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Guide updated on 9 November 2026

TMB 2027 rules: compulsory booking and no more wild camping?

France’s TMB municipalities plan to regulate the trek from 2027: booking every night, paid bivouac areas, a “green brigade”. Where does the plan stand?

Faced with soaring visitor numbers (36,000 hikers in 2019, between 75,000 and 90,000 in 2025 according to estimates), the French municipalities on the Tour du Mont Blanc are preparing to regulate the trek from spring 2027. Here is what has been announced, and what still needs to be confirmed.

Status as of 9 November 2026: this is still a proposal. The principles have been approved, but we have found no evidence that the charter has been signed, nor of the municipal by-laws that would make it enforceable. This page will be updated.

What the municipalities have decided

On 16 September 2026, the seven French municipalities the TMB passes through (Vallorcine, Chamonix, Les Houches, Saint-Gervais, Les Contamines-Montjoie, Beaufort and Bourg-Saint-Maurice) unanimously approved the principles of a charter for managing the trek:

  • Compulsory booking for every night on the French section, in a hut, hotel, campsite or bivouac area.
  • An end to wild camping, replaced by equipped areas (toilets, water), with a fee per pitch and advance booking.
  • Capacity capped at the existing number of beds and pitches, with no overall quota on hikers, according to the mayor of Saint-Gervais.
  • Baggage transfers restricted to trekking bags, at set times.
  • A “green brigade” of sworn officers to check bookings and behaviour.
  • A “Tour du Mont-Blanc” label for businesses that sign up, with a booklet sold to hikers and stamped at each stage.

These rules would only apply from June to September. The amounts of the fees and of any fines have not been announced.

What about Italy and Switzerland?

No equivalent measures have been adopted in the Aosta Valley or in Valais. A first cross-border meeting of mayors was held in Chamonix in late September 2026, and the French municipalities would like their neighbours to join the initiative. Bear in mind that in the Aosta Valley, bivouacking is already banned below 2,500 m, which covers almost the entire Italian section.

The Lac Blanc case

Separately from the charter, Chamonix town council is considering compulsory booking with a daily cap for access to Lac Blanc, from 1 June to 30 September, starting in summer 2027. The site receives up to 4,000 visitors a day in summer. No quota had been set as of mid-September 2026.

What this means when planning your TMB in 2027

  • Book all your nights in France in advance, even if you plan to camp.
  • If you plan to bivouac, keep an eye out for bookings opening at the official bivouac areas (reserve-bivouac74.fr for the Haute-Savoie nature reserves).
  • Keep a copy of your booking confirmations: they could be checked.
  • See our bivouac and camping guide for the rules already in force.

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