Covid-related restrictions may be in place. Please check Foreign Office advice and testing/quarantine requirements in your destination before booking.
Claire Talbot
Thursday September 29 2022, 15:00pm
Alpine skiing as we know it has its roots in Switzerland in the 19th century and it remains an important ski destination, thanks to resorts such as Verbier, Zermatt and St Moritz. But it’s also home to a whole range of lesser-known but equally enchanting villages. Each provides outstanding skiing, accommodation and cuisine.
In part, all this came about through the pastoral diligence of a priest in Saas-Fee. In 1849, at the height of a blizzard, Father Johann Imseng heard that one of his flock, trapped in a lower village, was dying. Father Imseng, who was also a mountain guide, had made himself rudimentary skis from barrel staves. He strapped these on his feet and reached his parishioner in time for a final blessing. The rest, as they say, is history.
One of the pleasures of skiing in Switzerland is the journey. All the major resorts (and quite a few minor ones) can be reached directly by train from Geneva and Zurich airports. Transfers run on time with Swiss precision and the mountain views along the way are spectacular. Daytime rail journeys from London to western Swiss resorts are perfectly feasible too.
The downside is that — thanks to the strength of the Swiss franc — any holiday in Switzerland is expensive. Skiing is no exception.
At the top of the market, that is less of a concern and Verbier continues to be a stronghold of the international uber-chalet market. Less affluent skiers will however need to take a few money-saving measures if they want to keep their holiday costs in check, such as choosing a less fashionable resort, staying down the valley and packing picnic lunches. The rewards for such discipline are considerable. High prices have inevitably depressed demand and compared to resorts in Austria, Italy and France, Swiss ski slopes can be blissfully quiet. Not as quiet as they were in 1849, of course: but it’s hard not to feel a connection with earlier, less hectic times when you ski them.
Main photo: Cross-country skiing in Celerina (Alamy)
*This article contains affiliate links.
All products and brands mentioned in this article are selected by our writers and editors based on first-hand experience or customer feedback. We feature properties from a specially selected list of trusted operators who are of a standard that we believe our readers expect. This article contains links which are ads and if you click on a link and buy a product we will earn revenue. These links are signposted with an asterisk. The revenue generated will help us to support the content of this website and to continue to invest in our award-winning journalism.
Best for adventurers — at any ski level
The former garrison village of Andermatt used to be synonymous with challenging skiing — courtesy of the intricate, plunging slopes of the 2,963m Gemsstock. Coupled with its remote location and charming historic core, that made it a hit with skiing’s cognoscenti — provided they were expert off-pisters of course. Everyone else ignored it.
Enter billionaire Samih Sawiris in 2005 with a plan to invest 1.8 billion Swiss francs to transform Andermatt into a year-round luxury ski and golf resort. The transformation is not yet complete: the latest development is the arrival of the American Vail Resorts group, which has bought a controlling stake in the resort’s lift company. But it has already seen the opening of one of the most sumptuous five-stars in the Alps — the Chedi Andermatt –– as well as a suburb of hotels and apartments which is at last beginning to buzz.
Crucially, lifts have opened up the intermediate slopes east of the resort, along the Oberalp Pass. You can now ski all the way to Disentis in a shared ski area which serves up 110 miles of pistes.
Despite the improvements, the old mountain railway that also links Andermatt to Disentis remains a highlight. It won’t get you anywhere fast, but standing in your ski boots waiting for a train is an unforgettable experience: especially if you catch one of the services with an après-ski carriage.
See more
Best for intermediate and advanced skiers
The Matterhorn, Switzerland’s most famous mountain, jumps out at you whenever you turn a street corner in Zermatt and the majesty of the vistas will leave you in awe. This is Switzerland’s premier ski destination, but it’s not always easy to navigate. The ski area is composed of three almost-separate sectors, reached from different points across town; the highest of which is the Klein Matterhorn, linking Zermatt to Cervinia in Italy.
In each sector, these slopes tend to be flattish on top, and much more challenging lower down. As a result, intermediates who like a steadier pitch often prefer the Italian side of the ski area — especially when they’re skiing the sinuous and spectacular Red 7, aka the Ventina.
For hotels and restaurants, however, Zermatt has few rivals. This, essentially, is the world capital of the long ski lunch and you can eat and drink better here at altitude than in almost any ski resort in the word — albeit at an increasingly eye-watering price.
See more*
Best for off-pisters
This is the resort for those who want to ski hard and party harder. Novices and nervous intermediates are welcome, but in the lift queue you’ll see many more pairs of long, wide powder skis than beginner-friendly models.
The piste skiing is frustratingly disjointed too. But that won’t bother the experts. The wonder of Verbier’s high-altitude core is that it unlocks all kinds of off-piste descents without the need for expensive heli-skiing. Just be sure to bring a local guide and avalanche safety equipment with you. This is high alpine terrain with a serious avalanche risk.
Meanwhile, if you aren’t quite nimble enough to tackle steep and deep powder, but are keen to learn, several excellent ski schools are standing by — notably the Warren Smith Ski Academy.
Verbier’s pace is not, however, unremittingly relentless. Few skiing pleasures surpass a lunchtime croûte complète (oven-roasted cheese and ham on wine-soaked bread, with an egg on top) at Chez Dany before the après-ski gets underway at the Off Piste bar beside W Hotel Verbier.
See more*
Best for families
Where? You may well ask. Along with neighbouring Zinal and a couple of other little resorts nearby, Grimentz has somehow slipped beneath the radar of British skiers. The village and its 14th-century wooden chalets are tucked away in a time warp in the Val d’Anniviers, reached from the valley town of Sierre by a crazy switchback road with sheer drop-offs.
Its ski area is linked to Zinal by gondola, while St Luc/Chandolin and Vercorin can be reached by ski bus. A car is a useful asset and gives you the opportunity to stay in one of the smaller mountain villages while enjoying the main ski hub of Grimentz. Pistes in the valley total 130 miles with the majority (70 miles) centred on Grimentz.
See more*
Best for skiers with deep pockets
St Moritz is tucked away around a scenic lake in the southeast corner of Switzerland, close to the Italian frontier. It’s divided into two main communities and a number of satellites.
St Moritz Dorf is the glitzy one with the smartest hotels and shops. Fur coats compete with Prada ski suits on the streets and a high proportion of their well-heeled wearers confine their outings to shopping, spas and sun terraces rather than ski lifts.
St Moritz Bad is less expensive and quieter. Celerina, two and a half miles away, makes an alternative base, as do Pontresina, Silvaplana, Samedan, Surlej and Zuoz. All are included in the Engadin lift pass.
Winter sports in St Moritz began back in 1864 with skating and tobogganing down the steep slope to Celerina, which was to become the Cresta Run. Meanwhile, many more activities take place around and on the frozen lake. These include bobsleigh, horse-racing, show jumping, greyhound racing, polo, golf, and even cricket.
St Moritz is also a world-class ski destination with over 215 miles of pistes that’s divided into four sectors. Corviglia is the most important, reached by funicular from Dorf and by cable car from Bad.
See more
Best for beginners
High, remote Saas Fee is one of the most snow-sure resorts in the Alps. Ringed by 13 peaks over 4,000m, it has a lift system that rises to almost as high — and provides glacier skiing outside the main winter season.
That said, the rock-strewn, high-Alpine terrain is not conducive to piste building — and the extent of groomed and way-marked slopes is actually rather limited. Even though it includes a thrilling top-to-bottom descent, it won’t satisfy most intermediate skiers for a week-long holiday. They should consider it instead for a magnificent and mountainous short break, provided they don’t mind the long transfer times from Zurich or Geneva.
Beginners, by contrast, will have a ball. The nursery slopes are comfortably isolated from the main runs — so first-timers aren’t spooked by the high-speed antics of the experts. A separate mountain devoted to tobogganing provides plenty of extra-curricular fun too.
Meanwhile the car-free village below the slopes offers a taste of the Alps far removed from bigger, buzzier resorts. Here, tiny electric taxis weave between the pedestrians along streets that mix ancient hay barns with more modern hotels. It’s a proper, away-from-it-all experience.
See more*
Best for off-piste long weekends
Not so long ago your day here was enhanced by the sight of monks in rough-woven habits with roped waists riding the lifts and enjoying the skiing. Sadly, the inhabitants of the resort’s Benedictine monastery now wear helmets and North Face when they venture out onto the slopes of Angel Mountain.
Engelberg, high above Lake Luzern, was a hit with skiing Brits back in the Fifties and Sixties, before a lack of investment in its infrastructure dented its image. Now, revitalised uphill transport — including a revolving cable car — have restored its allure, for off-pisters at least.
They flock to the resort for a chance to tackle two descents — the Galtiberg and the Laub — that are the stuff of advanced and expert dreams. The Laub in particular is extraordinary. A steady descent through a vertical half-mile, unbroken by cliff bands or forest, it serves up turn after joyous powder turn whenever conditions are right. No wonder the bars in the village below are buzzing at the weekend.
See more*
Best for freestylers
Laax is big and snow-sure with a glacier to boot. There are some truly long descents and a total of 140 miles of varied pistes. It shares its ski area with neighbouring Flims and the hamlet of Falera.
Flims has been a spa resort since the 1880s and is home to the magnificent Waldhaus Flims Wellness Resort. But the cool one is Laax, which is as famous for its weekend nightlife as for its freestyle skiing and snowboarding. Freestyle found its first Swiss home here back in the 1980s and today it has five snow parks with a big young international following.
Rocksresort is a contemporary complex of rooms and apartments ideally suited to families, while Riders Hotel is a fusion of designer five-star and backpacker hostel with a nightclub and an acclaimed vegetarian restaurant.
See more*
Best for party-goers and beginners
These contrasting destinations share a giant ski area — Parsenn. Davos is a large town that hosts the World Economic Forum each January. Klosters is a charming, more intimate collection of chalets and hotels, favoured by King Charles in his princely days.
Parsenn offers about 60 miles of skiing for all standards. Klosters also has the separate Madrisa area, ideally suited to beginners, while Davos has the self-contained Jakobshorn Rinerhorn areas.
Both resorts are divided in Dorf and Platz. Davos Dorf is more convenient for skiing, while Davos Platz is best for shopping and nightlife. At the other end of Parsenn, Klosters Platz is the village centre that provides access to the main skiing. Klosters Dorf is in a more remote location, just over a mile away at the base of Madrisa.
Davos and Klosters share a lift pass and are linked by rail. Where you choose to stay depends on the type of holiday that suits you. Take your pick: urban chic in Davos, or rustic and family-friendly in Klosters.
See more
Best for intermediates
Wengen sits on a sunny balcony above the Lauterbrunnen valley — its rack-and-pinion railway, which doubles as a ski lift, remains the only means of reaching it in winter. The resort and its lift system have rested on their laurels for too long, but the Jungfrau Ski Region of which it is a part is now undergoing modernisation — and includes the impressive Grindelwald-First Snow Park.
Intermediates will enjoy the downhill skiing most, clocking up easy mileage over (mostly) undemanding slopes. But there is an undeniable sense of adventure here too, which comes from exploring one of Europe’s most spectacular arrays of mountains. A day-trip over to Murren, across the valley, is a must: if only to ride the lifts to the top of the Schilthorn and gaze in wonder at the sheer northern faces of the Eiger, Monch and Jungfrau.
Meanwhile the Lauberhorn is the skiing highlight for most. One of the classic downhill race courses of the World Cup circuit, it’s actually quite easy to ski — provided you put in the odd steadying turn. The challenge here is not the pitch, but its 2.8-mile length. Even the strongest thighs will be burning at the end.
See more*
Inspired to visit Switzerland but yet to book your trip? Here are the best ski deals from Crystal Ski* and Expedia*.
Subscribe for weekly inspiration and deals from The Times and The Sunday Times.
We would also like to send you exclusive promotions, competitions and content from The Times and Sunday Times and selected partners.
Would you like to receive these?
Your information will be used in accordance with our Privacy Policy.
Subscribe for weekly inspiration and deals from The Times and The Sunday Times.
We would also like to send you exclusive promotions, competitions and content from The Times and Sunday Times and selected partners.
Would you like to receive these?
Your information will be used in accordance with our Privacy Policy.