Via Valais
Dates (2 available) | Duration |
|---|---|
| Aug 13 - 22, 2025 | 10 days - 9 nights |
| Sep 1 - 10, 2025 | 10 days - 9 nights |
The Via Valais is our Grand Tour of the Alps! This high-mountain route has been designed specifically with trail runners in mind. You’ll traverse valleys, run over high passes, and through meadows on your journey from Arolla to Zermatt.
Trail run the classic Haute Route through the Alps– but using specific trails that have been selected with trail runners in mind! The Haute Route has long been a famous hiking and skiing track, but now a new version, designed just for trail runners by our friends at ALPSinsight, takes you across the mountainous Swiss Canton of Valais. This multi-day trail running tour avoids the busiest trails while contouring around impressive landscape to cover more runnable ground than the traditional trail runner’s version of the Haute Route. As a level 3-4 tour, the Via Valais features big mountain days, sometimes over 16miles long with more than 6000ft climbing and descending.
Our version of the Via Valais starts in the beautiful Swiss village of Arolla, famous as a base for mountaineering. We have a full day to find our trail running feet in this valley, before heading off on our journey towards Zermatt, at the foot of the Matterhorn.
Each day will start with a hearty continental buffet breakfast at your inn – delicious fresh baked bread, local cheeses, cereal, fruit, coffee and juice – which gives you the energy needed for a full day of trail running. Hut breakfasts are often simpler, and usually consist of bread, jams, butter, cereal, coffee, and juice. We’ll provide snacks for you to take on the trail. Every day we pass a café or mountain hut where we can also buy drinks or snacks. In the evenings we’ll enjoy dinner together at our accommodation – a hearty multi-course feast featuring delicious local Swiss specialities.
Several days have options for a longer or shorter route. Your bags will be transferred separately, each night, except for the three nights we stay in mountain huts – on these days we’ll “fastpack,” bringing the essentials for a night at a high mountain hut. At the end of the trip we have a day free in Zermatt for you to relax, run some more trails or explore the town at your own pace.
The Via Valais is one of the most challenging trips offered by Run the Alps. You should be comfortable in steep, rugged and remote mountain terrain, and able to climb and descend over 2000m daily over the course of the trip. If you are uncertain whether this trip is for you, please contact us.
Lead photos: PatitucciPhoto, Steph Lefferts, Mark Brightwell
Book this tour
$5320 per person
$1050 single supplement available six nights: Arolla, Zinal, St Niklaus and Zermatt
Make it privately guided
Prefer to go guided with your own group? Inquire here.
Go self-guided
Run on your own schedule, without a guide, and let us take care of the logistics! See details here.
Itinerary
Looking towards Mont Collon from Arolla. (Photo: Mark Brightwell)
Day 1 - Arolla
Arrive in Geneva or Zurich airport and travel to Arolla via train and then Swiss Postbus. This pretty village is high up at the end of the Hérens valley.
Another slice of tart please. (Photo: Tim Davis)
Day 2 - Arolla
We’ll enjoy a day to settle into trail running in this region, perhaps running up to the Swiss Alpine Club’s Cabane des Aiguilles Rouges or the Pas de Chèvre.
At Cabane des Becs de Bosson on the Run the Alps Via Valais, which is offered as a guided or self-guided trip. (Photo: PatitucciPhoto)
Day 3 - Becs de Bosson
We’ll start our running with a couple of miles alongside the river to warm up. On reaching the village of Evolène, we head uphill to the Becs de Bosson mountain hut at 3000m elevation.
Cheesy Rösti. (Photo: Kelly M)
Day 4 - Zinal
Today we run down to Lac de Lona, over the Basset de Lona pass and then a long descent ends at Lake Moiry. After crossing the Corne de Sorebois, the day ends in the small village of Zinal.
Home for the night at Turtmann hut. (Photo: Mark Brightwell)
Day 5 - Turtmann hut
Today we pass into the German speaking region of Switzerland, and also get to experience a remote corner of the Alps. We head along the final section of the famous Sierre-Zinal race with great running along a high-level traverse, before we head over into the next valley via the Col de la Forcletta.
Getting closer to Zermatt. (Photo: Mark Brightwell)
Day 6 - St. Niklaus
We reach the Zermatt valley, or Mattertal, today by heading up and over the Augstbord pass then down to the valley village of St Niklaus. An optional cable car from the high mountain hamlet of Jungen saves thousands of feet of trail running downhill at the end of the day, if desired.
Found the black nose sheep. (Photo: Steph Lefferts)
Day 7 - Fluhalp
From the village of Randa, we cross the Charles Kuonen suspension bridge, Europe’s longest pedestrian suspension bridge at 494 meters in length. From here we continue along the Europaweg, a high-level traverse with flowing running and our first views of the Matterhorn.
Cheers! The best lemonade at Trift Hotel. (Photo: Mark Brightwell)
Day 8 - Zermatt
Today is one of the best days of trail running to be found anywhere in the Alps. We’ll cruise around the head of the Zermatt valley with incredible views the whole way – and several great options for coffee stops!
Moon and Matterhorn. (Photo: Steph Lefferts)
Day 9 - Zermatt
Enjoy some time exploring the car-free village of Zermatt, a historic climbing and ski town dotted with centuries-old wooden chalets. At the end of the day, you can enjoy the spa at our hotel in Zermatt!
Sunset up high. (Photo: Mark Brightwell)
Day 10 - Depart from Zermatt
Today we’ll enjoy a final breakfast together, then take our leave of Zermatt, heading home, elsewhere in the Alps for more trail running – or wherever your travels take you next!
Regional map
- Daily guided trail runs with a licensed International Mountain Leader
- Accommodation for six nights at 3 or 4 star hotels and three nights at high mountain huts with dormitories
- Buffet breakfasts, food and premium nutrition on the trail, and multi-course dinners every evening
- All transfers to and from trailheads that are included on our planned itinerary
- Luggage transfers each night, except when staying in high mountain huts
- A copy of our Guide to Trail Running in the Alps, which contains 80+ pages of information and tips from Run the Alps staff and guides
- Flights / transportation to and from the tour
- Transport to and from trailheads if you choose to shorten a run
- Drinks with dinners
- Extra charges made at accommodations such as room service or laundry
- Tips for guides
Geneva is the preferred arrival airport for this trip as the onward journey to Arolla is more straightforward than from Zurich. If flying to Zurich, your flight will need to arrive no later than 11am in order to reach Arolla the same day, as the trip is over 4 hours long. It’s also possible to arrive a day early and stay in Zurich, before departing in the morning.
Please note that flights from the US usually depart the day before.
Geneva or Zurich are the preferred departure airports. If your flight is in the morning, plan an extra day to travel to the departure city.
An option exists to arrive earlier or stay longer, to extend your trail running time with our self-guided materials or for a second tour. We are happy to help with these arrangements.
- Why Run the Alps? Learn how Run the Alps compares to other trail running companies and what sets us apart.
- Want to extend your trip with more running? We can help provide self-guided run descriptions for nearby regions of the Alps, and/or trail race options.
- Concerned about being ready? We’re here to help. Check out our Alps Training Resources or get in touch if you’d like to be put in touch with a coach.
- Can a non-running partner join me on this tour? Yes–read how hiking and sightseeing companions can come too.
- Celebrating a special occasion? Each year we get a number of guests who are celebrating a birthday, anniversary or retirement with a Run the Alps trip. If this is you, let us know!
- Alumni Discount: We love welcoming our alumni back to the Alps and offer a 10% discount on all standard Run the Alps trips. Simply check the Alumni box on the registration form and we’ll apply the discount when we invoice you.
- Tour Balance: Your tour balance is due 90 days before your tour starts. We will send you an invoice about a month before that due date. However, you can pay your balance at any time. If you’d like the simplicity of paying in full sooner, or would like to pay in installments, please contact us.
- Tour Grants Program: Run the Alps is committed to making our trips more inclusive. If you’d like to join this trip, but don’t think you can afford it, please check out our Tour Grants Program.
- Trip Insurance: Life can sometimes throw us a curveball and wreak havoc upon the best laid plans, which is why Run the Alps requires trip insurance. Learn more here.
- Terms and Conditions: You can read up on them here.
Guides for this Tour
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Want to know more?
After the Tour du Mont-Blanc: What’s Your Next Big Trail Run?
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Via Valais Q&A: The Alps’ New Multi-Day Trail Run
Run the Alps is excited to be offering the Via Valais, a new multi-day, trail-running route developed by the team over at ALPSinsight.
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Via Valais Trail Running Trip Stars on the Patagonia Catalog
For the first time, Patagonia’s catalog features trail running on its front cover – and we’re psyched that it’s the new Via Valais route. The Via Valais roughly follows the famous backcountry skiing and hiking “Haute Routes” from Chamonix, France to Zermatt, Switzerland, though it starts a bit closer to Zermatt, in the high mountain