Tour des Muverans: Switzerland's Best Kept Hut-to-Hut Trek

The Tour des Muverans is a wonderful circular hike in Valais, with many different options for walking. The trail is officially 54 km, with 4300m of ascent and descent and 23 hours of walking. The tour runs mainly above 2000m, with an altitude of over 2600m and a lowest point of 1230m.

During the Tour des Muverans, you hike around the mountain peak Grand Muveran, which rises above 3000m and lies on the border between Vaud (Waadt) and Valais (Valais) in Switzerland. There are three places to start the hike namely; Pont de Nant, Derborence, or Ovronnaz, and you can either do the hike clockwise or anti-clockwise. The easiest base is Ovronnaz, a classic holiday and spa town known for three 32- to 35-degree hot springs.

The Tour des Muverans is not an easy trek and is similar in difficulty to the Walker's Haute Route,. For this trek, it is advisable to already have some Alpine experience. Basically, the hiking trails are quite accessible but there are several technical sections in it that require some mountain experience.

If you have little experience with hiking in the mountains and would like to see if staying overnight in huts is something for you, have a look at our blog on the Kesch Trek in the more eastern region of Graubünden in Switzerland. Slightly less challenging and with the Kesch Trek, you'll have one of the most popular huts in the Swiss Alps.

The most difficult trails are T3. Find information on the difficulty rating of hiking trails here. The narrowest passages have fuses in the form of cables or chains.

The official season runs from mid-June to mid-September, but if you hike the Tour des Muverans between mid-July and late August, the chances of good weather and snow-free mountain passes are higher. It is high season, so make sure you book as far in advance as possible. If you decide to hike the Tour des Muverans in September, it is still enjoyable and the trail is not as crowded. But in this case, the days are shorter, the weather is colder and there is a chance of snow.

July and August are the best months for this trek in Switzerland, but are also the high season so it can be busier. However, the Alps are unpredictable and the weather can easily change. When one day you can fully enjoy the bright sunshine, the next day it can rain gallons.

At Bookatrekking.com, we like to do things the right way, and when it comes to accommodation on the Tour des Combins, it means you'll primarily stay in cabanes. Cabane is the Swiss name for a mountain hut. In some cases, mountain huts and cabanes are owned by alpine clubs; in Switzerland, that's the Schweizerische Alpen Club (SAC). What all these mountain huts have in common is their unusual location: in the most remote places in the Alps, you can check into these small refuges.

The huts along the Tour des Muverans offer the option of half-board, which means both breakfast and dinner are included in the price. This has several benefits that make your trek even more enjoyable. After a long and often strenuous day on the trails, there's little that can compare to the satisfaction of arriving at a mountain hut and knowing that a warm, nourishing meal awaits you. It eliminates the need to cook for yourself or carry food, giving you more time to relax and savor the mountain atmosphere.

Additionally, there's the practical aspect. Every gram counts when you're covering miles with a backpack on your shoulders. By opting for half-board, you can avoid the weight of your own food, reducing the load on your body and making your trek lighter and more comfortable. This means more energy to enjoy the breathtaking surroundings and challenges of the Tour des Muverans. In short, half-board is a smart choice that both your stomach and your back will appreciate during this adventurous journey.

The starting point of the Tour des Muverans can be at different points. The town of Ovronnaz, northwest of Sion, is a good starting point for this hike and therefore the most frequently chosen starting and finishing point. The beauty of this hike is that you hike a circle which also brings you back to Ovronnaz.

By Car:

You can take the car to Switzerland and head to Bern and drive towards the town of Sion, passing close to Lausanne.

By Plane:

The nearest airport is Geneva or Bern and from there you can travel to Sion by train. This can be done from Geneva with a direct train connection with surely stunning views.

Public Transport:

Your best option is to take the train to Geneva or Bern. From there, you can take the train to Sion and take a bus to the starting point in Ovronnaz the next morning. You can even do this from Geneva with a direct train connection.

There is an emergency situation when a human life (yours or someone else's) is in danger and you cannot do anything to solve the situation. You should call for help if there has been an accident, someone is stuck, you are lost or in trouble and cannot continue due to the time of day or weather conditions, or if you are stuck due to technical climbing challenges beyond your capabilities.

The most important thing to do in an emergency situation is to remain calm and assess the situation. Do not panic and do not take pointless risks if the people in need are difficult to reach. In case of emergency, first and foremost, call for help. When calling for help, make sure to provide your location and the number of victims and type of injuries. Then, protect the victim from cold and other environmental threats and provide first aid, if you are capable.

Useful emergency phone numbers

144 (General) / 1414 (Mountain Rescue)

A hut-to-hut trek doesn't have to be expensive. Huts are typically simple but provide everything you need to recharge your mental and physical batteries for the next day(s) of hiking. For a 6-day trek on the Tour des Muverans, you can expect to spend approximately 80 CHF per hiking day. This includes route information, navigation assistance, your accommodation in a mountain hut, and half-board or breakfast where available.

For hut-to-hut treks in general, it's advisable to carry 40 to 60 EUR/CHF in pocket money, which covers lunch and beverages. Keep in mind that you'll stay in Swiss huts, so they naturally use Swiss Francs as their currency.