Grindelwald

This is a charming resort situated under the majestic peaks of the Jungfrau, Eiger and Monch mountains which are famous for their dramatic scenery. Grindelwald is steeped in mountain history and oozes alpine charm and character. There is lots to do for the non-skier and the nightlife is also plentiful (although certainly there is no lager lout element here). There are over 200km of pisted skiing which is mainly suited to beginners and intermediates although there is enough challenging piste skiing and plenty of off piste to keep any expert happy for a week. Mountain restaurants as you might imagine are charming and the general pace of life much slower and more relaxing compared to the big French resorts. In short Grindelwald is something of an alpine treat.

Getting skiing used to be a rather slow and lengthy process using the old train from Grund station which sits below the main resort at 944m altitude up to Kleine Scheidegg which sits at 2,061 metres. However, there are two brand new gondolas that leave the base station in Grindelwald and these take just 15 minutes to reach two separate high altitude ski areas. The cost of the V-cableway was not far off £400 million but the results make a spectacular improvement to the ski holiday experience when staying in Grindelwald. The newer of the two lifts, The Eiger Express, which opened in 2020 rises to almost 2,400 metres altitude and is truly state of the art. However, devotees of Grindelwald still say the leisurely mountain ascent using the old mountain train is one of the charms of Grindelwald. Sit back and relax, enjoy the amazing scenery (as good as anywhere) and let the train take the strain.

The resort offers several key Instagram worthy locations that take in the most of the fabulous and unique mountain scenery. The First Cliff Walk by Tissot is suitable for all the family and is located at the summit of the First Gondola. The circular walk leads along the vertical cliff face taking in views of the Eiger Mountain on the opposite side of the valley. The walk ends with a 45m long footbridge that extends over the abyss. You'll need a good head for heights but the views are truly amazing.

Although not a place for partying till dawn (try Verbier, St Anton, Val d'Isere, Zermatt etc for that) there is quite a bit of life to Grindelwald, with live music in several bars and lots of in-town entertainment like the ice carving festival in January.