The Tour du Mont Blanc does not feel like 170 km until day seven, when the accumulated 10,050 m of gain finally catches up with your legs on the climb out of Courmayeur. It is a circuit built from repeated 800–1000 m passes rather than one sustained effort, and that rhythm is the whole character of the route.
We ran it over ten days, crossing France, Italy and Switzerland without needing technical gear at any point — this is rated moderate for a reason, and the refuge network means you can move fast and light. Best sleep of the trip: Rifugio Bonatti, with the Grandes Jorasses lit up orange at last light.
Booking note
Reserve refuges before you fly, not after you land. In peak July/August weeks the popular huts on the Italian side fill months out, and a full refuge means either a long extra push or a night in a tent you did not plan to carry.