The article creates a great sense of the experience of Zermatt.
Here is a music video, called “Zermatt Day and Night” that also shares the feeling
https://youtu.be/OWSj9m8cvaI
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C'mon guys. The Swiss profited from dealing with the German's during the big one. The Germans at least were clear in their intentions. Money changers all. How about vail, Aspen, Tahoe?
2
Hello NYT - can you double check the map?
It seems as if you are placing the Matterhorn in Switzerland, while the mountain is in between Switzerland and Italy..
(I live in NYC but I'm from Valle d'Aosta, the "Italian" side.)
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The article is very good. But beware, Elsie's is always crowded and tables difficult to get. Also, because it is a bit expensive, the resort attracts richer people who generally feel entitled to behave a bit obnoxiously. No different from many other ski resorts, especially in the USA, but even so, be prepared and find your own space away from the hotspots. There are plenty of them on the ski-slopes.
6
I have been to Zermatt many times, and unfortunately, the photos used by the Times in this piece are very weak and do not come close to capturing the "vibe". Although the author suggests that one should "splurge", it appears that she was on a shoe-string budget and did not spend more than a day or two; Why not wait for Winter and the next snow storm instead of showcasing the cloudy skies and brown hills? What happened to the winter wonderland...?
10
Been there. Go if you can.
7
We cannot have our cake and eat it too.
We all agree that releasing carbon into our atmosphere is causing us great calm. The NY Times shows no mercy to the GOP and the Trump Administration by pointing this out, and calling them irresponsible on this front.
Yet here we are, agreeing that traveling to far-off places for pleasure, on commercial jets, is a wonderful and great thing to do, with no mention, ever, about the adverse effects such travel has on our air, water, and soil, and how it contributes to human-caused climate change.
Fun Math Fact:
A round-trip plane trip from New York to Switzerland will release more CO2, per passenger, than the CO2 emissions that passenger will save in an entire year if he/she has solar panels on his/her home.
That's right, a single round-trip vacation will erase your home's yearly solar panel CO2 savings.
Have a family of four and travel with them? You just demolished your CO2 savings.
So go ahead, keep pointing the finger and casting blame on the "others", while we make zero attempt to curb our own personal CO2 emissions, or become even the least inconvenienced by what we so easily and freely proclaim to be "the biggest existential crisis we face.".
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@James
I sure hope I don’t run into you at a cocktail party.
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Came back from there on Tuesday.
It was wonderful. Skied and dined and drank cold Cardinal beer.
The views are superb, the people we found to be friendly, and the skiing is wonderful. If the top is open to skiing, take the Gornergrat and make for a long great ski run. If the top is closed but you are still permitted to go up and ski, the Gornergrat will drop you off about 3/4 of the way up. It is a narrow, dense ski run down if the Gornergratbahn (a wonder of engineering that takes you up a long way) is busy.
Don't think you are going to escape the American scene though. Being an American, I thought Zermatt would be rather thin on Americans. We found, however, there were more Americans there than any number other than the Swiss.
Maybe it was a freak weekend. I don't know but it was quite astounding to see so many of my countrymen in one place.
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@Tom
Zermatt's inclusion on the IKON pass is likely for the big bump in Americans. My friends went there this year, and its inclusion on the IKON pass was the reason for their first ever trip to ski the Alps.
2
I arrived in Zermatt by train from St. Moritz on a 5 day train trip from Zurich to Zurich (Swiss Rail Pass) in 1983 and spent less than $75/day for lodging, food drink and ski pass. Stayed 2 days and headed on to Lausanne. Oh, those were the days!!
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@Ratburi Considering the USD was worth about double then and adding in inflation that would make around $250 per day. That still works today if you stay in the youth hostel.
5
Can I have your job? Please!!!
3
With travel restrictions and restrictions on large gatherings popping up around the globe, maybe it’s time for NYTimes to take a break from this type of travel article?
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What a difference a week makes in my own mind; between climate change and ongoing coronavirus coverage, this article seems like a tone-deaf pipe dream.
14
My one trip to Switzerland will always be remembered with fondness and admiration. It is a wonderful country to visit, or to be born in. The Swiss have done a lot of things right, and their country's natural beauty is impressive.
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I've always wanted to go there. At this point, I'd have to be within driving distance and I think I'd stay clear of the overcrowded bars and ski lodges.
1
I used to ski there in the 80's then I found Courchevel. Zermatt ski lifts are the most expensive in all Europe and the Swiss Germans are not always the most friendly. No mention of the Hotel de la Poste which is the favorite of my friends who still go there. No mention also that it is difficult to get there by train or plane even coming from Europe you have to plan a day to get there and a day to return.
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@Lawrence
Just returned in January, from a week in Val Thorens , part of the 3Vallee complex with Courchevel. The lower ski areas in France don't get that much snow it seems now. So we were based in Val Thorens, at 2300m, though skiing in January is a roll of the dice, for snow.
Better to head over there in late March. We had knee deep powder in 3Vallee last April.
Still my favorite is St. Anton in Austria. Take a 3 hour train from Zurich airport, and just walk up the hill, in St Anton to your accommodation. Smaller village, with quaint Alpine, family run inns (Pension). Miles of interconnected skiing , like 3 Vallee. French resorts OTOH have these large, tall, ugly condos.
Still, all these resorts have amazing, modern ski lift networks. In 3 Vallee, you can spend a whole day, just skiing from one side of ski lift network to the other.
4
It's a pleasant thought: car-free Zermatt. Though car-free, Zermatt crawls with vehicles providing services. Watch your step!
3
@Virginia Without vehicles though, the city would be largely inaccessible to the disabled.
1
for info, kirsch is not a liqueur. It is a brandy or eau-de-vie. liqueurs are sweet, brandies are dry. kirsch is dry.
4
Zermatt's a little harder to get to than, say, Aspen or Jackson Hole, but not all that much so. Why anyone who puts natural beauty first would ski at either American place over Zermatt is beyond me.
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@Fred White I know why. Most Americans did not work for the Nazi's in the last war and profit from it.
3
Only Japanese, Chinese and Americans come up with the idea of spending only 36 hours in Zermatt.
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@john fiva Very few people can afford to stay longer.
1
@john fiva I know, we are not that bright, by the way what was your dad up to between 1939 and 1945? Ask him.
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@worldaccord
Well Mr. world when I'm looking for what is just a decent hotel or motel room in Santa Monica, Ca. I'm paying more. A one day lift ticket costs 81 dollars in Zermatt, in Vail it costs 109 dollars. I'll bet you've never been to Zermatt otherwise youwould know better.
4