Situated right in the heart of Switzerland’s ‘4 Vallees’, which together boast more than 400kms of slopes, it is unlikely that anyone will ever truly exhaust Verbier’s skiing options, either on or off-piste. Advanced skiers and boarders will be in their element here, especially so on the 3000m Mont Fort. The mountain has just one long piste from the summit, and everything else is off-piste.
Beginner skiers are well catered for too and Le Rouge, below Carrefour, is good for building confidence. Intermediates will enjoy the women’s downhill ‘Piste de l’Ours’, but may get frustrated at the end of the day as the main runs back to resort start to resemble motorways. Whilst the ‘4 Valleys’ area is still tricky to navigate, the lift system has been improved dramatically in recent years, so at least the long queues for uplift should be a thing of the past. For more information see our Verbier piste map on the ‘Resort overview’ page.
Off-piste in Verbier
Off-piste options in Verbier are nothing short of excellent. Aside from its one groomed piste, the 3000m Mont Fort is all off-piste, so expert skiers regularly venture ‘off the back’. Mont Gele has no groomed pistes at all, but some of the best steeps in the world. There are several specialist off-piste instruction and guiding services and these include Powder Extreme and Freshtacks. Full off-piste kit is essential when skiing in and around Verbier.
Lift passes in Verbier
Lift passes can either be purchased for the Verbier area only or for the entire ‘4 Vallees’ ski area. The latter provides access to over 400km of marked runs spreads over five different resort areas. They also run a handy pay-as-you-ski card which is good for those weekend commuters or people hoping to do a few weeks spread over the season.
Snow parks in Verbier
There are three terrain parks in the Verbier region all of which offer a good range of jumps for novices and pros. The La Chaux snowpark is equipped with a giant airbag, so it’s great for pushing yourself.
Ski schools in Verbier
There are many good ski schools to choose between in Verbier. We particularly like Performance Verbier, for their holistic approach to teaching freeride skiing, complete with the all-important après-ski debrief. European Snowsports has a good selection of english speaking instructors as does Altitiude. New Generation ski school comes highly recommended for kids.
Ski hire in Verbier
Again, there’s plenty of choice for equipment hire in Verbier. We particularly like Boit’askis for their friendly service and convenient location close to the Medran lift, and the guys who run Number One next to the Offshore Cafe know their stuff and always have a great selection. Ski Service, just below the Fer au Cheval (The Furry) also has a wonderful team of boot fitters. The new concierge service at Medran means you can leave your boots and skis at the lift station and head straight to Après.
