Verbier is a village located in southwestern
Switzerland in the canton of
Valais. It is one of the largest holiday resort and ski areas in the
Swiss Alps. Verbier is recognized as one of the premiere "
off-piste" locations worldwide and counts among Europe's most famous ski-resorts. Many top skiers have settled in the Verbier area in order to take advantage of the steep slopes, varied conditions and the vibrant nightlife.
Geography
seen from Verbier]]
Verbier is located in the municipality of
Bagnes, in the Swiss canton of
Valais. The village lies on a south orientated terrace at around 1,500 metres facing the
Grand Combin massif. The terrace lies on the east side of the
Val de Bagnes, a valley located south of
Martigny.
Verbier had 2767 permanent residents in 2006. The number of residents can rise to 35,000 in the winter season. There is in addition a noticeable number of predominantly Scandinavians and Brits who have chosen Verbier as their principal residence as well.
Transport
Verbier can be accessed by road or by train. From
Martigny a regional train (known as the
Saint-Bernard Express) leads to
Le Châble. From Le Châble a cable car (or a post bus) goes up to Verbier. Martigny is located 1hr45m from
Geneva and 20m from
Sion with the
Federal railways.
Verbier has only one access road, which starts in the town of Le Châble. From Sembrancher (near Le Châble) a road leads to the Great St. Bernard Pass and another to Martigny or to the Col de la Forclaz. Verbier is around 2 hours’ drive from Geneva, 1 hour from Chamonix (Col de la Forclaz) and 1 hour from Aosta (Great St. Bernard Pass).
The nearest international airport to Verbier is Geneva Airport. The drive time is about 120 minutes. Tourists can reach Verbier by taking taxis, buses, helicopters or the train from Geneva Airport. http://www.alpybus.com offers a regular service to Verbier from Geneva Airport by means of shuttle bus.
The town itself is small enough to be explored on foot, but free buses run throughout the resort regularly during the day.
Skiing
cable car]]
Verbier’s ski domain ranges from 1500m (the town itself) to 3330m (
Mont Fort). From which the view extends to the Matterhorn and Mont Blanc. It is part of the "Four Valleys" ski area, which includes the ski resorts of Verbier,
Nendaz,
Veysonnaz,
La Tzoumaz, and
Thyon with a total of 410 km marked runs.
The ski area is divided into four sectors: Les Ruinettes, Les Savoleyres, Bruson. Verbier forms the western section of the 4 Valleys ski area. A common ski pass allows to tour all the way from Verbier to La Tzoumaz, Nendaz, Veysonnaz, to Les Masses and back.
The Verbier section of the 4 Valleys ski area has lifts made by Leitner, CWA, Poma and Garaventa AG; they are operated by Téléverbier SA. Most lifts were constructed during the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s. In Verbier alone there are 35 lifts (within the Verbier, Savoleyeres/La Tzoumaz and Bruson sector). A standard Verbier pass gives access to this entire sector, 33 standard ski runs, two snowparks, one "Jardin de Neige" (a relatively flat area that is used for small children learning to ski), four cross-country pistes and two walking areas. Piste condition and lift opening information is updated by Intermaps and is also on mobile.
Off-piste
Verbier is renowned for its
off-piste and 'semi' off-piste opportunities. These include the itineraries: Vallon D'Arby, Tortin, Gentianes, Mont Fort,
Mont Gelé and other notable "off piste" runs such as, Mt Fort Backside, Stairway to Heaven, Rocky Garden, Col des Mines, Couloir des Dix, Col de la banane, Fontanet and Creblet. Verbier is one of only a few resorts to have a mountain that has no pistes coming down it, Mt Gele. Off-piste skiing can be lethal due to the risk of avalanches, crevasses, dead-end runs in front of steep rock faces, etc. Only those with a strong knowledge of Alpine conditions and of the local terrain or those skiing with a real expert (ski instructor or mountain guide) should go on these runs. Almost every year there are fatalities off-piste, often involving highly skilled skiers who either ignored warnings or did not understand the dangers.
Verbier has seven snowsport schools, three companies that organize Mountain Guides, plus a few independent Mountain Guides. Clients should inquire about the country where their instructors obtained their credentials. The requirements for certification are generally more demanding in Switzerland and other Alpine nations than in others.
Ski and snowboard schools
Verbier is an excellent place to learn wintersports. The Village has seven different ski & snowboard schools. This many ski schools is unusual in Switzerland but means that every need can be catered for from exclusive private lessons through affordable group lessons to specialised clinics and courses, as well as Performance coaching.
Despite the fact that Verbier has traditionally been recognized as more 'skier friendly', snowboarding continues to grow in popularity in the resort.
International Private School
In September of 2010 the Verbier campus of St George’s, a private international school, was founded and opened its doors in the Chalet Mascotte at the entrance of the village.
The foundation behind the school hopes to improve Verbier’s facilities to make it a year-round home, beside the well-known winter attractions.
Summer in Verbier
In the summertime Verbier offers its guests a host of activities and experiences. There are 400 km of hiking trails, and hikers can follow the tracks of the chamois and ibex through the mountains, some of them covered with snow all year round. There are in addition 200 km of mountain bike piste. Other activities include climbing, paragliding, swimming, golf, tennis and other. Also popular are trips aboard the mountain railways in the area.. In one of the efforts to diversify Verbier from being a "ski-heaven" only, the annual
music festival stands out. Verbier Festival & Academy was created by the Swede Martin T:son Engström in 1994.
Society
Verbier is also a popular holiday destination for celebrities, including
Sarah Ferguson,
Diana Ross,
James Blunt,
Richard Branson,
Lawrence Dallaglio and The Crown Prince Couple of Denmark:
Frederik and
Mary.The Swedish royals also come there.. It caters to many British customers
, but it receives a lot of German, Norwegian, Swedish, Dutch, Italian, Belgian, French, Austrian, American and South African visitors too.
Events
Recurring events in Verbier include:
the world-famous O'Neill Verbier Freeride extreme freeriding and Verbier Ride competitions
the most prestigious extreme skiing and snowboarding contest, the Nissan Verbier Extreme which is part of the FWT
the XSpeedski, FIS World Championship + Pro Race
the Patrouille des Glaciers, ski race every second year at the end of the ski season
the Verbier Festival, Appraised international music festival
the Grand Raid Cristalp, Mountain bike race Verbier - Grimentz
the Grand Concours Hippique., a horse race
Other events
8 stage, 2005 Tour de Suisse - Pablo Lastras
6 stage, 2008 Tour de Suisse - Kim Kirchen
15 stage, 2009 Tour de France - Alberto Contador
References
Alpine Ambitions
External links
Verbier's Official site
La Fantastique Ski and Snowboard School, Verbier
Category:Ski areas and resorts in Switzerland
Category:Villages in Valais
Category:Climbs in cycle racing
![The Grand Combin is a mountain in the western Pennine Alps in Switzerland. With its 4,314 metres (14,154 ft) high summit it is one of the highest peaks in the Alps[1] and the second most prominent of its range. The Grand Combin is also a large glaciated massif consisting of several summits, among which three are above 4000 metres. The normal route starts from the Panossière Hut, which lies on the north side in the Corbassière valley. Despite the fact that no major difficulties exist, a particula](http://web.archive.org./web/20110227150706im_/http://cdn.wn.com/pd/a0/9f/6ca81d6007a444fbb189dbc6a768_grande.jpg "The Grand Combin is a mountain in the western Pennine Alps in Switzerland. With its 4,314 metres (14,154 ft) high summit it is one of the highest peaks in the Alps[1] and the second most prominent of its range. The Grand Combin is also a large glaciated massif consisting of several summits, among which three are above 4000 metres. The normal route starts from the Panossière Hut, which lies on the north side in the Corbassière valley. Despite the fact that no major difficulties exist, a particula")
![The Grand Combin is a mountain in the western Pennine Alps in Switzerland. With its 4,314 metres (14,154 ft) high summit it is one of the highest peaks in the Alps[1] and the second most prominent of its range. The Grand Combin is also a large glaciated massif consisting of several summits, among which three are above 4000 metres. The normal route starts from the Panossière Hut, which lies on the north side in the Corbassière valley. Despite the fact that no major difficulties exist, a particula](http://web.archive.org./web/20110227150706im_/http://cdn.wn.com/pd/a0/9f/6ca81d6007a444fbb189dbc6a768_thumb.jpg "The Grand Combin is a mountain in the western Pennine Alps in Switzerland. With its 4,314 metres (14,154 ft) high summit it is one of the highest peaks in the Alps[1] and the second most prominent of its range. The Grand Combin is also a large glaciated massif consisting of several summits, among which three are above 4000 metres. The normal route starts from the Panossière Hut, which lies on the north side in the Corbassière valley. Despite the fact that no major difficulties exist, a particula")
