 Poster: A snowHead
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Another bit of information from the official Instagram account. Confirmation that Rothorn and Gornergrat areas/pistes are scheduled to be open from the 7th December.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Sorry to hijack the thread but coming out to Zermatt 11-15th December, debating flight options, in your collective wisdom which is better for train connections please: Geneva or Basel? Both train journeys seem similar duration. Been to both airports but not since Covid and didn't use the trains those times, hence asking.
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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 have the option I would do Geneva. Basel works but you need to get a bus - Geneva you get the train from the airport.
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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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Sounds like Blauherd to Sunnegga, Sunnegga to Eja, Sunnegga to Patrullarve etc will be opening this weekend.
A festival of Sunnegga.
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Thanks @Run28.
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@Snowmadmum, Geneva every time. Wonderful lakeside journey. Train station to the left but under airport arrivals. Very easy.
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With that cooler weather coming, models showing some alignment for cool temps and precip from Dec 5.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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This is so disappointing. The whole of the Rothorn (including Sunnegga) and Gornegrat (including Riffelberg) sectors will now open a week later on 7 December.
Meanwhile …. Cervinia is opening up the run into the village and the lifts up from the village tomorrow. Further down the valley Torgnon (not really used by visitors to Zermatt but easily accessible for Cervinia visitors) is opening up all its lifts from this Saturday. Torgnon is at 1500m and only goes up to 2250m (not much above the lowest of the Zermatt area ignoring home runs)!
Anyone going out for next week to Zermatt really needs to buy an International pass! The Klein Matterhorn sector will be open and I assume Schwarzsee will open as planned on Saturday given that it is not mentioned.
I hear what the Swiss lift company say but the Italians are putting them to shame
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@Snowmadmum, on the train question, I have to say if we have the choice I would always go for Basel - usually (we fly from Edinburgh) it’s significantly cheaper than Geneva, it’s smaller and therefore passport control and baggage usually much quicker, and yes, although you do have to exit the terminal and get a bus, the bus stop is right there in front of the building and takes you straight to the station. Also the trains from Basel tend to be larger and have catering unlike the train from Geneva where you have to buy anything you want to eat/drink before you get on.
I agree the lakeside part of the trip from Geneva is stunning but I wouldn’t rule out Basel, especially if it’s much cheaper!
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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| scotsgirl wrote: |
@Snowmadmum, on the train question, I have to say if we have the choice I would always go for Basel - usually (we fly from Edinburgh) it’s significantly cheaper than Geneva, it’s smaller and therefore passport control and baggage usually much quicker, and yes, although you do have to exit the terminal and get a bus, the bus stop is right there in front of the building and takes you straight to the station. Also the trains from Basel tend to be larger and have catering unlike the train from Geneva where you have to buy anything you want to eat/drink before you get on.
I agree the lakeside part of the trip from Geneva is stunning but I wouldn’t rule out Basel, especially if it’s much cheaper! |
I'll echo this. We are using Basel for March. GVA and ZUR coming out at £1000+ for a family of three. Basel was £300.
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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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@Snowmadmum, worth pointing out that there is an excellent supermarket to buy a picnic just prior to descending to the platforms at Geneva. Cost would be a factor but the train journey is definitely a great part of the holiday for us.
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You know it makes sense.
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| JohnMo wrote: |
This is so disappointing. The whole of the Rothorn (including Sunnegga) and Gornegrat (including Riffelberg) sectors will now open a week later on 7 December.
Meanwhile …. Cervinia is opening up the run into the village and the lifts up from the village tomorrow. Further down the valley Torgnon (not really used by visitors to Zermatt but easily accessible for Cervinia visitors) is opening up all its lifts from this Saturday. Torgnon is at 1500m and only goes up to 2250m (not much above the lowest of the Zermatt area ignoring home runs)!
Anyone going out for next week to Zermatt really needs to buy an International pass! The Klein Matterhorn sector will be open and I assume Schwarzsee will open as planned on Saturday given that it is not mentioned.
I hear what the Swiss lift company say but the Italians are putting them to shame
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Valtournenche have now confirmed they are also opening up all lifts as planned from Saturday.
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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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That's bizarre...that two areas so close could have such different cover...unless there's another reason 
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Poster: A snowHead
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Much rockier base on the Zermatt side no?
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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| BobinCH wrote: |
| Much rockier base on the Zermatt side no? |
A bit. Zermatt is more north facing so more recently deglaciated, which results in it being rockier. But the rockiest area (ignoring the itinerary areas) is Klein Matterhorn down to Furgg which is already open. From Gifthittli (the top of the chair lift just below Gornegrat) down to Riffelberg is not particularly rocky at all.
It is not as though the natural snow has been significantly more on the Italian side (it has been a bit but not loads).
It is disingenuous the Swiss lift company quoting the extreme high freezing line on 23 November. There have been many days when the freezing line has been way down the valley.
I just feel the Italian lift company thinks it has to work harder to attract guests so makes the extra effort to get stuff open. The Swiss company know there will not be a huge number of guests next week (and a lot of those will be Swiss or other non big spenders). There is a lot of skiing open (particularly if the link to Italy is open!) so they would rather concentrate on getting things ready for Xmas and New Year when the big spenders arrive.
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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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| djlippert wrote: |
Bringing my family to Zermatt for my 50th birthday (Dec. 6th) with plans of skiing December 5-7th. Would there be much benefit to delaying the trip until January or is there expected to be a good amount of terrain open in early December?
We're also going to Jungfrau from the 8th thru the 14th to meet an old friend and do more skiing.
Thanks for any feedback! |
And I am bring some friends to Cervinia for my 60th on the same day!
We went with the family 10 years ago for my 50th though.
Happy Birthday for next Friday - and if we don’t meet up at the Refuge between Zermat and Cervinia this time round maybe in 10 years for your 60th and my 70th!
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| Doccam wrote: |
| djlippert wrote: |
Bringing my family to Zermatt for my 50th birthday (Dec. 6th) with plans of skiing December 5-7th. Would there be much benefit to delaying the trip until January or is there expected to be a good amount of terrain open in early December?
We're also going to Jungfrau from the 8th thru the 14th to meet an old friend and do more skiing.
Thanks for any feedback! |
And I am bring some friends to Cervinia for my 60th on the same day!
We went with the family 10 years ago for my 50th though.
Happy Birthday for next Friday - and if we don’t meet up at the Refuge between Zermat and Cervinia this time round maybe in 10 years for your 60th and my 70th! |
It would be a shame not to meet up for some Italian treats at lunch wouldn't it!!!
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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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Do any of you weather gurus see any bigger storms on the horizon? I see temps falling and some dustings in the forecast, but nothing big as yet.
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| Jamo wrote: |
| Do any of you weather gurus see any bigger storms on the horizon? I see temps falling and some dustings in the forecast, but nothing big as yet. |
There is a nice little top up coming Tuesday but nothing too dramatic. Looks like snowfall line could be 1500m which is nice.
If you look at the weather forecast thread “polo” (who is very good at this stuff) is getting increasingly optimistic about next weekend. 6 days away is still a bit too far away to have much confidence. You can see that in the GFS runs. There is clearly a decent chance it could be significant (Meteo Swiss are suggesting it could be up to half a metre of snow) but the variation between the runs reflects the uncertainty.
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Two more weeks to go. I'm not sure the runs back to the village will open till then.
We'll manage with what will be available though.
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| drporat wrote: |
Two more weeks to go. I'm not sure the runs back to the village will open till then.
We'll manage with what will be available though. |
The home runs rarely open before Xmas week.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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I know. Still we were lucky in December 2022, we arrived just after the rain a couple of days before Xmass and they were open albeit icy.
If I need to choose between downloading home and skiing down to Cervinia, I'll have a Bombardino before every return early afternoon...
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| drporat wrote: |
I know. Still we were lucky in December 2022, we arrived just after the rain a couple of days before Xmass and they were open albeit icy.
If I need to choose between downloading home and skiing down to Cervinia, I'll have a Bombardino before every return early afternoon... |
Ah, you are on the Italian side? The home runs down to Breuil-Cervinia are open already.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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@JohnMo, sorry for the misunderstanding.
Always in Zermatt every couple of years.
I still hope we'll have a decent December
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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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| JohnMo wrote: |
| drporat wrote: |
Two more weeks to go. I'm not sure the runs back to the village will open till then.
We'll manage with what will be available though. |
The home runs rarely open before Xmas week. |
Always a shame to wait that long for Blatten and Zum to be up and running.
Let’s hope the Swiss pull their fingers out for next weekend. It’s looking a bit sad runs wise on the Swiss side.
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You know it makes sense.
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Zermatt has some of the best conditions in the Alps at the moment
It's not always about no of lifts
This week's skiing was incredible
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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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Quality of snow is excellent yes. But they could have opened up slightly more last weekend as John mentioned - it’s just a shame!
Anyway, on to this weekend!
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Poster: A snowHead
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A few bits to update on openings:
From 3rd December: Piste 64
From 5th December: Piste 36
From 7th December: Pistes 44, 11, 19, 7 and 6
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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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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Looking promising. We need to wind to drop slightly to let the snow settle up top but this is ideal.
A bit far out but the following weekend is potentially brewing something also.
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According to the Zum See Instagram the restaurants will be running an ‘soft’ open from the 6th December and then fully open from the 12th.
Might be a good indication that the runs to town might be operational slightly earlier than expected.
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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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Whilst we await these snow falls to arrive, a brief detour.
Can those experienced visitors give any tips on how weather conditions influence certain parts of the resort? I'm sure all of us have a local resort that we know how to navigate in certain conditions. Similarly, if there is a big powder dump, there are areas we head to straight away. There are some universal guidelines, eg if it's a whiteout - stick to low elevation - but for first or second time visitors...what are the weather/condition tips for Zermatt/Cervinia?
eg
1. if the wind is from a specific direction, where to go?
2. if there is fresh powder, would you head somewhere immediately?
3. if it's a weekend, do you avoid certain areas?
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1 - tough one to answer on wind as once the wind is high lots of the upper areas of the resort can close. The resort itself is quite steep so finding a ‘sheltered’ area can be a challenge. That said, getting into the tree line tends to be what we do - also during a white out.
2 - if there has been lots of the fresh stuff and the base is stable we tend to head towards Schwarzee and Rothorn if it’s the earlier part of the season. There are some great itinerary runs and tree line skiing (be careful of the ecological zones). In the later part of the season the we would head to Hohtali.
As always, only venture off piste with a guide or on the 'yellow runs if solo'. A few tourists lost their lives attempting to ski below the Riffelberg bubble lift last year and set on a large avalanche.
3 - Even at its busiest time of the year the resort runs well. The lift system is excellent and queuing is limited compared to some US resorts for example. We tend to find at very busy times of year, that Klein Matterhorn and the glacier can be very busy (the Furggstattel lift can get rammed)- equally Gornergrat. We usually bomb around Rothorn and try to make the most of faster lift connections.
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Of the two bands of precipitation heading towards the Alps the first is coming early Friday and so should be good quality snow. Meteo Swiss are predicting a snow line down to 1200m (the village is 1600m; the ski area is almost all above 2000m). The second band on Saturday comes in the afternoon but even in the village the temperature is predicted to be barely above zero so should still be snow.
Looks like could be back end of next week before next lot of precipitation. But low temperatures should mean good snow making on top of an already decent amount of natural stuff.
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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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Bit more snow overnight, but looks like all lifts closed here today on the Zermatt side
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135 kmh winds at the very top earlier, 110 now!
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FAQ
. Interestingly Heathrow to Geneva with Swiss is cheaper than Stansted to Basel with Ryanair, Stansted is only 30 minutes down the road but only 1 flight daily. Due to Swiss efficiency my dillemma is now the UK side 
Thanks for everyone's advice.
