10. Eiger Trail
You start high above the valley and drop steadily along the base of the north face. The path stays close to the rock so you feel the scale of the wall the whole way down. Wildflowers line the edges in summer and the views open straight across to the Mönch.
9. Stubai High Trail
The route loops around the Stubai valley using a chain of mountain huts. Each day you cross passes above 2500 meters with glaciers visible on the horizon. You sleep in different huts every night and the food is all local Austrian alpine fare.
8. Tre Cime di Lavaredo Circuit
You circle three towering limestone peaks on a wide gravel path that stays high for most of the walk. The rock changes color with the light and you pass several World War I tunnels cut into the cliffs. Side trails let you scramble up for closer looks at the towers.
7. Matterhorn Glacier Trail
The path leads you across old moraine and right up to the edge of the Zmutt Glacier. You get constant close views of the Matterhorn's north side and can watch ice fall from the glacier snout. The final ridge walk gives you a full 360-degree panorama of the Pennine Alps.
6. Aletsch Panorama Trail
You follow a high balcony path that stays level for most of its length beside the Aletsch Glacier. The ice stretches for over twenty kilometers below you and the trail passes through larch forests that turn bright gold in autumn. Several cable cars let you start or finish at different elevations.
5. Alta Via 1
This long trail runs from north to south across the Italian Dolomites using a series of high passes and refuges. You cross plateaus of pale rock and drop into green valleys each evening. The route is famous for its sunset colors on the jagged peaks around Cortina.
4. Walker's Haute Route
You travel from France into Switzerland crossing dozens of high cols between the two famous towns. Each day brings new glacier views and different valleys with their own cheese and wine. The final approach to Zermatt gives you the first clear sight of the Matterhorn from the east.
3. Triglav Traverse
The trail takes you across the Julian Alps and up the final exposed ridge to Triglav's summit. You use steel cables on the steepest sections and sleep in mountain huts built into the rock. The view from the top reaches all the way to the Adriatic on clear days.
2. Tour of Monte Rosa
You circle the entire Monte Rosa group staying mostly above 2000 meters. The path switches between Switzerland and Italy and passes the east face of the Matterhorn from an unusual angle. Nights are spent in high huts where you can watch the alpenglow on the surrounding 4000-meter peaks.
1. Tour du Mont Blanc
The route circles the highest peak in the Alps and crosses France, Italy, and Switzerland. You climb over a dozen passes with constant views of Mont Blanc's glaciers and finish each day at a different refuge. The final descent into Chamonix brings you back under the same north face you saw on day one.