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-   -   Skiing in Gstaad (https://www.fodors.com/community/europe/skiing-in-gstaad-961838/)

susant100 Jan 7th, 2013 02:21 PM

Skiing in Gstaad
 
Hoping to find a hotel room in Gstaad for February. Any recommendations?

swandav2000 Jan 7th, 2013 10:07 PM

Hi susant100,

What's your budget?

You need to get this done asap, as many schools in Europe let out in February and most ski resorts are very crowded. Most of the best hotels will be sold out for months.

s

swandav2000 Jan 7th, 2013 11:32 PM

Hi again,

Well, until I hear from you, here are my recommendations:

Hotel Gstaaderhof, 4 star; I've stayed here two times. It sits just around the corner, about 5 minutes, from the pedestrian zone. The owner/managers are always on hand, from the moment you check in in the morning to the evening meals. In fact, it was the owner who drove the courtesy van to carry passengers to concerts during the August music fest and to/from the train station. The staff is great, and the food is wonderful. This is the cheapest 4-star I found in Gstaad, but it looks and feels top of the line.

Hotel Le Grand Chalet, 4 star; I stayed there one time. It sits on a hill overlooking the town so may not be very convenient for early morning starts. The decor is absolutely fabulous, as is the staff. This is a true high-end hotel, with prices to match.

The 4-star Hotel Arc-en-Ciel is right next to the Eggli cable car, so you may want to consider staying there.

The Post Hotel Rössli would be my pick for a 3-star. It sits right in the middle of town, and the rates are reasonable (for Gstaad).

You may want to widen your search to include Schönreid (which has its own skiing area) and Saanen. You can see all the available hotels at one site,

www.gstaad.ch

btw, I think you've made a good choice in Gstaad. Though I've never skied there, I love the town and love the excursions you can make from there: Gruyeres, Rougemont, Saanen, Thun, Spiez, Zweisimmen, and even Montreux.

Have fun as you plan!

s

susant100 Jan 8th, 2013 08:42 AM

Thank you for the input! Yes, I am running into a problem with hotel accomodations. I do have a room tentatively booked at the Arc-en-Ciel. There are no rooms at the Hotel Le Grand Chalet or the Palace. This is a once in a lifetime ski trip for my husband and I. We are advanced skiiers (by US standards), however, I have been told that we should consider ourselves intermediate in Europe. I am looking for a 50% ski trip and the other 50% Swiss charm.

swandav2000 Jan 8th, 2013 09:10 PM

Hi again,

If you can't find anything, think about staying in Saanen and in Schönreid also, as I said above. I've stayed at the Steigenberger in Saanen and adored it.

s

susant100 Jan 10th, 2013 09:38 AM

We tentatively had a room booked at the Ermitage Hotel outside of Gstaad. We changed our travel dates and no longer can stay at the Arc-en-Ciel. Any input on this hotel would be appreciated.

susant100 Jan 12th, 2013 12:08 PM

Once again trying to decide between the Arc-en-Ciel and the Ermitage Hotel. Still leaning towards Arc-en-Ciel due to location closer to Gstaad city center. Ermitage is 2 miles away and we are uncertain of transportation in and around the area. Location is most important for us at this point as we will have to pay an extra night at Arc-en-Ciel as they have a min. night policy in February. Is it worth paying an extra night to be closer to town or is there adequate transportation to get about. We will not have a car.

swandav2000 Jan 12th, 2013 09:49 PM

Hi again,

The Ermitage is in the town of Schönried, which has its own skiing area.

You can use the Swiss rail site to see the transportation between Schönried and Gstaad --

www.rail.ch

You'll see that the trip takes 8 minutes and that it appears there are two trains (or a bus) every hour (ex: departing at 08.43, 09.24, 09.31, 10.24, 10.43, 11.24, 11.40 . . .)

I'm not sure why you would need to get to Gstaad very frequently -- Schönried is a neat little town in itself, and you may find all you need to do and see from there. You may want to visit Gstaad once or twice just to see it, but you don't need to go there every day.

You should also investigate the slopes plan and see where you may want to be skiing, and you should investigate the tranportation between slopes. Here is a link to the slopes plan:

http://ski.intermaps.com/gstaad//ind...&Aktuell=Lifte

Here is a link to a description of the ski areas:

http://www.gstaad.ch/en/page.cfm/Cab...inter/Skiareas

Have fun!!

s


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