Welcome!
This blog started up as a way for a group of us to keep our family and friends up to date on our hike around the Tour de Mont Blanc (TMB). I’ll be continuing it for other hikes, focusing particularly on value for money.
I’m a medic based in East England, and also have been involved in the Trinity Hiking Society.
All photos are taken with an iPhone. (or Olympus Tough TG-860 if from 2016)
Most hikes are in Ireland, with some in the Alps. We have been travelling further afield recently however…
Hope you enjoy reading about our adventures!
Big adventures, small budgets 
Sounds a lot more adventurous than your previous climbs!!!
Hope to see u before u go. I know you are busy with studying and exams etc.
but nevertheless –
It’s nice to see Alice is joining you.
Regards to Luca + Francesca too.
Hiya, love all the amazing photos and tips on your site.
I’m planning to hike the TMB next summer with a few friends, we will camping to save money. Have a few questions for ya..
• from your own experience ,how much roughly would it cost to do this? If I try to cut down as much as possible?
• can I start it on the Italian side ?
• I have read loads of posts about how it’s illegal to camp in some places but we should do it anyways … Will that be a problem ?
Thanks!
Xx
Hi, sorry forgot to reply to this! We spent about 200 euro each (plus the cost of flights to Milan/wherever). And yes we started and ended in Italy (Courmayeur) and it was probably easiest (especially for free parking)! It’s generally illegal to camp below 2,500m but once you’re out of the way, only pitch in the evening, and get going again early in the morning it’s generally fine: just make sure you’re not in the way of animals or near the banks of a river, and make sure you take your rubbish etc with you. Good luck!
Hello. I have just started reading/going through your information about Mont Blanc. I just had a quick question if you don’t mind. I was wondering about how much the trip cost once you arrived?
Thank you
Hi Daniel – assuming you are camping like we did, the only costs will be 1. Food and 2. Campsites 3. Cable cars.
1. For food, the cost depends on how many times you decide to ‘eat out’ at one of the huts/restaurants you encounter on the way (even e.g. for a hot chocolate). Otherwise, it’s just the cost of buying food at supermarkets. I don’t remember the exact numbers – but I do remember that in the Swiss part the supermarkets (as well as everything else) was very overpriced. It was a big relief when we crossed the border to France and then back to Italy. The prices in France and Italy are slightly overpriced compared to most of the mainland (my partner is Italian so we would know), but they are nothing crazy.
2. Campsites – every few days you will probably want to shower and have a nice grassy patch of ground where to sleep a bit more comfortably, in which case you can stay at one of the official campsites as opposed to camping in the wild. Depending on the number of people per tent, you might be looking at between 10-20 euro per night per tent. In some places you have to pay extra for the use of the hot showers, but nothing more than a couple of euros.
3. You can skip some climbs/descents through the use of cable cars. Although we would really discourage this (the trip will feel like much less of an accomplishment if you “cheat”), they may be necessary if you are late on your schedule/something wrong happens. Summer prices vary depending on the length of the ride and on the location, but you are looking at a few tens of euros per ride.
So to conclude, it really depends on how cheap you want to keep it and how you will feel when you are there. Extreme tiredness leads you into spending a bit more sometimes! 🙂