Photos

In 1741 two english men, Windham and Pococke, discovered the 'Chamouny' valley and its glaciers. Their expedition was met by a rural population of mountain farmers. This community lived off animal husbandry and a sparse harvest of oats and rye.
Windham and Pococke explored the valley and visited the Mer de Glace (Sea of Ice). The stories of their exploits, published in literary journals throughout Europe, started a craze to find out more about Chamonix.

In July 1901, the railway line that passes through the Chamonix valley was inaugurated. This opened the town to winter visitors. Between 1908 and 1910 Chamonix took on its present rhythm of winter and summer seasons.

From then on, the mountains were transformed forever with the construction of the first custom built tourist attractions:
The Montenvers railway in 1908
The cable-car 'des glaciers' in 1924
The Planpraz cable-car in 1927
The Brevent cable-car in 1930
The 'Aiguille du Midi' cable-car in 1955
The Flégère cable-car in 1956

In 1924 Chamonix hosted the first ever Winter Olympic Games.