Where to refuel & stock up?
Here are a few places to refuel and restock enroute. Places to buy food are listed below for the Tour Mont Blanc (TMB) in order to assist solo travellers with no on the ground information. This is useful if you are from out of town...obviously in large towns like Chamonix this is not relevant as choices are somewhat endless and hotel delivery is an option too, but other sections of the Tour Mont Blanc are in nature reserves where there are no food options for several kilometres.
Going solo?
Outside of summer high season supermarkets and cowsheds are closed - especially if under 5 meters of snow.
They serve clients when sun has melted snow. Summer foot paths are only accessible when snow has disappeared and roads are usually uncovered in July.
Some shops are only open when the mountains are free of snow in summer time.
Info below was current during summer season 2024, although this is by no means an exhaustive list of eateries or places to buy food.
Switzerland:
Le Chatelard Frontiere - tourist shop, restaurant and a petrol garage are along the main road serves clients
Le Chatelard Village - croissant café or mountain café
a) TMR Bus up to mountain café restaurant from Le Chatelard to Barrage Emosson. TMR bus stops in the valley. Link to bus info here...Horaires - TMR SA
b) Or, go up to a croissant café (10 mins) via the funicular from behind train station Chatelard Village (VS) for 40 Euros, and to reach the same mountain restaurant café at the top of the mountain, you go on up the funicular + mini-train + mini-funicular too to reach the mountaintop for refreshments with views to Mont Blanc next to the enormous damn. Depart from behind the Chatelard VS station at the end of the road on left if coming from Le Chatelard Frontier.
Peuty/Trient - Drinks and sometimes food available from reception of campsite
Col Forclaz - little Tourist shop opposite the hotel / café has fruit, snacks, drinks and ice creams in between stands of postcards and t-shirts
Col Forclaz - a few refreshments establishments are located in the Col Forclaz, they serve clients in high season with drink, fruit tarts, ice creams, meals. Food is served at the
a) restaurant in the hotel,
b) the mountain café around the corner (Boverie foot path side) and also
c) the little café 1 hours walk from Col Forclaz if heading across the meadow to Trient glacier and to Fenetre d'Arpette mountain pass
Boverie - refreshments enroute at Boverie refuge / cow sheds and a summer refreshment establishment/summer pop up restaurant is found enroute between Boverie and Champex
Champex - Bakery has quiches, sandwiches, bread, cakes, drinks, and an early morning breakfast bar for 15 Euros (all in).
Champex - campsite (opposite the bakery-ish) a reception which has a few snacks and a drinks fridge if you are arriving late or running late and dying of hunger or thirst
Champex - restaurants and hotels are plentiful in the town centre, if arriving from the mountain pass of Fenetre d'Arpette the first establishment on the left (by bunkhouses) has a bar/café/ice cream freezer inside
Issert - In high season it is sometimes possible to eat/drink enroute in the little village of Issert at a couple of small beautiful looking places which are occasionally open if you are lucky enough to be passing at the right time
Praz de Fort - green salads and mains courses are always available at the restaurant/bar in town centre
Praz de Fort - the happy hens owners have now opened an establishment in the town centre too to serve clients in high season
Between Praz de Fort and La Fouly - one pop up drinks café/ice cream hut is open in summer and offers small dishes from a little menu in a field between glaciers and mountains, it is found next to the path running from between forest and river
La Fouly - Supermarket next to a sports shop by car park above a bridge leading to campsite
La Fouly - A campsite has a reception with snacks, a drink fridge, ice cream freezer if you are arriving too late for the super market or running late
La Fouly - large terrace with tables and chairs on the roof of the supermarket belonging to the Auberge serves croissants and coffee from early on before the supermarket is open and later on after the super market is closed
Ferret - There is a cheese and ice cream van in high season on the outskirts of Ferret
Ferret - there is a garden café on the side of a hotel with tables and chairs in the garden welcoming guests heading up or down the mountain or getting off the bus at Ferret (last stop).
Ars - an alpine cow buvette serves food and drinks in high season
On the way up or down mountain to Grand Col Ferret - food and drinks are served at the cow sheds at La Peule, well reputed for the quality of dairy products like yoghurts and cheese, leave rucksacks and walking poles outdoors in a white tent
On the way up or down mountain to Petit Col Ferret - food and drinks are served at the cow sheds at Lechère
Italy:
Refuge Helena - drinks available at the bar inside, slices of cakes are served outside of meal times, as it is a trekker stop off / refuge ring to reserve in advance in summer to avoid discovering they have no space or possibility to serve you
Arnouva - Chalet with an enormous garden with tables and chairs serves refreshments
Lavachey - Hotel with garden serves clients in summer time. If dinner and especially breakfast is important to you then this is a good place to check-in for the night.
Bonatti balcony path - Up and along the hill to Refuge Bonatti permits you an opportunity to eat opposite mountains on an enormous terrace with fabulous views, easiest to reach from the path leading up from Arnouva (last bus stop) for the least height gain
Bertone (Below Bernard head) above Courmayeur - drinks available at the bar inside, slices of cakes are served outside of meal times, as it is a trekker stop off / refuge ring to reserve in advance in summer to avoid discovering they have no space or possibility to serve you. A great place for baked aubergine, and outside of meal time hours they will prepare a ham and cheese roll or a plate of Italian salami or other simple dishes. Reception has a good stock of chocolate and the bar will always serve a hot drink if you arrive freezing cold. For the panna cotta with red berry sauce in my experience you will need to check in for the night in the bunkhouse accommodation.
Val Ferret - lower valley stop offs on the way to Courmayeur there are a number of establishments where one can buy a drink or refreshments including restaurants, a golf course, campsites Tronchey, a pop up smoked fish hut where the fish flourish in a little lake after the snow has melted in high season, and there are a number of bus stops in the valley with tourist buses to take you on your way although they fill up quickly in high season
La Palud - Pizzerias, restaurants, hotels. For a superb breakfast with cooked eggs and bacon and an enormous choice of goodies including chocolate cake at breakfast try the Astoria Hotel which is good if breakfast is important to you and your day.
Entrevers - Pizzerias, restaurants, hotels
Entrevers - The entry place to catch a rotating sky way lift up for views and refreshments (and even champagne) at the Monte Bianco Italian side mountain establishments
Courmayeur - Super market Carrefour Express Courmayeur - By the bus stop at the fork in the road for Val Feny and Val Ferret is the supermarket but in high season the buses are so full it is difficult to get on a bus here so you head down the road into Courmayeur to get the bus from the main roundabout if you wish to get a seat from the outset
Courmayeur - Pizzerias, restaurants, hotels everywhere. For a mouth watering thin crust baked pizza with a Tiramisu I suggest the Pizzeria & Brasserie La Padella opposite the Mmmmartine take away near the tourist information office and main bus stop roundabout and the bus ticket office is next to the tourist information office in case you eat so much you cannot move and need to take a bus to Entrevers, La Palud, Plampincieux or even Arnouva.
FRANCE:
Updated list coming soon.
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