 Poster: A snowHead
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I've just booked New Year (one week) for the family at the Hotel Ambassador.
I've never been to Zermatt before (nor, indeed, anywhere in CH outside Geneva and Zürich cities) and I'm ridiculously excited.
Anyone know the hotel?
Any ski-hire shop recommendations?
Mountain restaurant recommendations?
Guide recommendations?
Skiing advice - great pistes, busy/slow lifts to avoid, etc? I'm assuming a jaunt across to Cervinia is worth the effort.
[We'll ski pretty well any piste, with varying degrees of aplomb. Most of us are happy in non-death-defying off-piste situations, but much prefer to be with a guide.]
And (showing gross ignorance), what language do the locals prefer to speak? (I'm sure they're fluent in 17.)
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Flualp is a fantastic mountain restaurant with live music at lunchtimes.
You could ski with the Ski Club reps for a day even if you are not a member. They will mark your cards re guides.
The reps are very good and the same ones return to Zermatt every year.
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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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Go to Cervinia once, to have an Italian lunch, but the pistes are long, boring motorways and there is practically no off-piste on that side.
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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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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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laundryman, in Cervinia head to Chalet Etoile for lunch.
In Zermatt Chez Vrony and Fluhalp are both excellent, but for my money, the easily missed, if you don't know what you're looking for, Zum See is the best.
For ski hire, I would recommend the shop just outside the bottom funicular station, on your left as you're looking in the tunnel from outside. It has a little kiosk selling sweets, but downstairs there is a ski hire shop. It's run by an English guy, a real character, but they really looked after me and gave me great service when I knackered one of my own skis.
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laundryman,
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what language do the locals prefer to speak
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Seeing as no-one else has answered; German or at least their version of it. 
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Thanks for all the info guys - all contributions gratefully received!
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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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laundryman, you'll find most of the locals speak better English than we do 
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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| Kramer wrote: |
laundryman,, but for my money, the easily missed, if you don't know what you're looking for, Zum See is the best.
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And there, at the end of the day(its almost at the bottom of the slopes) have a Zumli Schlumli (don't know how they spell it, that's a guess), but it's a hot chocolate with cream and plum brandy.
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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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laundryman, try to plan your trip to Cervinia early on in your visit. If you save it for the end, you may find yourself unable to go for reasons of weather. I recommend you eat on the hill at a restaurant called 'Etoile'. I can't tell you how to get there but I'm sure you can get directions. Make a reservation.
As to where to eat in Zermatt, I can also recommend all the usual suspects: Chez Vrony (sit upstairs for the best view) Flualp, and the other one not to miss is the restaurant at Schwarzee. Order the bites of lamb in the snail plate. Believe me it has nothing to do with snails other than the plate!
I don't speak a word of German but I found most of them happy to converse with me in French or English.
My favourite bar in town is called 'The Little Bar' on the main street. It's really really small but filled with locals and a good time, especially after a few drinks at the more rowdy Papperla Pub.
Don't know the Ambassador Hotel but I imagine it's fine.
I have some photos from my 2003 trip on my web page if you care to take a look.
http://cacavas.com/Zermatt2003/home.htm
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laundryman,
The Ambassador is a 4 * and in walking distance..not 200 mtrs...of the Banhof. Its nice and deserving of the 4 *'s IMV. The nearest lift is the Gornagrat which is the cog railway but you'll not do that very often. But, when you do, pick a blue sky day and sit of the right hand side of the train. Its a 45min ride and the views iof the Matterhorn all the way up are fantastic. You'll soon cross over to Sunnega ski-wise but thats not an issue. From Gornagrat you will get great views over the Gorna glacier.
For guides, the Ski school run off-piste days which can be a mix and match group. We had a guy called Rudi who was a great skier and showed us some very good stashes on both Zermatt and Cervinia sides. Just call into the ski school and see what they are running. They all run heli-trips up onto the Monterosa and for the most part the skiing is a doodle as it is a very flat glacier. The bottom part gets tight and a bottleneck. If it were me, I'd choose a better drop off point around the Breithorn or Pollux..we saw some fabulous tracks from there. I can't say waht the rest of it is like tho', I'll just have to go back there and see.. 
The Klein Matterhorn CC is the busy one and I normally take the long drags instead. I think they may have addded a few chairs up there but generally I think the lifts are good. The town is large but walking to the Sunnega isn't too bad. I never used a bus in all the time I was there but with family that might be wishful thinking. The guiness bar is good for apre-ski...on the way back from the KM lift..and then you don't care about the walk back to the hotel.
Zermatt is great....!!!
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You know it makes sense.
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JohnnyC, JT, thanks guys, that's really useful information. It's given me a fresh injection of enthusiasm and anticipation!
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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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laundryman, I stayed at the 4* Hotel Ambassador for my first week ever skiing in 1993! (Yes, I learned to ski in Zermatt - my first big mistake on skis  - took me 3 years to gain confidence after that experience despite having a wonderful instructor) I plucked up the courage to go back 6 years ago and had a wonderful time last time.
JT, has accurately described its location - it is certainly very convenient for the train station and the Gornergrat station and you can also walk to the Sunnega funicular from there. Searching my memory into the distant past the food was not memorable and the rooms were drab but comfortable - but hopefully they've had an upgrade in the past 12 years!
My fav huts were at Flualp and Furi (where we joined in a table dance at lunch with some Austrian revellers)
The local dailect is Schweizerdeutsch (sp?) - but as mentioned before pretty much everyone speaks decent English, as well as German of course.
If you're in the market, there is a good American bootfitter called Bill (who's been there for years) in one of the bigger ski shops -sorry can't remember the name.
The electric skibuses are expensive but probably necessary to get up to the Klein Matterhorn lift early in the day - although I believe I saw somewhere that they've now linked Klein Matterhorn to somewhere else???
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Poster: A snowHead
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Kramer, at the bottom of which slopes is the Zem See ? The hot chocolate with cream and plum brandy sounds too good to miss.
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brian
brian
Guest
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masmith, Zum See, it's a little hamlet on the way down from Furi back to Zermatt, I think one of the itineraries goes through it.
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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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brian, ah, there's me thinking it's the name of a restaurant, doh .... thanks (out pops the piste map)
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brian
brian
Guest
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masmith, it's both I think. I skied through Zum See but didn't stop at the restaurant, wish I had now.
Did go to the Fluhalp a couple of times, it's excellent 
Findeln (just below Sunegga) has several nice restaurants as well.
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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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laundryman, just to clarify tessaventer on his comments on the electric ski buses...the town provides electric (hybrid actually) large ski buses free of charge which run along the road going out to the Klein Matterhorn lift, and these are free but do run perhaps every 10-15 minutes. Unless things have changed in the past three years, I think tessaventer is referring to the little electric 'taxis' which hold about six people and can take you door to door. If I remember correctly, they run about 4-5 chf per person, and don't be shy about sharing with others, possibly others also waiting at the front of your hotel. It can bring the price down.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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JohnnyC, your're right  But I do remember the skibuses as well and they were not very frequent and very crowded.
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Zum See is signposted off the run that returns to resort past the Henustall, it's on a traverse to the left hand side just below the middle station of the Klein Matterhorn Gondola. It is well hidden behind some barns. It is expensive even compared to the other restaurants in the area! If you miss it, there's another outstanding restaurant a few hundred metres down, just above the corner before the Henustall. Bookings are essential.
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Actually bookings are pretty much essential for most of the good restaurants in the area. I'll put the telephone numbers up in a while.
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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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Kramer, that would be much appreciated - and thanks to everyone else too.
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JohnnyC, the taxi's are 12 chf anywhere in the town for upto 6 people
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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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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holo, Well, that's a great shock - he couldn't have been very old. He custom fit a pair of boots for me on our last visit in 2000. Everybody seemed to know him. Thanks for letting me know.
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yeah, 52 I think he was. Nice guy. Bought some ski's off him once.
Oh well, he lived life the way he wanted. Some comfort in that 
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You know it makes sense.
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Laundryman
Some info here from myself,Kramer and others. If the bank balance can take it, the heli ski trip on Monte Rosa ( or anywhere!) is very worth it. Our guide was Ivan ( Italian - superb guide ask at the guide office in center of town). New year at Zermatt can be kind of wild - lots of fireworks at ground level, so take care if you have kids, but it is lively and fun. New year can be quiet on the slopes, a lot of folk go to wear thier fur coats at lunch time in the restaurants anddo not ski , thats good for skiing , but makes getting lunch difficult sometimes. Do Book lunch - it will make your life much easier especially if you are a group of 4 or 5 - I know it seems odd to have to book , but trust me!
Finally Zermatt can be seriously cold at new year ( I ice climb in scotland - cairngorm mid winter blizards at 80mph wind speed are warmer than Zermatt) Take your best thermals, if its sunny consider using a down duvet if you feel the cold. Glove liners, handwarmers, ski masks etc are not bad investments. A lot of the skiing is high ( above 8-9000 feet), so thin air and very cold. If you really want to do proper bumps - do the triftji(sp) bumps run - one of the best in the world ( although lift access isn't as good as it used to be)
Hope you enjoy it - for me it is one of the top places in the world.
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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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stevepick, thanks - much appreciated. We've been investing heavily in layers!
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Poster: A snowHead
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Just printing this off prior to travelling tomorrow: thanks again to all contributors.
I'll be sure to write a report when I get back and maybe check in once or twice while I'm out there.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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laundryman,
Have a great time it really is a superb place to ski.
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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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Laundryman -- Zermatt probably has the best conditions in the Alps right now. The Ambassador is a great hotel. Zermatt is a proper Alpine station. Pretty town. Top views. Excellent on- and off-piste skiing. The lift system is rubbish. The skibuses are inadequate and overcrowded. But they are modest niggles in what is surely one of the world's top 3 resorts. Enjoy.
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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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Never had ski busses when I were there, shanks pony loosens the muscles before and after skiing beautifully.
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FAQ
