Swiss winter sports fans take advantage of early snow 

A dozen out of the 200 or so resorts in Switzerland are reportedly open for skiing this weekend. © Keystone / Gian Ehrenzeller

Skiing and snowboarding fans are expected to flock to the Swiss Alps this weekend to take advantage of the early snow and cold temperatures.  

Around a dozen mountain resorts out of 200 are reported open across Switzerland this weekend. Davos and Arosa in the south-east of the country will open their lifts, as well as Andermatt and Engelberg in central Switzerland, and Adelboden-Elsigenalp-Metsch and Grindelwald-Wengen in the Bernese Oberland, according to Switzerland Tourism.  

They will join the Four Valleys (Verbier, Nendaz, Veysonnaz, Thyon, La Tsoumaz and Bruson), Saas-Fee and Zermatt in canton Valais, and Diavolezza-Lagalb in canton Graubünden, and the Glacier 3000 region (Les Diablerets-Gstaad) between cantons Bern and Vaud, which opened – or partially opened – last weekend.  

“It’s an early start to the season, but not a record,” Andreas Keller, spokesperson for the Swiss Ski Lift Association, told Keystone-SDA.  

Conditions vary considerably from resort to resort. In recent years, snow has been plentiful early in the season and at low altitudes; this year there have been big snowfalls at altitude, said Keller.  

Switzerland Tourism welcomes the early snow which “quickly attracts lots of visitors”, said tourism official Christoph Zwaan.   

The organisation is optimistic about the upcoming winter season. It predicts a small increase in the number of overnight stays (+2.3%) and day passes (+1%), based on forecasts by the KOF Swiss Economic Institute and figures from last year. The 2018-2019 winter season saw the largest number of skiers on Swiss slopes since 2010-2011.  

However, Christmas and New Year remain the most critical holiday periods for the tourism and hotel sectors, representing 25% of annual turnover, Keller said.