Engelberg

Engelberg

Engelberg is little known and under-rated even by its home-nation; this quiet resort has huge skiing among striking mountains and one of the biggest vertical drops – 2,000m – from the top of the lift system to town. Arriving among the impressive Belle Epoque hotels of this sleepy town you can still see why Engelberg’s founding father, a wandering monk, stopped in his tracks, had a vision and set up a monastery. It’s not just the dramatic Hahnen peak spreading wing-like snowfields to the south, but a huge sweep of crags that almost surrounds the town. Beneath the highest summit to the west is the Titlis glacier, a vast north facing deep freeze so well stocked with powder that Engelberg is fast becoming the ski-bum’s resort of choice for consistent and easy to find deep-snow thrills.The chief drawback of Engelberg – that the town is resolutely not built for skiing, with a two-minute shuttle bus ride or fifteen minute schlep on foot to the main lift station – is a small price that accomplished skiers seem happy to pay and even the series of long rides to reach the very top pale into insignificance when the size and quality of the descents is taken into consideration. For others these are significant issues, particularly for advanced intermediates who’ll rapidly eat up the pistes but won’t be able to take advantage of the off-piste terrain on the other side of the fence.Despite these shortcomings, it’s a puzzle that Engelberg isn’t better known: within an hour of Lucerne and its densely populated surroundings, and with good connections from further afield, this is one of the easiest-to-reach ski areas in Switzerland and it comes with more than 80 km of piste and a good snow record. The tentative plan to form a lift link with the Meiringen ski region to the west would put Engelberg in the major league though its growing profile in recent years suggests it will be making an international impact even without the expansion.

The off piste possibilities in this resort are incredible. Please talk with us about a guide recommendation. Proximity to Zurich also makes it perfect for short breaks as transfer is short or you ca take the train.

We are grateful to our valued client, Mr. Peter B., for his review of the resort following a Feb 2018 visit:-

Engelberg proved to be the perfect destination for our plans to get some quality off piste skiing done. Although the lift and piste network is not as extensive as many of the major French resorts we have been used to, the off-piste is second to none! During our bad visibility day we found some great runs through the trees in Brunni but when the weather cleared the main Titlis area provided some incredible skiing.

The famous 1000 metre descent, single pitch Laub face did not disappoint but for amazing scenery and variety the Steinberg route under the Titis cable cars really made us feel we have fallen on our feet this time. Hard to believe that both of these world class routes were eclipsed by the Galtiberg route – 1900 metre descent down a hidden valley with alpine panoramas to rival anywhere. We managed a short tour on the last day which took us into some amazing country but with or without skins Engelberg offers world class skiing.

As a town Engelberg has 3 lively apres ski bars but things go a little quiet after 8 o’clock which suited us as by the time we had eaten our age was catching up on us anyway! There are a number of restaurant options but booking is wise in high season and at weekends as the town is still quite small but retains a traditional Swiss feel.  We travelled back out to Zurich by train which itself was a nice experience and a very easy transfer. Suffice to say we can’t wait to go back!

Accommodation & Après Ski

There are some excellent bars and pubs, some with live music; the infamous Yucatan Music Bar, the Eden Bar, the Spindle and Terrasse. There is also a wide variety of restaurants to choose from.

Other activities include:

• 3.5km toboggan run from Gerschnialp
• Horse drawn carriage rides
• Indoor swimming pool with sauna, solarium and steam baths
• Excellent sports centre with tennis, badminton, curling, ice skating and gym
• Paragliding
• Snowshoeing
• 38kms of prepared walks
• 36kms of cross country skiing in the village and on the mountain
• Night skiing