Grindelwald switzerland
Review of snowboarding and skiing in Grindelwald Switzerland.
Grindelwald Ski Holiday Facts
Established in 1886 the Swiss ski resort Grindelwald lies at 1034 metres altitude in the Bernese Oberland region of the Swiss Alps / Alpes. With the highest lifts and ski slopes at 2505m Grindelwald ski area is snow sure. Over 150 snow cannons ensure artificial Grindelwald snow making covers 90km of ski trails, which equates to around 50 of the ski slopes. The nearest airport transfer to Grindelwald (Switzerland) is Geneva at a distance of 210km or approximately 240 minutes driving time. Grindelwald ski season runs from December to December.
SNO-man says
A very pretty, historic, year round resort, the largest in the Jungfrau region, which includes Wengen and Mürren. It shares a ski area with Wengen, but also has its own First ski area. Famous for the Eiger with it's break taking north face, Grindelwald celebrated its 850th birthday in 1996 and the 60th anniversary of the First mountain railway in 2007. The first person to ski here was Englishman Gerald Fox who put his skis on in his hotel bedroom in 1881 and walked out through the hotel Bar to the slopes wearing them. Then followed the great and the good from around the world and today thousands of ski and snowboarding fans.
alpine downhill runs to ski in Grindelwald Switzerland
Beginner Trails
 0 runs 0km |
0% |
Intermediate Trails
 16 runs 50km |
29% |
Advanced Trails
 24 runs 81km |
43% |
Expert Trails
 15 runs 15km |
27% |
Grindelwald Resort & Holiday Info
| Beginners learning to ski |  |
| Intermediate Skiers | |
| Expert Skiers | |
| Snowboarders | |
| Apres Ski | |
| Family friendly | |
| Snowsure | |
| Ambience | |
| Value for money | |
| Ski Pass Prices (adult 6 day) | CHF314 - CHF314 |
Traditional Ski Village / Purpose Built Ski Resort |
| Ski Resort Opens | Dec 2012 |
| Ski Resort Closes | Dec 2013 |
| (snow conditions often influence resort opening & closing) |
Ski Area Grindelwald Mountain
| Downhill Ski Runs | 160km |
| total length of Grindelwald trails |
| Longest lift serve Run | 13km |
| longest piste or trail reachable by ski lift |
| Ski Slope Orientation | N S E W |
| direction Grindelwald ski areas face |
| Top Altitude | 2505m |
| top station of highest ski lift |
| Bottom Altitude | 945m |
| bottom of lowest ski run |
| Resort Altitude | 1034m |
| centre of Grindelwald ski resort |
| Vertical Drop | 1562m |
| total descent from top lift to bottom piste |
| Skiable Vertical | ^v 1562m |
| can include extra hike up which may be possible above top lift - stat used by some resorts to con us about true "vertical drop" which is lift-served |
Skiing in Grindelwald
Skiing Grindelwald you'll enjoy 55 pistes and trails and that means approximately 160km of ski runs. Grindelwald lifts number 28 with the capacity to uplift 33300 skiers up the mountain per hour. The longest ski run in the Swiss ski resort of Grindelwald is over 13km long.
Grindelwald Ski Area
Grindelwald ski area has 0% beginner ski runs or nursery slopes, 29% intermediate, 43% advanced ski slopes and 27% for expert skiers - the most difficult Grindelwald piste is the ?km Oh God (27) run, with a steepness/slope angle of ?%. You can ski Grindelwald after dark as there is night skiing on ?km of illuminated piste.
Grindelwald for skiing gets 3 stars out of 5 overall
Snowboarding in Grindelwald
If you snowboard Grindelwald you'll want to know that, of the 28 ski lifts in total, 9 are surface lifts or "drag lifts" - this gives a good indication of how modern the lift system is and well set up Grindelwald snowboarding is - especially for beginners learning to snowboard. Grindelwald snowboard facilities include 2 terrain parks and 1 half pipe (longest half pipe length is 80 metres), 1 quarter pipe and 1 boardercross courses.
Grindelwald for snowboarding gets 3 stars out of 5 overall
Grindelwald Apres Ski
The apres ski Grindelwald scene and off-slope or "non-skier" activities include:
7 apres ski bars 50 restaurants 1 bowling 2 night club 1 cinema 2 billiards / pool 1 games room 0 concert 5 indoor swimming 0 outdoor heated pools 17 saunas 9 hot tubs 1 solariums 4 masseurs 1 indoor ice skating 1 outdoor ice skating 1 indoor sports centre 0 indoor tennis 0 squash racquetball 9 sleigh rides 0 ballooning 0 horse riding 80 prepare winter walks 2 climbing 1 golf 0 fishing 1 museum 0 library Plus these additional apres ski facilities Curling, Ice Hockey, Nordic Walking.
SNO-man says
Grindelwald has a long history as a climbing village and Grindelwald Sports, the Mountaineering Centre, is one of the best in the world. They organise all kinds of activities for outdoor enthusiasts of all ages and abilities including glacier hikes and glacier walking tours of 1 -7 days, climbing courses, Summit courses and training courses on rock and ice. New ideas such as canyoning, bungee, gorge crossing, rafting and 'Spider highway', canyon-jumping and adventures in a glacial gorge.
Paragliding is offered by a number of instructors and still outdoors you will find 80km (50 miles) of cleared winter walking trails, guided snowshoe hikes through untouched winter landscapes towards the Eiger are offered by the Mountaineering Centre. There are also 10km of cleared winter hiking routes.
There are a number of toboggan runs, the longest 15km (9 miles) long from the Faulhorn (2681m) down to Grindelwald.
The major base for indoor sports is the Sports Centre where an indoor ice rink offers figure skating and hockey as well as four curling rinks. There is also an integral indoor swimming pool with sauna, solarium and steam bath as well as table tennis, billiards and a games room. There is also a new boulder room and indoor rope park.
Grindelwald has a cinema and a local history museum showing the history of climbing, mountain sports and alpine cheese making in the area. The Hotel Hirschen has two bowling alleys.
No visit to the area is complete without a cog-railway trip up to the Jungfraujoch, the highest rail station in Europe at 3454 metres (11,330 feet).
Grindelwald for apres ski gets 4 stars out of 5 overall
More Grindelwald Snow Ski Area and Resort Information
Grindelwald resort - ski Grindelwald by any other name
The Swiss ski resort of Grindelwald ski resort is also known as Grindelwald First, Kleine Scheidegg, Männlichen and has the following common misspellings:
Grindelwald ski area has ski slopes which face N S E W
The direction which the various Grindelwald ski slopes face can make or break your skiing or snowboarding holiday. If you want to guarantee good snow and ski conditions, you should choose a resort with ski slopes which face the right way for the time of year you're travelling.
- In the coldest winter months of January and February you need a ski resort with some sunny south facing ski slopes, so your days on the snow doesn't feel like a polar expedition. Conversely, in the warmest spring skiing months of March and especially April, a ski resort with some cool and shady north facing slopes will ensure you're not skiing on slush, but benefitting from best late season snow. The best ski resorts have ski areas and slopes which face in all directions so that you're guaranteed greating skiing whatever the weather. Grindelwald ski resort has ski slopes facing N S E W.
Grindelwald for snow gets 3 stars out of 5 overall
Grindelwald reviews, 3.5 star rating and resort and ski area information is collated by SNO man from staff experience and customer feedback.