It's too cold folks to go stomping off to the big mountains this weekend, so why not make the most of skiiing and sledging in our little region? All accessible by public transport and covered by your TNW card.

Sledging and cross country skiing - Wasserfallen http://www.wasserfallenbahn.ch/de/

Bring your own sledge or rent one. Lots of mountain gasthofs means lots of opportunity to warm up. Train to Liestal and bus 70 to Reigoldswil.

Skiing at the two lifts at Langenbruck. Open this weekend. http://www.skilifte-langenbruck.ch/skigebiet.htm Also a beginners/childrens' tiny piste with tag lift further out of the village (on the right as you come in from direction Basel). Train to Liestal, little red tram to Waldenburg and bus to Langenbruck. There are a couple of cafes in Langenbruck for refreshment.

Skiing Weggenstetten http://www.stvwegenstetten.ch/skilift/ (not technically Baselbiet) at moment shut, but with the snow outside, imagine it will be opening this weekend - check website. Also accessible by public transport. My personal favourite. Great piste for beginners/children with a club house right at the bottom of the piste (plus toilets!) Log burning stove and children's corner in the club house make it very comfy for any non skiers (better than Langenbruck). Also a small area roped off for sledging (just children .. slope not too long). Parking by the piste but do not come in a car without snow tyres ... down a farm track that is uncleared and a one way system means you exit by going steeply up the valley before turning back to the village. Expect some slipping and sliding!

Please correct me/add any others you know about in the immediate Basel area.

Have fun!

PS: At Weggenstetten there is a 10 min walk from bus stop to piste so good idea to wear other boots and carry skis/ski boots. Placesto stash walking boots just inside the hut at Weggenstetten.

Wasserfallen Fondue and Schlittel Plausch Friday 3 February. Cable cars working throughout evening until 11pm. Sledging by good weather (path lit with torches). Book a place for fondue as these winter evenings are brilliant fun and really popular (we have been twice .. often live yodelling/alpen horns while you eat )

Weggenstetten update .. now opening on Saturday 4 February 13.30 to 16.45. We'll be going ... pm me if anyone interested so we can meet up. (have a 9 year old skier and 4 year old sledger)

Weggenstetten was as lovely as ever this afternoon (but cold wind!). Warmly recommend the Café Fertig Creme liquer to warm you up.

Open again tomorrow from 9.30am. The 101 bus goes direct to Weggenstetten from Gelterkinden (train from Basel to Gelterkinden).

What did you do today?

Went sledging at Bruderholz as too lazy to go any further

You say Weggenstetten caters for skiing beginners ... can one rent the equipment there?

Alas no.

I wouldn't say it is ideal for total beginners .. there is no magic carpet so you have to waddle/take your skis off to walk back up the slope to ski down (although the bottom part of the slope is a perfect gradient for beginners). But it is ideal if you have already done a couple of sessions on skis and want to graduate to getting a hang of using the lift and coming down very very gently!

Otherwise try Langenbruck .. last year there was a magic carpet lift on a tiny piste just outside the village. Cannot find any web info as to whether it is still there this year. Again however, there is nowhere suitable to hire skis.

So if you are ski-less, going sledging at Wasserfallen instead!

Edit: I think it was a tag lift actually .. for sledges and skiers.

Within Basel, Bruderholz, ( as we found today) is a super place to go sledging for families, kids and grownups.
ECB, many thanks for all those other tips.

In previous years, I have seen families having fun sledging down a hill at the side of the National cycle trail between MUttenz and Pratteln.

Just got back from Langenbruck. Lovely morning. Not busy. Half day cards from 13.30 are 22Chf for adults and 14 Chf for kids. Both lifts are open and snow is about 20 cms at bottom and 25 cm at top.

Thanks for the great info. I've put a link to this in the Sports-Activities 'Wintersports' Sticky so that it can be found easily another time - maybe it will snow again next year.