The missing piece in the ski resort puzzle that is Eischoll-Unterbach is provided by the neighbouring Moosalp stemming out of the village of Bürchen. Moosalp has loads of what the other two don’t. It has a huge learn-to-ski area for novices & kids, and it has more numerous, approachable piste trails for all abilities. And whilst there is certainly great powder skiing in the alpine zone to be had here, the most interesting off-piste terrain is in the larch forests toward the Z’Niwwu base on the opposite side of the mountain from Buerchen.

Sadly the one place we were truly keen to ski here wasn’t open. The Törbeltal T-bar up to the highest lifted point on Törbeltal (2,550m) wasn’t running and we are curious as to why. It provides the potential to ski the full vertical back into Bürchen and has over 600m of good-looking skiable vertical in its own right on the Törbel side of the resort down to the weirdly named Z’Niwwu. How one pronounces Z’Niwwu we have no idea; however we did sample a few larch runs on and off-piste down to there and it certainly rates highly regardless of its name.

The mountain restaurants at mid-mountain around Moosalp proper are both quirky and high quality. For ours the Moosalp is the best, but either the Dorbia or the more distant Restaurant Panorama can be just as good depending on how busy they are.

On this early February visit to Moosalp, we drove there from Eischoll nice and early so parked right opposite the chairlift in Bürchen. During winter this location is in shade and seriously cold for the start of the day. There is a daily parking fee of 5CHF which whilst it doesn’t seem like much, is annoying when one is already spending money in the village and ski area. Most visitors to Moosalp will start at Bürchen, coming up via the road from Visp. However there is a lesser utilised way up from Stalden (in the same valley as Zermatt!) via the pretty village of Törbel that offers the opportunity to park in sunnier locations at the base of the surface tows at Z’Niwwu and further up at Moosalp itself.

Like all good Swiss ski resorts there is a whole lot going on at Moosalp that doesn’t involve skiing. There is a 4.5km sled trail available after lunch and on Tuesday & Wednesday nights. It runs along the closed road between … There are loads of snow-shoeing trails, long winter walking trails (that don’t require snowshoes or similar).

As to where to stay depends on why you are in the region. If like us you are mainly skiing off-piste & ski-touring to freeride terrain in the higher mountains, then a central location like Unterbäch makes sense. Either one of the hotels there provide a great base for skiing the region, particularly if one has a rental car.

Staying at Moosalp in Bürchen is the way to go for anyone here on a cheap Swiss ski holiday with your family. The most convenient location is the Hotel Bürchnerhof near the beginner tows at Bodmen (1,470m), but there are also loads of self-contained holiday rental chalets that are still quite convenient to the slopes. A note about Buerchen is that the food markets are in the lower portion of the village and will need a stiff walk or local bus to get to.

If you are ultimately headed to Zermatt and are visiting Moosalp for a warm-up along the way, the village of Törbel is the best option. Törbel is on the opposite side of the mountain from Bürchen and also provides a most authentic mountain village experience. Perched high on the mountainside, the views are worth the effort alone. Hotel Weisshorn is the obvious choice when staying in Torbel.

Even though we did not use the local buses to get around, the number of convenient stops & the frequency of the timetable appears to make it a useful way of getting around from Visp train station or further up the valley at Stalden (for Törbel).

Moosalp is not a perfect ski resort, but it doesn’t need to be. What it provides is an approachable, unpretentious & affordable ski location without the noise, pizazz and bluster of the larger ski areas. And as a ‘significant part of the local whole’, the triple treat of Eischoll-Unterbach-Moosalp has most things every skier craves, minus the heated 6-seat express hooded chairlifts; but who needs them anyway! Go check them all out.

See our thoughts on the pros and cons of this ski resort via our Moosalp Bürchen-Törbel overview page.
See our video here