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Airolo Re-opens

Image courtesy of RSI.ch.

Airolo, the largest ski resort in Ticino, re-opens this year after being closed for the entire 2009-10 season. Weather permitting, the resort will be open at weekends from 4th December and throughout the week from the 18th December. The resort boasts 30km of piste and is the home ski resort for Lara Gut, amongst others.

After it’s closure, Valbianca SA, financed by the canton and local commune, acquired the Airolo-Pesciüm site at auction for SFr 70,000. Although the facility is estimated as being worth Sfr 7m, it has required a huge investment to bring it up to the standards required to be both safe and attractive to winter sports enthusiasts.

Airolo-Pesciüm lies on the south side of the Gotthard Tunnel and has a rail station, making it a convenient ski resort to get to from Northern Switzerland.  The resort is covered by the discounted Swiss Railways Snow’n’Rail scheme, and a complimentary bus service is provided from the rail station during the winter sports season.

The ski region infrastructure comprises one gondola, one chair lift and two surface lifts. The top station is at 2250m and the vertical descent is almost 1200 metres, with the six pistes largely catering for intermediate skiers.

Airolo Piste Map
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Klewenalp

A small resort with stunning views over Lake Lucerne towards the Rigi and Mythen. Conveniently located for a day trip from Luzern or for a short family break, it is best visited when there is good snow cover as there are no snow cannons and limited piste preparation facilities.

Ski Area Klewenalp
Resorts Klewenalp, Stockhütte, Emmetten, Beckenried
Ski Region Central Switzerland
Piste (km) 40
Top run (m) 2001
Bottom (m) 450
Max Drop 1551
Snow’n’Rail Y
Black (km) 2
Red (km) 11
Blue (km) 4
Lifts (#/hr) 10000
My Rating 3.5
Alpine 3
SnowPark 2
Nordic 2
Hiking 3
Family 4
Apres Ski 2
Free Ride 2
Snow making N
Fun park Y
Snow park N
Half pipes N
Spa N

In Brief

Klewenalp is a small,  car-free resort, with beautiful views over Vierwaldstättersee (Lake Lucerne). When snow conditions are good it fully justifies an outing from Luzern, and makes a good alternative at busy weekends and half-terms to Engelberg.  The resorts serving the ski area include the small communities of Klewenalp (1600m) and Stockhütte (1279m),  served by cable cars from the larger villages of  Emmetten (755m) and Beckenried (455m) . Emmetten or Beckenried are both served by Postbus, while Beckenried is also accessible by ferry.  The runs to Emmetten and Beckenried are rated as yellow ski routes and can be avoided by taking the cable cars back down. A fun park is located  on the ski lift Klewes Ergglen.

This area is best for intermediate skiers and snowboarders, families or mixed groups. There are plenty of other things to do on the mountain, with a good selection of mountain restaurants, a Nordic trail, “airboarding”, four toboggan runs (one of which is 9km long),  several winter walking trails and boat trips to various places including Luzern.

A Central Switzerland season ski pass covers Klewenalp as well as another 14 ski areas, including Engelberg and Andermatt. A day pass costs around SFr 45 for adults, SFr 25 for children (free for children under 6), and there are creche facilities and a ski school.

The best way to access the winter sports facilities at Klewenalp is to take a train from Luzern to Stans, then take a bus from outside the station to Beckenried Post, opposite the ferry mooring. The train and the bus each take about 20 minutes and their timetables are co-ordinated with each other. The cable car is a short walk up from the bus stop. The bus goes on to Emmetten, and on your return journey you might prefer to finish your day there to pick up the return bus.

There is parking at the base stations.

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Braunwald

Car-free, family-friendly Braunwald is one of the easiest resorts to get to from Zurich, and is ideal for day skiing or a short break. Small and relatively low, the mostly South-facing 32km of piste are good for beginners and intermediates when the snow cover is good.

Ski Area Braunwald
Resorts Braunwald
Ski Region Eastern Switzerland
Piste (km) 32
Top run (m) 1910
Bottom (m) 1300
Max Drop 610
Snow’n’Rail Y
Black (km) 6
Red (km) 14
Blue (km) 12
Lifts (#/hr) 6600
My Rating 4
Alpine 2
SnowPark 4
Nordic 1
Hiking 2
Family 4
Apres Ski 1
Free Ride Y
Snow making Y
Fun park Y
Snow park
Half pipes
Spa

In Brief

Set in Glarnerland, off the main Glarus valley and South of Glarus itself, Braunwald (1256m) is separated from the less accessible Elm resort by the 2794m Kärpf mountain. Braunwald’s best attraction is the Snow’n’Rail pass, which means you can be here for a day’s relatively inexpensive skiing  in around 1.5 hrs from Zurich, changing at Ziegelbrücke and alighting in the Linth valley at Linthal Braunwaldbahn for the cable train to Braunwald. There is a car park at the bottom station too – Braunwald itself is car-free.

Since 2007 there has been a unique combi cable car equipped with both 2 seater chairs and 4 seater gondolas which takes you to the 1901m Gumen mountain restaurant, the highest point in the resort. The more challenging skiing is above Grotzenbüehl, below can be a little flat at times so boarders need to keep their speed up.

Braunwald is good for skiers and snowboarders, with plenty of flattering slopes suitable for beginners and intermediates, and is well suited to families. There are no particularly difficult runs, although there is some reasonable off-piste from Seblengrat down to Bächital. Braunwald can get a little busy at weekends and with South-facing slopes the best of the season is relatively short. The setting is superb, however with fabulous views over the Glarus Alps towards Tödi, at 3614m the highest peak in the Glarus Alps.

Recommended is the Adrenalin hostel (www.adrenalin.gl) in Braunwald, inexpensive and convenient. The Bellevue (http://www.maerchenhotel.ch/maerchenhotel/english.php) is a good mid-priced hotel, aiming particularly for families. Braunwald itself has received the Swiss Tourism Federation’s “Families Welcome” designation.

There are 25km of hiking trails, 4km of cross -country trails, a snow park, snow tubing, 2 sledge runs snowshoe walking, horse-drawn sleds  and a natural ice rink. Ski and snowboard lessons are available from the Swiss Snowsport School.

For Dutch-speakers, the Swiss Wintersports web site has details of this and other resorts in Dutch.

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Melchsee-Frutt

Best accessed by train from Luzern to Sarnen, and then by bus to Stöckalp since there is limited parking, this is a family-friendly resort which makes for a pleasant day trip with its well-priced passes and lovely sunny setting. Thee is something for all standards, but it is probably better for skiers than snowboarders as there are a few flattish bits, and the runs back down can be patchy for much of the season.

Ski Area Melchsee-Frutt
Resorts Melchsee, Frutt
Ski Region Central Switzerland
Piste (km) 32
Top run (m) 2255
Bottom (m) 1080
Max Drop 1175
Snow’n’Rail Y
Black (km) 8
Red (km) 6
Blue (km) 18
Lifts (#/hr) 7000
My Rating 4
Alpine 2
SnowPark 2
Nordic 2
Hiking 1
Family 3
Apres Ski 1
Free Ride Y
Snow making Y
Fun park Y
Snow park
Half pipes
Spa

In Brief