Vercorin Ski Resort Switzerland

Vercorin is one of a plethora of small Swiss ski resorts unknown to the rest of the world. That's a shame, because Vercorin, and many others like it, provide the kind of fabulous, uncrowded (mostly) ski experience that so many have forgotten or only dream about. With 1,034m of skiable vertical on cold north & sunny east-aspected slopes, Vercorin is all but deserted mid-week. Its charming village sits beautifully on the mountainside overlooking the Rhone River valley and Val d'Anniviers.

Pros & Cons for Vercorin Ski Resort

Pros

• Affordable Swiss ski resort.
• Several superb, long on-piste cruisers on the north side.
• Uncrowded on weekdays
• Two very good on-mountain restaurants.
• Pretty old village centre.
• Good value lift pass price.

Cons

• Natural snow fall is less than in surrounding ski resorts.
• Limited off-piste & freeride terrain.
• Lift infrastructure and trail design have numerous limitations & irritations.
• Crowded on weekends.
• Skiable vertical on the sunny east aspect of the resort is very short.
• The village has a disappointingly limited number of decent bars & restaurants.

Pro or Con (depending on your perspective!)

• Small ski resort that may or may not hold one’s interest for more than a few days.
• Often touted as a ‘family-friendly’ destination, we beg to differ!
• Vercorin’s old village ambiance is very much overhyped by the local tourism board.
• The cable car from Chalais has only limited capacity, so if planning to use it (we did), time your run well.
• Lowest elevation resort in the Val d’Anniviers, and as such the village may or may not have natural snow in it.

Skiing & Snowboarding, Lift & Terrain

The Vercorin skiing & snowboarding terrain is geared toward long cruising but can also be for the adventurous if the snow is particularly good. It is a small to medium sized ski area with 35km of trails, the majority of which are intermediate. The longest trail is over 6km in length and runs the entire 1,034m vertical from Mont Major (2,374m) to the gondola base in the village (1,340m). Interestingly too, the resort can also be accessed from neighbouring Grimentz via the adventurous backcountry descent into the Vallon d'Orsival (from Grimentz's Roc d'Orzival). We have skied this area in deep powder (but descended into St Jean) and can vouch for its awesomeness! However, getting back to Grimentz is not easy, so think twice about doing this route.

The pick of the hill is the north-aspect ‘gondola-side’ groomers providing 1,000m vertical of super on-piste fun. Thankfully there is snowmaking all the way as the lower part of the ski resort can have limited natural snow cover. There is a lovely off-piste line or two off the top of the gondola as well (requires a walk around the back of the restaurant to enter it), plus a few other bits of alpine freeride & tree skiing on Mont Major and in the forest toward Tracui, but the off-piste is generally quite limited. The rest of the piste trails are neither here nor there and a tad underwhelming. The run into the Tracui chair is nice but gets seriously bumped on a weekend. Beginners can play around the Crêt tow & its associated snow park, but the terrain is limited. Novices have a dedicated 'learn-to-ski' area at the base of the mountain in the disconnected Le Lavioz. It is in shadow and very cold through the depths of winter so is not ideal but will certainly harden your kids up!

See the current trail map for Vercorin below.

Vercorin Ski Trail Map

The most important lift in the resort is the 2-stage gondola rising a full 1,000m vertical from the village to the Crêt du Midi peak at 2,336m altitude. Half the ski terrain can be accessed via the gondola. The new (ish) Tracui chair climbs up 500m of skiable vertical to the top on Mont Major (2,374m), replacing old surface tow, and greatly improving the skiing & snowboarding experience. Four other surface tows (all single J-bars) plus a connecting conveyor make up the remaining lifts. Most are irrelevant to skiing the hill. The loading areas for the Crêt & Mont major tows are poor on a crowded weekend, making the Crêt in particular, not ideal for beginners. The Cabanon tow top station is placed in an awkward location requiring anyone skiing the zone to return to the rest of the resort via the black run into Tracui. Again, not ideal!

Lift Passes, Val d’Anniviers & Magic Pass

Depending on duration, the multi-day local lift pass at Vercorin is valid at the two other Val d’Anniviers ski resorts. A pass of 3 or more days is also valid for use in St Luc-Chandolin & a pass of 6 days or more is also valid in Grimentz Zinal. Despite this excellent multi-resort pass, getting to the other resorts can be problematic for much of the season. Whilst regular daily bus services link (free for skiers/snowboarders) link Grimentz & Zinal to St Luc & Chandolin via Vissoie, bus links from/to Vercorin are highly seasonal i.e. less regular (a few weeks during Christmas/New Year; a few weeks from mid-Feb top early March; Easter period)! So if in Vercorin outside those periods, a car is needed to check out the other resorts.

To get a sense of the broader lay of the land, see the Val d’Anniviers ski resort map.

For anyone spending an extended period hunting out powder in the ski resorts of southwest Switzerland, the incredibly good value Magic Pass is valid in Vercorin and the far better ski areas of Grimentz-Zinal and St Luc-Chandolin.

Where is Vercorin Switzerland?

Vercorin is in the French speaking part of the Valais canton in south-west Switzerland, splendidly located overlooking both the Rhone River valley and the Val d'Anniviers. If considering a visit to Vercorin, your best gateway airports are Geneva (GVA) or Zurich (ZRH). By road, travelling by rental car, Vercorin is 185km (2hr) east of Geneva and 300km (3½hr) south-west of Zurich.

The recommended mode of travel is the train (you are in Switzerland after all). Trains can be taken direct from the airports and take between 2 to 3hr to get to Sierre (Siders) station (located between Brig & Montreux). From the station, take a local bus, get a taxi, or private transfer to the cable car valley station at Chalais which is only 5km by road from the train station. Take the cable car up to Vercorin village. Note that the cable car runs to a limited schedule and has only space for 15-persons (less if one adds in luggage!). Alternatively take the local bus (route 441) from the station direct to Vercorin village.

Search & book here for train tickets to Sierre/Siders.

For hints, tips & warnings about getting to Switzerland ski resorts in winter, see our Travel in Switzerland page.

Vercorin Accommodation

Vercorin is a classic Swiss mountain village, located at 1,300m elevation, overlooking the broad Rhône River valley and surrounding mountain peaks. There are many lodging options to choose from in the village.

The alternative to the resort village is to stay in the valley. Only stay in Sierre if desperate.

Search & book here for all Vercorin ski accommodation.

Ski Rentals, Lessons & Guiding

Search, compare & book ski & snowboard rentals, lessons & mountain guiding via the listings below.

Review

The Powderhounds were within a whisker of visiting Vercorin in 2019, but only got as far as all of its neighbours- the fabulous Crans Montana, Grimentz Zinal & St Luc Chandolin. Despite being close enough to get a few clear photos on a nice sunny Val d'Anniviers day, it was just a 'bridge too far'! Armed with our Magic Pass, we finally visited in January 2024 and were underwhelmed. 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 Vercorin compares to the rest of the Swiss ski resorts on the Switzerland ski resort ratings page, or compare to the rest of Europe on the European ski resort ratings page.

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