Battle of the ski resorts: Arosa
Charming, snowy and as gemütlich as it gets, we see how Arosa measures up in our Battle of the Ski resorts
Nominated by Mary
Ease of access 7/10
A good selection of flights to Zurich airport, followed by a two-hour drive or 2.5 hour train journey, changing at Chur. The drive from Calais is around 10 hours, plus stops.
Sense of scale and epicness 7/10
The resort itself has a intimate, quiet feel to it. But once you get above the tree-line and up to Hörnli (2511m) the sheer scale of the place hits you. Since linking to Lenzerheide two years ago, Arosa has transformed into a big player with 225km of skiing between the two valleys.
Variety and quality of the pistes 7/10
There’s a good mix of cruisey blues and steep reds, but there’s one big thing missing: trees! Plus the risk of missing the last lift back from Lenzerheide leaves us shivering in our ski boots.
Off-piste potential 7/10
Arosa deserves more kudos for its off-piste offerings. The Weißhorn has the best of it, catching deep pockets of snow that’ll last days after a storm. But we’d still like some more trees!
Lapability 7/10
If you have time!
On-hill grub 6/10
It’s hard to find a bad restaurant here, but that pesky Swiss Franc has pushed prices well above our comfort levels.
Après scene 5/10
This is the kind of resort you come to for fresh mountain air and relaxing strolls around the lake rather than table-dancing antics. That being said, Carmennahütte can kick off in the peak season – pop by on your way back home.
Base suitability 4/10
Its tucked-away position at the end of a valley doesn’t make it the best spot for visiting other resorts, despite Davos being close as the crow flies. Touring potential is good, but there are certainly better bases out there.
Family friendly? 9/10
This place was built for families, with traffic-free streets and easy-to-access slopes. There are three dedicated kids areas and no shortage of family-friendly hotels.
TOTAL: 59
RANK: 21/29
