Hey Swiss Mags: Need Help Planning Zermatt Trip

[jerlane]

My wife and I are planning a trip to Switzerland in mid-February and are looking for some suggestions. We are looking for the whole Euro-Alps, Swiss village feel and Zermatt seems to fit the bill. I have read other posts about the terrain and skiing, but I don't think it will be a problem for us. My wife mainly likes blue runs and isn't too aggressive. I'll probably ski two days with her and have one or two days on my own. I would consdier hiring a guide for some off-piste action if the conditions seem worth it.

Can anyone offer any tips on places to stay? I've seen Hotel Antika mentioned and that looks nice. We don't need a hostel, but don't want to break the bank either. Somewhere between $200-$250 a night would work.

Any other tips would also be appreciated. Other places to see? Are there other cool towns near by worth checking out? Are guides worth it? We'll definitely check out the Italian side since it sounds like good eating.

FYI we are flying in and out of Geneva and arrive Feb 10th and leave the 15th early. So we will arrive in Zermatt Wednesday afternoon and will have Thurs-Sun to play and head back to Geneva Sunday night.

Thanks in advance!

[p@wder]

Can't help accommodation (although th youth hostel is very nice).

You will be able to ski some easy side-country without a guide but the terrain in Zermatt is quite complex so just skiing off down a powder slope hoping it leads somewhere will often lead you to a cliff or a bottom of an avalanche. There is also a lot of glacier terrain which a guide would be needed for.

Riding in Italy is a must and the pistes are a good calf burner to get your appetite for lunch.

Travelling to other places will depend on what you want. Plenty of ski hills nearby.

[Misty_Fly]

house theodl appartments are a cracking deal. went there a couple weekends back for some preseason glacier riding, stayed there, couldn't have been more convenient. i phoned them from the road at 10.45 pm on the night we were due to arrive, we arrived at 2.00 am and they left the key in the door for us. theyhave everything from ridiculous value studios to big pimpin penthouse. take your pick. www.theodl.ch

[pinto]

http://bellavista-zermatt.ch/hotel

Stayed here in 2006 and it was wonderful. A double room is right in your price range.

Agree with p@wder on the rest. Don't forget about http://airzermatt.ch/air_zermatt_200...?content=EN031 , too

[Marius]

stayed in summer in hotel perren. was good, but personally i'd never pay for that needless luxury. but if you want to relax, not spending twice ir thrice for additionall wellness i think this hotel is quite good.

if you want the "swiss village charme" i'd suggest you should stay in a less crowded place for several days. zermatt is more a mountain city and not a village compared to the "real" villages there. maybe try zinal. thats a small village or fiesch bettmeralp is also within easy access from zermatt. and you see another stunning part of the alps (like Aletsch Glacier).
But beware, sometimes there are naked people hanging around!
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LOikDujAdTc"]YouTube - Spencer Tunick & Greenpeace[/ame]

travelling from geneva with train is quite easy. as everywhere in switzerland.

helisiikng is in that part not necessary.

[jerlane]

http://bellavista-zermatt.ch/hotel

Stayed here in 2006 and it was wonderful. A double room is right in your price range.

Agree with p@wder on the rest. Don't forget about http://airzermatt.ch/air_zermatt_200...?content=EN031 , too

Thanks for the suggestions so far. Hey Pinto, did you heli-ski while you were there? If so, was it worth it?

[patxi]

I stayed at this place a few years back and it was good. Nothing fancy but a good location.

Zermatt is cool and definitely worth a visit but you might consider Saas Fee as well.

[IridePow]

If you have never been to the Swiss alps for skiing before and don't have to watch your budget too much I think Zermatt is a pretty good choice.

Sure the village got a bit touristy over the years, but it's still pretty scenic.

Waking up and having a first glance at the Matterhorn in the morning & later on enjoying the full panorama from the Klein Matterhon is absolutely priceless !

[JoeStrummer]

Saas Fee is worth checking out, as far as local towns. Plenty of blue groomers at Zermatt, particularly on the Cervinia side.

I am a Bahnhof guy. Private room, share a shower, laundry and kitchen in the basement. Cheap but clean. Stepping up a bit the BellaVista or Allalain or Rex are good.

[pinto]

Thanks for the suggestions so far. Hey Pinto, did you heli-ski while you were there? If so, was it worth it?

Hmmmph, that's a sore subject. Not really ... we got grounded the day we were supposed to fly, although we did go up for a sightseeing tour (which was awesome in itself) that afternoon when it cleared. Not enough time to ski, though.

The other part of our group was able to fly, and they were very very happy about it. I think most had been heliskiing before, but not sure. They were all Europeans.

I can't speak to whether it was "necessary" to get the goods ... we had guides the other days, luckily because it was a crap snow year (but the last day was a powder day). But it was worth a lot just to fly around the Matterhorn real close and see the Alps from the air like that. Spectacular.

We pretty much checked all the "tourist" boxes: skied to Italy for lunch one day, climbed up the Klein Matterhorn platform, lunch at Zum See, apres at Hennu Stall, etc. It was charming, and probably my favorite trip ever. The skiing was almost secondary, except we did get that last powder day. It wasn't cheap, but we survived. (The last night, we went out for sushi. After 10 days of wienerschnitzl and roesti -- which I love, but still -- it was so refreshing. It was also the most expensive meal I have ever eaten, I'm pretty sure.)

[freak]

about food, this place is great: http://www.fluhalp-zermatt.ch/ on piste, not expensive, great rösti, pasta, well, everything is great. make reservations, it can get pretty crowded at lunch-time, because lots of guides and skiinstructors go there with their clients.

regarding heliskiing: great views and stuff, but well, i think people shouldnt go heliskiing in the alps...

freak~[&]

[jerlane]

We pretty much checked all the "tourist" boxes: skied to Italy for lunch one day, climbed up the Klein Matterhorn platform, lunch at Zum See, apres at Hennu Stall, etc. It was charming, and probably my favorite trip ever. The skiing was almost secondary, except we did get that last powder day. It wasn't cheap, but we survived. (The last night, we went out for sushi. After 10 days of wienerschnitzl and roesti -- which I love, but still -- it was so refreshing. It was also the most expensive meal I have ever eaten, I'm pretty sure.)

This is pretty much the approach we are taking. We are going there to experience Switzerland. If there happens to be some decent skiing that will be a bonus. Fortunately, my wife doesn't like sushi, but I'm sure we'll find somewhere else to have a nice blowout for dinner. Let me know if you have any other suggestions like the ones above. As I mentioned above, we will basically have four full days there. Is there somewhere near by that would be worth checking out if we decided not to ski for a day?

[ryank]

http://www.alpenrose-zermatt.ch/

I stayed at the Alpenrose. Great hotel, clean, good food in the restaurant, close to the lifts, and it's next to the river. It's a couple hundred CHF a night, but you will get an unobstructed view of the Matterhorn from your room in most rooms.

[skinnyskier]

Zermatt is both very cool and exceptionally 'touristicated.' I agree that the Saas valley is a bit lower key. We found good deals in Saas Grund four years ago during spring ski touring season, but I can't say it had tons of charm. Saas Fee was fun to ski, even though we got weathered off both the Alphubel and Allalinhorn on seperate days.

If you're willing to consider the Oberland, Wengen and even more so Murren have no real road access and are unlike anywhere else I've ever been.

[pinto]

This is pretty much the approach we are taking. We are going there to experience Switzerland. If there happens to be some decent skiing that will be a bonus. Fortunately, my wife doesn't like sushi, but I'm sure we'll find somewhere else to have a nice blowout for dinner. Let me know if you have any other suggestions like the ones above. As I mentioned above, we will basically have four full days there. Is there somewhere near by that would be worth checking out if we decided not to ski for a day?

Don't know about a non-ski day; we spent our non-ski days puttering from Zurich through Bern to Zermatt and up through Luzern back to Zurich. Others seem to have suggestions for that, though.

We ate a great dinner at one of the restaurants at the Riffelalp; that's a nice little trip on a cogwheel train up above Zermatt, beautiful 5-star resort, with big-time views. We also had lunch at Findeln one day, but I can't remember which restaurant. Enzian, maybe. Our guides were from European Snowsport. Um, that's all I can think of right now. Oh, except that we did rent skis and I was a complete dork and forgot to check DIN (and of course this isn't the US and you don't have to sign a million forms), and it was on 4 and I double ejected the first day and landed on my face. Served me right. So don't be stupid like me.

[IridePow]

www.les-marmottes.ch is a very nice place right on the pistes in the Furi (Zermatt), a few hundred meters above the gondola station.

The food is really good and the staff is very friendly.
But it's not very cheap for lunch/dinner, so only go there if you don't mind spending a few more bucks than usual.

The owner is a mountain guide and every once in a while he flies in right with the helicopter from the last rescue mission to check how his other business is going.

[Ripzalot]

i can't remember where but there is a little chalet/restaurant next to a piste that has the best mushroom soup ever. it's baked in the oven with a pastry layer on top, and comes out looking like a mushroom. you break thru the pastry layer to get to the soup. that and fuch backerei for good sandwiches are my top zermatt tips.

regarding non-ski days - try not to have any. zermatt is far away from anything else so it's a pain to leave for a day trip. go to saas fee (and ski) one day. even that is 1:30 by bus.

[Roo]

Got to agree that for the full-on Swiss Alps magnificence thing, you HAVE to sample Zermatt at least once in your life. It's an artfully-laid trap designed to seductively and effectively separate you from your every last franc, but it's jaw-droppingly stunning.

[jerlane]

regarding non-ski days - try not to have any. zermatt is far away from anything else so it's a pain to leave for a day trip. go to saas fee (and ski) one day. even that is 1:30 by bus.

So, it's worth it for the long journey even with only four days to play?

Great info so far! You guys are awesome. It's cool to hear how many people have been there.

[Ripzalot]

So, it's worth it for the long journey even with only four days to play?

well, zermatt + cervinia is a pretty big area and you could easily be entertained for a week. saas fee is something special though, quite a gnarly glacier, very scenic. the skiing is pretty blue so your wife will enjoy it. also to note, if it happens to be stormy/whiteout, there are [ame="http://www.tetongravity.com/FORUMS/showthread.php?t=150922"]good trees [/ame]to be skied at saas fee. if you find yourself wanting to see/ski more, then yes, otherwise just stay put and enjoy zermatt.

[Misty_Fly]

about food, this place is great: http://www.fluhalp-zermatt.ch/ on piste, not expensive, great rösti, pasta, well, everything is great. make reservations, it can get pretty crowded at lunch-time, because lots of guides and skiinstructors go there with their clients.

regarding heliskiing: great views and stuff, but well, i think people shouldnt go heliskiing in the alps...

freak~[&]

for the most part I agree with your point about heliskiing in the alps. I've flown from Courmayeur, Cervinia and the Monte Rosa area. The views were spectacular and being dropped at 4000m and skiing hour long glacier descents is pretty amazing, but its not really what most people would associate with heliskiing. Scenic, yes. Rad, yes. 'Lines'...no.

I have however, on 2 seperate occasions, flown in Valgrisenche. I think every other heli op in the alps is basically what I described above, with a fairly limited choice of descents, offering perhaps 1 or 2 days of variety for resort-based punters. Valgrisenche is not this.

It is a tiny village with no lifts in a huge valley, offering you the choice of 23 peaks (if I remember correctly), covering every aspect. Play it right and what you get is heliskiing as good as anywhere in the world (maybe barring AK). It is a dedicated heli-op for dedicated skiers, not resort based peeps who fancy something different.

Check my T/R for a rough idea, PM me for any further questions.
[ame="http://www.tetongravity.com/forums/showthread.php?t=156657"]Veni, Vidi, Vici. A Heli Aided Assault on Europe. - Teton Gravity Research Forums[/ame]

But if my Cervinia experience was anything to judge the Zermatt flying options, no I wouldn;t say it's worth it. I however wasn't paying for mine so I thought it was cool.

[Ireallyliketoski2]

We stayed at the Hotel Julen and absolutely loved it, should be right in your price range too. http://www.julen.com/en/

[nhtele]

The Rasta/Caribbean place near the cemetary would be an excellent non-Swiss place to check out as your capping dinner out: http://www.gozermatt.com/thepipe/ . Be sure to try the caramel-infused vodka. Nick the owner makes it himself.

I lived in Zermatt for ~4 months in the Best Western on Spisstrasse, ~600m north of the train station. The place is run by Jorg Aufdenblatten and I was pretty impressed (granted, I lived there for free). Rates are likely a touch more reasonable, as you are near the extreme downhill (far from Furri/Klein Matterhorn lifts) part of town. That said, the Sunnega and Gornergrat lifts are right around the corner.

Party in the basement of the Post Hotel, eat raclette, go for an evening dinner at one of the restaurants up the hill in Furri and bring metal-runnered sled for the ride back down to town, go to the little bar, go to the bar on/near untere mattenstrasse that's in an old log building, drink mulled wine at the chicken bar right at the end of the cat track, and go for some walks in the old part of town.

[Marius]

just to point out what freak's said: if you need a chopper in the alps to ski nice lines, you are doing something completely wrong.

@jerlane: if you visit zermatt, the other side (cervinia) is quite nice, too. try to go to valtournenche, very beautiful old village.

and regarding prices: zermatt, verbier and other famous swiss resorts are ~2-3*as expensive as in most austrian resorts (in the same category). f.e. obergurgl ***** is ~120.- euros(night).

[jerlane]

We stayed at the Hotel Julen and absolutely loved it, should be right in your price range too. http://www.julen.com/en/

Hotel Julen looks very promising. Their prices include both breakfast and dinner, with a discount if you don't want dinner. I imagine we'll want to eat at different places, so does it make more sense to book without dinner? Or is that something you can decide each day?