Cervinia/Zermatt, IT/CH, Feb. 4, 2024

[Sbooker]

Won’t do a specific report {but I as admin will} but went Cervinia/Zermatt today. It was all piste skiing and sight seeing basically.

Glacier is impressive.

It was surprisingly quiet.

Had a nice lunch.

A nice day on skis but I doubt I’ll be back. Got the photo with the Matterhorn. The lift layout seems disjointed to me with hardly any signage with directions. I’d take Serre Chevalier or Espace Killy any day over Cervinia/Zermatt. The 80 euro lift ticket seems overpriced despite the impressive lift infrastructure.
Oh. Saw a dog on a ski lift. A first for me.

 

[jasoncapecod]

I was in Zermatt a few years ago during Xmas break...Yea no off piste, still my daughter and I had a blast.. 80 euros is free, for what you get . you can't park and get a coffee at Vail for that price...
We also went during the summer to hike and ski...tremendous trip too

 

[Tony Crocker]

80 euros is free, for what you get

+1

Had a nice lunch.

Next time check out Chalet Etoile.

Our experiences in Zermatt/Cervinia have been quite different: loaded with powder both times. Cervinia is a very good powder area for intermediates, not that competitive on a blue sky Saturday in 2018.

The lift layout seems disjointed to me

The Gornergletscher is a big geographical barrier. If based in Cervinia you're not likely to ski the Gornergrat, Hohtalli or Rothorn sectors of Zermatt. Based in Zermatt you can easily go either side of the Gornergletscher.

 

[Sbooker]

Next time check out Chalet Etoile.

Was booked out.

 

[ChrisC]

Oh. Saw a dog on a ski lift. A first for me.

Telluride has a Gondola that is part ski lift and part pedestrian commuter lift linking the old town of Telluride and the newer Mountain Village.
It has designated dog-friendly cabins.

Next time check out Chalet Etoile.

There are two versions of Chalet Etoile: 1. Sit-down waiter-served section with a more extensive menu. 2. Inside walk-up/cafeteria with a more limited, less expensive set of delicious options (always some specials of the day)

When I discovered option 2 with its specials, it became a no-brainer always to go there.

However, food-wise, you cannot go too wrong anywhere in the Zermatt-Cervinia complex.

I’d take Serre Chevalier or Espace Killy any day over Cervinia/Zermatt. The 80 euro lift ticket seems overpriced despite the impressive lift infrastructure.

Coverage is looking a little thin. Hmmm. I thought more of the storms that hit Northern France/Switzerland might have made it to Zermatt, but I guess not. I guess this is why not a single yellow itinerary on the Zermatt map is open. By February, they should start opening. Not a good year.
Zermatt Interactive Map (Unfortunately, you must wait until business hours to see what is open/closed. Many resorts will use an 'expected' status vs. closed.)

Many years, Zermatt is simply a pretty place to cruise around on long pistes that may not be overly challenging, and great food. Other years, it's an off-piste paradise.

During Winter 2017/18, I arrived after Zermatt previously suspended access via train due to avalanches. They were not heli-skiing, but simply ferrying wealthy clientele trapped in Zermatt to the outside world. Happens every 30-50 years.

 

[Tony Crocker]

The amazing week Liz and I had at Zermatt in 2014 is looking more like an outlier. But we scored another powder day at Cervinia in 2018. Cervinia is less rocky, more intermediate, the kind of place that would work well for James on powder days as it did for us in both 2014 and 2018. I think Cervinia like much of Aosta does well on storms from the west as well as south. How much of that spills over into Zermatt I don't know as the pass between them is 11,500 feet. Neither place gets much from the north as there are way too many high mountains in between.

 

[ChrisC]

I had to check the snow report during Zermatt's 'business' hours. They have essentially no off-piste itineraries open. Well maybe one No wonder Skieric had some criticism of Zermatt. However, I think its conditions were well below Val d'Isere/Verbier/etc - the northern French and Swiss Alps. Winds likely did not help - but it looks like best terrain was no open either.

I am on the plane and heading back to Canada. My first trip to the Alps was fun, but a little disappointing with regards to conditions. I think Zermatt had similar conditions to what everyone experienced in other locations.
On the plus side: Amazing lift network with Trams, Gondola's, bubble chairs and trains everywhere. Very modern. Amazing scenery, lots of long groomers. Natural snow base appears to be about 3 feet in most areas. Appears to have lots of amazing off piste terrain on both the Zermatt and Cervinia sides if good conditions.
Negatives: Wind blasted off piste with virtually no where wind protected. Upper elevations were wind packed coral. Lower elevations did have a melt freeze. Very few black runs, almost not moguls, off piste was unskiable due to coral appearing wind blasted snow and lack of skier traffic on the off piste. It was a great experience, but I am not rushing back there.

List of open lifts/pistes Link

Screen capture of Zermatt interactive map - I put black 'X''s where yellow off-piste should be open. Pointed out the single itinerary open.

 

[jamesdeluxe]

Zermatt with nice June coverage two days ago. The only downside appears to be Sahara dust on some facets in the distance and that it got sticky at the very bottom, which is to be expected.

Has anyone here skied amongst lots of dust? Seems unpleasant, if only aesthetically.

 

[ChrisC]

I have seen dust on Telluride's slopes. Frightening when you just see a brown dust cloud coming from the Utah deserts - Moab/Canyonlands NP.

However, those storms are often accompanied by a lot of snow, which quickly covers them. They are typically a late-season phenomenon, but they become more standard as the deserts heat up.