 Poster: A snowHead
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Total ski novices here - heading to Wengen next weekend for three days. We’ve booked two 2-hour ski lessons for the first two days & will need to hire skis & boots. I’ve done loads of reading but still feel I’m clueless about what to expect, what to do, etc. Would welcome any advice, hints or tips please. Thanks!
Last edited by Poster: A snowHead on Sun 21-01-24 12:47; edited 1 time in total
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Welcome to snowHeads 
Walk around in the hire shop in ski boots. If they feel uncomfortable, tight or rubbing anywhere, ask to try another pair. If your boots fit well it’s a good start.
Apart from that, do what your instructor says and practice a lot.
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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?
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Welcome to the forum.
I suspect you mean Wengen.
I have never been, so my input is of limited use - but others on here will be able to help.
From everything I've seen and read, it is an excellent place for beginners, with beautiful scenery.
You should have a great time.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Fox run from KL (or get off train and start from Wengernalp) is a nice blue back to the village, one walkie section through the woods but it’s not too bad and the bumps are nice and wide for big turns.
On the opposite side from KL is the blue to Brandegg (22 from memory) which is nice, the top section is quite open for big turns then you drop into the woods. Ensure you stop at the restaurant at Brandegg for apple fritters!
There’s a long blue that weaves across the red runs on Mannlichen to the Manlichen chair, it’s busy at the crossing sections but another one and you can go up and down from the lift easily.
These are the 3 runs I’d start with, I don’t know what’s changed since the Vbahn as I’ve not visited since before Covid 
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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Forgot to add - depending on your hotel which hire shop is closest. Central is the biggest hire shop in the village, we usually hired from Molitor at the far end.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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| Mnasneachta wrote: |
| Total ski novices here - heading to Wegen next weekend for three days. We’ve booked two 2-hour ski lessons for the first two days & will need to hire skis & boots. I’ve done loads of reading but still feel I’m clueless about what to expect, what to do, etc. Would welcome any advice, hints or tips please. Thanks! |
Hi there, and welcome to Snowheads. Can I just clarify one thing? You have never skied before? You've done the right thing by booking lessons, but if you’re complete beginners you’ll probably need more than 2 before you can get out onto the mountain by yourselves. Your instructor can give you all the advice you need though, so don’t worry about it.
Wengen is a very pretty place, with lots of easy skiing. I'm sure you’ll love it.
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| Old Fartbag wrote: |
Welcome to the forum.
I suspect you mean Wengen.
I have never been, so my input is of limited use - but others on here will be able to help.
From everything I've seen and read, it is an excellent place for beginners, with beautiful scenery.
You should have a great time. |
Thanks for the welcome! Yes, I meant Wengen, I’ve corrected the spelling now. Such a novice, I don’t even know where I’m going 
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| telford_mike wrote: |
| Mnasneachta wrote: |
| Total ski novices here - heading to Wegen next weekend for three days. We’ve booked two 2-hour ski lessons for the first two days & will need to hire skis & boots. I’ve done loads of reading but still feel I’m clueless about what to expect, what to do, etc. Would welcome any advice, hints or tips please. Thanks! |
Hi there, and welcome to Snowheads. Can I just clarify one thing? You have never skied before? You've done the right thing by booking lessons, but if you’re complete beginners you’ll probably need more than 2 before you can get out onto the mountain by yourselves. Your instructor can give you all the advice you need though, so don’t worry about it.
Wengen is a very pretty place, with lots of easy skiing. I'm sure you’ll love it. |
Total novices - although my other half says he has experience (a day on a dry slope when he was 16 - which is decades ago! )
I think we’ll be on the nursery slopes for 3 days - he has visions of proper mountain slopes. Ill be happy if I can stay upright.
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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.
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| Mnasneachta wrote: |
Such a novice, I don’t even know where I’m going |
Oh, I think you didn't stumble across Wengen by accident....so I think you chose wisely. I suspect that the only downside is that Switzerland can be costly....though other countries seem to be catching up.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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hi @Mnasneachta, i know it may be tight timewise, as you are going next weekend. not sure where you are located, but is there any chance of going to a local dry-slope/indoor fridge to get a "taster" lesson in this week, before you go?
even an hours taster lesson will be able to get you the feeling of putting on and walking in the boots, standing in the skis and a bit of side slipping and ploughing down the slope before you get out there.
my two girls had taster lessons before they had proper lessons in a fridge, and because of them they were upgraded from complete beginners, to next level up
as others have said, welcome to SH
hope you have a great time, albeit a brief trip, and it leads to a love of the mountains and snow sports!!
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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.
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Ahhh! I wish I had thought of this great idea myself. I just looked and although there is a place not that far from me, I’ve left it too late. But if we enjoy the real thing, we might do some more practice before going proper skiing again.
I’m really hoping we do enjoy it because I’m in Switzerland a lot for work, based in Zurich, so we’re planning on doing it again.
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You know it makes sense.
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| Old Fartbag wrote: |
| Mnasneachta wrote: |
Such a novice, I don’t even know where I’m going |
Oh, I think you didn't stumble across Wengen by accident....so I think you chose wisely. I suspect that the only downside is that Switzerland can be costly....though other countries seem to be catching up. |
I got a recommendation from someone who has been before. Since I was clueless I thought I’d rely on the recommendation. I’ve been working a lot in Switzerland since September so I’m getting more used to Swiss prices but yes, costly is an understatement!
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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| P17hae wrote: |
Fox run from KL (or get off train and start from Wengernalp) is a nice blue back to the village, one walkie section through the woods but it’s not too bad and the bumps are nice and wide for big turns.
On the opposite side from KL is the blue to Brandegg (22 from memory) which is nice, the top section is quite open for big turns then you drop into the woods. Ensure you stop at the restaurant at Brandegg for apple fritters!
There’s a long blue that weaves across the red runs on Mannlichen to the Manlichen chair, it’s busy at the crossing sections but another one and you can go up and down from the lift easily.
These are the 3 runs I’d start with, I don’t know what’s changed since the Vbahn as I’ve not visited since before Covid |
Thank you! This is great info. It would be great if we could manage at least one proper run.
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Poster: A snowHead
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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If you enter into an activity other than skiing - just check it is covered by your insurance.
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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?
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If you do an activity other than skiing, that’s less time to learn skiing  Be prepared to make fairly basic progress in that time. And if you are there a lot, even on a nearby learner slope, do try to repeat ASAP, so you progress rather than slipping back down again. Otherwise it can become a frustration rather than a pleasure.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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| Mnasneachta wrote: |
Do we need a separate ski pass and a sledging/hiking pass if we want to do the Fox Run toboggan run? |
Think I got my run names muddled - 36 is the ski run that side.
Nope, your lift pass will cover you on the trains for sledging as well - just remember to get off at Wengenalp! It will cover you going up and down on the trains so you can always go up to KL for a walk around.
Fox run is great fun! I have done that toboggan run so many times over the years! (I’ve been going to Wengen every year since I was a baby and I’m 35 now, so Covid years aside it’s like coming home when I go back.)
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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@Mnasneachta, One thing that may save you a ton of money - don't buy a ski pass straight away. A 3 day pass costs CHF221. This entitles you to use all the ski lifts in the entire Jungfrau region - it is a complete waste of money for you. If you decide to go tobogganing in the afternoon it’s much cheaper just to buy a single ticket to Wengernalp for CHF22.
Your instructor will tell you if and when you need a ski pass. You certainly don’t need one to use the lifts on the nursery slopes while you’re having lessons.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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@telford_mike, good advice.
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Thank you so much for the advice & tips everyone. Really looking forward to the trip now - and hopefully the first of many.
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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.
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| Alastair Pink wrote: |
Depends where you start the jouney from. From Interlaken Ost to the Jungfraujoch return it's CHF223.80! |
Which, multiplied by over a million visitors a year, is an awful lot of money.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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So a family of four (without any discounted tickets/passes) would pay CHF 1000 for a return trip. That is just crazy!
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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.
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| Mnasneachta wrote: |
| So a family of four (without any discounted tickets/passes) would pay CHF 1000 for a return trip. That is just crazy! |
And much more, once they've bought lunch, souvenirs, chocolates from the Lindt pick 'n mix etc etc. We can go for free in summer with our passes, but the Lindt pick 'n mix is impossible to resist so we always end up spending quite a few francs. The really crazy thing about the Jungfraujoch is that they could attract even more visitors if they weren’t limited by the capacity of the railway tunnel.
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Booked the skis & boots this morning.
Thanks to P17hae for the rental shop names earlier in the thread.
Query on Jungfraujoch please?
A return trip from Wengen is going to be CHF100 each for us. Given the time it takes as well - is it worth it? And is this the best route to take? If we go on our final day we’d either have to bring suitcases with us (not sure how practical that is) or leave them in Wengen to get picked up on the way back to Zurich.
I feel since we’re so close we should go while we’re there? But interested in people’s opinions.
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You know it makes sense.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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@Mnasneachta, I agree with Alastair. Jungfraujoch in winter is always a dilemma. There’s no point going unless it’s a nice clear day, but equally, if it is a nice day you want to be skiing. The weather forecast is excellent.
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Poster: A snowHead
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@Alastair Pink and @telford_mike,
Thank you both for your opinions. We’re concentrating on “the ski lark” (which is hard work but fun so far!) for our last day tomorrow - but we’ll definitely come back again to do Jungfraujoch.
Have had the most amazing blue skies & sunshine here for the last two days.
Couple of learnings from novices:
Put “Wengen (Männlichenbahn)” into the SBB app when booking your ticket.
We hired skis & boots from Alpia Sport - they have a locker room right across from the cable car station in Wengen, so that’s really handy to leave & pick up your skis, boots, poles from without having to haul them back & forth from your hotel.
The novice slopes in Wengen are great - they give you a chance to advance from knowing nothing. I would recommend taking ski lessons though. Some of the basics are crucial and having an instructor guide you is really beneficial.
The town is hilly - bring decent walking boots!
The Alpenrose Hotel has been lovely to stay in - cosy, warm & comfortable, great views from the front & the food has been very good.
Hope these few learnings might help others in the future too.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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@Mnasneachta, glad to hear it's going well, sounds like you're hooked on this "skiing lark"
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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?
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I just wanted to come and thanks everyone for the info you shared. While I was back in the hotel adding my previous comment my idiot husband decided to tackle that bigger slope in Wegen - and crashed and burned on it three times. Finally realised his self-belief in his skiing abilities after 4 hours of lessons was over-rated!!!
So we did go to Jungfrau on the last day, which I loved. Even with a bit of altitude sickness! But it also gave us a chance to see more of what is around Wengen & some of the ski runs outside the town. Kline Scheidegg in particular.
Long story short - we’re going back in three weeks for round two! And will be working on improving some ski muscles in the meantime - it’s not easy!
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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| Mnasneachta wrote: |
I just wanted to come and thank everyone for the info you shared. While I was back in the hotel adding my previous comment my idiot husband decided to tackle that bigger slope in Wegen - and crashed and burned on it three times. Finally realised his self-belief in his skiing abilities after 4 hours of lessons was over-rated!!!
So we did go to Jungfrau on the last day, which I loved. Even with a bit of altitude sickness! But it also gave us a chance to see more of what is around Wengen & some of the ski runs outside the town. Kline Scheidegg in particular.
Long story short - we’re going back in three weeks for round two! And will be working on improving some ski muscles in the meantime - it’s not easy! |
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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@Mnasneachta, So glad you enjoyed Wengen, and great to hear you'll be returning. It's a wonderful place to learn to ski.
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@Mnasneachta, no advice to offer but love the name. Mná na hEireann
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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.
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@Mnasneachta, great to hear how you got on. Hope the next trip goes well.
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Just saw this and started typing up some advice because I taught my other half how to ski in Wengen two years ago. It’s a great place to start - pretty car-free town, very suitable progression slopes (rope tow, button top of gondola, kleine scheidegg to Wengen & Grindelwald). Then read the whole thread and realised you’ve already been! Glad you found it as enjoyable as we did.
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FAQ
). If you fancy a day off from skiing you can do a trip up to the 
Dare I ask how much full wack is? 
