If they are confident enough start with the Chrüz, as there are plenty of runs of there that will keep you occupied. The Chruz does have a few bottlenecks and if it's crowded, and the speed merchants and the mobile obstacles known as snowboarders are out, there are always the tows on the left for them to get their confidence up.

Maybe look at a points card rather than a day pas though if you are going to spend time on the tows 1st. I'd love to go up but I'll be making curry at the Tandoori BBQ... but next weekend

__________________
How do you know if a Frenchman has been in your garden.... your rubbish is gone, your dog is pregnant.... but at least your cabbages are pest free

Always had confidence in you J, off-piste (or at least right beside it) is your challenge for this year!

Wow, just arrived back in Davos after the 'inbetweenseasonthing' called November... There is so much snow here right now Hoping conditions will be amazing tomorrow, certainly better than Chamonix where it rained every day...

if anybody feels like a trip, check out the link below or search us on www.davos.ch

Seriously though, sooooooo much snow

H&P - What link?

I hope the conditions are great as there should be plenty of snow now - last weekend was great.
I will be heading out tomorrow - I don't know what you mean by search you but always looking for someone to have a warm-up drink with. I will be solo tomorrow
Good luck to all.

We were getting powder turns already on November 20th in Davos. It's been a great early season.

Any place to snowboard close to Lausanne this weekend? I've checked and even on Glacier 3000 most of the slopes is not working (sic!). Any advice would be most welcomed as they are saying it's going to be a sunny weekend around Vaud.

For those in Vaud, I've just found out all skiing will be free in Villars on 18th.

Hello everyone. I was wondering if could anybody give me a recomendation for a ski resort not too far from Bern. I have read about Zermatt and about Portes du Soleil... Which one has better slopes? What about Grindelwald?
Thank you for your help!

Hello all, I'm looking for skiing class for beginner who never ski before. Is there a good class somewhere close to Zurich and not too expensive?

Monday.....Tuesday.....Wednesday....Thrusday.....T WO WEEK SNOWBOARDING VACATION!!!!! Wooo Hooo!

I thought I replied to this? Oh, well. technology 1 outrage 0.

From Bern you are best off skiing the Bernese Oberland resorts - Jungfrau, Adelboden/Lenk and Gstaad Mountain Rides. Portes du Soleil is big and Zermatt is great, but some people never ski anywhere else but the Jungfrau, it really is that good. I don't know your level of proficiency, but Grindelwald has the relatively quiet but under-rated First area, and also to the vast terrain it shares with Wengen. Wengen and Mürren are car free and have fabulous skiing, Wengen probably the better choice for beginners and intermediates. Adelboden/Lenk is a collection of ski areas with both resorts sharing a ski area that is an intermediates paradise. Gstaad also includes a bunch of fabulous resorts with Zweisimmen giving you access to what is probably the best of them from the gondola just at the bottom of the railway station.

If you fancy going a little further afield, Saas-Fee and Aletsch are extensive areas good for beginners and intermediates just across into the Rhone Valley, and there's a pleasant linked area between Les Diablerets and Villars which is also good for beginners and intermediates. For advanced skiers, Verbier, Val D'Annivers and Zermatt are probably my recommended destinations out of Bern.

You probably have about fifty resorts within an hour or so by train, bus or car from Bern, so you're spoiled for choice.

No idea what experience level you're at! But in a nutshell:

Grindelwald is the closest to Bern of the three you mentioned; it's about an hour's drive each way. Good size skiing area (actually all three are large), good variety of runs. The initial gondola ride up to Männlichen (if you want to ski on that side) can be really crowded and you may experience delays getting up onto the slopes if you catch it at the wrong time, but once you're up there, there's plenty of space for everyone. There are some good black runs and plenty of less challenging runs, too. There's even a childcare facility right on the slopes at Männlichen, if that's important to you! IMO, the most convenient option for you, it's an easy day trip.

Zermatt is a beautiful resort and is high, with pretty much guaranteed snow (I skied all the way down to the village a couple of weekends ago). Not really a good option for a day trip from Bern (it is doable, though: something over two and a half hours each way, all up, including the moto-rail and train ride from Täsch to Zermatt), and accommodation is expensive. Excellent network of red runs. Good black runs are in short supply. Great off-piste skiing, especially up around Klein Matterhorn.

Portes du Soleil is just under two hours' drive from Bern. It's the largest interconnected network of ski runs in Europe but is not hugely challenging; mostly intermediate runs. Off-piste can be quite good but as the resorts are not all that high, snow quality is variable and you may need to rely heavily on luck: a good recent snowfall and continuing low temperatures! You have the option to stay in France if you want cheaper accommodation.

Have fun!

Hey everyone, I'm heading out to Les Diablerets this weekend and just hand a quick question.

Do you wear a beanie under your helmet?

Hope it's not too much of a rookie question but I've never been snowboarding in the mountains or anywhere where there was much of a risk of injury.
Thanks

For warmth? No, but once it gets to under -25 C with high winds, I tend to pull my hood over the helmet. Helmets tend to be plenty warm until that sort of temperature, and their point is to fit snug; no room for a thick beanie underneath.


Onto other matters - I wonder if the Engelberg ski jump competition this weekend causes any congestion on the slopes and lifts. Any observations?
Wouldn't mind a day of deep snow...

//ata

I don't know if you've seen this already but the New York Times had an article last week about the 'secret' resort of Disentis and its massive off-piste. Can anyone here confirm that?

http://travel.nytimes.com/2010/12/12...pagewanted=all

yep, Disentis is one of those places that rocks and being that bit more difficult to get to is generally quieter too. I particularly like it Easter time, but anytime from now on should be good. Definitely worth a visit.

I got back from my first trip yesterday! It was my first time snowboarding in the mountains as there aren't any mountains where I'm from in Kansas, just big hills. I had a blast. I went with Unil to Diablerets. First day was a lot of fun and I made quite a bit of progress and the second day our instructor had us try some short powder runs! The powder is definitely awesome and I now know why everyone is so crazy about it. Glad to be in Switzerland where the pistes are just a short train ride away and not 10 hours by car.

Hi folks,

Newbin in Zurich from next month. I love my skiing, so where do I head to with my skiis for some fun?

www.iscz.ch

still have some open places for ski lessons. Good low cost way of learning here and they have good social events too.

Hey you're arriving at the perfect time for winter ski season! One good option is Flumsberg, direct train from Zurich and about 90min journey. Nice and easy with ok ski area for a start