Skiing Tschiertschen has been on our list of things to do for a long while now. Nice to know that the wait was well & truly worth it. We were provided a powder ski experience that was pure pleasure with the bonus of a stunningly beautiful village and arguably the best powder day ski-in car park in Switzerland (although Vals might have a say in that as well!).
We didn’t know what to expect when we visited Tschiertschen, in part because there is a real lack of any detailed information about it, but also because of its none-to-convincing ski trail map. On ‘paper’ the ski area looks a little awkward, but in reality, it works way better than expected, with a diversity of terrain options that we did not anticipate.
Arriving by car from Ilanz after several exceptional powder days in Brigels & Vals, we travelled via the incredibly scenic road on the south side of the Rhine River valley (Vorderrhein) through Versam and hence the outskirts of Chur before heading up the hill toward Lenzerheide. It was snowing lightly the entire way, causing a little apprehension as to what the road to Tschiertschen might look like from the turnoff. Five days previously we had driven up to Lenzerheide for the day during a heavy snowstorm, and on passing the turnoff to Tschiertschen, noted that it hadn’t been cleared and was still covered in about 30cm of snow. Thankfully the road clearers had caught up with the backlog, so the road was in relatively excellent condition. Winding our way up through Pasugg with its hydro plant, water-bottling facility and hospitality training centre, the road eventually narrows significantly near the hamlet of Praden (the objective of a Tschiertschen freeride ski route!). Arriving early at the car park that runs either side of the road just before the village, we found a spot near the free shuttle stop. The wait for shuttle was minimal. It heads up the hill and via the narrow winding streets of the village to near the chairlift base. The walk to the ticket is another 100m or so uphill. Very few people were in evidence and the snow looked deep and fresh. The Redskin Sportshop, for gear rental and servicing, is conveniently right next to the chairlift base.
The main village chairlift is called Waldstafel, a high-speed quad. Rising 500m vertical it encompasses alot of the best tree skiing on the mountain. You can scope out a few lines in the larches on the way up, but there is so much more one cannot see. We utilised the winter walking trail network on a few occasions to assist in exiting off-piste glades back to the bottom of the chair. After a few high-quality laps bouncing through the larch, the second chair, Hüenerchöpf quad, started spinning. Fresh lines abounded in all directions. A big alpine bowl toward the closed Gürgaletsch T-bar, tight lines in trees, scrub & gullies, powder covered pistes, open hero lines under the chair, easy glades, and soft pillows were all featured. Not a huge vertical (just 300m ish off this chair) but with so few other people and fun terrain, 300m is enough. Visibility wasn’t awesome for most of the day, so it was beautiful seeing the rocky bulk of Alpstein occasionally make an appearance through the gloom above the Hüenerchöpf.
Gürgaletsch T-bar rises a leg-quivering 500m vertical to just below the summit of its namesake but sadly it didn’t spin during our visit. As mentioned above we were able to traverse across to some of it open slopes for cruisy powder turns before diving into more interesting freeride terrain in the trees below it.
Jochalp T-bar is accessed via the Hüenerchöpf chair. A long traverse suitable for beginners and a bit of a push gets one out toward it. There are plenty of opportunities to drop off to skiers right into the trees (hitting the return ski trail from Jochalp to exit!), and one could realistically spend all day in this zone doing huge laps. Sadly Jochalp had closed by the time we reached it due to high wind-loaded avalanche hazard. Our greatest interest here would have been access to the freeride route down toward Praden, but we will just have to come back and do it another time. Oh how we suffer for the greater good!
Below the base of Hüenerchöpf chair, the piste (and off-piste) rolls through a fantastic collection of Swiss chalets where one feels like this is what skiing was once all about. It’s simply stunning skiing as one approaches the village which is perfectly framed by chalets, the snow, trees and sky (unfortunately on this occasion a gloomy grey!). Duck off to the left, past parked cars & front doors, into a side gully to continue the freeride route all the way to the chairlift in powder, or just plop down on the delightful piste for the same destination.
With the exception of some steeps in the trees between the top of Hüenerchöpf quad and Furgglis, the inbounds freeride terrain at Tschiertschen holds nothing super gnarly, and that’s just fine, because this ski area is ultimately all about being playful, fun and, on some of the pistes between gorgeous chalets, very very Swiss!
Piste wise, there is plenty for intermediates all across the mountain, very little for advanced (but its all really fun regardless), pretty much nothing for novices (go learn elsewhere) and two long trails for progressing beginners (but with some challenges lower down toward & through the village).
If not dropping into the car park you will need to continue on past the Alpin Mountain Resort Hotel (stop in for a fancy lunch perhaps?). From the hotel, we adored the ‘home’ trail that snakes its way through Tschiertschen’s laneways to the chairlift base. Such experiences are why skiing in Europe is so fantastic. Skiing in real villages, not fake manufactured resorts.
Of the on-mountain & village restaurants, there appears to be about five that are useful to skiers & snowboarders, all providing varying levels of local cuisine. Just below top of first chair, Waldstafel-Hock has an exposed outdoor eating area and appears to be favourite with the locals. Just below the top of the Hüenerchöpf, Berghaus Hühnerköpfe provides a welcome refuge from the cold. It is a laid-back restaurant with an expansive deck that only accepts cash. Out wide, Bergrestaurant Furgglis is slightly more formal but still in classically traditional surrounds. Below the multiple pistes, winter walking trails & sled trail toward the village one cannot help but see the most formal of the eateries in the ski area - Alpina Mountain Resort Hotel’s Panorama Restaurant. A fine lunch is all but guaranteed here but it will come with an appropriate price tag as well. For a more moderately priced offering, Restaurant Edelweiss near the main PostAuto bus stop requires a short walk from the ski area either via the car park up, or through the village down to it. This is where you should eat a schnitzel!
For the ultimate taste of authentic skiing in Switzerland, Tschiertschen must be on your list of ‘powder day places to ski before you die’. If there is a storm on during the week spend a few nights on the hill, otherwise it is great for a day trip by car or bus from the valley near Chur, or on skis for a bit of adventure from Arosa or Lenzerheide.
See our thoughts on the resort’s pros & cons via the Tschiertschen overview page.