Milan. Courmayeur. Entreves. Chamonix. Parco Nazionale Gran Paradiso. Stresa. Lago Maggiore.
The Skinny
Wednesday, 8/28
Drive from Milan to Hotel Auberge a la Maison in Entreves just up from the famed Courmayeur in the Val Ferret
Courmayeur walk the town (Via Roma main street) and dinner at Pierre Alexia 1883
Thursday, 8/29
Skyway Gondola which is literally right at Entreves to Punta Helbronner atop the Brenva Glacier for incredible 360 views. A must.
Drive to Chamonix. Strolled Rue du Docteur Paccard, the Main Street
Up one of the ski gondolas to view and trek a bit
Al fresco dinner at the hotel.
Friday, 8/30
Segment 5 of the TMBA (Tour de Mont Blanc) for a dedicated day of hiking.
End destination is Courmayeur with lunch stop at the famed Rifugio Bertone.
dinner at Locanda Belvedere just up in the valley.
Saturday, 8/31
Parca Nationale Grand Paradiso in the town of Cogne \
Cascade Hike in Lila
Walk a bit of the valley trail and took the gondola for picnic with a view
Stresa en Lago de Maggiore, at The Boutique Hotel
Walked the town
Dinner at the rooftop bar
The Meat on the Bones
Tuesday, 8/27
A taste of the Valle d’Aosta
And there it is - the summer theme of too many delays and troubled traveling…4 hr mechanical delay, but finally underway to Milan (btw pro-tip: all pre-smoothed over by the brand new AMAZING Delta One club in JFK. Lusting to go see the TWA hotel in its iconic building, that was soon forgotten by the - unknowing to us - Delta One Club which is NOT the Skyclub. First, one of its kind and 2 month old venue of fab food, wellness, spacious gorgeous-ness that will make you WANT to fly through JFK.) But I digress.
Wednesday, 8/28
The airline delay (along with typical most-sophisticated-3rd-world-country efficiency/Italian true to form in passport control and car rental arena) sort of shot our plans for the day, so we arrived at Auberge a la Mason in Entreves just up from the famed Courmayeur in the Val Ferret mid afternoon after the 2.5 hr drive from Milan. Beyond postcard material, it is nestled literally just under Mont Blanc and Mont Rosa and basically surrounded by the Italian Alps. Lunch and acquainting ourselves with the area resulted in enjoying sitting and enjoying the view, figuring out the next three days, taking the 15 mins it takes to walk the village and organizing dinner.
Headed into Courmayeur around 6 by hotel shuttle to walk the town (Via Roma main street) and have an outstanding dinner at Pierre Alexia 1883 which was recommended by our hotel and quite divine. A ristorante over our usually preferred trattoria, it was quite culinary, yet understated and thankfully low key. Pretty perfect. Courmayeur is a flat out quintessential Euro ski village. Super quaint yet quite modern and hip. I’m taking it over Cortina for charm. Maybe proximity to France and Switzerland plays a role. Regardless, loved the hip vibe, but Telluride feel. The hotel pre-organized a taxi home. Worth the $$ even though it’s super close.
Thursday, 8/29
Bit toasty in the non AC alpine hotel, but the blue sky view of Mont Blanc helps ease that pain plus big beautiful buffet breakfast. Off to the Skyway Gondola which is literally right at Entreve to Punta Helbronner atop the Brenva Glacier for incredible 360 views of Mont Blanc, English Sisters, Dente Gigante and all the staggeringly beautiful Alps. A must. Going early was good as well as the skies were cloudless. The mid point of the gondola is also jumping off points for some hikes, but is also worth stooping to see the Alpine Garden. Gorgeous. Remember, the are refuges and bars all dotted throughout the mountains and at every peak. Eat there. Something to consider is going all the way to Chamonix, France by way of the gondolas, but we didn’t really understand that process. It takes awhile and getting back could be tricky. After the allotted time atop, we came back down and decided to drive to Chamonix. Another rookie decision as the tunnel traffic wait can be painful. Took us 50 minutes to get through to start the 8mile ride through, but then voila, you are in Chamonix.
Much larger than Courmayeur, it is a hip and fun town, but Pro Tip #2: dont go the last week of August when all the Tour de Mont Blanc races take place. It is PACKED. Strolled Rue du Docteur Paccard, the main street, and finally sat for lunch at a restaurant. Another rookie mistake - never eat on the main areas. It was tres chere and marginal. Shopped a few stores and had ice cream before heading to one of the ski gondolas to try for a hike. As per, the rude cashier told us we didnt have time for that. So we went up for the view and saw all the trails, which are mostly ski trails and snow cat roads. We didnt feel too gypped. Best would be to find a segment of the TMB in the area and hike that. Pro Tip #3: All Trails app can be difficult to follow in this area; trails are always very well marked as they all intertwine once getting to the trail head, but knowing how to find the trail head can be challenging.
Time a little less long returning to Entreves. Less people headed there vs the races environment in Chamonix. Quick dip in the Auberge pool and spa before delish al fresco dinner at the hotel.
Great day of exploration and a taste of the Val d’Aosta and Italian Alps.
Friday, 8/30
Settled on Segment 5 of the TMBA (Tour de Mont Blanc) for a dedicated day of hiking. EXCELLENT choice. Pro Tip #5 and #6: take the free Val Ferret bus, the incredible bus system throughout the valley and manhandles the Val Ferret hairpins and single lane road to the end; disregard All Trails of starting in Lavechy and go to the next bus stop #27 Bivio Rifugio Bonatti where the trail starts right at the bus stop. Straight up for about an hour to come out on top and at the famed Rifiguio Bonatti. Not yet ready for nothing to eat, we started on the GORGEOUS basically flat trail across mostly meadows with AMAZiNG views of the Alps/Mont Blanc Massif the whole way. End destination is Courmayeur with lunch stop at the other famed Rifugio Bertone. One negative was the races being run and a constant stream of runners that we would let pass. A bit annoying but also interesting to watch it all.
Tagliatelle bolgnese lunch at Rif. Bertone al fresco was outstanding as we followed the steep downhill into Courmayeur where we rewarded ourselves with charcuterie, beer, coke, and gelato! Nine miles of total beauty.
Back via bus to Entreves for some pool and massage time before dinner per the insistence of Auberge staff at Locanda Belvedere just up in the valley. A charming two star hotel that stays booked, the restaurant was quite amazing. Perfect amount of local and understated gourmet.
Saturday, 8/31
Continuing our Valle d’Aosta sampler, off to the Parca Nationale Grand Paradiso with the town of Cogne as the jumping off point. The park is probably overshadowed by the Alps, but it was gorgeous as expected. Forested, with glacier streams, waterfalls and gorgeous views of its own peaks and Mont Blanc. Plenty of hiking here and known for wintertime cross country skiing in the Val du Vornoteny, which is in the heart of the town. Cogne very charming as per (see Hotel Belvedere) and a great location for doing the huge park. Plenty of other towns and villages as options within the park as well.
Time was limited as we were headed back to Lake Maggiore, so we opted for the Cascade Hike in Lillaz which is short and breathtaking both in beauty and pulmonary. It can be made longer in a variety of connecting possibilities.
After, in town, we bought panini a porta via (to go) and returned to Cogne to walk a bit of the valley trail and the gondola where at the top we walked a steep but 10 minute walk to a vista and ate lunch. A win.
Off to Stresa en Lago de Maggiore, as the same distance to the airport as going into Milan. So why not see a new, prettier area? Stresa busy on a summer wkd with lots of weddings and weekenders at the lakeside hotels. We had not booked ahead for flexibility reasons, so splurged for the Boutique Hotel as many of the other hotels were booked.
Saturday at the Lake was busy and touristy. Not really where you want to come unless to pass some time. The lake is huge and really pretty surrounded by mountains all around. After a quick jaunt through the somewhat tacky town, back to hang by the pool and dinner at the rooftop bar, which at dusk, had spectacular vistas.
Sunday, 9/1
Leave Stresa early to head back to Milan Malpensa Airport for flight to Sardinia... where another adventure awaits!
Comments