Tour du Mont Blanc Packing List

Packing for the Tour du Mont Blanc is a balancing act. You are not wild camping — refuges and hotels provide a bed, dinner and breakfast — but you still carry everything for 10–11 days through three countries, big cols and fast-changing alpine weather.

This TMB packing list is built from our own 11-day self-guided circuit: what we carried, what we wished we had left behind, and the kit that mattered most on steep variants and rainy Swiss days.

Also read: Tour du Mont Blanc — Complete Guide · TMB Cost Guide · Trek overview

Use the Packing List Builder to customise this list for your pace and lodging mix.

TMB packing — quick rules

Rule	Why it matters on the TMB
Target under 7 kg base weight	The complete guide’s top tip — your knees will feel every extra kilo on 10,000 m of ascent.
No tent or stove	Half-board refuges and village stops mean you eat hot meals most nights.
Sleeping bag liner required	Dorm bunks in France, Italy and Switzerland — bring a lightweight liner, not a full bag.
Rain shell always accessible	We used ours on day 1 and day 9; weather turns quickly above 2,000 m.
Download offline maps	Variants (Robert Blanc, Fenêtre d’Arpette) need GPS backup even on a waymarked loop.

Backpack & carry system

A 35–45 L pack is enough for hut-to-hut TMB if you pack discipline. We carried camera gear and still kept loads manageable by eating lunch on trail and using half board at night.

Inside the pack:

• Two packing cubes (clothes / tech)
• One dry bag for liner and sleepwear
• Rain cover or internal liner for wet days
• Small dirty-laundry sack

What stays in the bottom until checkout: sleep liner, hut slippers or camp shoes, evening clothes.

Clothing layers

Alpine days swing from warm valley mornings to cold, windy cols. Layering beats one heavy jacket.

Base & mid layers

• 2–3 moisture-wicking tees
• 1 long-sleeve sun layer
• 1 fleece or light down/synthetic puffy
• 1 pair trekking trousers (convertible or zip-off works well)
• 1 pair shorts — we wore shorts most days in September
• 3–4 pairs merino or synthetic hiking socks
• Underwear for 3–4 days (wash in refuge sinks)

Shell & weather

• Waterproof over-trousers (packable)
• Warm hat + thin gloves — essential on Col de Balme in sleet
• Sun hat and sunglasses
• Buff or neck gaiter

Footwear

We finished the TMB in trail shoes with a light pack. If you carry more camera gear or prefer ankle support on rocky variants, mid boots are the safer call.

• Broken-in hiking shoes or boots
• Camp sandals or flip-flops for refuges
• Blister kit: tape, Compeed, antiseptic wipes

Also read: Best Hiking Boots for Men

Refuge & sleep kit

Item	Notes
Sleeping bag liner	Required in most refuges; cotton or silk — lightweight is fine in summer.
Earplugs + eye mask	Dorm snoring is real.
Quick-dry towel	Small microfibre; not all huts provide towels.
Toiletries	Travel size; biodegradable soap if you swim in lakes.
EU plug adapter	Refuges often have charging points — competition for outlets is high.

We slept one night in a refuge tent at Tré-le-Champ (day 9) — liner still required, extra warmth layer helped.

Navigation & safety

• Phone with AllTrails (or similar) maps downloaded offline
• Power bank — 10,000 mAh minimum for multi-day between full charges
• Paper map or Cicerone / Kompass backup (optional but reassuring)
• Whistle + basic first aid: painkillers, blister care, rehydration salts
• Travel insurance documents (alpine rescue is not free)

Variants we used — Refuge Robert Blanc and the day 3 descent into Italy — were technical. GPS and a charged watch were not optional for us.

Trekking poles & water

Poles saved our knees on long descents into Courmayeur and the final drop to Les Houches. Collapsible carbon poles pack easily on ladder sections.

Water:

• 2 L capacity (bottles or bladder)
• Optional filter — we drank tap/refuge water and stream water in Switzerland; a small filter is cheap insurance

Electronics & comfort

• Headlamp for early starts and dim dorm corridors
• Phone + camera (we also carried a GoPro)
• Kindle / earbuds for refuge downtime
• Portable charger and charging cables

Food you still carry

Half board covers dinner and breakfast at refuges. Pack:

• Trail snacks for between meals — bars, nuts, dried fruit
• Lunch money or picnic supplies on hotel days in Courmayeur and Champex
• Electrolyte tablets for hot climbs

Refuges and villages sell snacks, but prices rise with altitude — carry a day’s worth at all times.

What NOT to bring

Leave at home	Why
Full sleeping bag	Liner only for dorm refuges
Tent, stove, fuel	Unless you have booked campsites only
Cotton t-shirts	Slow to dry in damp dorms
Jeans or heavy cotton trousers	Too heavy and slow-drying
Full-size toiletries	Refuges have basics; pack travel size
More than one “nice” outfit	One clean set for town stops is enough

Packing list by category (checklist)

Wear / carry daily

• Hiking shoes or boots
• Trekking poles
• Pack (35–45 L) with rain cover
• Waterproof jacket + trousers
• Insulation layer
• Sun protection
• 2 L water
• Snacks + phone/maps

In the pack

• Liner + earplugs
• 2–3 hiking outfits
• Socks (3–4 pairs)
• Camp shoes
• First aid + blister kit
• Headlamp
• Charger + adapter
• Cash (EUR + some CHF)

Optional

• Drone / action camera
• Lightweight down jacket for September shoulder season
• Book or journal

Related TMB planning

• Day-by-day itinerary — 11 stages at a glance
• Refuges & accommodation — booking order and half-board tips
• Getting to Les Houches / Chamonix — Geneva transfers and first night
• TMB Cost Guide — what we actually spent