The best places to ski in Switzerland this season

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Switzerland has always led the ski pack. In 1864, St Moritz hotelier Johannes Badrutt convinced summering British travellers to return in winter. When they arrived over the Julier Pass, wrapped in furs, they were greeted by rifts of snow, crowds of ivory summits and air that sparkled like Champagne. Quickly, the buzz spread beyond Graubünden and ski tourism in the Alps was born.

Ever since, skiers have been enraptured by the country and its heaven-reaching limestone and gneiss peaks. The scenery hasn't changed — with the likes of Jungfrau and the Matterhorn exemplifying the Alpine ski landscape — but so much else has. Skiing here now comes with world-first cogwheel railways and open-top, revolving gondolas, eyrie-like hotels and adventures offering a sense of escape. What next? The general trend seems to be that whenever a ski town on the world map does something new, a resort in Switzerland will go one better.

This season, the news falls into two categories: the upgrades, of the sort that see historic hotels evolve and machinery streamlined; and the newcomers that seem like blessings to the resorts in which they've arrived.

In Laax, Europe's capital of gravity-defying hijinks, there's a reborn freestyle academy (read more in the following feature), while the 2025 FIS Freestyle World Ski Championships returns to the Swiss Alps for the first time in a quarter of a century; visit St Moritz between 17 and 30 March 2025 to see the world's best skiers battling the drops and dizzy heights of the Corvatsch and Corviglia ski areas.

Shiny new hotels will also loom large on the Swiss landscape this season, with buzz-worthy openings including the Grand Hôtel Belvédère in Wengen, and a revitalised Hotel Mürren Palace in Mürren, while the Revier Hotel brings modern cabin chic to glitzy Saas-Fee. As will renowned architect Mario Botta's reimagined restaurant in Glacier 3000 near Les Diablerets. With such constant transformation, those who feel they know the icy summits of the Swiss Alps may find a less recognisable landscape than they expected. But happily, that seems like an inspiring place to begin a love affair with Switzerland all over again.

Here's where to hit the Swiss slopes this season.

Best for foodies Swiss food is often pictured as a cheerful carb-loading stereotype, fuelled by classic dishes like fondue, raclette, rösti and spätzle. But if you're seeking something more refined, head for The Alpina Gstaad. The passion at the valley's standout hotel is for tasting menus that waltz between forkfuls of lake perch, quail and Swiss shrimp, found at Michelin-starred restaurants Sommet by Martin Göschel, and Megu, headed up, respectively, by chefs Martin Göschel and sushi master Tsutomu Kugota. To work off those calories, Gstaad has four separate mountain areas to chew on — and for steep slopes and deep powder, you'll want the first lift up the Wasserngrat.

Best for trendsetters Overlooked by the three grandest mountains in the Alps — Jungfrau, the Mönch and the Eiger — this region shoulders much of Switzerland's showstopping scenery. And it's best sampled this season at Hotel Mürren Palace, the country's original VIP hotspot — now tastefully modernised — and Wengen's Grand Hôtel Belvédère, the first five-star bolthole on the sunnier side of the Lauterbrunnen Valley. Offering new-school Swiss hospitality, the latter comes armed to the teeth with saunas, a hammam and both indoor and outdoor pools.

Best for snowboarders The dominant mood here this season is of exhilaration, as the first-of-its-kind freestyle academy has reopened following a major overhaul. In the age before half-pipes and parks, everything was simply downhill, now it's all about slopestyle culture. Accordingly, the indoor training campus returns with a vertical ramp, trampoline with 360 cameras for video analysis and a kingsize skate bowl to practice tricks in. So now the gnarliest of ski bums can hone their skills before graduating to the world's biggest superpipe, on piste.

Best for beginners Multinational operator Vail Resorts is a latecomer to resort ownership in Switzerland, but swift changes are expected at this beloved all-rounder mountain town during the brand's first season in charge. What's unlikely to change, though, is the carousel of activities on offer. Come to watch the Men's Alpine Ski World Cup in February, then stay for skiing on the sun-facing south pistes, as well as ice skating on the Ycoor rink, tubing and dog sled rides.

Best for late-season bookers The Four Vallées offers some of Switzerland's most snow-sure slopes, but also pistes that work hard at staying open even when others have turned their thoughts to summer. And next April, a month-long festival will combine T-shirt powder days with an art summit, a street festival on Rue de Medran and themed sporting events. Expect half-empty slopes beneath soaring ridges, and don't forget to apply that suncream.

Best for big changes In the canton of Obwalden, skiers are anticipating a seismic shift. The Titlis Project promises to reinvent the crumpled horn of the resort's signature peak over the next few years, with a newfangled Herzog & de Meuron viewing tower, a new party-piece top station and an additional cable-car from Stand to Titlis opening by the start of next season, offering swifter slope access. In short: new perspectives on peak experiences.

Best for city breakers Zurich is a city that's increasingly seducing British travellers. The lakeside setting is exquisite, the Old Town rewards with chocolate-box aesthetic and, moreover, the certainty of the train schedule means a handful of resorts are within easy reach. Head for the starch-white groomed slopes of Atzmänning, just 55 minutes away, or for bigger thrills try Flumserberg, where it's just 70 minutes from Zurich's station to the slopes.

Best for high-altitude thrills With a view of the Col du Pillon mountain pass, skiers can now dine in this two-storey design palace created by Ticinese architect Mario Botta. Glacier 3000 replaces the previous venue that was ravaged by a fire in September 2023 — and is now powered by 600 solar panels, making it one of the most sustainable buildings in the Alps. From here, you can tackle the Black Wall, Europe's newest and steepest groomed run, or work off lunch on easier high-altitude blue and red runs, with a drone's eye-view of the largest ski area in the Alpes Vaudoises.

Best for off-pisters New lifts mean new horizons, which should bring adrenaline to the veins of those who opt to ski the Saas Valley this season. To get onto the high-altitude glaciers beneath the Allalinhorn, the world's highest metro has been reconstructed, while the new Hanning cableway opens up touring routes and accessible off-piste. Equally impressive, the rest of the 62-mile ski area is best for intermediates and those who like an eyeful of 13,000ft peaks as a backdrop to their turns.

Best for spa-lovers Too many tourists knocking about in Zermatt and St Mortiz? Then consider heading instead to unsung Pizol in the yodel-echoing Rhine Valley in eastern Switzerland. The Tamina Gorge was a playground for Heidi author Johanna Spyri, while the mineral-rich bathing waters and thermal springs of basecamp village Bad Ragaz are among the very best in the world. Up on the slopes, Pizol dazzles with more than 30 miles of eerily quiet slopes, a freeride park and lift tickets that let you ski and spa in one blissful, muscle-soothing combo.