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Verbier 4Vallées
The iconic Alpine ski area
It’s all a question of attitude and Verbier has plenty! Yes, it’s loved by digital nomads, and is cosmopolitan and delightfully festive, but the region’s real claim to fame is its incredible ski lifestyle — both on and off-piste.
Travelling by car over winding roads is a thing of the past… why not take the Le Châble cable car instead? Clinking softly in the early morning light, the cable car’s altimeter reading rises steadily until it hits 1,531 m as you step off in Verbier. Here the sun-soaked mountains, which surround this iconic ski resort and its snow-covered rooftops, are a harbinger for good times, velvety ski runs and breathtaking natural scenery.
Verbier is just the first stop for mountain sport lovers, who then hop on the Médran gondola towards the area’s winter wonderland. The last trees disappear behind blanketed hills, tracks barely visible. The next stop is Les Ruinettes, which towers over Verbier’s expansive valleys from its 2,191 m ridgeline. To the west, Savoleyres (2,344 m) offers a similarly breathtaking panorama, with slopes that gaze upon the Grand Combin mountain range, while the Dranse de Bagnes river sparkles from across the valley.
The summits’ call
On your left: Les Attelas (2,734 m) and the solitary Mont Gelé (3,023 m), the starting point for two official freeride routes. To the right: La Chaux’s superb snow park with five lines (including kickers, rails, boxes, and an airbag), the Col des Gentianes (2,894 m), and Mont Fort (3,330 m), the highest local peak. It’s a different world up here, one sharply shaped by tectonic forces and softened by a blanket of ice and snow. Take in a breathtaking 360° view of the Valais Alps, which sweep from the Grand Combin (4,313 m) east to La Dent Blanche (4,357 m), all the way to the peak of the Matterhorn (4,478 m). There’s only two ways down from this Everest: a non-packed, black diamond run… or Europe’s longest zipline, which runs until the middle of winter (expect nose freezing when you hit 130 km/h!).
The largest ski area in Switzerland
To understand Verbier is to see the wood for the trees: five other interconnected sister ski resorts that span four majestic valleys. Bruson in the wooded shade, the lowest altitude queen of white snow days. La Tzoumaz (1,508 m), a sledder’s delight. Nendaz and Veysonnaz, which boast a family-friendly appeal (1,400 m). And ski haven Thyon, culminating at 2,100 m at the gateway to the iconic World Cup run “Piste de l’Ours” (the Bear Track).
Crossing cliffs, valleys and ravines, an intricate network (of 80 cable cars!) connects this universe, creating the largest ski area entirely in Switzerland. There are close to 100 recorded runs and freeride itineraries spanning some 410 km. Tracks interweave, link up, lose one another and then are found once again. The network seems to be forever expanding and connecting, from top to bottom and side to side, from the forest’s shadows to the summit’s bright sun.
Into the wild
So far, we’ve only covered one side of the coin. On the other lies a mountainous galaxy to discover and overcome… The 4 Vallées — with Verbier in the spotlight — is one of Europe’s best freeride destinations, celebrated every year on the Bec des Rosses during the mind-blowing Freeride World Tour. In this parallel universe, muffled by penetrating silence, the white expanse encompasses everything. Punctuated by steep, immaculate (and, at times, treacherous) drops, the only soft landing here is a blanket of snow and fresh powder that line and redesign the rocky outcrops lurking below. Here you are always short of breath, suspended between the void, the bumps, and the rush of adrenaline.
Classes and rigorous training ensure safety. Not to mention at least a dozen secured and marked yellow slopes, which guide a path for beginner thrill seekers. Over time, the most experienced may choose to tackle the legendary backside of Mont Fort… A journey beyond oneself, in the kind of raw natural setting that’s rare in today’s world.
