Chamois (Car-Free Alpine Village)

Chamois is the only car-free village in the Valle d'Aosta and one of a very small number of permanently inhabited car-free communities in the Alps. Sitting at 1,815 metres above sea level on a sunny terrace overlooking the Valtournenche valley, the village of around 100 permanent residents is reached exclusively by cable car from the hamlet of Buisson in the valley below. No motor vehicles are permitted in the village; residents use small electric vehicles and snowmobiles for essential transport, and visitors explore entirely on foot. The absence of traffic noise gives Chamois a remarkable tranquillity unusual in any tourist destination. The cable car station at Buisson — accessible by road from the SS26 Aosta–Châtillon highway or by SVAP bus — is the sole point of entry. The 6-minute cable car ride delivers passengers to a flat terrace from which the village, its stone houses, church, and surrounding alpine meadows can be explored in an hour or two. In winter Chamois forms part of the Cervino Ski Paradise area, sharing lift connections with Breuil-Cervinia and Zermatt. In summer it is a walking and paragliding base, with marked trails leading to high-altitude viewpoints and the neighbouring village of La Magdeleine. The best viewpoints over the Valtournenche and the Matterhorn are from the meadows immediately above the cable car arrival station.