Both cable cars lift you from a valley town into the glaciers of the Mont Blanc massif in under half an hour, and both cost about the same. They differ in height, in country and in how far they are from where you are staying — and that last one usually decides it.
Two cable cars, one massif, two countries
Aiguille du Midi vs Skyway Monte Bianco
Quick answerThe Aiguille du Midi goes higher — 3,842 m against 3,466 m — and is 1 h 25 min from Geneva; the Skyway Monte Bianco is the Italian side, a rotating cabin from Courmayeur and a €59 ticket. Coming from Geneva, take the Aiguille du Midi; already in Italy, take the Skyway.
Our pick from Geneva
From Geneva: Chamonix, Mont Blanc & Ice Cave Guided Day Tour
from €104 per person · Aiguille du Midi · nine hours
Check dates
Free cancellation up to 24 h · pay later
Key takeaways
- 3,842 m vs 3,466 m the Aiguille du Midi summit station against Punta Helbronner at the top of the Skyway
- €60.20–83.00 Aiguille du Midi adult return in 2026, moving with demand; reservation free and mandatory
- 360° the Skyway cabins, for 80 people, turn a full circle on the way up; opened 23 June 2015
- 20 min vs 4 + 7 min Chamonix to the top in two sections; Courmayeur to Helbronner via the Pavillon at 2,173 m
- 11.6 km the Mont Blanc Tunnel between Chamonix and Courmayeur — the two valley stations sit either side of it
- 2 Nov – 19 Dec Aiguille du Midi closed in 2026; the Skyway also closes for seasonal maintenance — check your date
Eight rows, the same order for both, and who each one is for
Aiguille du Midi vs Skyway Monte Bianco: Side by Side
Source: Compagnie du Mont-Blanc · Skyway Monte Bianco · GetYourGuide listings ·
One question settles it: where are you sleeping tonight
Aiguille du Midi or Skyway
Take the Aiguille du Midi if you are staying in Geneva or Chamonix, and the Skyway if you are staying in Courmayeur, Aosta, Turin or Milan. Where you sleep tonight decides it more than height or price.
The point
The Aiguille du Midi is higher, closer to Geneva and part of every cable-car day tour from Geneva. The Skyway is the Italian side of the same massif for €59, without driving through the tunnel.
Height and the ride
The Aiguille du Midi summit station is at 3,842 m; Punta Helbronner, at the top of the Skyway, is at 3,466 m. Both put you among the glaciers, and neither is the summit — Mont Blanc is 4,807 m and a two-day climb with a guide. If the highest point you can reach without a rope is the goal, it is the French lift.
The French ride is the steeper one: 1,035 m to 3,842 m in about 20 minutes, the biggest vertical rise of any cable car in the world, first opened in 1955. The Skyway opened on 23 June 2015 and climbs from 1,300 m at Pontal d’Entrèves in two sections of 4 and 7 minutes, in cabins for 80 people that turn a full 360° on the way up.
What the ticket gets you
from€104pp
From Geneva: Chamonix, Mont Blanc & Ice Cave Guided Day Tour
You stand on the 3,842 m terrace before lunch and look down on the Mer de Glace after it, a guide is with you all day, and the €227 option holds the lift and the train for you. The compromise: nine hours, and the top can close in wind.
9 hduration
Genevastart
optioncable car
coachgroup
3,842 m · takes you to Aiguille du Midi
from€59pp
Courmayeur: Skyway Monte Bianco Cable Car Return Ticket
The rotating cabin to Punta Helbronner, 3,466 m — the Italian answer to the Aiguille du Midi.
1 dayduration
Courmayeurstart
in pricecable car
coachgroup
3,466 m · takes you to Punta Helbronner
Source: Compagnie du Mont-Blanc · Skyway Monte Bianco · GetYourGuide listings ·
Same mountain, two towns, one tunnel between them
Chamonix or Courmayeur for Mont Blanc
Choose Chamonix if you come from Geneva, and Courmayeur if you are already in Italy. Chamonix is the French town, with the Aiguille du Midi valley station at 1,035 m, 88–100 km from Geneva and 1 h 25 min by bus from €12. Every day tour from Geneva on this site goes there, and the Montenvers train to the Mer de Glace leaves from the same town — so the lift, the glacier and the ice cave fit in one day.
Courmayeur is on the Italian side, at the far end of the 11.6 km Mont Blanc Tunnel. The Skyway starts just above it, and it is where the day trips from Milan end up: the Monte Bianco and Courmayeur Day Trip is 12 hours, with about three and a half hours on the coach out and three back.
from€59pp
Courmayeur: Skyway Monte Bianco Cable Car Return Ticket
The rotating cabin to Punta Helbronner, 3,466 m — the Italian answer to the Aiguille du Midi.
1 dayduration
Courmayeurstart
in pricecable car
coachgroup
3,466 m · takes you to Punta Helbronner
from€157pp
Mont Blanc Skyway: Cable Car to 3,466m with Alpine Lunch
7 hduration
Courmayeurstart
in pricecable car
coachgroup
3,466 m · takes you to Punta Helbronner
from€139pp
From Milan: Monte Bianco and Courmayeur Day Trip
12 hduration
Courmayeurstart
in pricecable car
coachgroup
3,466 m · takes you to Punta Helbronner
Source: Compagnie du Mont-Blanc · GetYourGuide listings, 1 adult ·
Four questions, in the order that matters
Skyway or Aiguille du Midi: Four Questions to Decide
- 1Where do you sleep tonight? Geneva or Chamonix: the Aiguille du Midi. Courmayeur, Aosta, Turin or Milan: the Skyway.
- 2What is the date? Between 2 Nov and 19 Dec 2026 the Aiguille du Midi is closed. The Skyway has its own maintenance stop — check the date before you book either.
- 3Do you want the highest point? Then it is 3,842 m on the French side — the highest a non-climber gets on the massif.
- 4Do you want the lift with a day around it? From Geneva, the Ice Cave Guided Day Tour at €104 adds the coach, a guide and the Mer de Glace. In Courmayeur the €59 ticket is the whole plan.
Source: Compagnie du Mont-Blanc timetable (Aiguille du Midi 2 Nov – 18 Dec) · tour operators' notices (Aiguille du Midi 3 Nov – 19 Dec) · Ice Cave tour operator (Montenvers train 2 Nov – 18 Dec, ice cave to 18 Dec) · Montenvers (ice cave 28 Sep – 1 Nov; train dates not yet published) — closures on this page are the widest window ·
Real reviews from both listings
Skyway and Aiguille du Midi Reviews: What People Say at the Top
M
Marie-Christine14 Sep 2026 · ★★★★★
“Easy to find parking, as well as the departure point. It's impressive and delightful to find myself so close to peaks I'll never reach! Easy access, easy to use the tickets stored on my phone. Long opening times. Possibility to move between the first and second tiers. Excellent lunch, very good. Great welcome from the staff. Sitting next to a window, we were able to admire the landscape and see the climbers returning from or leaving for their route. A very nice experience. Thank you!”
E
Eugeniusz18 Jul 2026 · ★★★★★
“The rotating cable car cabin is a very good idea.”
G
G26 Sep 2026 · ★★★★★
“Niels was a fantastic tour guide who made the entire trip a wonderful experience. The coach was very comfortable, very good driving, very good speeches by Niels made the tour group's mood very lively. The whole trip organisation was perfect, very little wait times throughout and it showed excellent planning by the organisers. The views from the top of Mont Blanc were absolutely astounding as was the experience in the ice cave. We loved the cable car rides up and down the mountain. Overall a trip worth the time and money. Very strongly recommended. Thanks to the Velema team especially Niels.”
Six details from the small print
Before You Ride the Skyway or the Aiguille du Midi
Aiguille du Midi: reservation mandatoryFree, and needed even with a ticket or on a tour without tickets.
Step into the Void is freeComes with the ticket; not guaranteed in wind, frost or crowds.
Skyway ticket is datedValid for one day on our partner; the Infinity Room is paid on the spot.
Pavillon at 2,173 mThe Skyway mid station: the Hangar 2173 museum and the sun terrace, in the ticket.
Passport from GenevaThe coach to Chamonix crosses into France.
Autumn hours in Chamonix28 Sep – 1 Nov 2026: opens 08:10, last up 15:00, last down 16:30.
Source: Compagnie du Mont-Blanc · GetYourGuide listings ·
Source: Compagnie du Mont-Blanc timetable (Aiguille du Midi 2 Nov – 18 Dec) · tour operators' notices (Aiguille du Midi 3 Nov – 19 Dec) · Ice Cave tour operator (Montenvers train 2 Nov – 18 Dec, ice cave to 18 Dec) · Montenvers (ice cave 28 Sep – 1 Nov; train dates not yet published) — closures on this page are the widest window ·
The French side from Geneva, and the Italian ticket
Live Dates and Prices
Questions exactly as people ask them
Aiguille du Midi or Skyway Questions
Which is higher, the Aiguille du Midi or the Skyway?
The Aiguille du Midi. Its summit station is at 3,842 m; Punta Helbronner, the top of the Skyway Monte Bianco, is at 3,466 m, reached from 1,300 m above Courmayeur. The Aiguille du Midi is the highest point a non-climber reaches on the massif, and its cable car has the biggest vertical rise in the world, from 1,035 m in Chamonix.
Is the Skyway cheaper than the Aiguille du Midi?
Yes, by a little on most days: €59 against €60.20–83.00. The Skyway adult return is €59 on our partner and €59–63 online or €64–68 at the desk in 2026. The Aiguille du Midi fare moves with demand, with a free but mandatory reservation. The difference is small; the drive to the other valley station costs more than the gap, so buy the ticket on the side where you are staying.
Can you do the Aiguille du Midi and the Skyway in one day?
Yes, from Chamonix. The Compagnie du Mont-Blanc lists an adult return to Punta Helbronner at €125.50, going up the Aiguille du Midi and across on the Panoramic Mont-Blanc. From the Aiguille du Midi summit the Helbronner leg is €42.50, sold only up there. Check that the Panoramic runs on your date before you plan the day around it, and leave time for the way back.
Can I visit the Skyway on a day trip from Geneva?
Not with the day tours on this site: all of them go to Chamonix and the Aiguille du Midi. Courmayeur is on the other side of the 11.6 km Mont Blanc Tunnel. From Chamonix you can reach Punta Helbronner by cable car for €125.50 return; from Italy, the Skyway ticket is €59, and there is a 12-hour day trip from Milan that includes it.
Which is better for a first visit to Mont Blanc?
The Aiguille du Midi, if you are coming from Geneva: it is higher, 1 h 25 min away and part of every cable-car day tour, and Step into the Void comes with the ticket. The Skyway is the better first visit if you are staying in Courmayeur or the Aosta Valley, where it is right on your doorstep and needs no drive through the tunnel.
Are children free on the Aiguille du Midi and the Skyway?
Yes, the youngest ride free on both. On the Aiguille du Midi, under 5 ride free at the ticket office with proof of age, and 5–14 pay €51.20–70.60 for the return. On the Skyway, children aged 7 and younger ride free with an adult paying full fare; their tickets are paid and collected on site, not online. Check the age rules on the listing before you book for a family.
When are the Aiguille du Midi and the Skyway closed?
The Aiguille du Midi is closed from 2 November to 19 December 2026 for maintenance; in autumn, until 1 November, it opens at 08:10 and the last cabin down is at 16:30. The Skyway also closes for seasonal maintenance; we have not confirmed its 2026 dates, so check the calendar on the ticket before you travel. Either way, a clear forecast for the top matters more than the date.
From Geneva, this is still the one