Vignette hut

The Vignettes hut (Cabane des Vignettes) stands at 3157 m on the Col des Vignettes in the far Val d'Hérens, high above the hamlet of Arolla in the canton of Valais. The refuge belongs to the Monte Rosa section of the Swiss Alpine Club and is a classic stage stop on the Haute Route between Chamonix and Zermatt as well as the starting point for high-altitude tours on Pigne d'Arolla, Mont Collon, L'Evêque or Mont Blanc de Cheilon. For 2026, the hut is manned from March 7 to May 6 and from June 17 to September 12; spring is particularly suitable for ski mountaineering, summer for alpine tours and glacier hikes. The hut offers half-board with dinner and breakfast as well as tea for the thermos flask; a picnic can be ordered to take away on request, and there are simple, hearty mountain dishes with rösti, cheese specialties, Valais wine and local beers. The normal ascent starts at the upper parking lot and the ski lifts above Arolla and takes around 3-4 hours via a forest path, the steep moraine between Glacier de Pièce and Tsijiore Nouve and further over the glacier to Col des Vignettes, before a short path leads up to the hut, covering around 1100 meters in altitude. The hut is mainly used as a stage base on the Haute Route and for multi-day ski and high-altitude tours. Before each tour, current conditions, closures and avalanche and weather conditions should be carefully checked and a mountain guide should be consulted if you lack experience. The origins of the hut go back to the Jenkins Refuge of 1924; the current stone hut was built in 1946 and extensively renovated in 1973 and 2008, so that today it can accommodate around 120 guests in comparatively high comfort at this altitude.