The upwards direction calms down towards the end of the day so you won't need a booking. Non climbing tourists don't want to go up in the last hour or so because they wouldn't get much time up there. Also the lift won't take them up, because they won't be able to get them all down before closing, because they've got to get everyone already up there down. You might have to tell them you're going to stay in the Cosmiques for them to let you up, but if you obviously look like a climber they'll probably just let you up.

In reply to walts4:

why can't the OP practise for summit day as well - get there for midnight, that way killing 2 birds with 1 stone....

In reply to montyjohn:

Hi. I just booked my pass for 8 days in May and it didn’t require me to book a time slot. Perhaps you can click past it like I did. I have to collect from the station with my QR code then away I go.

In reply to montyjohn:

This booking online thing that the Midi lift website leads you towards seems to be a new, mysterious, and slightly misleading thing...on face value it makes all the early lifts seem booked up, but we recently found that perhaps not all cars are bookable, and good old first come first served still seems to apply, thankfully.