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Laax (Flims) review

 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
Hello everyone

Been on hiatus since I got back from Flachau in March 2020, mainly watching my planned ski trips come and go! Finally got away at the 4th time of asking last week and thought i'd pop in a quick review given I couldn't see one via the search function.

Overview was that we did Saturday to Sunday in Peaks Place apart-hotel, group of 2 adults, 2 younger kids and 2 non skiing grand parents. Hired a VW Caravelle from Zurich and, my god, the prices have gone through the roof!!! Transfer was simple and pretty quick in both directions. Peaks Place was excellent - had a 3 bedroom (4.5) apartment, which was in good shape, quiet etc. The spa and pool was amazing and the ski shuttle was very fast up the hill to Laax, normally having 2x vans whizzing up and down. We didn't eat out but mostly the food looked very expensive as it always is in CH. We did a big shop in the Ilanz Aldi and that was that.

Skiing was interesting. The main lifts up from Laax were prone to being busy, but we found the telecabines then the queue for the rubbish 4 man chair was still quicker than the Crap gondola unless there was no queue. The Crap gondola always seemed a faff to load etc. The main Laax ski area is a plateau and so was exposed and we had 2x days of wind interrupted skiing when they closed most of the lifts. We just had a break and went back out at midday when the crowds seem to appreciatively reduce every day. There were quite a few pinch points in the morning, but i'm not sure what can be done and we were in peak season. However, the Laax app is insanely good - it has live webcams of all the queues and you can then avoid it.

The inequitable "blueline" seemed mainly to the the ski schools - in particular, this really impacted access to the Crap gondola.

Highlights for skiing were the black down from the top of the glacier and maybe the runs from Sogn Martin and Scansinas. The 10/8 down from Sogn Martin was also good and long. Queue back up from Plaun around ski school end time was quite punchy. Lots of decently accessible safe off piste throughout (in the opinion of an amateur who likes to play by the side of the pistes...). Don't go down to Falera as the queue is a right pain with sledgers and it's a chair where you take off skis. No merit at all in going there.

Overall it was quite tame skiing and not every pretty contoured runs - it's all above the tree line and windswept so it didn't use topography well and looked quite vanilla. But not bad.

The ski school was very good. All the staff were lovely. Beginners and Blue 1 are at the Laax base in a very large area with 2 long magic carpets and mini-button. Then they go up the mountain. It's advertised as 10-12, 1-3 (iirc) but it's actually 9.45 every day until 3.15 or later. It's quite expensive with the lunch option but unavoidable really. It was fully booked a few weeks before the main Swiss holiday, which is a few weeks and matched our half term. But it was easy to book in advance and you only pay up to a day before - i went into the office and paid by card the day i got there, which was 2 days before the lessons started. There is only the main Swiss ski school.

Finally, we booked our ski passes a week before. We paid for 8 days in advance to save a few £ (ski on the Sat pm on arrival and the full Sat at the end) but was more worried about the trip being cancelled than any bad days. The 8th day was only 20CH (the days get cheaper through the week) so i wasn't bothered about bad ski days - i think it had to get really bad for the telecabines to not run and our best run was when they opened the Crap gondola for an hour and we did the black to laax in fresh powder and no one else around!

Hope that helps? Happy to answer anything - although we didn't go to Flims town and barely went beyond the Laax base station!
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 Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Hi, Off to Flims soon. What are your thoughts on ski hire?
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 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?
I’m afraid I only hired for the kids and that was fortunately not expensive. Adult hire looked expensive everywhere.
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@Badbobby,
Quote:
Overall it was quite tame skiing and not every pretty contoured runs - it's all above the tree line and windswept so it didn't use topography well and looked quite vanilla. But not bad.
Did you ski the runs from top of Cassonsgrat? Been a while but I seem to recall the off piste up there wasn't tame. Loads of brilliant off piste runs off the back of the glacier as well. Really must visit again
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 Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
It is a few years since we were in Laax, by the sound of it in the same accommodationas you. I agree that by far the most memorable run was the black off the glacier into a valley that wasn't otherwise accessiYble.

Yes the areas up top were a bit bleak, but gave you plenty enough to occupy a week.

We ate out a couple of times, once in the Peak Place restaurant and once in a pizza restaurant just round the corner, both OK but hit by the GBP-CHF exchange rate. Otherwise we bought ingredients at the little store across the road (petrol station shop) and cooked for ourselves.

The piste down to Falera was actually quite fun if you like the feeling of skiing trips (we do). But it ends up quite low so would depend on conditions. Like you we didn't explore Flims beyond the bottom of the lift system.
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To add, yes, the off piste looked interesting in places. I was mainly referring to the pisted runs. There was quite a lot of accessible off piste by some of the runs. The off piste from the glacier seemed popular. Should add that the T bar up to the glacier isn’t for the faint hearted!
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 Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Just back myself, i really like it even with the sand we had...

Yes the close views on the upper slopes are all a bit bleak but the long views compensate for that. Same as 3V, La Plagne etc upper slopes in that respect.

My opinions, was quiet no queues as was out of swiss school hols. Busier on the weekend (10,000 compared to 3000-5000mid week entrants)

Stayed in Hotel Cresta in Flims, really good hotel with great wellness, mini bus to the slopes.

Hired skies via alpineresorts at Ski Beat, they did the trick although expensive.

+1 for the app - very good.
+1 for the sattel black and a rotisserie wurst on the way down

Love the run to Falera through the alp, and all the dotted hay barn chalets, we barely saw anyone at the bottom station.

Transfers by train and postbus, had a panic we were on the wrong train when it had not moved at 2mins past its allotted departure time as we where next to another Zurich train. It was waiting for another connection and of course made they heinous delay back.

@Steilhang, Cassons hasnt been available since they closed the lift in '15, but a new lift is on the way, and what a lift - https://www.flem.express/
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 After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
We're off there in a couple of weeks (Flims), provided the snow hasn't melted in the heatwave. Very Happy The runs back to the valley might be a gondala download or a slush fest, but hopefully the high altitude stuff will still be fine.

I quite like it as there a decent variety of slopes / terrains. Agree the run off the back of the glacier is good. Also quite like the bits off the back of La Siala / Mutta / Grauberg.

The only "race" I ever "won" vs the kids was down into Falera as my body weight gave me an acceleration advantage down the gentle slope!
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Badbobby wrote:
To add, yes, the off piste looked interesting in places. I was mainly referring to the pisted runs. There was quite a lot of accessible off piste by some of the runs. The off piste from the glacier seemed popular. Should add that the T bar up to the glacier isn’t for the faint hearted!


We've all had a fairly different experience of Flims/Laax then - i think its a fabulous resort for both piste and off piste skiing. Glacier T-Bars are long, not particularly steep, but lead you to some of the best skiing in the resort (back of glacier back down to Lavindas is my all time top piste in the world), along with the glacier back down to vorab, which is a simply gorgeous run. As others have noted, the itineraries and off piste are really really good, I have a particular love for the itinerary back to Grauberg, keeps the snow for a very long time and has plenty of steep and deep sections. The exposed bits of the mountain are best avoided in bad weather unless you like that sort of thing, but thats true of everywhere.
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 Ski the Net with snowHeads
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@hobbiteater, didn't realise they had shut down the Cassons gondola. Have not been there since 95 or so!
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Does anyone have any experience going to laax during the Christmas / new years holiday?
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 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.
No, but I think it is now one of those resorts that do dynamic pricing for lift passes.
So if you decide, book lift pass earlier for cheaper price
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 So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
Vtgobbler99 wrote:
Does anyone have any experience going to Laax during the Christmas / new years holiday?

Its big-ish resort with skiing upto 3000m on a glacier, so even if there hasnt been that much early season snow, it will be open and there will be a reasonable amount of slopes open. Majority of slopes in the 2000m-3000m range
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