Courmayeur (; Valdôtain: ) is a town and ''

comune The (; plural: ) is a local administrative division of Italy, roughly equivalent to a township or municipality. It is the third-level administrative division of Italy, after regions ('' regioni'') and provinces (''province''). The can also ...

'' in

northern Italy Northern Italy ( it, Italia settentrionale, it, Nord Italia, label=none, it, Alta Italia, label=none or just it, Nord, label=none) is a geographical and cultural region in the northern part of Italy. It consists of eight administrative region ...

, in the autonomous region of

Aosta Valley , Valdostan or Valdotainian it, Valdostano (man) it, Valdostana (woman)french: Valdôtain (man)french: Valdôtaine (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = Official languages , population_blank1 = Italian French ...

History

The toponym ''Courmayeur'' has been mentioned as ''Curia majori'' (1233–1381), ''Corte Maggiore'' (1620), ''Cormoyeu'' (1648), ''Cormaior'' (1680), ''Cormaior'' (Vissher, 1695), ''Cormaggior'' (L'Isle, 1707), ''Cormaior'' (Stagnoni, 1772) and ''Cormaieur'' (Martinel, 1799). The present toponym was first confirmed by Édouard Aubert (''La Vallée d'Aoste'', 1860), Joseph-Marie Henry (''Histoire populaire de la Vallée d'Aoste'', 1929) and

Amé Gorret Amé Gorret (1836-1907), known in his native Aosta Valley as the "Abbé Gorret" (''"Father Gorret"''), was a priest and Alpinist (mountaineer). He was a member of the group which in 1865 undertook the second successful ascent of the Matterhorn, ...

(''Guide de la Vallée d'Aoste'', 1877). Cadran solaire - rue de Rome, Courmayeur

It became a popular tourist destination when alpinism arose, thanks to its proximity to Mont Blanc. Under the

Fascist regime Fascism is a far-right, authoritarian, ultra-nationalist political ideology and movement,: "extreme militaristic nationalism, contempt for electoral democracy and political and cultural liberalism, a belief in natural social hierarchy and th ...

and its "Italianist" rule, the town was briefly renamed ''Cormaiore''. Courmayeur was reestablished in 1948 alongside all other French toponyms in the Aosta Valley. The

Mont Blanc Tunnel The Mont Blanc Tunnel is a highway tunnel between France and Italy, under the Mont Blanc mountain in the Alps. It links Chamonix, Haute-Savoie, France with Courmayeur, Aosta Valley, Italy, via the French Route Nationale 205 and the Italian T ...

, connecting Courmayeur with

Chamonix Chamonix-Mont-Blanc ( frp, Chamôni), more commonly known as Chamonix, is a commune in the Haute-Savoie department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of southeastern France. It was the site of the first Winter Olympics in 1924. In 2019, it had ...

, opened in 1965, and provides an important road link between Italy and France. In 2013, in accordance with regional law 61 (''Dénomination officielle des communes de la Vallée d'Aoste et protection de la toponymie locale''), a referendum was carried out to change the official name to ''Courmayeur-Mont-Blanc'',C’est au tour de Courmayeur de vouloir s’appeler "Mont-Blanc"
/ref> but there was insufficient support.

Geography

At an

elevation The elevation of a geographic location is its height above or below a fixed reference point, most commonly a reference geoid, a mathematical model of the Earth's sea level as an equipotential gravitational surface (see Geodetic datum § ...

above sea level Height above mean sea level is a measure of the vertical distance ( height, elevation or altitude) of a location in reference to a historic mean sea level taken as a vertical datum. In geodesy, it is formalized as '' orthometric heights''. Th ...

, it is located at the foot of the southern side of

Mont Blanc Mont Blanc (french: Mont Blanc ; it, Monte Bianco , both meaning "white mountain") is the highest mountain in the Alps and Western Europe, rising above sea level. It is the second-most prominent mountain in Europe, after Mount Elbrus, and ...

, at the highest point in the

Alps The Alps () ; german: Alpen ; it, Alpi ; rm, Alps ; sl, Alpe . are the highest and most extensive mountain range system that lies entirely in Europe, stretching approximately across seven Alpine countries (from west to east): France, Sw ...

and

western Europe Western Europe is the western region of Europe. The region's countries and territories vary depending on context. The concept of "the West" appeared in Europe in juxtaposition to "the East" and originally applied to the ancient Mediterranean ...

(see

Seven Summits The Seven Summits are the highest mountains of each of the seven traditional continents. Climbing to the summit of all of them is regarded as a mountaineering challenge, first achieved on 30 April 1985 by Richard Bass. Climbing the Seven Summits ...

), and is crossed by the

Dora Baltea Dora Baltea () or Doire Baltée () is a river in northwestern Italy. It is a left-hand tributary of the Po and is about long. Name The river's Latin name was ''Duria maior'', ''Duria Baltica'' or ''Duria Bautica''. Strabo called it Δουρ� ...

(fr. ''Doire baltée'') river. Courmayeur shares administration of Mont Blanc with its neighboring municipality of

Saint-Gervais-les-Bains Saint-Gervais-les-Bains () is a commune in the Haute-Savoie department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, southeastern France. The village is best known for tourism and has been a popular holiday destination since the early 1900s. It has of ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

, and is consequently able to claim the title of highest commune in Italy. Courmayeur also shares access to the

glacial A glacial period (alternatively glacial or glaciation) is an interval of time (thousands of years) within an ice age that is marked by colder temperatures and glacier advances. Interglacials, on the other hand, are periods of warmer climate betwe ...

ski run of the ''Vallée Blanche'' with another French town,

, which sits at the opposite, northern, side of the

Mont Blanc massif The Mont Blanc massif (french: Massif du Mont-Blanc; it, Massiccio del Monte Bianco) is a mountain range in the Alps, located mostly in France and Italy, but also straddling Switzerland at its northeastern end. It contains eleven major indep ...

Main sights

Courmayeur is cited as "Italy's best all-round ski resort", and contains the

Alpine Botanical Garden Saussurea The alpine botanical garden Saussurea ( it, Giardino Botanico Alpino Saussurea, french: Jardin botanique alpin Saussurea) is the highest alpine botanical garden in Europe, at 2,173 metres above sea level. It is located in Courmayeur, Aosta Valley, ...

, which describes itself as

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

's highest

botanical garden A botanical garden or botanic gardenThe terms ''botanic'' and ''botanical'' and ''garden'' or ''gardens'' are used more-or-less interchangeably, although the word ''botanic'' is generally reserved for the earlier, more traditional gardens, an ...

. The Church of Saint-Pantaléon dates to the 18th century. In the summer months Courmayeur is a popular destination for hikers. The nearby village o
La Palud
is the base station of the

Skyway Monte Bianco Skyway Monte Bianco is a cable car in the Italian Alps, linking the town of Courmayeur with Pointe Helbronner on the southern side of the Mont Blanc massif. Taking over three years to construct, it opened in 2015 at a cost of 110 million euro ...

, the cable car to the

Pointe Helbronner Pointe Helbronner () is a mountain in the Mont Blanc massif in the Graian Alps on the watershed between France and Italy. The peak, which used to be a mere geodetic reference point, was named after Paul Helbronner, a French '' polytechnicien ...

. This links to the

Vallée Blanche Aerial Tramway Vallée is a French surname. Notable people with the surname include: * André Vallée (1930–2015), Canadian Roman Catholic bishop * Anne Vallée (born 1958), Canadian biologist * Bernard Vallée (born 1945), French fencer * Brigitte Vallée (bor ...

going to the

Aiguille du Midi The Aiguille du Midi () is a mountain in the Mont Blanc massif within the French Alps. It is a popular tourist destination and can be directly accessed by cable car from Chamonix that takes visitors close to Mont Blanc. Cable car The idea fo ...

, which connects to the ''Téléphérique de l'Aiguille du Midi'', the cable car from

Notre Dame de Guérison sanctuary Notre-Dame de Guérison (French for "Our Lady the Healer") is a Christian sanctuary situated in Courmayeur, at the foot of Mont Chétif, along the Val Veny road that leads to the Seigne pass, also known as the "Cremonis Iugum" (Cremona Pass), used ...

stands at the foot of Mont Chétif.

Sports

Biathlon World Championships 1959 The 2nd Biathlon World Championships were held in 1959 in Courmayeur, Italy. The men's 20 km individual and team were the only competitions. Men's results 20 km individual Each shot missing the target gave a penalty of 2 minutes. 20 km t ...

2011 World Junior Short Track Speed Skating Championships The 2011 World Junior Short Track Speed Skating Championships took place between 25 and 27 February 2011 in Courmayeur, Italy at the Forum Sport Center ice rink. The World Championships are organised by the ISU which also run world cups and ch ...

2012 Italian Figure Skating Championships The 2012 Italian Figure Skating Championships ( it, Campionati Italiani Assoluti 2012 Pattinaggio Di Figura Su Ghiaccio) was held in Courmayeur from December 15 through 18, 2011. Skaters competed in the disciplines of men's singles, ladies' si ...

* Courmayeur Ladies Open *

Mont Blanc Trophy The Mont Blanc Trophy was an international figure skating competition held in February 2010 and 2011 in Courmayeur, Italy. It has included men's singles, ladies singles, pair skating, and ice dancing Ice dance (sometimes referred to as ice dan ...

Valle d'Aosta Open The Valle d'Aosta Open is a tennis tournament held in Courmayeur, Italy since 2011. Past finals Singles Doubles See also * ATP Saint-Vincent The ATP Saint-Vincent, also known as the Campionati Internazionali della Valle D'Aosta, was a men's ...

History

Geography

Main sights

Sports

Sister cities

References

External links