Driving from Chamonix to Colmar in December
A traveler named Donky is planning a trip from Chamonix to Colmar, starting on December 11, and is worried about winter driving conditions as they have no experience with snow. They also need advice on whether their rental car from Marseille will have winter tires, and are looking for safer options for scenic views during winter travels.
- Avoid driving in mountainous areas during winter, as conditions can be unpredictable and risky.
- Use the Swiss Travel Pass for easier and more scenic travel through Switzerland without a car.
- Check the weather and road conditions a few days in advance using reliable websites or apps.
- When renting a car, opt for rentals in Switzerland to ensure it comes with winter tires.
AI-generated summary-
Hi,
Having read about the scenic drives through Switzerland, my family and I are keen to drive through Switzerland from Chamonix to Colmar on 11 Dec 2019. I understand that we will have to drive through 2 mountain passes and since we have no experience with winter driving, I am concerned about the road conditions. Also, we will be picking up our rental car in Marseilles so I am not sure if the car (from Hertz) will have winter tyres fitted.
Any comments or suggestions are welcomed. Thank you so much.
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Hi Donky,
Welcome to MySwissAlps! In general, driving in Europe in winter with no snow experience is not a good idea. The car and driver should be prepared for winter conditions (not only snow but also ice). Mid December could be fine and not like winter at all, or there can be (a lot of) snow, you just don’t know in advance.
In any case, it’s not the season for scenic drives, and many pass roads will be closed. The one you need from Chamonix to Martigny is basically open year round, but can always close if needed. Also winter tires or even snow chains can be required if there is snow on the road. Other than this one pass, there are no real passes on your route, but there’s still the weather to consider.
For a really scenic trip in Switzerland I recommend the trains. That’s safer and more scenic: http://www.myswissalps.com/tr ain. For more car information, please see http://www.myswissalps.com/ca r.
Thank you for your reply, Arno.
May I ask if the roads on the highway (major Autoway) will be just as icy as the mountain roads? I’m asking as I’m thinking of the possibility of re-routing through Geneva if the weather turns bad. I believe this will be using the highway all the way? Will this be a feasible plan?
Thank you in advance.
You’re welcome Donky! Avoiding mountain roads is always best in bad weather conditions. But, any other road can also have snowfall and freeze over. The major difference is that the amount of snow is usually less, and main roads (motorways) get cleared faster if this happens. It’s still bad practice to drive on summer tires in wintry conditions though. The braking distance will be much longer, and combined with no experience it’s just not safe. Unfortunately there’s no way to know the exact weather conditions until a few days ahead of time. In Switzerland you wouldn’t need a car to travel. In France it depends on your plans I guess.
Thanks again, Arno!
Your help is very much appreciated. I will explore other options again. By the way, can you recommend a website or app which I will be able to check accurate weather forecast/road closures or road conditions (few days in advance) for Switzerland?
Hi Donky!
Sure, we’ve listed links to weather websites and apps under “More on other websites” at myswissalps.com/weathe r. For information on road closures and conditions you can check myswissalps.com/car/tr afficinfo. I hope that’s what you’re looking for!
This is partly off topic as it involves France, but I’m a French travel expert of 59 years so I’ll carry on anyway!
Firstly, could you please make clear what your actual overall itinerary is? Are you visiting Chamonix specifically to visit Chamonix, or was it an idea just to go that way for the scenery when your actual aim is just to get from Marseille to Colmar?
In general terms, low – medium altitude driving in December isn’t normally too bad. Main trunk roads (even in the Alpine regions) will be kept clear unless there is a sudden deluge of snow (comparitively rare at lower altitudes in December) If you are driving form Marseille to Colmar specifically via Chamonix the ‘winter aka lower altitude route’ would be up the Rhone Valley (Autoroute A7) then Valence – Chambéry – Annecy – St Gervais – Chamonix). The ‘winter’ route Chamonix – Colmar would be Chamonix – Annemasse – Geneva – Bern – Basel – Colmar (all motorways but scenic enough)
Hi 1960man,
Thank you for replying. You are so right that I wanted to pass through Chamonix (for the scenic drive) from the south of France to get to Colmar but I may want to reverse the itinerary now. Since I have read about having winter tyres on during the winter months, I was exploring the possibility of planning my route as follows:
1. Day 1 – Fly in to Basel and pick up a car from the Swiss side (because I read that they come fitted with winter tyres and the Swiss Vignette during that time of the year), then drive to Colmar.
2. Day 2 – Depart Colmar for Chamonix (was exploring the possibility of passing through Gruyeres and Martigny) for another night stop (only stopping for a night as I found out that the lifts up to Aiguille du Midi won’t be open till 14 Dec)
3. Day 3 – Return the car at Geneva airport (Swiss side) and cross over to French side to pick up another car (I know it is cumbersome but this is to avoid the hefty drop off fee in France) to drive to Avignon (base for southern France). If time permits, we may drop by Annecy for a quick visit.
4. Day 4 onwards, Avignon and region
Our initial plan was just to visit southern France but since we are from a tropical country and happen to be in Europe in winter, the kids are excited to see Colmar and its Christmas markets when they stumbled upon pictures of them. I know many people will think it is an ambitious itinerary to cover the regions (when they are so far apart) within such a short span of time but we couldn’t decide which to give up so we chose the long drives. Haha!
To be honest, after looking at pictures of all the beautiful places in Switzerland, I wanted to change my plans to go to Luzern (instead of going to Avignon) but I have also read that it may be rainy and not the most scenic season to visit. So I thought I should save the beautiful Switzerland for another trip.
Thanks for the inputs, Annika & Rockoyster 🙂
Hi Donky,
Yes, so many options indeed! If I were you I would rent the car in France (Basel French side) and stick to France for this trip. Then save Switzerland for a later date and take you time for that as well.
Anyway, enjoy your trip! Just let us know if you need more help for your plans in Switzerland, now or later.
Thanks Arno
I agree with Arno, both your options to include Switzerland seem too cumbersome to me. To cover Switzerland, it’s easier to fly in, use a Swiss Travel Pass, and fly out again, ignoring other countries. I think for this trip you should consider flying to Strasbourg (for Strasbourg and Colmar), then driving to Avignon, you would be able to stick to lowland routes but there is plenty of scenery and interesting towns and cities on the way.
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