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Where is skiing cheapest and most expensive in Switzerland?

The Local Switzerland
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Where is skiing cheapest and most expensive in Switzerland?
Aletsch Arena is cheaper, and no less spectacular for skiing, than more expensive resorts. Photo by Switzerland Tourosm

With the Swiss ski season (almost) in full swing, it’s helpful to know how much you will have to spend in various resorts for the pleasure of dashing down the snowy Alpine slopes.

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Skiing (as almost everything else) is expensive in Switzerland, especially if you go to a resort with a family.

But as a new survey by Switzerland’s Cler Bank shows, prices of ski vacations vary a lot from one station to another.

You can “save a lot of money by choosing the right location”, the bank said.

Clerc compared prices for a family of four skiing in the Swiss Alps during the school winter vacation in February 2022.

Here are some of the findings:

Seven nights in a holiday apartment, including an eight-day ski pass, ski school, equipment rental, and tourist tax, will cost you about 3,500 francs in the Aletsch Arena (VS).

On the other hand, the same services in Zermatt (VS), Verbier (VS) and Saint-Moritz (GR) will exceed 5,000 francs.

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This is not including the price of food, transportation and entertainment.

The significant price difference has less to do with the quality of pistes than the resort's image.

“Premium destinations like St. Moritz are always more expensive than less well-known ski areas,” said Jürg Stettler, professor of tourism at the University of Lucerne.

“In these cases, cost is based on the resort’s reputation. But that doesn't mean it is better than cheaper places”, he added.

This chart gives a good overview of the week-long ski costs, including services mentioned above, for a family of four in various Swiss resorts.

Image: Cler Bank

And this chart shows how prices compare by region.

Image: Cler Bank

READ MORE: EXPLAINED: Everything tourists should know about skiing in Switzerland

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Price reductions are not uniform

Overall, skiing costs fell on average by 3 percent across nearly all Swiss regions in comparison to 2019, due to fewer people engaging in winter sports during the pandemic.

The most significant price reductions were recorded in Saas-Fee (9.4 percent), and in the region of Flims-Laax -Falera (8.1).

But four of the 14 areas surveyed recorded an increase in the total cost of a ski holiday: Verbier (+ 0.8 percent), Saint-Moritz (+ 1.8), Zermatt (+2, 6),  and Airolo (+3,8%).

Overnight stays decreased on average by 4.8 percent compared to the period before the pandemic.

The Andermatt-Sedrun (UR) ski area has recorded the biggest price variations: while student prices have climbed 48.2 percent, families of four are now paying 23.5 percent less.

Here too regional differences come into play.

A family of four can save 1,000 francs in Airolo (TI) and in the Aletsch Arena (VS), compared to Arosa-Lenzerheide (GR) and Zermatt (VS).

READ MORE: Winter sports: Swiss cable cars to introduce capacity restrictions

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