It will greatly help your enjoyment of the trek to arrive fit at the start, used to walks of similar distance and height gain to those that you are about to face. The TMB is manageable for normal fit mountain walkers who are happy to walk for between 5h and 7h 30m per day along a long-distance trail. Travelling in a self-sufficient manner through the culturally and linguistically diverse terrain of the TMB, this all makes for a thoroughly enjoyable and satisfying holiday. At such points you've also got an evening in a new village to look forward to.

One of the best feelings on trek can be nearing the end of a stage, once you're well into the walk, knowing that you've ticked off another leg of the quest. Equally there should be days when you feel all-powerful, tackling the mountain trails as if they were paths in the park!

There might be times when the climb seems too much effort, and when you encounter bad weather at such times the goal keeps you going. There is great satisfaction in completing stages of a long-distance trek, even more so when it's a famous one like the TMB. In Italian it's the Giro di Monte Bianco. Mont Blanc Tour or Mont Blanc Circuit are readily understood. Tour de Mont Blanc, the most popular name among English-speakers, isn't quite right. Tour of Mont Blanc would be the English equivalent. Tour du Mont Blanc is the proper French name for the trek and is often shortened to TMB or to the Tour when in context.

Jagged snow and rock peaks are ranged along the skyline here, their glaciers tumbling down to the valleys far below. The Italian stages have especially good views of the Mont Blanc range, and in clear weather the views from Col de la Seigne, Tete de la Tronche and Grand Col Ferret are exceptional. For calming, pastoral beauty the relatively easy stage from La Fouly to Champex in the Swiss Val Ferret is hard to beat in all of the Swiss Valais region, not just along the Tour du Mont Blanc. Other stages on the Tour have their own attractions. On a typical trek starting in Les Houches, these two stages have the end in sight and the 'home' valley of Chamonix waiting below. With good weather this section reveals the most stunning views of Mont Blanc on the trek, across the deep Arve valley, with the panorama from Le Brevent at 2,525m (8,284ft) being particularly good. Often the voting is in favour of the two stages above the Chamonix valley from Argentiere to Les Houches. We ask our TMB clients which stages they enjoyed most. Trekkers typically take 11 days to complete the circuit, give or take a day or two. The highest point reached by the standard route is 2,584m (8,478ft) and the height gain (and therefore loss) around the whole Tour is around 10,600m (35,000ft). The Tour du Mont Blanc is a walking trail in the French, Italian and Swiss Alps making a 180km (112 miles) circuit of Mont Blanc, starting and finishing in Les Houches near Chamonix. Walking guides - see all our background pages

Tour du mont blanc