Italy / Switzerland / France · Western Alps · Premium route guide
Aosta → Great St Bernard Pass → Chamonix
136 kilometres, three countries in an afternoon, and one of the oldest Alpine crossings still open. Full route on the map, a GPX for your GPS, and the motorcycle-friendly stays other riders have vetted in Aosta and Chamonix.
- Distance
- 135.6 km
- Peak elevation
- 2,681 m
- Elevation gain
- 4,149 m
- Best months
- Jun–Oct
The route
SS27 out of Aosta up through Etroubles and Saint-Rhémy, over the Colle del Gran San Bernardo (2,469 m) on the surface road — not the tunnel — down to Martigny in the Swiss Rhône valley, then west over Col des Montets to Vallorcine and Chamonix. Pins are motorcycle-friendly stays other riders have vetted at either end.
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Works with Garmin, TomTom, BMW Navigator, Calimoto, Kurviger, komoot, MyRouteApp. Import as a track to ride the exact line. Road data from OpenStreetMap (ODbL); elevation from SRTM.
Track vs. route — how to load this into your GPS
What you're downloading is a GPX track — a dense, road-snapped breadcrumb of the exact line, with elevation on every point. It's not a GPX route (a short list of turn waypoints your device re-plans between). Tracks preserve our road choice; routes let the device pick its own way and can send you down a boring motorway shortcut.
How to use it on your navigator:
- BMW Navigator / Garmin Zumo / zūmo XT: import as a track, then Convert to Route (or Trip Planner → new trip from track) if you want turn-by-turn prompts. Keep Recalculation off so it stays on our line.
- TomTom Rider: import the GPX in MyDrive — it loads as a track / itinerary. Enable Follow the exact route so it doesn't re-plan.
- Calimoto: open the GPX and choose Import as tour — Calimoto follows the track line.
- Kurviger / komoot / MyRouteApp: open the GPX and pick Import as track to keep the road choice. Only choose Import as route if you want the app to re-plan for your bike profile.
- Google Maps / Apple Maps: these don't read GPX. Use the map on this page for turn cues, or import the file into a GPX-capable app first.
Rule of thumb: if your device asks "track or route?", pick track to ride our exact line — pick route only if you want the device to re-plan.
Elevation profile
From ~477 m at the base to 2681 m at the top — 4,149 m of total climbing across the route.
The Great St Bernard has been a working Alpine crossing for over a thousand years, and the surface road up to the hospice is the one to ride — the tunnel below is a €30 shortcut for people who don't own a motorbike. The road is narrow near the top, quiet, and the view from the summit lake is the classic Alpine one. About three and a half hours moving.
The road, honestly
The Italian side climbs steadily through pine forest, opening onto pasture around Saint-Rhémy. From there it's ten hairpins to the summit. The Swiss side is the same idea in reverse — quieter, and the descent past Bourg-Saint-Pierre into the Val d'Entremont is one of the great gentle Alpine downhills. Between Martigny and Chamonix the road runs through the Trient gorge and over Col des Montets, which is small (1,461 m) but a beautiful finish.
Border checks are almost always waved through, but carry your registration and licence. Switzerland requires a motorway vignette (CHF 40, valid a year) if you use the A9 or A1 — you don't need one for this route as long as you stay on the passes and secondary roads.
Which end to base
Aosta (Italian side) is a proper working town with a Roman old centre, excellent food, and cheap-ish accommodation. Chamonix (French side) is the classic Alpine tourist town, more expensive but a great launchpad for the Roselend/Madeleine loop. Either works as a base for a two- or three-night visit to the Mont Blanc massif.
Weather and closures
The pass road (SS27 / route de la Cantine des Corbieres) is closed in winter — typically late October to early June. The tunnel underneath stays open year-round for €31 for motorbikes; take it only if the pass is closed or the weather is dangerous.
Fuel: Aosta, Étroubles, Bourg-Saint-Pierre, Martigny and Chamonix. Nothing on the pass itself.
What to see along the way
- Étroubles — Village 15 km up the Italian ramp. Open-air sculpture museum in the alleys — worth a coffee stop.
- Great St Bernard Hospice (2,473 m) — Working monastic hospice founded in 1049, and the origin of the St Bernard dog. Small museum, restaurant, and the classic lake photograph.
- Bourg-Saint-Pierre — First Swiss village on the descent. Stone-built and quiet.
- Trient gorge — Deep wooded canyon between Martigny and Col des Montets. Small road, big drops.
- Col des Montets (1,461 m) — Small col before Vallorcine. Nature reserve, parking, and the sudden view down the Chamonix valley.
Rent a bike
Rent a motorcycle or scooter for Aosta → Great St Bernard Pass → Chamonix
Flying in? Pick up a bike near the start of the route. We've pre-filled the pick-up city with Aosta / Chamonix — change it if you're basing elsewhere.
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Rider-verified stays within 30 km
Automatically selected by proximity to the traced route — no editorial cherry-picking. Sorted by how close they are to the road.
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