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

Taking place every January in the picturesque Jungfrau region is the 4 day event known as The Inferno down hill race. First starting in 1928, it has rapidly become one of the most exciting down hill races to watch, as well as being considered the largest amateur ski race in the world! This nerve-wracking race requires participants to set off out of the starting gates and to hurtle down the piste over several lips and into a series of S-bends at high speed. Boasting a large 15.8km stretch, The Inferno starts at the top of the Schilthorn (where you can also find the revolving restaurant  Piz Gloria ) 2,970m up from the finish in Lauterbrunnen. The course is compiled of mainly black runs and is suited more to the all round skier. This is because there are different sections which require varied skill sets. For example, the upper section requires downhill turning with optimal lines and the middle section requires downhill speed and fast gliding. Each c...

As the more pleasant weather approaches we’re given the opportunity to take a look away from the covered cities and the mountains with their gradually receding snowlines, and one of my favourite fairer weather attractions has to be the Rhine falls at Schaffhausen. Lying in one of the Northern most parts of the country, an hours train ride from Zurich, the falls are located on the High Rheine between Germany and Lake Constance and are believed to have been formed in the last ice age, approximately 14,000 to 17,000 years ago. One of the most intriguing aspects is the formation of the falls themselves, during the Wurm Glaciation, the Rhein was pushed to a channel far south of its existing course, and the previous courses of the river, now filled with gravel, can still be seen. As well as being accessible from Zurich by train, if you have the time for it, there is the fantastic river cruise along the Rhein you can take afterwards, either the full 5 hours to Kreuzlingen on the sho...

This year Pilatus is 125yrs old! The railway that goes to the top of Mount Pilatus is one of the main attractions in the Lucerne region and central Switzerland. This year it is 125 years old. swissinfo.ch got aboard to discover the secrets of the steepest rack railway in the world.  The train makes its ascent from the station at Alpnachstad, on Lake Lucerne. It’s a steep climb at a brisk pace that takes the visitor up one of the most spectacular mountains in Switzerland – and also one of the most mysterious. For centuries, Mount Pilatus was shunned and feared as a haunt of ghosts, gnomes and dragons. It is still the stuff of fairy tales for children. A particularly forbidding presence that discouraged climbers was Pontius Pilate himself, after whom the mountain is named. According to legend, the soul of the Roman governor who condemned Christ to be crucified haunted one of the lakes in the area. In 1387, fear of the ghost – which was thought capable of causing violent stor...

The Matterhorn gets lit up! To celebrate the 150th anniversary of the first successful ascent of the Matterhorn on 14th July 1865 by Edward Whymper, the Matterhorn is now lit up at nights - and looks amazing! Six years later, on 22 July 1871, Englishwoman Lucy Walker became the first woman to climb the Matterhorn – wearing a long flannel skirt as was appropriate for a Victorian lady. Her ascent was seen as a jewel in the crown of female mountaineering. Next year Zermatt will celebrate the epic pinnacle dubbed 'the mountain of mountains' and the alpine tradition of climbing it with events, experiences, festivities and special offers. The main player on this stage besides the Matterhorn is the Hörnli Hut - a mountain hut located at the foot of the north-eastern ridge of the Matterhorn, 3,260 metres above sea level, which will reopen in July 2015, and many other events are planned as part of the celebrations. You can ski in Zermatt every day of the year and there...

Your team! We are very proud to present your team who will be looking after you when you come on holiday with us this winter. GRINDELWALD: Will Bishop From Ampthill in Bedfordshire and with a BA in Business & Marketing, Will is the Resort Manager for OTP in Grindelwald and the Jungfrau region. 23 years old and with a strong skiing background and a definite 'people-person', Will is a top guy to ensure your holiday is the best!   NENDAZ, Les 4 Vallées: Tom Darlison     From Birstall in Leicestershire and with a BSc in Sports Therapy, Tom is the Resort Manager for Nendaz and the 4 Vallées region. 23 years old and a keen footballer, Tom is going to be an excellent person to show you the region and make sure your holiday runs smoothly.        SAAS-FEE: Tom Senior    From Ravenshead, Nottinghamshire, many of you will know Tom - OTP Senior Resort Manager and back again to charm you in Saas-Fee. Now a qua...

OTP Swiss Holidays & SwissPasses.com are exhibiting at the Manchester Ski Show from 24th to 26th October 2014 at Event City - our stand number is D22  Ski Show 2013 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 in Switzerland as the prize - including cross-Channel or Transfers!  We even have 2 for 1 Transfer Tickets on sale at the show to make your Swiss holiday even better value!  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 30 ski destinations in Switzerland along with MTB Holidays, Road Biking Holidays, Christmas Markets, Golf Safaris and City Breaks. www.swisspasses.com is a leading supplier of Swiss Travel System passes an...

Les 4 Vallées ski area is back! Just announced that one of the largest ski areas in the world, Les 4 Vallées, is secured at least for the next 18 years, following agreements between the lift companies of NENDAZ, VERBIER, VEYSONNAZ and THYON.  Once again from this winter your full area ski pass will cover over 400kms of pistes and 100 lifts to 3330m in altitude with NENDAZ's glacier, MONT-FORT.  OTP is the longest established Tour Operator in Nendaz Les 4 Vallées and offer a range of holidays thoughout the area at www.otp.uk The piste map can be viewed at http://bit.ly/1lPMuNo Come and join us skiing in the huge 4 Vallées area, with easy access from all Swiss airports!

Saas Fee is due to welcome its first hostel, wellnessHostel 4000. Due to open on the 5th September this year with 168 beds and at the entrance of the village next to the Postauto bus stop. The unique architectural design and direct access to the new spa and gym facilities in the Aqua Allalin leisure centre are certainly going to make this a fantastic place to stay!  wellnessHostel 4000 Being the very first hostel in the glacier village of Saas Fee, the idea had to be innovative and break new ground in the village. The hostel combines the typical laid back atmosphere and low prices of a your hostel with the modern requirements of a wellness centre and fitness facilities. With a great mix of contemporary architecture, easy going hospitality,  sustainability as a way of life and high quality aspirations make up an offering whose informal style unites guests from all over the world. restaurant 4000  – fresh and regional Laid...

Now is the time that everyone is looking at planning their trip to Switzerland for this coming Autumn and winter (hopefully with OTP!) Below we have listed various UK airports and the airlines that fly to Switzerland, to make it a little easier for you to plan your trip.   British Airways ( www.ba.com ) London City London Gatwick London Heathrow   easyJet ( www.easyjet.com ) Belfast Birmingham Bournemouth Bristol Edinburgh Glasgow Leeds/Bradford Liverpool London Gatwick Luton Manchester Newcastle Southend Stansted Flybe ( www.flybe.com ) Southampton Jet2 ( www.jet2.com ) Belfast East Midlands Edinburgh Manchester   Skywork Airlines ( www.flyskywork.com ) Southend SWISS ( www.swiss.com ) Birmingham London City London Gatwick London Heathrow Manchester Remember that SWISS include 23kgs of luggage allowance PLUS a ski / snowboard bag PLUS a boot bag so sometimes it is worthwhile looking at the national...

As the more pleasant weather approaches we’re given the opportunity to take a look away from the covered cities and the mountains with their gradually receding snowlines, and one of my favourite fairer weather attractions has to be the Rhine falls at Schaffhausen. Lying in one of the Northern most parts of the country, an hours train ride from Zurich, the falls are located on the High Rheine between Germany and Lake Constance and are believed to have been formed in the last ice age, approximately 14,000 to 17,000 years ago. One of the most intriguing aspects is the formation of the falls themselves, during the Wurm Glaciation, the Rhein was pushed to a channel far south of its existing course, and the previous courses of the river, now filled with gravel, can still be seen. As well as being accessible from Zurich by train, if you have the time for it, there is the fantastic river cruise along the Rhein you can take afterwards, either the full 5 hours to Kreuzlingen on the sho...

Zermatt Unplugged Zermatt is set once again to host the brilliant Zermatt Unplugged festival from the 8th - 12th of April. Founded in 2007 by Thomas Sterchi and Marco Godat as a singer and songwriter festival, Zermatt Unplugged has increasingly developed into a meeting point for fans of unadulterated sounds. Musicians and bands such as Suzanne Vega, Chris de Burgh, Alanis Morissette, Billy Idol, Lionel Richie, Jason Mraz, Stephan Eicher, OneRepublic or Mando Diao have been inspired by the Unplugged idea, and have performed on the Marquee and Club stages of the festival. Zermatt Unplugged is the only festival of its kind in Europe, and is promoted by some of the major organisers in the Swiss festival scene. The stages this year are as wide and varied as ever:  The Marquee Stage, the Club Vernissage, the Sunnegga Sessions, the Mont Cervin Palace, 5 New Talent Stages and new The Alex as well as the Gandegghütte cabin in the Matterhorn glacier paradise ski ar...

This year will bring us the 32nd edition of the glacier downhill races here in Saas Fee, on the 4th and 5th April. Participants from all over Europe arrive in Saas Fee to compete in various disciplines over the two days.  The event itself is regarded as the worlds highest downhill glacier races. The race starts at Mittelallalin which lies at 3500 meters and finishes in Saas Fee at 1800 meters, with some of the participants completing the course in around 2 minutes 40 seconds!  Program Friday 4th April Couples Race - Both participants starting at the same time Club and Team Allalin Races Club and Team Fun Races - fancy dress is welcome and no racing gear allowed! Satrurday 5th April  Individual Event Women and Men Click here to read more info  With the Dom (4545m) mountain as the backdrop it truly makes this race very unique With Saas Fee lying at 1800m and able to ski at 3500m on the glacier it is an ideal resort for...

            With the introduction of Skiers Halfpipe and the Slopestyle events at the winter Olympics this month, and their ensuing popularity, many have started to realise that skiing and snowboarding is about a lot more than just getting down the hill. Hungry for a bit more of the action but already missed this years’ winter X Games? Worry not, let me introduce you to the even more exciting event, The Freeride World Tour.                                     Starting back in 1996 with Verbier Extreme, which was only for snowboarders until 2004 when freeskiers were allowed to enter. Over the years it has expanded to include events from all over the world, such as Russian Adventure in Sochi, Big Mountain in Fieberbrunn and Nissan Freeride in Tignes and St.Moritz. Then in 2013 the Freeride World Tour merged with The Freeskiing World Tour and The North F...

OTP’s Top 10 things to do in Switzerland in 2014! 1. Go Hiking/Mountain Biking Switzerland has more than 48 300 km marked trails, and the nature that is right at the heart of it is second to none! The air is fresh, and you often find yourself alone with nature. Hiking in Switzerland is easy and varies in difficulty and altitude. Most of the time there are restaurants and hotels along the way. Hikers can choose between camping in a hut, or staying over in a hotel. If hiking is not for you then just going for walks in Switzerland is a beautiful experience, at all times of the year. Even in wintertime, for those who aren’t so keen on skiing there are beautiful walks you can take up at the ski fields. For those who fancy viewing these incredible sights at speed can make the most of our mountain biking holidays. If it’s your first time riding in the Alps then we offer a huge range of trails to build up your confidence and skills in this very different environment to British...