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Zermatt Glacier Paradise

ThinkSnow

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Anyone ski Zermatt in the off season? I am heading there in May, and hope to get in at least one day of glacier skiing. Any info would be helpful.
 

thetrailboss

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I did in May 2002. That is pretty dated. We were there last February/March.

Overall, it is an AWESOME place to visit. The skiing is overall pretty good, but depends on how much snow they have. At the very least, you have maybe two T-Bars and about 500-1,000 vertical on the very upper part of the area right under Klein Matterhorn. It is set up so that you upload via the Gondola or Trams to this upper base area. The terrain is relatively low angle. Go on a clear day and the views of the Matterhorn will blow you away. I know that there are a lot of race training camps up here. I also know that the high speed chair (can't remember if it is a quad or six-pack) also is high enough so that it may be open. Don't expect a lot of off-piste options. It is pretty much lower angled groomers on the glacier served by the upper-most tram and T-bars. And Cervinia was not open when I visited in May 2002. It is only Zermatt and only the Klein Matterhorn area. The Gornergrat is open for touring and hiking but not skiing.
 

benski

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I was there this winter. Its cool place and there were tons of mountain bikes, clearly the locals bike a lot. They are building a gondola to replace the summer tram, which will be a huge improvement if you wait another year.
 

rocks860

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I was there in the winter of 2003 so not much insight into off season skiing but the place is amazing


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

Hawk

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In May there are tons of different options in Europe. They had good snow this year so there should be some good skiing. Places like Chamonix and Verbier are more know for the spring skiing but I bet you will find good skiing in Zermatt. Like anywhere, it's hard to say exactly what will be open or good. They could have a warm up with tons of rain that will limit the terrain. I would figure out the phone number to the local guide service in Zermatt and call them 2 weeks out for a good terrain update. They are not like the tourism bureau that will tell you whatever you want to hear. They will not lie because they are all about their reputation.
 

Zermatt

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I was there this season, right after the big snow....I know nothing about what happens in May. I think in the next two weeks they really wind down operations and probably has nothing to do with how much snow they have.

Right now there is tons of snow there, check out the webcams. Everything is 100% open and even the town is still buried.

In May I assume everything above Trockener Steg will still be open, including the Gletscherbahn. If not, you are just doing laps on the top section of the tram and the T-Bars. That terrain is a hard green at the most.

If you want to know anything else about Zermatt let me know, I just don't know what off season operations are like.
 

Zermatt

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I was there this winter. Its cool place and there were tons of mountain bikes, clearly the locals bike a lot. They are building a gondola to replace the summer tram, which will be a huge improvement if you wait another year.

Can't imagine that will make a bit of difference in May. Will the 3S Bahn even run in the summer? The primary purpose is to reduce winter crowds heading to Italy.
 

benski

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Can't imagine that will make a bit of difference in May. Will the 3S Bahn even run in the summer? The primary purpose is to reduce winter crowds heading to Italy.

I think it will replace the summit tram. I 3s lifts very nice. Much better than that tram, even if the trans aren't filling up.
 

Zermatt

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I think it will replace the summit tram. I 3s lifts very nice. Much better than that tram, even if the trans aren't filling up.
The tram stays as a backup and for overflow. It's easy to miss but the tram still runs at peak times from Zermatt to Furi and Furi to Trockener Steg...it's actually faster than the gondola since it bypasses the whole section up to Schwarzsee.
 

benski

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The tram stays as a backup and for overflow. It's easy to miss but the tram still runs at peak times from Zermatt to Furi and Furi to Trockener Steg...it's actually faster than the gondola since it bypasses the whole section up to Schwarzsee.

I can see that. It wasn't running during Christmas though, so when? I thought they were backups or more wind resistant to some types of wind.
 

Zermatt

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I can see that. It wasn't running during Christmas though, so when? I thought they were backups or more wind resistant to some types of wind.

You may have just missed it, I've only seen it run in the morning when there are big lines for the gondola. Maybe just an hour or two. I don't think it was running when we there in late January, but I have seen it during peak weeks in February. I've tried to ride it but always seem to miss it as well.
 
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