At first glance, the Haute Route might seem physically daunting, but many might find it even more financially intimidating. Traversing two very expensive and staying in the many “quaint” (read: pricey) resort towns along the way? Buying enough food to fuel yourself through day after day of long miles on the trail? Doesn’t seem cheap, does it? The beautiful thing about the Walker’s Haute Route, however, is that it’s pretty much up to you how expensive you want to make it.
Below we’ve outlined typical costs on the Walker’s Haute Route (Updated for 2023). We hope that by sharing this information, our fellow hikers will be able to plan and budget more accurately for their own trip. Additionally, you might find that an experience like the Haute Route is more within reach than you originally thought, if you just make a few intentional decisions when planning your travel.
Note: We’ve listed most prices in Swiss Francs, since that’s the currency you’ll use for the majority of the trek. When applicable, we’ve listed prices in Euros and U.S. dollars as well.
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Accommodation
We chose to camp as much as possible along the Walker’s Haute Route and we highly recommend it to others for a number of reasons. First, many of the campgrounds are quite luxurious, with amenities such as hot showers and wifi. We also preferred the privacy of our tent versus the dorm-style sleeping arrangements of the huts. Sleeping outdoors in such spectacular alpine surroundings became a highlight of our trip. And of course, the price of camping can’t be beat!
There are a few places along the Haute Route where there are no official campgrounds. For those situations, we opted to either stay in the mountain huts, which offered amazing ambiance for a reasonable price, or to wild camp along the trail. In general, wild camping is discouraged (and sometimes illegal) along the Haute Route, so if you choose this option make sure to ask permission before camping on private land, use leave no trace principles, and be as discrete as possible. We also stayed in an Airbnb for our rest day in Les Hauderes, which proved to be a wonderful treat after roughing it for so many days. Here’s a breakdown of our accommodation spending:
- Average Hut Price: 40 CHF (dorm only) or 80 CHF (half pension)
- Average Campsite Price: 15 CHF (per person)
- Hotel in Chamonix for before the hike: €85 (per night)
- Airbnb in Les Hauderes for our rest day: 70 CHF (per night)
- Average Price of dorm bed in a dortoir: 35 CHF (per person)
- Mid-range hotel in Zermatt for after the hike: 150 CHF (per night)
- Shower at a mountain hut: 5 CHF for 5 minutes
Read more: Walker’s Haute Route Accommodation and Refuge Guide
Transit
- Bus from Geneva to Chamonix: €20 (per person, one-way)
- Train from Zermatt to Geneva Airport: 55 CHF (per person, one-way)
- Local ride between towns on the Postbus: 3-8 CHF (per person, one-way)
- SBB train (if detour is needed): 15-20 CHF (per person, one-way)
- Average cable-car ride (if you want to avoid a downhill section): 15 CHF (per person)
Be sure to check out our Walker’s Haute Route Logistics article for more information about transportation before, during, and after your trek.
Flights:
We strategically used credit card points and miles in order to fly on IcelandAir from Chicago to Geneva, with a free week-long stopover in Iceland (where we hiked the Laugavegur Trail). Check out our entire Travel for Free series to learn more.
Airline Taxes and Fees: $150.00 + 27,500 Alaska Airlines miles* (per person)
*Alaska Airlines is a partner with IcelandAir, thus allowing us to use their miles to purchase our tickets. Unfortunately, the amount of miles required for this trip has increased since the time we booked our flights.
Food and Drink
You may be backpacking through rugged mountains, but that doesn’t necessitate spending a small fortune on fancy freeze-dried meals. We preferred to stock up on lightweight, nutritious, and tasty dry goods from the local grocery stores to fuel us along the Walker’s Haute Route. These foods kept us feeling full throughout long days of hiking, and we found them to be more enjoyable than those space-age style backpacker meals. Plus, they were a fraction of the price!
On average, we spent about 10-15 CHF per person, per day on our food and drink.
Of course, we allowed ourselves a few treats along the way, too. Here’s what you can expect to pay, on average, for the following items and indulgences:
At a restaurant or mountain hut:
- Beer: 5 CHF
- Bottle of wine: 30 CHF
- Meal: 20-30 CHF (per person)
- Coffee: 4 CHF
- Pastry: 6 CHF
- Packed lunch from mountain hut: 10 CHF
At a grocery store:
- Ramen/Instant Meal: 2-3 CHF
- Loaf of bread: 2 CHF
- Cheap Beer: 1 CHF
- Cheap bottle of wine: 3 CHF
- Block of local cheese: 3 CHF
- 1 kg bag of Muesli: 3 CHF
- Bag of peanuts: 2-4 CHF
- Pre-packaged sandwich: 5 CHF
Money saving tip: If you choose to stay at the mountain huts, be sure to ask them if you can self-cater instead of paying for half-board. At most huts, the price is double if you want meals included. Sure, they typically serve pretty tasty food, but for half the cost we were happy to cook our own food. Plus, some huts (like Cabane du Mont Fort) even have a small kitchen area that you can use.
Miscellaneous
- Stove Fuel: 7 CHF
- Laundry: 8 CHF for both wash and dry
- Guidebook (we recommend the Cicerone version)
- Luggage transport from Chamonix to Zermatt (via the post-see our logistics article for more on this): €46
- Average Tourist Tax (paid at every accommodation): 1.5-4 CHF (per person)
As you can see, we happily teetered between dirtbag and deluxe on our Walker’s Haute Route trek. While there’s no escaping the high costs of some essentials, in general, one can experience the Haute Route on a modest budget (and enjoy some excellent wine and cheese while doing so). Obviously, you’ll also want to factor in the cost of hiking gear that you’ll need to purchase prior to setting off on your trek. Check out our packing list to get an idea of what you might need to purchase ahead of time. Also, our Backpacking Gear on a Budget article has some helpful ideas for keeping your costs low when putting together your backpacking kit. Whether you choose to splurge or keep it simple, we feel confident you’ll have the adventure of a lifetime.
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What’s Next?
Be sure to read our entire series on the Haute Route to learn everything you’ll need to know to prepare for your trip!
- Guide to Camping on the Walker’s Haute Route
- Walker’s Haute Route Packing List: Be sure you’ve got everything you need!
- Walker’s Haute Route Logistics: Don’t forget the small details!
- Haute Route Trip Report: Know what to expect!
- Haute Route Photo Gallery: Get inspired!
- 10 Essentials for the Walker’s Haute Route: The need-to-know basics.
- How to Train for the Haute Route: Get in trail-ready shape!
- Walker’s Haute Route Accommodation and Refuge Guide
Get The FREE Haute Route Essentials Handbook
Our free PDF guide covers all the basics – when to hike, accommodation, typical costs, and more!
So all told for camping and eating on the cheap during this trip, what would you say it ended up costing total?
Hi Jeff,
To give you some context for our spending, we camped in campgrounds every night except for two nights in huts and an Airbnb on our rest day. In terms of food, we cooked every meal and splurged on a few beers at huts along the way. With our modestly frugal budget we spent about 30 CHF per person per day, and we hiked over 12 days. So a total of around 360 CHF per person for the total trip for camping, eating, and other small miscellaneous costs along the way. This estimate doesn’t include transport to/from the trail and the trains and buses in Switzerland can be quite pricey. Hope this helps.
Best,
Emily & Ian