Chamonix

Chamonix, formally Chamonix-Mont-Blanc, is a commune in the Haute-Savoie department of the Auvergne-Rhone-Alpes region in southeastern France. It lies in the French Alps just north of Mont Blanc, the highest mountain in Western Europe, between the Aiguilles Rouges and the Aiguille du Midi, and it borders both Switzerland and Italy. With an area of 245 square kilometres it is the fourth-largest commune in metropolitan France, although its population is only around 8,900. The valley was first mentioned in 1091, when the Count of the Genevois granted it to the Benedictine house of St. Michel de la Cluse, and the inhabitants bought their freedom from the canons of Sallanches in 1786. Chamonix hosted the first Winter Olympics in 1924 and remains one of the oldest ski resorts in France, popular with alpinists and skiers, who reach the Vallee Blanche by the cable car to the Aiguille du Midi. It has held the Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc every August since 2003 and a round of the FIS Alpine Ski World Cup.