Life on the Piste - The Swiss Traveller's Guide.

SWISS “flies” to Zermatt for winter culinary delights           The meals served to First and Business Class travellers on SWISS’s long-haul flights from Zurich will bear the hallmark of Zermatt, the famous winter sports resort in Switzerland’s Canton Valais, from December onwards. The creations of the Findlerhof alpine restaurant for SWISS First customers and the Chez Vrony mountain restaurant for SWISS Business guests mark the latest three-month chapter in the award-winning “SWISS Taste of Switzerland” inflight culinary programme.       With their extensive use of various local produce, the new meals offer travellers a wonderful opportunity to experience the Valais flavours and traditions. And Business Class guests on selected European services will also sample the delights in February of the region’s “Tschäggättä” custom. Whether it’s on the sun terrace with a magnificent view of the mighty Ma...

New for 2014 is a PEAK PASS from the Swiss Travel System.   If you are going to purchase a 4 or 8 day Swiss Pass from us at www.swisspasses.com you get the opportunity of upgrading to the new special PEAK PASS.   The new Peak Pass is the same as a Swiss Pass but also gives you unlimited travel up 8 different mountain peaks in Switzerland! Eight Peaks Opening times Mt. Allalin (3500 m/ 11,482 ft) 1 January–25 April & 27 June–31 December Mt. Brienzer Rothorn (2351 m/7713 ft) 7 June–26 October Mt. Cardada (1671 m/5482 ft) 1 Jan.–2 Nov. & 20 Dec.–31 Dec. Mt. Corvatsch (3303 m/10,836 ft) 1 Jan.–4 May & 21 June–19 Oct. & 22 Nov.–31 Dec. Mt. Niesen (2362 m/7749 ft) 19 April–16 November Mt. Rochers-de-Naye (2042 m/6699 ft) 1 January–31 December Mt. Säntis (2502 m/8208 ft) 8 February–31 December Mt. Stanserhorn (1898 m/6227 ft) 12 April–16 November Allalin: The Allalinhorn (4,027 m) is a mountain in the Mischabelhörner group of the...

Deep Purple at SnowpenAir 2014   SnowpenAir is a brilliant rock festival held every year since 1998 at Kleine Scheidegg in the Jungfrau region (between Grindelwald and Wengen)   On 5 April 2014, the English rock band Deep Purple will appear at the SnowpenAir concert on Kleine Scheidegg. Advanced ticket sales have now started.     After Joe Cocker, Amy Macdonald, James Blunt, Bryan Adams, OneRepublic, Roxette and many other stars, SnowpenAir have again booked a group that has worldwide success . Deep Purple will make their second guest appearance on 5 April 2014 on Kleine Scheidegg at 2000 metres above sea level.      Since this is also in the height of the ski season for the Jungfrau area it is an ideal opportunity to combine a ski holiday with us and the concert too! Kleine Scheidegg only is accessible by mountain railway. You travel to Grindelwald or Lauterbrunnen via the Bernese Oberland Railway. The Wengeralp Railway trav...

Event History For two consecutive years the riders of Team Europe and Team Americas fought for glory in the SWATCH SKIERS CUP held in the snowy arena of Valle Nevado, Chile. After losing the inaugural 2011 edition, Team Americas battled back in September 2012 to even the score at 1 - 1, adding more intensity to the rivalry of this cutting-edge event.   This winter the tie will be broken when the SWATCH SKIERS CUP comes to the Northern hemisphere for the first time, in Switzerland, with the teams set to meet in Zermatt , Switzerland on Sunday, 5 January 14 - Friday, 10 January 14     ZERMATT: ALPINE EPICENTER One of the most respected ski centres in the world, Zermatt, Switzerland is as unique as it is recognizable. It is here that the most impressive peaks and largest glaciers in the Alps come together with cutting edge skiing infrastructure and an unmatched five-star village expe...

OTP Swiss Holidays are exhibiting at the new Manchester Ski Show from 25th to 27th October 2013 at Event City - our stand number is E81 Ski Show 2012   We would be delighted if you could come and visit us and discuss your holiday requirements (skiing, MTB, Road Biking, Christmas Markets) and we will be selling Swiss Travel System tickets too. We have a free Prize Draw on the stand with a 2-person apartment for a week anywhere in Switzerland as the prize - including cross-Channel or Transfers!  For every booking made at the show we will also give a free £20 voucher to be used in high street stores! To make it even easier to come and visit us we have a special DISCOUNT CODE which will give £5 off every adult ticket when booked online. Simply go to www.skiandsnowboardshow.co.uk and use discount code OTP5  Looking forward to seeing you there! Information: for directions to Event City, just click on http://www.eventcity.co.uk/ At www.otp.co.uk we offer ...

SWISS EPIC is the new 6-day mountain bike stage race for teams of two. Participants will enjoy a week-long mountain bike challenge on Switzerland’s most beautiful mountain trails fully embracing the experience and flow of riding without needing to arrange baggage transport, meals and accommodations. It’s all taken care of.   DATES: the event will take place annually in September, during Switzerland’s warm and breath taking golden autumn. Premiere: 15th to 20th September 2014    ROUTE: the racecourse is predominately situated on fluid, diverse and technical single trails and country roads in the Swiss Alps. On the trails participants will experience the breath taking views and picture perfect panoramas for which Switzerland is renowned.   Switzerland’s Touristic highlights set the scene in which the country’s natural beauty and cultural diversity play centre stage.    The route of the SWISS EPIC race encompasses some 400 kms and 15...

The Eiger Ultra Trail - the race along the foothills of the Eiger (18th to 20th July 2014) The Eiger 3970m and its North Face fascinate climbers and trail runners likewise. In 1858 the local mountain guides Christian Almer and Peter Bohren together with their client Charles Barrington were the first to reach the summit. The Eiger Northface, the last of the big walls in the Alps, was conquered in 1938 by Anderl Heckmair and Ludwig Vörg as well as Heinrich Harrer und Fritz Kasparekt in a four day ascent.  In August 2008 Ueli Steck burst all imaginable boundaries with his solo Speed Record attempt on the North Face in no more than 2 hours and 47 minutes. 20th July 2013 was the start of the 1st Eiger Ultra Trail in Grindelwald. 3 trails with a total of 168 kms and over 10'500m in height awaited 1,155 trail runners from 27 countries. All trails, distances and the altitudes were checked and guaranteed. Trail E16 - The Pleasure Trail  The trail E16 is suitable for ...

Swiss trains are known for being among the fastest, and most efficient trains in the world. While this holds true for most of them, certain lines around Switzerland are purpose built, to enjoy a slow, relaxing, and scenic journey through the country. These trains are known as the 'Scenic Routes' and the 15 or so train journeys provide breathtaking panoramic views of many beautiful parts of Switzerland, whilst also taking you to your next destination in comfort and pleasure. One of our most popular excursions is the Glacier Express. This train will take you from St. Moritz to Zermatt (or the reverse!). A day of travel through unspoilt mountain countryside, deep gorges and lovely valleys, through 91 tunnels and over 291 magnificent bridges. You can also choose to book a quality 3 course lunch on board for the trip. The Glacier Express train links in with the MGB (Matterhorn Gotthard Bahn). The MGB is a metre gauge railway in the Canton of Valais, Switzerland. Its 44...

New this season, OTP is offering skiers a chance to try out the latest ski models in Zermatt, and get an early start to the season - and it has just snowed 30cm up top too! The first ski testing will take place on the weekend of 5th-6th October, followed by the weekends of 12th-13th and 19th-20th October. As of 26th October, the test centre will be open every day until and including Sunday 1st December 2013 and available at www.otp.co.uk/viewer/special-offers/ski-testing At the test centre on Trockener Steg, skis are adjusted to your personal ski boots in a matter of seconds. Ski fans can try out the latest models manufactured by the following 13 companies: Atomic, Blizzard, Dynastar, Elan, Fischer, Head, K2, Movement, Nordica, Rossignol, Salomon, Scott and Völkl. Don’t forget: The skiing season across the border in Italy (Cervinia/Valtournenche) will open on 1st November 2013, which is also the date when the two ski regions in Switzerland (Zermatt) and Italy will be linke...

The DH Safari we offer is a fantastic holiday for Downhill Riders with 6 different downhill courses in 6 days in the Rhône Valley and mountains. We spent the day over at one of those resorts to take the time to film one of the easier routes to give you an idea of that might be install for you. Crans Montana has a few different tracks all with differing challengers.  The track in the video is the red route which is long, fast and flowing while also being pretty flat. There is also another 2 black courses that cross each other all the way down. They offer a steeper, more technical challenge but along with that bring slower speeds. Just at the base of the bike friendly lift station is a North Shore area and bike park, this offers differing levels of height and narrow wooded sections and also a differing level of sized drops and offer something for everyone. The black courses are more like the track we have in Zermatt, therefore we choose to spend our time on the flowing track on...

DH riders are in for a new treat! The Sunnegga lift now provides special watches which show riders how fast they come down the DH course. The watches can be obtained free of charge form the Sunnegga lift base station, however, only a limited number of watches are available. Riders normally pay extra for the transport of bikes. CHF10 per day is added to the normal lift ticket price. When travelling with OTP this is reduced to CHF5 for the whole day - or FREE with a day pass. Getting bikes onto the funicular is easy – the first compartment is reserved for bikes and is at the lowest level (no steps). At the top you are at the correct level to roll to the start of the DH course.  Underground watches ~ how they work: 7 sensors are buried under the DH course from Sunnegga to Zermatt. On the special watches, they show DH riders how much time needed for each individual section. Zermatt DH Holidays are offered at www.otp.co.uk and the Zermatt DH course is also o...

This week both Jeff and Matt (MTB guide) were invited over to Grindelwald, Switzerland in the famous Jungfrau region, nestling at the base of the Eiger. Matt was exploring the region for the MTB trails and Jeff was arranging the logistics for this area. Matt went up the Grindelwald First gondola and decided that it would be good to try out the Grindelwald Flyer before even getting on his bike! This is a zip wire fun activity with 4 parallel zip wires so you can race each other. Meanwhile, I was in my first meeting... Matt continued up and hunted down and tracked the amazing MTB trails available up there before stopping for a delicious lunch in a cute mountain restaurant hidden in the trees up the mountain but with a stunning view over the village and Eiger. Meanwhile I was in my second meeting... Matt then descended to the village and to Grindelwald Grund and was having such a good day decided to ride up to Kleine Scheidegg (at the base of the Jungfrau), rather than take the con...

With the snow melting in the village, the start of the summer brings the fantastic summer skiing in Zermatt! Check out what skiing in July is like over at  https://www.facebook.com/OTPHolidays .