 Poster: A snowHead
|
Greetings All,
Been reading the forum with interest but I could not finish everything so apologies if this query was addressed in much older threads.
Planning my first family trip to Switzerland to ski - mid Dec to early Jan 2025. Need to accommodate the kids school holidays as we are flying in from Asia. We are a family of intermediate skiers whilst my youngest will still need more ski-school.
I understand there's a risk of going mid Dec to Switzerland/Europe in general for skiing but on average how bad is the snowfall during this time? A friend who went to Gstaad this December till early Jan complained that there was hardly any snow and he only got to ski 3/4 days out of the 2 weeks plus he was there!
I have booked my flight to Zurich with plans to visit St Moritz. Would really appreciate some guidance and pointers! Besides St Moritz, I am open to other locations (easy transfer from Zurich) which have a higher probability of snowfall etc.
Many thanks in advance.
Cheers,
Z
|
|
|
|
|
|
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
|
St Moritz for Christmas can be magical. It’s normally quite quiet until the 27/28 when it will be rammed and prices through the roof! The skiing should be ok as there is plenty of man made snow ( there was one winter when there was no natural snow before February).
It is not ski in ski out so can be hard work with small children and there can be quite a lot of walking.
There are some amazing toboggan runs and Preda-Bergen is a great way to spend a family Christmas Day. You might need to book lunch in Bergun.
A cozy family hotel is the Soldanella or the more central and expensive Seffani.
I would be tempted to stay ‘till the 28th and then hop on the train to a smaller quieter village for new year like Scuol or Arosa.
HTH
|
|
|
|
|
|
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?
|
Hi Bertie,
Many thanks for your quick reply.
Would you be able to recommend some good hotels/resorts with ski in-out or as close to that? You're absolutely right with young children - it can be a challenge to walk long distances etc to get to the lifts etc.
I do not have to stay in St Moritz per se, happy to explore the surrounding areas that better meet my criteria, especially snowfall.
Cheers,
Z
|
|
|
|
|
|
You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
|
|
Ski areas on the north side of the Alps tend to get more reliable snow, but often storms from the south bring bigger dumps. St Moritz gets most of its snow from the south. It is also much higher than Gstaad.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
|
|
As far as snow goes I would be looking for somewhere above 1500m with good snow making. There are probably others on here that have more knowledge of Switzerland.
|
|
|
|
|
|
You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
|
From Zurich:-
For scenery: Wengen/Murren.
For teenagers: Laax Flims
Families: Arosa
Variety: Davos/ Klosters
Sunshine and glitz: St Moritz
But none of these apart from Arosa are really ski in ski out.
Note it is a 4 hour train ride to St Moritz. In that time you could broaden the search from Le Grand Massif to the Arlberg!
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Putting myself in your shoes I came up with Bettmeralp. I’m having a quite afternoon dreaming about skiing!
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
@z33, for snow+christmas atmosphere, from Zürich, some of your best options would be St.Moritz and Zermatt in Switzerland, and Lech in Austria
|
|
|
|
|
|
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.
|
| BertieG wrote: |
From Zurich:-
For scenery: Wengen/Murren.
For teenagers: Laax Flims
Families: Arosa
Variety: Davos/ Klosters
Sunshine and glitz: St Moritz
But none of these apart from Arosa are really ski in ski out.
Note it is a 4 hour train ride to St Moritz. In that time you could broaden the search from Le Grand Massif to the Arlberg! |
Very helpful! Many thanks. Back to more research on those names.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Langerzug wrote: |
| @z33, for snow+christmas atmosphere, from Zürich, some of your best options would be St.Moritz and Zermatt in Switzerland, and Lech in Austria |
Well noted thanks - my concern being mid Dec when I get there ie 20th Dec - just worried there will be little or insufficient snow for skiing...
|
|
|
|
|
|
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
|
|
St Moritz, Corviglia holds the women’s World Cup in early December so the snow making is pretty good. I can remember a season when it did not snow before February and there was still plenty of skiing.
|
|
|
|
|
|
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.
|
St Moritz has a bit of a reputation for being in a dry area of the alps, but I have not skied there myself, most places now have substantial snow making so it is less of a risk than it once was at that altitude.
I have flown from Asia to Zurich for skiing several times when I lived there. Personally if I was looking at skiing with kids and wanting ski in ski out I might look at Oberlech or possibly Zurs. They are very popular at New Year and I would look to book early but have a good reputation for snow and are easily reachable form the airport.
We also skied Ischgl/Galtur Davos/Klosters and Andermatt and Zermatt. I wouldn't recommend the latter two with small children. The others are more child friendly providing you organise your accommodation suitable for the ski school meeting place which again is something you would have to look at well in advance as New Year is always a popular time.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Langerzug wrote: |
| @z33, for snow+christmas atmosphere, from Zürich, some of your best options would be St.Moritz and Zermatt in Switzerland, and Lech in Austria |
I definitely think Lech should be an option - 2hrs on the train plus 20-30 mins on the taxi, possibly the highest chance of being snowsure in the Alps (of course no guarantees). I’m sure Zermatt would be great, too.
|
|
|
|
|
|
You know it makes sense.
|
Appreciate the replies everyone. Please keep them coming!
Arosa indeed looks good for families - I am researching further - maybe spilt my time between Arosa and St Moritz. Now looking at car rental options.
I also came across the village of Pontresina which is cheaper in terms of accommodation but only 10mins drive away from St Moritz town/Celerina.
1. If I rent a car to travel around - how difficult or limiting are carparks in town/near gondolas?
2. Presumably there are no ski lockers near the gondola or public ski lockers that we can rent to store skis/poles?
3. Hence, the car rental would also need to have the ski transport system on the roof? (apologies not familiar as we typically rent our skis)
TIA!
|
|
|
|
|
|
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
|
@z33,
How many of you are there in the car, I usually find the easiest way to transport skis is to rent an estate car and put them in the back.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Poster: A snowHead
|
Renting a car in a country with one of the best integrated public transport systems in the world would be a shame and car parking can be expensive. If you’re thinking of Pontresina to save money then you are probably looking at the wrong place! St Moritz is a collection of 4 ski areas linked by bus and trains. With small children travelling to the different areas would be challenging. The reality is you either stay in Bad/Dorf/Chelerina and ski the sunny Corviglia or stay in Bad
/Silvaplana and ski on the high north facing Corvatch. It is possible to do half a day at each area, but in reality it’s better/easier to spend the whole day in one area.
How old are your children? If they aren’t big enough to carry skis on and off buses I would look at ski in ski out places.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
|
| Quote: |
2. Presumably there are no ski lockers near the gondola or public ski lockers that we can rent to store skis/poles?
|
That’s an incorrect presumption!
There’s certainly ski lockers at the base of gondola of Corviglia. I don’t remember about Corvatch though.
Still, if you store your skis at one place, you will have to carry it on the bus when you ski the other place. So I’m not sure it helps you that much.
St Moritz is rather disjointed. Not a problem as there’s excellent transportation links between areas. But if your children are small, it maybe too much for you to carry all their gears around every day.
Pontresina has excellent train connections to St Moritz. It’s however a hub largely for cross country skiers who don’t mind carrying their lightweight gears on the train going all over the valley.
Look into Chelerina. It’s more compact the St Moritz Bad/Dorf. Might actually work better for you.
|
|
|
|
|
|
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?
|
| T Bar wrote: |
@z33,
How many of you are there in the car, I usually find the easiest way to transport skis is to rent an estate car and put them in the back. |
There will be 4 of us, 2 kids. Yes, I did some research earlier today - either a small SUV like a Touran or an estate car, the skis should fit in the car I think from what I read online. Without the need of having a rooftop system.
Cheers,
Z
|
|
|
|
|
|
You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
|
| abc wrote: |
| Quote: |
2. Presumably there are no ski lockers near the gondola or public ski lockers that we can rent to store skis/poles?
|
That’s an incorrect presumption!
There’s certainly ski lockers at the base of gondola of Corviglia. I don’t remember about Corvatch though.
Still, if you store your skis at one place, you will have to carry it on the bus when you ski the other place. So I’m not sure it helps you that much.
St Moritz is rather disjointed. Not a problem as there’s excellent transportation links between areas. But if your children are small, it maybe too much for you to carry all their gears around every day.
Pontresina has excellent train connections to St Moritz. It’s however a hub largely for cross country skiers who don’t mind carrying their lightweight gears on the train going all over the valley.
Look into Chelerina. It’s more compact the St Moritz Bad/Dorf. Might actually work better for you. |
Thanks for the insights. Yes will look into Chelerina as well. Cheers
|
|
|
|
|
|
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
|
| z33 wrote: |
| T Bar wrote: |
@z33,
How many of you are there in the car, I usually find the easiest way to transport skis is to rent an estate car and put them in the back. |
There will be 4 of us, 2 kids. Yes, I did some research earlier today - either a small SUV like a Touran or an estate car, the skis should fit in the car I think from what I read online. Without the need of having a rooftop system.
Cheers,
Z |
My own experience is that estate cars are a bit better for skis as they are usually longer than SUV's. Obviously the large SUV's are not a problem I don't know about a Touran.
|
|
|
|
|
|
You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
|
Thanks TBar.
I just saw another thread on lessons and it reminded me I should ask on ski schools/lessons:
Looking for recommendations for good ski schools in the area please - normally how does it work? We meet the instructor(s) at the lifts or some meeting point and head out. We are thinking of hiring a separate one for my youngest (5 yrs) as their learning would be different from the older and us adults.
TIA everyone!
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
FAQ
