 Poster: A snowHead
|
Hello! 
My friends and I are starting to plan our annual European ski trip, and I think we need help. We tend to like going to large ski areas where there is plenty of terrain to keep us occupied for a week. For example last year we went to the Dolomites, and the previous years to the 3 Valleys, St Anton and Cervinia/Zermatt. This year we are considering Switzerland. However, I am worried that Switzerland, unlike France, doesn't really have a wealth of large interlinked ski areas to choose from. I have already been to Zermatt (loved it! Stayed in Cervinia, but spent 2 days on the Swiss side), as well as Wengen/Murren (one day each, and I covered pretty much the whole area over those two days). I definitely don't want to go back to the Interlaken region, but would not mind skiing for a couple more days in Zermatt. So what I am wondering is whether it is possible to ski in Switzerland without staying at the same resort Saturday through Saturday. For example, is it possible to, let's say, spend 3 days in Zermatt, a day in Saas Fee and 3 more days in Verbier, without it getting entirely too complicated logistically? Has anybody ever done something like that? Or perhaps Davos/Klosters/St Moritz? I am just thinking of ski resorts that are geographically close to each other... It seems to me that Swiss hotels may be less strict about the Saturday to Saturday length of stay than France/Italy/Austria, but perhaps I am very wrong about that?
Or if the scenario described above is not realistic, where would you suggest that we go? I would really like it to be a large area, but I also want it to be scenic and for the village to have some charm to it .
Or should we just give up on this whole Swiss idea and go to Morzine or Ischgl?
Thank you!
|
|
|
|
|
|
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
|
|
P.S. I should probably add that we are planning on going in early March, and that we are all advanced skiers who like to go fast and far on groomed trails but are not looking for off-piste opportunities.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
|
|
|
|
You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
|
|
Verbier should keep you amused for a week of its own, but if 450km is not enough Porte de Soleil has 650 and is exactly the sort of skiing you describe.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
|
We often go for short trips all over Europe and usually have no problem booking hotels for less than a week. In early March you may clash with the last week of French school holidays (you can find the dates by googling) which may make some French resorts more resistant to short bookings. I think the Zermwtt, Saas Fee and Verbier combo is quite feasible logistically as you can get about between them easily by train. Whether you could get just one night's accommodation in Saas Fee may be an issue, but I'm not sure. Within that area you might want to look at somewhere a little more quaint and try Grimentz, which is a very pretty village and so quiet compared with the big resorts. It's definitely worth a couple of days. You would have to catch a bus or get a taxi up from Sion.
The Portes Du Soleil would also be a good option. There are so many places to stay and the Swiss and French side. I think there are some Chatel snowheads who may be able to make a few suggestions.
|
|
|
|
|
|
You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
|
It is fairly easy to turn up in resort in Switzerland and get a room. Just go to the tourist office, or try the free phone by the board which shows you where all the accommodation is in resort. Tourist information often has booking for last minute accommodation. Just try and avoid peak times.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Sounds like your group might not appreciate Verbier/Quatre Vallees. Its 400 km of pistes (total km's contested recently by the way) are interlinked only by some really severe ungroomed routes.
The skiing in Verbier is a bit similar to St.Anton. Maybe that rings a bell?
And I would advice against the Saas Fee/Zermatt/Verbier combination either. Zermatt is logistically difficult because you can't' get there by car. The same goes for Saas Fee. You'll easily lose a great part of the day on logistics.
Traffic in this region is slow anyway. To get out of the Mattervalley into the main Rhonevalley takes an hour at least. By car that is, without taking into account the Zermatt-Tasch train!
And early March is the highest of high season. Forget about easy hotelbookings!
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Portes Du Soleil is a good call, plenty of skiing, perhaps based in Avoriaz for easiest access onto the slopes in all weather conditions, but in Chatel if you really want to stay in Switzerland
Staying in Bourg St Maurice would also offer lots of options. though not to Swiss skiing. Easy access up the funicular to Les Arcs and over the Vanoise Express to La Plagne, the Paradise Ski area is pretty large! Supposing you covered as much of that as you wanted to then for another day its a half hour drive up to La Rosiere on the other side of the valley where (wind not having closed links provided) you can ski right over into Italy. With a little longer drive you can go up the valley and to Val D'Isere, another huge ski area.
|
|
|
|
|
|
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
|
I think this is certainly worth looking at but agree that doing Zermatt/Saas fee/Verbier would be too much, simply because of distance. You don't say if you will have a car (this will be more flexible than travelling by train). The following assumes that you have a car.
I recommend sticking to a region of Switzerland and doing 2 resorts only in a week. Laax/Flims could combine with Davos/Klosters for example. In the Valais area you could buy a Valais car giving access to all ski resorts there and choose a combination in the Rhone valley. eg Crans Montana and Leukerbad or Grimentz. I did a 2 centre trip last year (Chamonix plus Grimentz) and would caution that you need to be comfortable with the added hassle of changing hotels, skis etc if renting, lift passes (unless using some form of regional card). On the other hand you will get more of a feel of a road trip/tour. I don't think hotels will be an issue if you are booking 3 or 4 nights in each.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Quote: |
It seems to me that Swiss hotels may be less strict about the Saturday to Saturday length of stay than France/Italy/Austria, but perhaps I am very wrong about that?
|
If you deal with the hotels directly, they will accommodate you wherever they are if they can. I know that many in Austria are offering 3, 4 and 5 night deals starting any day of the week as I'm getting lots sent to me by the Tourist Boards who I have contacted in the past.
|
|
|
|
|
|
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
|
@alenchic, give up and go to Ischgl - you will get to ski and visit Switzerland as the Ski area straddles the Austrian/Swiss border with Samnaun. It's a big local ski area then add on days in Kappl/See and Galtur (part of your lift pass) it becomes a very big ski area. You will also get to experience pretty much the best/wildest apres in the alps/world.
Plus The best chicken in the alps is on the Swiss side! 
|
|
|
|
|
|
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
|
|
Zermatt for 3 days, then Crans Montanna for a day or two, followed by up over the other side of the valley to St Luc/Chandolin/Grimentz for another 2-3 days would be sweet....the logistics can be easily done by rail or rail and bus, and accomodation should be simple enough to sort depending on how fancy you want. You could also go Flims-Laax for 3 days and then Lenzerhiede - Arosa, those areas are pretty close and an easy drive from Flims to Lenzerheide for many many total kms...If you are ok with public transport, switzerland rail network and the rail and ski passes are great...You aren't wrong about swiss hotels, they will happily sell 1 or 2 night deals, no need generally for full sat-sat bookings particularly after last years poor season for them.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
I'd agree with @coddlesangers that you could try staying in the Rhone Valley somewhere and then take day trips up to the surrounding resorts. Candidate towns would be Martigny, Sierre and Sion: from these you've could easily ski Verbier, La Tzoumaz, Nendaz, Veysonnaz, Ovronnaz, St.Luc, Grimentz, and Crans-Montana. The Valais as a region is nicely descibed on its marketing website http://www.valais.ch/en/information/about-us/the-valais-brand
Or take a look at staying in a thermal resort like les Bains de Saillon (www.bainsdesaillon.ch/en) which is in the valley, half-way between Martigny and Sion. This is cheaper than the high-altitude luxury resorts like Lukerbad. Ovronnaz (above Riddes) is also a thermal resort, and a ski area as well: but obviously it's up the mountain and as a drive home every evening might not suit. Alternatively, you should be able to find a choice of standard hotels in the valley at more reasonable prices than in a resort.
I recall that last year there were various offers on this sort of ski holiday form both SBB (Swiss Railways) and the Valais Tourist Board. Perhaps it would be worth looking at the railway website to see if they're doing it again (http://www.sbb.ch/en/leisure-holidays.html) and the Swiss Tourist Board also has regular offers (www.myswitzerland.com).
If you're flying into Switzerland with tons of luggage there is also a facility to transfer it directly to the Postal service for delivery to a station or post office. This might not be worth it for a short stay or if you arrange car hire, but it could be useful: http://www.sbb.ch/en/station-services/services/baggage.html
Switzerland has a reputation for being expensive, but I've stayed in both Vail and Heavenly and I found it to be slightly cheaper than both. You do have to be careful about dining in expensive restaurants by mistake etc (although you can easily do this in Vail, I found!) and some on-piste places may be charming but it can be easy to ramp-up a big bill for a group if you're not paying attention.
|
|
|
|
|
|
You know it makes sense.
|
|
I would not recommend Crans-Montana - been there once and will definitely not return. The system was old, the skiing was below average and apres-ski..well lets just say that is nothing compared to some other places in Switzerland like Arosa.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
|
|
Crans-Montana has just had a Folie-Douce built, which may change the vibe.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Poster: A snowHead
|
| CaravanSkier wrote: |
| Portes Du Soleil is a good call, plenty of skiing, perhaps based in Avoriaz for easiest access onto the slopes in all weather conditions, but in Chatel if you really want to stay in Switzerland |
I think you mean Champery, as Chatel is still in France. It is a pleasant place and a good base for exploring the bulk of the PdS (although Les Gets/Mont Chery is quite a distance away), but strikes me as potentially being quite quiet in the evenings.....I've only been for day trips so don't know for sure. The PdS is a vast area and ideally suited it sounds to your group as it is a groomed cruisers paradise.
For a week I would maybe stick to two resorts maximum, and Zermatt and Verbier are both easily accessible by train (well, train to Le Chable below Verbier and bubble lift or bus up). Some of Verbier's skiable links are indeed on ungroomed routes (although there are lift alternatives to bypass these), and is maybe better suited to those who prefer a mixture of on piste and relatively safe & marked off-piste. However for 3 or so days there is plenty of on piste runs to keep you happy, and the town itself is great.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
|
Just booked flights using frequent flyer miles into Zurich for Dec. 19th -27th. I have reserved a hotel in Arosa for Dec. 19th-26th with ability to cancel up to Dec.15th on Booking.com at Hotel Excelsior. Never been to Arosa/Lenzerheide area. It looks like just 18 miles to Flims/Laax area, so thinking that with public transport we could do a day trip there as well. Won't be renting a car, so would rely on Swiss public transport for any side trips. And if the snow doesn't fall for Christmas in Switzerland, have also booked a place in Ischgl that also can be canceled but with 3 weeks notice. It sounds from reading some recent reports that Arosa has upgraded some of the lift infrastructure. Looking for any recent feedback on the ski area, as doing searches doesn't reveal too much on these areas. I guess everyone prefers the Austrian/Big Swiss name brand resorts and France to some of these smaller Swiss resorts?
I did Zermatt a few years ago for Christmas and we had brilliant snow conditions. So hoping for more of the same this time around!
|
|
|
|
|
|
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
|
| AthersT wrote: |
@alenchic, give up and go to Ischgl - you will get to ski and visit Switzerland as the Ski area straddles the Austrian/Swiss border with Samnaun. It's a big local ski area then add on days in Kappl/See and Galtur (part of your lift pass) it becomes a very big ski area. You will also get to experience pretty much the best/wildest apres in the alps/world.
Plus The best chicken in the alps is on the Swiss side! |
This is excellent advice (particularly the apres ski and chicken bits). Ischgl is expensive by Austrian standards but cheap as chips compared to Switzerland. Great on-piste skiing.
|
|
|
|
|
|
You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
|
| alenchic wrote: |
Hello!
My friends and I are starting to plan our annual European ski trip, and I think we need help. We tend to like going to large ski areas where there is plenty of terrain to keep us occupied for a week. For example last year we went to the Dolomites, and the previous years to the 3 Valleys, St Anton and Cervinia/Zermatt. This year we are considering Switzerland. However, I am worried that Switzerland, unlike France, doesn't really have a wealth of large interlinked ski areas to choose from. I have already been to Zermatt (loved it! Stayed in Cervinia, but spent 2 days on the Swiss side), as well as Wengen/Murren (one day each, and I covered pretty much the whole area over those two days). I definitely don't want to go back to the Interlaken region, but would not mind skiing for a couple more days in Zermatt. So what I am wondering is whether it is possible to ski in Switzerland without staying at the same resort Saturday through Saturday. For example, is it possible to, let's say, spend 3 days in Zermatt, a day in Saas Fee and 3 more days in Verbier, without it getting entirely too complicated logistically? Has anybody ever done something like that? Or perhaps Davos/Klosters/St Moritz? I am just thinking of ski resorts that are geographically close to each other... It seems to me that Swiss hotels may be less strict about the Saturday to Saturday length of stay than France/Italy/Austria, but perhaps I am very wrong about that?
Or if the scenario described above is not realistic, where would you suggest that we go? I would really like it to be a large area, but I also want it to be scenic and for the village to have some charm to it .
Or should we just give up on this whole Swiss idea and go to Morzine or Ischgl?
Thank you! |
Hi, I've done loads of trips to Switzerland like this i.e. moving on every couple of days, usually by train. They've been among my favourite ever ski holidays, especially the visits to the smaller places which don't tend to attract international tourism. It's never been a problem booking a Swiss hotel for just a night or two.
Have you seen the SkiRail Map of the Alps? It's really handy for planning trips like this.
Info here www.rogerlascellesmaps.co.uk/SkiRail_Map_Main.aspx
And a sample of the map (showing Switzerland) here www.rogerlascellesmaps.co.uk/SkiRail_Product_Information.aspx
N Neige
|
|
|
|
|
|
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
|
|
Try the youth hostels in Switzerland. There is one in sass fee and zermatt. I think there are also in Gstad and kloisters too. Youth hostels let you stay for as many nights as you want. I'm off to zermatt in December.
|
|
|
|
|
|
You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
|
|
I've been to Laax/films and they have a few good runs but they wildly overestimate the size of the ski area by including cat tracks and paths. It was also pretty expensive. I don't expect ski resorts to be cheap, but when the food is expensive for really poor quality food, I get irritated. The main reason to go there is if you want to do the park, but otherwise, there are too many other resorts around to waste your money there.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
@madlondoner, I think I must have been to a different Flims/Laax to you. The one I went to is an extensive area with loads to do for every level and some decent top to bottom runs as well. There are a couple of really expensive restaurants about but I don't know what the food is like as I've never eaten in them. There are plenty of reasonably priced places as well.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
I actually went in one of the really expensive places and it was decent lol. I don't mind paying; I just didn't feel I got value for money. Another factor that annoyed me was that they closed 2/3 of the lifts on the final day as it was a Monday in April where they were not too busy. The day before there had been three metres visibility but they kept everything open because it was a Sunday. Considering I had travelled all the way to go there and spent a chunk of money I felt I should get the whole ski area they advertised and not a third of it. I spent about the same going to Hinterglemm in Austria that year as I did to Laax. In Austria I stayed in a lovely hotel with great food and in Laax I stayed in a hostel and ate mediocre food.
|
|
|
|
|
|
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
|
| Quote: |
Try the youth hostels in Switzerland. There is one in sass fee and zermatt. I think there are also in Gstad and kloisters too. Youth hostels let you stay for as many nights as you want. I'm off to zermatt in December.
|
I don't think New Yorkers are going to want youth hostels....only an observation, having lived there
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Swissie wrote: |
| Quote: |
Try the youth hostels in Switzerland. There is one in sass fee and zermatt. I think there are also in Gstad and kloisters too. Youth hostels let you stay for as many nights as you want. I'm off to zermatt in December.
|
I don't think New Yorkers are going to want youth hostels....only an observation, having lived there |
it depends on how youthful those new yorkers are.
however, to limit oneself to only places with youth hostel is a bit of an upside down logic. especially in view of the liberal policy of swiss hotels.
|
|
|
|
|
|
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
|
|
Is there much of a difference between the villages of Flims and Laax? Is one better than the other, or is it pretty much a wash?
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
FAQ
