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Thread: Going to Zermatt
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06-20-2022, 08:56 PM #26
also, the sun goes down pretty early in january... expect the light to go flat by 3 or so, and that's if the top isn't already socked in the clouds. makes that valley run even more challenging what with the crowds schrapling the fuck out of the last runout that everybody gets funneled down into.
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06-21-2022, 01:23 AM #27
Hotälli is basically the only place with decent easy access terrain in Zermatt. Guide might give you roped access to some fun stuff on the Matterhorn side, but crevasses and rapelling spots limit the DIY experience there.
That being said, the hotälli lift probably has more fun terrain than most American resorts, except mammoth of course.
It accesses a 1000m vertical triangle with a 2km base so the freeride acreage (you all love your acreage in the US) is pretty decent.
If they have snow. Which they rarely do because Zermatt is cut of from nearly all major precip flows by high mountain Ranges. And if there is a south eastern flow (where they DO get snow)alagna gets twice as much.It's a war of the mind and we're armed to the teeth.
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06-21-2022, 08:52 AM #28Registered User
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The wife and I went to Zermatt several years ago and enjoyed it. She's not an aggressive skier by any means, so we were more there for the experience than hardcore skiing.
Some of our highlights were skiing over to Italy for lunch. Lunch in Blatten was amazing (the best mushroom soup). Taking the gondola up and "sledging" down was a blast. We typically did après ski at the Brown Cow.
You asked about bringing your own gear... my ski bag didn't make it and it was a bit stressful trying to sort it all out. American express was very helpful in tracking it down and keeping me up to date on it's progress. It arrived a day later and Delta paid for me to rent gear. Luckily I was able to find a shop that rented everything.
As others have said, Zermatt is expensive and there might be better skiing elsewhere, but we enjoyed the trip.
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06-21-2022, 08:58 AM #29I touched your avatar
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06-21-2022, 09:00 AM #30I touched your avatar
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Good advise.
Glad I'm flying delta too...... At least I know my boots will make it since I always carry on.
I'm getting old, just looking to ski in cool places now and enjoy the moment. Maybe the next trip will be to all the other cool places people have mentioned. Will give me something to look forward to.Took me like 10 minutes to figure out how to change this shit
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06-21-2022, 11:13 AM #31
Chiming in to add when I went to Zermatt, we actually stayed down in Grachen which is a cute little town on the hillside down the canyon from Zermatt. Way cheaper than staying in Zermatt but we had a car so could go either to Zermatt or Saas Fee. And Grachen even had its own little ski area (which we didn't go to). We stayed at this place which was pretty awesome https://www.graecherhof.ch/?lang=en
"Great barbecue makes you want to slap your granny up the side of her head." - Southern Saying
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06-21-2022, 11:55 AM #32Registered User
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06-21-2022, 01:33 PM #33I touched your avatar
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06-21-2022, 02:25 PM #34
You stayed in Grachen but you didn’t ski there? hmm… we had a great day there on our last Zermatt trip. Much cheaper than zermatt, and way less crowded.
I wouldn’t call it a small place compared to what I ski here at home, but it is smaller than zermatt.
The food was good, the beer was good, and the locals were quite friendly.
fact.
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06-22-2022, 12:23 AM #35
Feldschlösschen? Quöllfrisch is the breakfast of champions
It's a war of the mind and we're armed to the teeth.
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06-22-2022, 02:57 AM #36Registered User
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Going to Zermatt
I love Zermatt although possibly more in Summer than Winter. It’s a huge area and there is a lot of terrain to explore but as above, some of the best off piste areas, like under Hohtälli are very rocky and so need a good base, and Zermatt doesn’t always get that, particularly early season. The classic off piste runs like the Schwarztor are in heavily glaciated terrain, and not usually skiable early season, so if you get good conditions it’d be worth booking a guide. The scenery, dominated by the Matterhorn, is stunning and the mountain restaurants are also exceptional. A fabulous hotel in town is the Cœur des Alpes.
Last edited by bobinch; 06-22-2022 at 03:22 AM.
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06-22-2022, 03:07 AM #37Registered User
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06-22-2022, 03:16 AM #38Registered User
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This vid starts with the terrain under the Stockhorn / Hohtälli and pans around over the Findeln glacier to Rothorn
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06-22-2022, 03:30 AM #39Registered User
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Going to Zermatt
This what you’re skiing over!
The views are stupendous
There’s tons of amazing hiking/biking terrain
It’s worth getting up early
Highly recommend the Cœur des Alpes
Although no pooches in the tub!
High tech Swiss engineering
Superb restaurants in Findeln
And Blatten (and Furi)
And Chalet Étoile over on the Cervinia side
Sent from my iPhone using TGR Forums
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06-22-2022, 07:00 AM #40Registered User
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And to answer your question it’s pretty easy to travel with skis on Swiss trains. You will also get a good range of rental skis in Zermatt although they won’t be cheap
https://www.matterhornsport.ch/en/prices
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06-22-2022, 07:39 AM #41Registered User
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I think it was shipskis.com but just google it. As I recall from doing just that there seemed to be 2 primary players in the market of shipping skis and golf clubs. Yes the approximate number I provided was round trip which is not 2 x one way. There’s a pretty significant discount for round trip as compared to 2 x. Other pricing variables are how far in advance you have your stuff shipped and whether you take it to a shipping location (e.g. ups store) or have it picked up from your door.
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06-22-2022, 08:13 AM #42
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06-22-2022, 08:27 AM #43Registered User
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06-22-2022, 11:16 AM #44
It was late April 2011 during an epic drought year in the Alps. I don't think Grachen was even open for skiing and there was no snow in town. Skiing down from the top of Zermatt into the village required a couple miles on a white ribbon of death surrounded by dirt and rocks on the bottom section. In Saas-Fee the bottom run ended in a soccer field with people actually playing soccer. So not ideal conditions.
"Great barbecue makes you want to slap your granny up the side of her head." - Southern Saying
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06-22-2022, 11:57 AM #45
Head over to the mountain lodge thread. Buster has passed the torch of organizing it, but it should take place.
And m27numbers: I just recommended quöllfrisch to make you as Swiss as you are upstate.
Feldschlösschen is the equivalent of a big okish brewery, but they and calanda have been bought by big International brewery conglomerates.
Appenzeller is super Swiss. And quöllfrisch the utica Club equivalent.
Quöllfrisch's brewery Appenzeller is not super small, but more utica vibish. I thought you'd appreciate it
Edit: They even use ads from 2007 on their current Website. That is upstate as fuck!
https://m.youtube.com/watch?time_con...ature=emb_logoIt's a war of the mind and we're armed to the teeth.
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06-22-2022, 12:23 PM #46
Yep. I went for a couple of days as part of a bigger trip; it wasn't great...I actually spent most of the ski time in Italy. There was no new snow; the Zermatt side was crunchy and icy; Cervinia was in the sun. I brought my boots, but not my skis (b/c I didn't want to lug them around for the limited ski days I had). It was very easy to rent and not terribly spendy...I made up for it in drink and lodging.
I was gonna say: they're mostly British and Australian.It makes perfect sense...until you think about it.
I suspect there's logic behind the madness, but I'm too dumb to see it.
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12-02-2022, 07:00 AM #47
How do these destinations stack up for skiers w/out backcountry experience?
The wife and I have anniversary trip planned for Feb. Currently only committed to airplane tickets into Zurich. The plan is to use train from there.
We can ski just about anything but have no avalanche training. We've talked this yurp trip for many years -- it's mostly about a european ski experience, however we don't want to compromise to much on good skiing.Last edited by gedmeyer; 12-05-2022 at 04:08 PM.
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12-04-2022, 06:06 PM #48
Going to Zermatt
Wifee and I honeymooned in Saas Fe and Zermatt in 2009. Our one regret was not hiring a guide for at least one day.
https://www.tetongravity.com/forums/...A-HONEYMOON-TR
I would recommend against Zermatt. We plan a family trip back to Saas Fe now that the boys can keep up. Way too much disneyland in Zermatt for us. You could still have a blast but the adjacent valley was more our vibe
Last edited by 2nd mate; 12-04-2022 at 06:54 PM.
A woman reported to police at 6:30 p.m. that she was being "smart-mouthed."
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12-04-2022, 06:41 PM #49
There's a good spectrum of options at the SkiArena.
You want steep groomers? The Andermatt-Disentis Ski Arena has them.
You want avie controlled off-piste? They have that. there's a bunch of easy and relatively safe sidecountry there too.
There's boundless mindblowing tours there too,
The only thing the SkiArena doesn't have is a lot of glaciated terrain that requires crevasse awareness. Plus, Michele and Serena at https://www.mt-lodge.com/ have such a great place, warm, comfortable, great food. Great train access from ZRH, just walk down the lanes from the Rueras train stop. Michele can arrange guiding for you if you want to sample some of the couloirs and bowls in safety.
The wife and I have anniversary trip planned for prez week. Currently only committed to airplane tickets into Zurich. The plan is to use train from there.
We can ski just about anything but have no avalanche training. We've talked this yurp trip for many years -- it's mostly about a european ski experience, however we don't want to compromise to much on good skiing.
If you want to party and hang out in crowds, there's better places like Verbier or St. Anton. But for a variety of just good solid skiing with lots of good snow and comfortable lodging do mt-lodge.
I like Andermatt-Disentis because there's so much great skiing that doesn't require a guide or harnesses or ropes and it's lots lower key, less expensive and fewer obnoxious people than more major destinations. I've been to a few places in the Alps and for my money and time, it's one of the best.
Read this: https://www.tetongravity.com/forums/...-com-Rueras-CH . I enumerate some other options in there towards the end:
In order of favorites after the Andermatt-Disentis SkiArena
Klosters (Hotel Wynegg) (2:45 to 3:15 time via trains from Rueras with 1 to 3 changes)
St. Moritz (Hotel Laudinella) (3:52 time via trains from Rueras with 2 changes) 45chf lift ticket for anyone staying in local hotels.
Schruns/Montafon or St. Anton Am Arlberg (Das Elizabeth) (3:45-4:30 train time from Rueras )
Engelberg (4:22 train time from Rueras).
Train resource: https://www.sbb.ch/en/timetable.htmlMerde De Glace On the Freak When Ski
>>>200 cm Black Bamboo Sidewalled DPS Lotus 120 : Best Skis Ever <<<
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12-05-2022, 09:10 AM #50
Seconding the Italy opinion. Ski in Zermatt if you must, but stay in Cervinia and day trip there via the lifts. Stay at the White Angel hotel and avoid the prices and crowds. It can be an amazing place. Especially with snow. Got 7 feet overnight last time I was there. You'd always rather be on the Italian side for the food and coffee, whether it's Cham or Zermatt. Can pop over for your fill of Sausage and rosti and experience Zermatt by day. Just don't miss the lift back or it's an overnight or a many hour expensive drive back.
Last edited by BCR; 12-05-2022 at 09:33 AM.
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