Klewenalp Ski Resort Switzerland
Klewenalp ski resort Switzerland is located beautifully above Lake Lucerne, close to Luzern & Zurich. Klewenalp is a traditional Swiss resort perfect for a family ski trip or even better as a warm up to the superb Engelberg a few minutes drive to the south.
After a good snowfall, powder skiing opportunities are plentiful at Klewenalp. The potential 1,551m skiable vertical down to the lake is a tasty treat indeed, but one that is being seriously challenged by our changing climate.
Pros & Cons for Klewenalp Ski Resort
Pros
- Beautiful location above Lake Lucerne.
- Interesting variety of piste trails for all levels.
- Fun off piste powder, steeps & tree skiing opportunities.
- Great family ski hill.
- Quiet on weekdays.
- When the snow is deep, challenging backcountry terrain.
- Nice warm up for Engelberg.
- Loads of ski in ski out accommodation.
- Lots of non-ski activities like sledding.
- Good après ski.
Cons
- No snow-making. Low elevation base area struggles for snow cover, so valley routes are not often open.
- Awkward terrain to navigate around.
- Busy on weekends with lots of families.
- Comparatively expensive lift ticket.
Pro or Con (depending on your perspective!)
- Small ski resort that may or not hold one's interest for more than a couple of days.
- Quiet town but perfect in a Swiss kind of way.
Skiing & Snowboarding, Lifts & Terrain
Never a truer word was spoken than "you just never know until you go". Klewenalp is case in point. When perusing the Klewenalp ski trail map prior to visiting, what was seemingly a strange ski hill is actually proven to be the fact in reality. Awkward terrain equates to seemingly odd lift & trail placements that only start to make sense once a full lap of the resort is completed.
And so the old adage applies. Had we never gone, we would never have discovered that Klewenalp, despite its truly awkward terrain has some seriously fun, seriously steep, seriously pleasant piste & powder skiing in amongst some seriously gob-smacking scenery.
Check out the ski trail map for Klewenalp below.
A great family resort, the crowd on the weekend was sizable but restricted to the easy slopes on the piste, so not truly noticed by the Powderhounds. Some quick exploration had us in shin to waist deep powder (depending on the aspect) without too much effort at all. The steeps off the back of the Klewenstock were..... steep with a few trees thrown in for good measure (even though relatively short).
Access up the resort is via a cable car from the town of Beckenried or cable car & gondola from the higher village of Emmetten. The general lift system is a little dated, but gets the job done. Unusually, there is NO snow-making in the resort resulting in the valley trails back to Beckenried & Emmetten only rarely opening. But if they were open, oh the possibilities!
Where is Klewenalp Switzerland?
The Klewenalp ski resort is in the small central Swiss canton of Nidwalden above the shores of Lake Lucerne. The resort has two bases in the town of Beckenried on the lakeshore & the village of Emmetten higher up the hill.
Beckenried is a short 50min (72km) drive south from downtown Zurich & only 20min (22km) by road from Lucerne (Luzern). Gateway airport is Zurich (ZRH).
Beckenried has no train station (what? Is this not Switzerland!!), the closest one being in Stans on the line to Engelberg. Stans is 8km to the west of Beckenried. Search & book train tickets to Stans & Beckenried.
Klewenalp Accommodation
The southern shore of Lake Lucerne is a short walk to the Klewenalp cable car in the town of Beckenried & provides a pleasant location to launch forays into the mountains. Accommodation is in several excellent hotels including the Hotel Nidwalderhof & the Seerausch Swiss Quality Hotel.
An interesting option would be to spend the night up on the mountain. There are several lodges up around the cable car top station but the highest of them is perched all by itself near the top of the Klewenstock summit, the Ausflags Pistenhotel Klewenstock.
The other Klewenalp resort base at the village of Emmetten has several hotels available, the most convenient to the ski lifts being the Hotel Engel.
Search & book all Klewenalp ski accommodation.
Klewenalp Activities
Typically for a Swiss resort, there were more families winter walking & sledding than one could poke a stock at. Great for skiers! The network of tracks & trails is intricate & returns to the main base area are made via chairlifts, cable cars or on foot. One sledding trail drops an impressive 750m of vertical into Emmetten village.
Reviews
The Powderhounds reviewed Klewenalp many seasons ago on a delightful powder day and need to head back there again when it is truly top to bottom skiing, which, given the rate of climate change occurring in the Alps, may be never! Click on the review link in the left column (or top of the page if on a mobile) to read all the reviews.
See how Klewenalp compares to the rest of the European ski resorts on the Europe ski resort ratings page.
Follow Powderhounds Europe on Instagram to see where we are currently skiing. Follow our main Powderhounds page on Facebook to stay in touch with up-to-date info, tours, and discussions.
