Patrick Thorne writes for InTheSnow (http://www.inthesnow.com/feature/skiing-tracks-rich-famous/) about some of the celebrities who ski.
There are some interesting gems. Apparently Prince Charles took Princess Diana to learn to ski in Lichtenstein – presumably Malbun – to avoid the media expecting them at the Walserhof Hotel in Klosters, well known as a royal favourite. Prince Harry, it is claimed, prefers St Moritz, as does King Carl Gustav of Sweden. Charlie Chaplin was reputedly the first man to drive to St Moritz in the winter and Alfred Hitchcock kept a suite at the Palace Hotel for many years.
Sophia Loren, however, preferred Gstaad and the Gstaad Palace. David Niven was a near neighbour, choosing to winter in Chateau D’Oex.
I am not sure how many of the rich and famous actually ski at Davos during the World Economic Forum (21–24 January 2015), but you could do worse.
George Michael stayed at the Ferienart in Saas-Fee, Switzerland, 30 years ago to film the video for Last Christmas.
Sie haben Ski-Sprache zu verstehen?
And now for some German to use in a ski resort. Much of Austria and all of Swiss German-speaking Switzerland, speak in a dialect all but incomprehensible to a High German speaker. Fortunately they learn High German at school and will understand and welcome your attempts to communicate in the language. In Romansh areas, High German is also understood.
| General Phrases | |
| Careful! | Vorsicht! |
| Help! | Hilfe! |
| Avalanche! | Lawine! |
| Attention! | Achtung! |
| Sorry! | Sorry! |
| Excuse me. | Entschuldigen Sie. |
| Please. | Bitte. |
| Thank you | Danke / Merci (CH) |
| Hello | Grützi (CH) / Grüss Gott (A) |
| Do you speak English? | Sprechen Sie Englisch? |
| At the ski or snowboard school… | |
| I would like lessons | Ich möchte Unterricht |
| ski lessons | Skikurse |
| snowboard lessons | Snowboardkurse |
| private tuition | Nachhilfe |
| an English-speaking instructor | ein Englisch sprechender Lehrer |
| At the lifts… | |
| I want a lift pass for 1 day. | Ich will einen Skipass für einen Tag. |
| I want a lift pass for 1 week. | Ich will einen Skipass für eine Woche. |
| In a ski shop… | |
| ski boots | Skischuhe |
| ski poles | Skistöcke |
| skis | Ski |
| a snowboard | ein Snowboard |
| snowboard boots | Snowboardschuhe |
| ski gloves | Ski-Handschuhe |
| ski goggles | Skibrille |
| socks | Socken |
| sun cream | Sonnencreme |
| lip salve | Lippensalbe |
| I’d like to hire skis. | Ich möchte Skier mieten. |
| I’d like to buy a snowboard. | Ich würde gerne ein Snowboard kaufen. |
| How much is that? | Wie viel ist das? |
| Can you write it? | Können Sie es schreiben? |
| My boots hurt me. | Meine Stiefel verletzt mich. |
| My shoe size is… | Meine Schuhgrösse ist … |
| I weigh… | Ich wiege … |
| I want to ski. | Ich möchte fahren. |
| I want to snowboard. | Ich möchte Snowboard. |
| I am a beginner. | Ich bin ein Anfänger. |
| I am an intermediate. | Ich bin ein Zwischen. |
| I am advanced. | Ich bin fortgeschritten. |
| Some phrases you might need on the slopes… | |
| Where is… | Wo ist … |
| cable car | Drahtseilbahn |
| gondola | Gondel |
| chairlift | Sessellift |
| draglift | Schlepplift |
| ski bus | Skibus |
| train | Zug |
| restaurant | Restaurant |
| self-service restaurant | Selbstbedienungs-Restaurant |
| piste map | Pistenplan |
| blue run | blaue Piste |
| red run | rote Piste |
| black run | schwarze Piste |
| off-piste | abseits der Piste |
| closed piste | geschlossenen Piste |
| no entry | kein Einlass |
| icy | eisig |
| snow | Schnee |
| powder | Pulver |
| mogul | Mogul |
| rock | Rock |
| tree | Baum |
| And afterwards in the bar… | |
| beer | bier |
| red wine | rotwein |
| white wine | Weisswein |
| mulled wine | Glühwein |
| A beer, please | Ein Bier, bitte |
French words and phrases for skiers and snowboarders
As promised here are some useful phrases to get by in French-speaking ski resorts.
| General Phrases | |
| Careful! | Attention! |
| Help! | Aidez-moi! |
| Avalanche! | Avalanche! |
| Attention! | Attention! |
| Sorry! | Désolé! |
| Excuse me. | Excusez-moi. |
| Please. | S’il vous plaît. |
| Thank you | Merci |
| Hello | Bonjour |
| Do you speak English? | Parlez-vous anglais? |
| At the ski or snowboard school… | |
| I would like lessons | Je voudrais leçons |
| ski lessons | cours de ski |
| snowboard lessons | cours de snowboard |
| private tuition | cours particuliers |
| an English-speaking instructor | un instructeur anglophone |
| At the lifts… | |
| I want a lift pass for 1 day. | Je veux passer un ascenseur pour un jour. |
| I want a lift pass for 1 week. | Je veux passer un ascenseur pour 1 semaine. |
| In a ski shop… | |
| ski boots | chaussures de ski |
| ski poles | bâtons de ski |
| skis | skis |
| a snowboard | un surf des neiges |
| snowboard boots | bottes de planche à neige |
| ski gloves | gants de ski |
| ski goggles | lunettes de ski |
| socks | chaussettes |
| sun cream | crème solaire |
| lip salve | pommade pour les lèvres |
| I’d like to hire skis. | Je voudrais louer des skis. |
| I’d like to buy a snowboard. | Je voudrais acheter une planche de snowboard. |
| How much is that? | Combien est-ce? |
| Can you write it? | Pouvez-vous écrire? |
| My boots hurt me. | Mes bottes me font mal. |
| My shoe size is… | Ma pointure est … |
| I weigh… | Je pèse … |
| I want to ski. | Je veux faire du ski. |
| I want to snowboard. | Je veux faire du snowboard. |
| I am a beginner. | Je suis un débutant. |
| I am an intermediate. | Je suis un intermédiaire. |
| I am advanced. | Je m’avançai. |
| Some phrases you might need on the slopes… | |
| Where is… | Où est … |
| cable car | téléphérique |
| gondola | gondole |
| chairlift | télésiège |
| draglift | téléski |
| ski bus | ski-bus |
| train | train |
| restaurant | restaurant |
| self-service restaurant | restaurant self-service |
| piste map | plan des pistes |
| blue run | piste bleue |
| red run | piste rouge |
| black run | piste noire |
| off-piste | hors-piste |
| closed piste | piste fermée |
| no entry | entrée interdite |
| icy | glacé |
| snow | neige |
| powder | poudre |
| mogul | mogul |
| rock | rock |
| tree | arbre |
| And afterwards in the bar… | |
| beer | bière |
| red wine | vin rouge |
| white wine | vin blanc |
| mulled wine | vin chaud |
| Can I have a beer? | Puis-je avoir une bière? |
The Best Three Star Hotels in the Swiss Alps
Last winter the Swiss newspaper, the Sonntags Zeitung, published a list of the best hotels in Switzerland. The full article is here, but I have listed what they consider the best three star hotels:
1. (Last Year: 4) Alpine Lodge,Saanen-Gstaad BE
Tel 033 748 41 51,alpinelodge.ch
Doubleroom from 360 Fr.
2. (1) Waldhaus am See,St. Moritz GR
Tel 081 836 60 00, waldhaus-am-see.ch
Doubleroom from 310 Fr.
3. (3) Romantik Hotel Schönegg, Wengen BE
Tel 033 855 34 22, hotel-schoenegg.ch
Doubleroom from 380 Fr.
4. (2) Krone, La Punt GR
Tel 081 854 12 69, krone-la-punt.ch
Doubleroom 250 Fr.
5. (5) Misani, Celerina GR
Tel 081 839 89 89, hotelmisani.ch
Doubleroom from 230 Fr.
6. (6) Jungfrau, Wengernalp BE
Tel 033 855 16 22, wengernalp.ch
Doubleroom from 440 Fr.
7. (8) Hotel Kernen,Schönried-Gstaad BE
Tel 033 748 40 20, bruno-kernen.ch
Doubleroom from 320 Fr.
8. (-) Chesa Randolin,Sils Baselgia GR
Tel 081 830 83 83,randolins.ch
Doubleroom from 236 Fr.
9. (11) Eienwäldli, Engelberg OW
Tel 041 637 19 49,eienwaeldli.ch
Doubleroom from 280 Fr.
10. (-) La Couronne, Zermatt VS
Tel 027 966 23 00,hotel-couronne.ch
Doubleroom from 256 Fr.
11. (7) Sporthotel, Pontresina GR
Tel 081 838 94 00, sporthotel.ch
Doubleroom from 250 Fr.
12. (13) Bella Vista, Zermatt VS
Tel 027 966 28 10,bellavista-zermatt.ch
Doubleroom from 235 Fr.
13. (12) Parkhotel Schönegg, Grindelwald BE
Tel 033 854 18 18,parkhotelschoenegg.ch
Doubleroom from 340 Fr.
14. (16) Alphubel, Saas-Fee VS
Tel 027 958 63 63, hotelalphubel.ch
Doubleroom from 314 Fr.
15. (15) Chesa Grischuna, Klosters GR
Tel 081 422 22 22,chesagrischuna.ch
Doubleroom from 439 Fr.
16. (20) Alpenblick, Fiesch VS
Tel 027 970 16 60,hotelalpenblick.ch
Doubleroom from 150 Fr.
17. (9) Le Mont Paisible,Crans-Montana VS
Tel 027 480 21 61, montpaisible.ch
Doubleroom from 220 Fr.
18. (14) Romantik Hotel Muottas Muragl, Samedan GR
Tel 081 842 82 32,muottasmuragl.ch
Doubleroom from 240 Fr.
19. (18) Adler, Adelboden BE
Tel 033 673 41 41,adleradelboden.ch
Doubleroom from 308 Fr.
20. (19) Müller Mountain Lodge, Pontresina GR
Tel 081 839 30 00, hotel-mueller.ch
Doubleroom from 300 Fr.
21. (24) Meisser, Guarda GR
Tel 081 862 21 32, hotel-meisser.ch
Doubleroom from 230 Fr.
22. (17) Bodmi, Grindelwald BE
Tel 033 853 12 20, bodmi.ch
Doubleroom from 294 Fr.
23. (10) Homann,Samnaun-Ravaisch GR
Tel 081 861 91 91,hotel-homann.ch
Doubleroom from 290 Fr.
24. (21) Europe, Zinal VS
Tel 027 475 44 04, europezinal.ch
Doubleroom from 200 Fr.
25. (25) Alphorn, Gstaad BE
Tel 033 748 45 45,gstaad-alphorn.ch
Doubleroom from 252 Fr.