 Poster: A snowHead
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I'm heading off to Zermatt in a couple of weeks having been persuaded by my friends saying what a fantastic place it is and how good the skiing is. I've never done Switzerland before - and having done the 3Vs and St Anton can it really be more expensive? I really wanted a handle as to how expensive it actually is! Ive read all the horror stories about the strength of the Swiss franc but what does it actually equate to on the mountain and Apres wise? If experienced Zermatt goers could tell me what to expect and any tips for good venues/good value bars restaraunts etc I'd be very grateful. What am I looking at in terms of lunch on the mountain, Apres beers and a meal out on the Chalet night off? Thanks Mark
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Didn't find the meals in the Swiss side of the mountain particular expensive unless you dine in a proper restaurant for lunch.
The cheaper way to ski Zermatt is to stay at the Italian side.
I am setting off tomorrow. Our accommodation cost in a Valtourmenche is 105 Euro/day half board for a couple. I did notice from the Internet that the Swiss side can be anything from twice more expensive. I like the Italian side because I can drive to each chairliftat the base and park there. Zermatt is car-free zone and my guess is if I do find an affordable accommodation it will be likely miles away from the chairlifts.
Ski pass Italian side only is 38 Euro/day/head. To ski Zermatt from the Italian side an international ski pass is needed and it is 52 Euro.
The down side is Zermatt link to Cervinia is liable to close in strong wind. Last time 2 out 4 days were closed when I skied there.
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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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| saikee wrote: |
| The down side is Zermatt link to Cervinia is liable to close in strong wind. Last time 2 out 4 days were closed when I skied there. |
I'd much rather be stuck on the Zermatt side than Cervinia which, IMO, is very dull.
Zermatt isn't as expensive as I thought it would be. The Brown Cow is good and cheap for a burger and a beer although I heard last night it has gone down hill a bit.
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marksovereign, one of the best mountain restaurants is Zum See http://www.zumsee.ch/ the site lists the menu with prices. Chez Vrony, the other must do in Zermatt has similar prices. Chalet Etoile on the Italian side is also excellent and cheaper. These are the top lunch spots. I'm sure there are cheaper options.
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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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Depends how much you want to spend. Two of us spent £100 on a two course chinese. However, Grampies is the future, good food, good value.
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Thanks Guys this is really helping
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I was there on a budget last Jan & here's what I'd recommend doing - The mountain restaurants are so great (Chez Vrony, Zum See, etc) so I wouldn't miss eating there. A proper lunch will cost you a decent amount so we made "lunch on the mountain" our main meal for the day. For dinner we'd just grab pizza in town & maybe head out for a few drinks, nothing fancy. We'd drop around 100 Swiss francs for "lunch" but that was with a starter, main course, wine, beer, etc. I'm sure there's excellent restaurants in town as well for dinner, but the views for lunch were too great to miss out on!!
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I haven't been since 2009 when the exchange rate was a lot better but I didn't find it too bad then. I ate out mostly in the evening and the North Wall Bar had good prices for beer and pizza (bumped into Martin Bell in there too). There's also an English run bar tucked away in the shopping arcade near the station, named after the owner, can't remember the name someone will. They were cheap for beer and food. Passes are expensive though.
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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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Remembered it - Potters Bar!
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Like Colin B, we liked Potters Bar and found it good value, also been to Grampi's which has good pizza, didn't think much of the Wall Bar it may be cheap but I wouldn't eat there. Although expensive we liked the Steak House below the China Garden and worth going if you want to treat yourself. Zermatt due to the poor exchange rate is more expensive than some places but if you are careful it doesn't need to be too expensive.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Well looking at the Zum See menu (which looks very nice!), it actually seem's cheaper than anything I've seen in Meribel of similar quality. The beer's cheaper too! I've also always held the assumption that Swiss is more pricey, but certainly food and drink aren't in this instance.
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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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Like a few people who have posted my info is a bit out of date, went on holiday there in 2009 then an away day in 2010. You're mates are right-it's a great place to ski.
Depending on where you go or maybe where you were in 3V you shouldn't find it any more expensive.
What board basis are you using? Enjoy your holiday and don't let the cost spoil it for you would be my best advice, there are always ways to budget......
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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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Alastair Pink, McDonalds in Switzerland is seriously expensive!
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Poster: A snowHead
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what kind of tw@t would buy McDonalds in a ski resort 
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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| Shimmy Alcott wrote: |
| what kind of tw@t would buy McDonalds in a ski resort |
If you are bored with spag bol?
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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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Smokin Joe, not sure I'd consider Grampi's good value when a half litre of beer is CHF9 compared with the Brown Cow bar at CHF6.60 the other side of the street and the exact same beer!
Restaurants up the mountain are no more expensive than in town / rest of Switzerland and would recommend the Fluhalp on a nice day.
Alans deep bath, CHF 12 for a big mac meal!
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Shimmy Alcott, I did once  in Zermatt actually. Weather was foul, mountain was closing rapidly and everywhere in town was packed out at lunchtime. I was in a bit of a rush so grabbed something in MacDonalds. It was poo-poo obviously!
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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.
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marksovereign, the basic questions are "how expensive is Switzerland" and "is it good value"
There is a difference between price and value!
Switzerland can be both expensive and good value- and expensive and poor value- never cheap.
Over the summer we were bike touring in Switzerland ith our kids. In a small village- with one cafe, a couple of B&Bs and a small supermarket a 'Coron Bleu" (that's a sort of cheese and ham stuffed schnitzel (out of the freezer and into th deep fryer type stuff) with chips and a salad in a small cafe was CHF35, a beer in a small bar in Altberg (where? exactly CHF5), a steak (rump, organic, uncooked about 300gms) in a supermarket in Zurich city caner about CHF17, last summer MCcie D's for a family of 4 (and a half) about CHF45 (pound to CHF about parity). These are all examples of expensive and poor value!
That said as a whole both trips wee fantastic as a whole.
Food, drink, accommodation all expensive. Scenery, facilities, service all world class.
So Zermatt (I have skied there reasonably recently) is expensive, but it is really high, gets great snow, has fantastic terrain, glorious village and a heli drop works out at about CHF 75.
I'd say expensive but worth it.
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Zermatt can be as cheap or as expensive as you want too, never hada meal on the mountain as that doesn't interest me so can't comment on prices there..plenty of other options..pizza at opposite the base station, Sparky's does cheap simple food and beer, papperla if you want to eat like a student, Brown cow..some small swiss place tucked away in that square behind the church. If you're just having a meal out on the night off, then i'd splash out of a treat..or as others say spend the money on the lunches.
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To be fair, they do prawns at Zermatt Mc Donalds 
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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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Thanks for all the differing points of view! I was more interested about how Zermatt compares with the other premium resorts - Last year in St Anton money vanished like water and as Im only doing one trip this year I thjought Id better find out what I was letting myself in for. There is a big difference brwtween price and value - I hate getting ripped off which is something the french are very good at. Im there for some good skiing and will spend what I need to while I'm there - The lift pass is expensive but then its uplft to nearly 4000m. Forums are funny things and bad news always travels faster than good news - I dont think from whats been said so far its any dearer the St Anton or Corchevel but then there isnt a Mooserwirst
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marksovereign, we did Courch 1850 a couple of times on a big bucks basis! Then the recession hit and we tightened out belts...it was just as much fun sitting on a stack of snow eating a baguette and drinking a can of beer as it was having a £20 burger served by a surly French bloke 
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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marksovereign, Not on the level of the Mooserwirst but the Hennustall is always good to start the apres.
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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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marksovereign, I've been to Zermatt twice (2008 & 9) and St Anton last year. From my perspective, taking exchange rates into account, Zermatt is more expensive. However only the first Zermatt trip was a lads type trip, the others were just with my daughter so were fairly dry.
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You know it makes sense.
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Alans deep bath, keep it that way
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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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Alans deep bath, you ate a large Big Mac meal and 9 chicken nuggets?!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Fatty.
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Poster: A snowHead
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| Alans deep bath wrote: |
| Alastair Pink, McDonalds in Switzerland is seriously expensive! |
Eye watering prices! I only posted about McD's because I saw that there was one in Zermatt (didn't eat there of course) but assumed (erroneously it seems) that it would be cheap!
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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The only thing I found McD's useful for in Zermatt was free Wifi! Not sure if they still have it, but they did last Jan. I found that not a lot of places in Zermatt had free Wifi.
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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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McD should only be ever used as as last resort or as a hangover cure!
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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| Quote: |
McD should only be ever used as as last resort or as a hangover cure!
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Cheers! Hangover cure and wifi!!
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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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Our hotel staff looked forward to their day off so they could ski over to Zermatt from Cervinia to go to McDonalds!
Possibly not the best example as we just stopped there at the time because we were famished, but the only time we stopped for food on the Swiss side was at the Ice Bar at Trockener Steg. A couple of wurst, rosti and gravy was €18 (2 weeks ago), Jnr and the OH had pasta, I think the Jnr's was reasonably priced as it was a kids portion, the OHs was about €18 too (you can pay in € but get change in CHF - no idea what the prices would've been in CHF). 3 meals, 3 x soft drinks and a Toblerone came to €72 I think.
Wurst, fries and a bit of salad was €11 on the Cervinia side of the mountain (restaurant at Cime Bianchi).
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| ernie wrote: |
Smokin Joe, not sure I'd consider Grampi's good value when a half litre of beer is CHF9 compared with the Brown Cow bar at CHF6.60 the other side of the street and the exact same beer!
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I am a millionnaire so that doesnt bother me.
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marksovereign, To the list of mountain restaurants mentioned, I would add Findlerhof in Findeln, Simmi in Furri and Stafel off the stafelalp run. All fairly pricey. The self service in the Trockener Steg is surprisingly good and much better than a comparable place in say the 3V. Main meal such as a schnitzel around CHF20. Was there last week. Another option to reduce the average price for the week is to take an occasional packed lunch on the train up Gornergrat or the 3 stage gondola from Zermatt to Trockener Steg via Schwarzee. Takes about half an hour and can be quiet at lunchtime.
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marksovereign, Hi Mark, I was there last year - it doesn't have to be too bad - obviously don't know what you're into apres wise, but you mentioned you're in a Chalet - we do the same, and always take a few bottles of spirits to start things off after the free wine with dinner etc, then head into town a bit later so it is just 'top up' drinks really - in which case the cost of drink is unlikely to make much difference in the grand scheme of things.
For actual apres, I strongly recommend the Hennu Stall (see website), which is next to the excellent red piste back to town from Furi (this piste also can be linked at the end of an even better black run). They do live music (great band), reasonably priced beer, and it comes with an amusing, albeit short ski back to town in the dark.
As others have mentioned, the mountain food is very good, so worth treating yourself once if you can - for exceptionally good value, and exceptionally good eating I recommend Chalet Etoile, which is on the Italian side. Do book though, as it gets very busy.
For the Chalet host night off we did fondue and raclette at Restaurant Swiss Chalet, which was good value - we made full use of the unlimited raclette, with free gout.
To treat yourself Chez Vrony is excellent - we went for lunch on our last day and it was well worth it, but it is pricey - great views from the terrace, and as above you should book.
The worst value in Zermatt is to be found in the self service mountain restaurants, offering obscene prices for shoddy sausage/rosti etc - I personally wouldn't bother - get a pizza in Cervina or make a pack-up and ski more. Make the most of breakfast, you've got food paid for in the evening. Have fun
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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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"Zermatt - How Expensive is It?" wait for it, wait for it ......
If you have to ask, you can't afford it!
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Well Ive got a great list of bars and restaraunts Thanks guys 3 weeks to go! 
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FAQ
(I seem to recall it has a "tasteful" metalwork shopsign hanging outside rather than the usual standard yellow M) 
