Itinerary

Day 0     Plan to arrive in Europe at least the day prior to the start of the program. An extra day to work through jet lag is best. Best arrival point is Geneva, Switzerland. If you arrive in Geneva in the morning, there are hourly trains to Zermatt from the airport. Contact IMG's travel agent, CTT Destinations, IMG@CTTDestinations.com for help in booking your hotel stay in Zermatt prior to the start of the program. IMG groups stay at the Hotel Alpenblick, address: Oberdorfstrasse 106, CH - 3920 Zermatt. Spend the day relaxing about town and sight seeing. The team will meet at 7:00 p.m. out on the hotel terrace (weather permitting) for a team intro, meeting and briefing on what to bring/wear on the following day.

Day 1     Program begins at he Hotel Alpenblick in Zermatt, Switzerland. Meet at 8:00 a.m. for breakfast. Come prepared to climb for the day with complete daypack and clothing. The group will ride the gondola up to the Kleine Matterhorn (3820m) to access the Breithorn Plateau for a day of refresher training, acclimatization and perhaps an hour's jaunt up the easy face of the Breithorn. Return to town and overnight at the Alpenblick.

Day 2     Early a.m. departure from the hotel and gondola ride back up to the Kleine Matterhorn. We'll attempt one of the the classic 4,000 meter peaks, either Pollux or Castor,"the twins". An overnight in the Val d'Ayas Hut (3425m) will help us to work on our acclimatization and allow easy access for the following day's climb.

Day 3     Another day, and another enjoyable ascent of a 4,000 feet. Either climb the second twin or a more difficult route, the "Half Breithorn". This partial traverse of the Breithorn involves a steeper snow/ice approach with an airy rock ridge traverse to the summit. Only members with previous experience on rock will want to tackle this option. The guides can accommodate all interests and abilities and usually split up for different climbs. Descend to Zermatt, and overnight at the Alpenblick.

Day 4     After breakfast, the group will travel by train to Interlaken then on to Lauterbrunnen and switch to a cog rail train for the last leg up to the high alpine village of Wengen, Switzerland (near Grindelwald). We'll walk up the hill to our hotel, and enjoy a drink out on the terrace before dinner. Overnight at hotel.

Day 5     Cog rail train ride on the world's highest railroad from Wengen to Kleine Scheidegg, then upwards Through the world famous tunnel bored through the Eiger to the Jungfraujoch, at 11,333'. After touring the Jungfraujoch, we'll take a short 30 minute hike on a groomed snow trail to the Monchjochhutte (11,903'), our lodging for the night.

Day 6     Pre dawn wakeup to climb the Jungfrau (13,642'). The ascent involves a long, easy glacier approach, then a spectacular summit of mixed snow and rock scrambling. This is a full and strenuous 8-hour day. We will return to the Jungfraujoch and ride the train down to Wengen for a celebration dinner and night at the hotel.

Day 7     Train ride to Chamonix, France, with the afternoon available to stroll the streets of Chamonix. Overnight in hotel.

Day 8     Ride the telepherique to the top of the Aiguille du Midi (12,333'), one of the world's most spectacular gondola rides to a facility perched on the very top of a lofty rock spire. We will spend some time here taking in the awe inspiring scenery, with views of the Mont Blanc Massif and all the way down into Italy. We'll walk out of a tunnel carved through the rock, rope up, then make an airy descent to the glacier plateau just below. A 45 minute hike brings us to the Cosmiques Hut, our lodging for the evening. If time permits we'll take a short hike across from the hut to do some training on ice.

Day 9     Summit day. This will be a long, arduous 12-hour day, with a pre-dawn wake up. We will traverse the Mont Blanc massif climbing over Mont Blanc du Tacul, Mont Maudit, and on to the summit of Mont Blanc (15,771'). From the summit, we'll descend via another route, most commonly the Gouter Route, and down to town or the lowest hut possible for the evening. Option for Day 9: In some years, or after new snow, the traverse is not safely climbable. An alternate climb can be made up the standard route, via the Gouter Hut.

Day 10     Descend to Chamonix. Free day and an evening to celebrate.

Day 11     Optional storm day for Mont Blanc. We can spend an additional night on the mountain if weather requires a storm day. If we have good success on Mont Blanc, today can be used as a sightseeing/shopping day or the guides will lead a fun day climb out of the Valley for those who have energy left. There are countless options.

Day 12     a.m. departure via train to Geneva, end of trip.

More information from International Mountain Guides:

• View trip on provider's website
  www.mountainguides.com/alps.shtml…
• Company profile, experience, and history
• View all of their trips