Sports and activities in Valais
Zermatt
Zermatt’s high-altitude cable car to Klein Matterhorn allows for fabulous skiing throughout the year, with everything from black runs to family-friendly pistes.
Guides can take visitors on heli-skiing or glacier-trekking jaunts, while in summer you can set off from the village centre on anything from a challenging ten-day hike to gentle strolls through the neighbouring forests.
Verbier
Verbier is the main resort of the Four Valleys ski area, covering some 400km of piste at all levels of difficulty. Verbier also offers a huge range of additional activities including snow-shoeing, ice-climbing, guided high-altitude walking and more.
Come summer, canyoning, rafting and caving are also available. And, in August, Verbier hosts the world’s longest mountain-bike race, the Grand Raid, a one-day race across six valleys (rising at one point to 2792m) on a 121km route to Grimentz.
If outdoor adventuring is your thing, read up on the best outdoor experiences in Switzerland. Many of their locations reveal why you voted Switzerland one of the most beautiful countries in the world.
Female travellers might also want to read up on exhilarating women-only outdoor activities in Switzerland.
Best festivals and events in Valais
Verbier Festival
One of Switzerland’s most prestigious classical music events, the Verbier Festival takes place in the resort in late July/early August.
For two weeks, it plays host to top-flight soloists and conductors, performing and leading masterclasses. During the festival, a dedicated information and ticket office is set up opposite the Nevaï Hotel. Tickets can also be purchased in the tourist office.
Sion festivals
Aside from the annual cowfighting championship held in May at nearby Aproz, Sion plays host to a prestigious International Music Festival, which runs in August and September at venues around Valais.
Running concurrently in July and August are the Académie de Musique de Tibor Varga, a cycle of masterclasses given by international soloists, and the Festival International de l’Orgue Ancien, centred on the world’s oldest organ, still playable in the town’s Château de Valère.
How to get around Valais
The Lake Geneva-Alps Regional Pass
The Lake Geneva-Alps Regional Pass is valid for transport in the whole of Haut-Léman, including routes to Aigle, Leysin, Les Diablerets, Villars and Saint-Maurice.
Trravellling further afield? Buy a Swiss travel pass for unlimited travel around the country.
Car-carrying trains: the Furka and Oberalp passes
If you’re heading east into central Switzerland (or beyond) and would prefer to avoid the climb over the Furka Pass, car-carrying trains run daily year-round from Oberwald through the Furka Base Tunnel (15.4km) to Realp, at least every hour (6am–9pm). Journey time is 15min.
You can also avoid the subsequent climb over the Oberalp Pass by loading your car at Andermatt onto a train (4 daily) for the hour-long pull to Sedrun (advance reservation required).
See the local rail website for full information about both options.
Also find information on how to get to Switzerland.