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Luxury Ski Chalets & Lodges Verbier, France

Ski chalets in Verbier

Verbier Overview

Switzerland

Countryside
Switzerland’s sunniest resort
Country Life
Parties and off-piste

The warm sun-soaked slopes of Verbier make for the perfect year-round resort and the nightlife in this part of the Swiss Alps is pretty hot stuff, too.

In winter the resort draws in the powder hounds attracted by some of the best off-piste skiing in Europe; don’t feel obliged to limit yourself to the 250 miles of spectacular ski runs. After you’ve spent the day making fresh tracks in the deep snow you can enjoy some of the best après-ski bars and clubs in the mountains. The party continues through the summer too; Verbier is ideal for canyoning, mountain biking and hiking amid the pristine Alpine scenery.

Local knowledge

Taxis
Call May Taxi (+41 (0)27 771 7771) or Taxi Rosset (+41 (0)27 771 1266).

Tipping culture
A service charge is included in menu prices but it’s customary to round up the bill or to tip five or ten per cent; whichever is greater.

Siesta and Fiesta
Verbier is famed for its après-ski; the party can be pretty raucous at Pub Mont-Fort. If you hanker for something a little more sleek and sophisticated then the Farm Club and Coco Club are suitably swish.

Cuisine
Fondues are delicious, often made from a combination of local Bagnes and Orsières cheese. There are meat, vegetable and simple bread varieties but we love the wild Alpine mushroom fondues the best. The local smoked pork and cured ham shouldn’t be missed and the region’s Cervelat sausages are fabulous. Rösti are local Swiss potato cakes that are often combined with bacon, onion or herbs and topped off with an egg.

Regional specialities
Swiss raclette is slightly different from its French counterpart but equally irresistible (after all, it was the Swiss who invented it). The Valais region is also famed for its air-dried beef. There are some excellent Swiss wines of which the fruity Fendant is the best known white; comparatively little is exported as the Swiss like to keep it for themselves.

Currency
Swiss Franc.

Time zone
GMT +1.

Dialling codes
Country code for Switzerland: +41. Verbier: (0)27.

Do go/don't go
Verbier is a year-round resort so it’s a good option of summer holidays, too. It also claims to be Switzerland’s sunniest resort and in all the time we’ve spent there the sun has shone.

Verbier Hotels

€ £ $

Our round-up of the hippest hideaways and romantic boutique hotels in Verbier



Getting there

Luxury Ski Chalets & Lodges Verbier, France

We give you the inside track on how to get to Verbier, one of the most accessible resorts in the Alps.

Planes
Geneva airport is a little under two hours away by car (www.gva.ch). Swiss Airlines from City airport is our favourite option. If you have your own plane – or know someone that does – you can land at Sion about 30 minutes away.
Trains
Getting to Verbier by train is perfectly possible. The journey to the resort takes three hours from Geneva airport and the nearest station is in Le Châble down in the valley. You can make the transfer to the resort by cable car which takes you up to the main ski lift station.
Automobiles
From Geneva take the motorway via Lausanne and Monteux to Martigny. Don’t be tempted to choose the cheaper hire cars on the French side of Geneva Airport as these don’t have the permits for the Swiss motorways. From Martigny take the E27 and follow directions to Verbier.
Luxury Ski Chalets & Lodges Verbier, France

Ski chalets in Verbier

Verbier Activities

Its network of rapid lifts make it particularly quick to get on the slopes in Verbier. When you’re raring to go you could be up, out and onto the mountain in record time.

Worth getting out of bed for

Verbier itinerary
More…

Viewpoint
At 3330 metres the summit of Mont Fort is the highest point of the ski area with views over the entire Swiss Valais region. From the cable car the last 40 metres is a narrow path of snow and rock which many venture along for the panorama.

Arts and culture
In nearby Martigny you’ll find the Fondation Pierre Gianadda which has fantastic mosaics by Chagall and sculptures by Rodin and Moore among its permanent collection. There are regular concerts as well as temporary exhibitions, too (www.gianadda.ch).

Something for nothing
The Train des Combins is a miniature train that trundles daily through Verbier in the summer, offering a free transport service through the resort. Kids will love it and although you might feel a bit silly it certainly beats walking uphill.

Daytripper
The small resort of Champex-Lac just down the valley towards Italy is often deserted even on a perfect powder day and its four lifts provide access to some great off-piste skiing. If conditions are not so good in Verbier they are very often the complete opposite on the other side of the San Bernardo Pass in Italy a short drive away.

Children
Verbier is a very family-friendly resort and is an ideal place to learn to ski; the Family Ski Pass even offers a 15 per cent discount. The Swiss Ski School takes aspiring Kings of the Mountains from the age of three. In the summer the Ski School also offer mountain biking, climbing, canyoning and even have a summer camp programme (www.ecole-de-ski-verbier.ch).

Activities
Verbier is ideal for intermediate and experienced skiers and has some of the best and most accessible off-piste skiing in the Alps. Stairway to Heaven is an outstanding off-piste run and the north face of Mont-Fort is not for the faint-hearted either. Heli-skiing is also a possibility in Switzerland. The resort has over 250 miles of ski runs and there are some less challenging slopes on Les Ruinettes and Savoleyres which are suitable for beginners. There’s a host of other activities including paragliding, ice climbing and skidooing as well as tobogganing on two 10-kilometre toboggan runs and snow shoeing on an exciting new network of trails, too. La Fantastique offers these activities (www.lafantastique.com).

And...
During the summer Verbier is popular with hikers and walkers. La Fantastique offers mountaineering, mountain biking and canyoning (www.lafantastique.com). You can also head for the hills on a quad bike with Quad Adventure (www.quadaventure.ch). There are over 250 miles of waymarked hiking paths across the Val de Bagnes; the route via La Chaux, Col Termin and Fionnay is fantastic – you may even spot an ibex. Trail maps are available from the Tourist Office in the main town square.

Diary

Late January Verbier Ride brings some of the world‘s best freeriders to La Chaux snow park. Early April The Verbier High Five competition combines giant slalom, moguls, parallel slalom, triathlon and boarder cross. Early July Verbier hosts a major beach volleyball competition – despite being landlocked and on top of a mountain. Late July The Verbier Festival stages an extensive programme of classical music concerts.

Luxury Ski Chalets & Lodges Verbier, France

Ski chalets in Verbier

Verbier
Eating, drinking and dancing

Verbier has an enviable reputation for après-ski and the town certainly knows how to party. We give you the low-down on the best bars and restaurants in the resort.

Cafés

(+41 (0)27 771 5444)

Offshore

Nowhere does better hot chocolate than this café right by the Médran lift. It’s a welcome sight at the end of a hard day’s skiing or a perfect way to start your morning on the slopes.

Offshore Café, Médran lift station, 1936 Verbier

Restaurants

(+41 (0)27 771 62 00)

Chalet d’Adrien

Unusually for Verbier, the celebrated, Michelin-starred L'Appartement restaurant at Hotel Chalet d’ Adrien specialises in Italian cuisine. It’s surprising there aren’t more considering Italy is just over the mountains.

Hôtel-Restaurant le Chalet d'Adrien, Chemin des Creux, 1936 Verbier

(+41 (0)27 771 6323)

Pierroz at Rosalp

Chef Roland Pierroz has established an unmatched reputation in the resort and serves perhaps the best French cuisine in Verbier. This Michelin-starred restaurant is ideal for a special occasion.

Hotel Rosalp, Route de Médran, 1936 Verbier

Bars and clubs

(+41 (0)27 771 6934)

Le Crok Bar

This sophisticated but pleasantly relaxed bar has great Alpine Modernist styling and is ideal for some cocktails before heading for Verbier’s nightclubs.

Le Crok, Route des Creux 22, 1936 Verbier

(+41 (0)27 771 4849)

Pub Mont-Fort

A lively and friendly bar which has been a mainstay of the seasonal (particularly the British) party scene for many a winter. Steer clear if you want to be on the slopes early the next morning.

Pub Mont-Fort, Chemin de la Tinte, Case Postale, 1936 Verbier


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