Engelberger (Mountain of Angels), one of the oldest ski resorts in the country, owes its name to the current Benedictine abbey. Located in central Switzerland, 35 km from Lucerne and 90 km from Zurich, this resort is perfect for both beginners and more experienced skiers. It will not leave indifferent snowboarders either.
How to get to Engelberg
Flight to Zurich, then by train with one change in Lucerne. The transfer time is 2 hours 40 minutes, it is inconvenient to get from Geneva and almost twice as long.
Engelberg Hotels
According to ALLCITYCODES, the resort has 33 hotels and guesthouses, as well as numerous apartments and chalets. Most of the hotels here are categorized as 3* or 4*, which compares favorably in price to their pompous neighbors in the Alps. Engelberg can be safely recommended to those who wish to ride in Switzerland and not go broke.
Engelberg trails
The resort has two separate ski areas. The first, recommended mainly for beginners and family skiing, is the Brunni zone (Brunni, 1860 m) on the northern slopes of the valley with a height difference of more than a kilometer and five lifts: cabin, chairlift and three tows. There are 12 km of slopes (5 km of “red”, 7 km of “blue”) and training slopes.
The second, main skiing area is located to the south and has an interesting relief – first, two huge plateau steps: Gershnialp (Gershnialp, 1250 m) with tow ropes and “blue” training trails. Above is an even wider step of the Trübsee (Trübsee, 1800 m) with a frozen lake, from where you can climb in the cabin to the rather difficult slopes of the northern slopes of Titlis (the upper station of Klein Titlis (Klein Titlis, 3028 m)) or by chairlift to the Joch pass (Jochpass, 2207 m). From the pass you can climb the slopes of Jochstock (Jochstock, 2564 m), go down the tracks to the southern hilly and sometimes gentle slopes towards Engstlenalp (Engstlenalp) or back to the north and rather steeply down to Trubsee. In total, the southern zone is served by 21 lifts, including one rail and 6 cabin lifts, there are 73 km of marked trails with a clear predominance of difficult ones.
Snowboarding enthusiasts also have a place to turn around here: Terrain Park with half-pipes, big-airs and a quarter-pipe next to Joch and a fun park on the Shtand slope.
There are also 41 km of cross-country ski trails, 45 km of marked hiking trails and three toboggan runs (elevation difference 300 m, length 2500 m) in the resort.
The real highlight of the Engelberg area is the possibility of a 12-kilometer descent with an altitude difference of 2000 m – from Titlis via Stand (Stand, 2428 m) and Trubsee directly to the resort.
- Slopes of Engelberg
Entertainment and attractions of Engelberg
Mount Titlis is the highest point in central Switzerland and a favorite tourist destination. The orientable rotating cabin of the Rotair offers impressive views. On the mountain itself there is a glacial grotto, a glacier park and a panoramic restaurant with the highest pizzeria in the world.
Even at the resort, you can make an excursion to the Benedictine monastery, as well as to places associated with the campaign through the Alps of the Russian army under the command of Suvorov.
The city has a sports center with an indoor swimming pool, a solarium, tennis and badminton halls, an ice rink and a wall for climbers. In the evenings, resort guests are entertained by a casino, three discos, shops and boutiques, about 40 bars, cafes and restaurants in the village – plus another 20 restaurants in the mountains.
Sports activities: paragliding, ski jumping, tobogganing, carving, hiking, climbing, go-karting, bobsleigh and snowblading. At the Trubsee station (1800 m) there is a cross-country skiing stadium.
Developments
In November Engelberg hosts competitions of the world’s leading snowboarders – Ice Ripper Style Trophy and Ice Ripper Snowboard Camp, at the end of December – the European Cup in ski jumping at night. An equally exciting spectacle is the Speed Race at the end of December for those who know how to ride stylishly and fall equally stylishly. Dozens of skiers and snowboarders gathered outside Engelberg’s ski school begin their descent at nightfall on the site where ski jumpers usually land. The distance is short, but the race is not as easy as it seems: one fall can cause a “domino effect”. The resort hosts two other exciting events in January and April: Rolling Stones at Surfers’ paradise and SAAB Salomon Crossmax series, respectively.
