Crans Montana

Hi all,

I'm off to Crans Montana over New Year and am looking for some advice from people who have been there I.e. best runs, must do restaurants and bars on the slope and in the village and generally any other advice about the area that you would like to share.

Also, if anybody has used a transfer company, we are flying into Geneva and train looks the best bet so far.

Thanks in advance,

Matt

A transfer will probably be more expensive than public transport. I would take the train from Geneva airport to Sierre and either a bus or the Funicular http://www.cie-smc.ch/ up to Crans Montana. The Saver Day Pass https://www.sbb.ch/en/travelcards-and-tickets/tickets-for-switzerland/1-day-travelpass/saver-day-pass.html might be cheaper than a standard ticket. There are also supersaver tickets, but they are for specific trains, if your flight is late and you miss the train you will have to buy another ticket.

thanks for info, will certainly check those out. Have you skied there before? I am looking for some in resort advice too. I haven't been out of the PDS for the past 5 years and know that area like a seconmd home but am struggling to find in depth reports for here.
Thanks,
Matt

I think the last time I skied there was about 20 years ago, so my recollections are a bit vague. Some of the skiing is below the treeline which is handy if the weather's bad and the run down from the Plaine Morte is quite impressive.

+1 for a transfer via the excellent Swiss rail system. Crans is a very accessible resort by public transport. And the train journey is very pleasant and quite scenic. If travelling on a busy Saturday, the A9 autoroute can be very congested and the train would be much more relaxed.

Train to Sierre is good. short walk round to the lift upto resort which is better than driving up but we've done both so no problem there either.
CM is quite strung out and large so buses seem to come in from both extremes and hub in the centre. Never had to get to grips with buses but it seemed a faff unless a short stop.

We found the best lift up...because we like the terrain best that side...to be aminona, not modern but uncrowded.
Cant say any restaurant was exception al on the hill but even fast self service ones werent poor.
Resort is largely south facing but always like the snow. If you like off piste, drop off the top restaurant of animona and head west and into the long meadow.
Eventually youll hit the walking track which ends up by the bottom station.
If you search out these little gems, the resort adds up to more than the sum of the parts.

We must have spent 7 or 8 years going between Crans and Anniviers up the other side of Sierre.