Verbier is all about the skiing. That may sound obvious, but so many Alpine ski resorts are more about fur coats, restaurants and champagne-sipping than the actual sport. In Verbier, there are enough restaurants and clubs to satisfy the most expensive of tastes, but the skiing is top-class too.
The ski area covers four valleys and the ski areas of Verbier, Nendaz, Veysonnaz, La Tzoumaz and Thyon. Verbier is the only resort I've been to with ski itineraries: runs that are technically off-piste, but marked with yellow posts. They're challenging but marked and more easily accessible than most off-piste runs (note: the resort stresses they are marked but not maintained, not controlled and intended for experienced skiers only). Ski itineraries are indicated on the piste map with a dotted yellow line. The best ones run from Tortin to Siviez down from the legendary 3330 metre Mont Fort.
The sheer variety of skiing in Verbier makes it well worth a visit, especially for skiers who like a challenge. There are mogul fields aplenty too, both on the ski itineraries and on-piste.
The only let-down is the over-abundance of T-bar drag lifts, especially in Thyon. They're uncomfortable, take ages and are far too easy to fall off. It's a real shame because it's incredibly frustrating spending sacred skiing-time crawling up a mountainside at snail's pace, trying to balance your butt on a plastic pole. If Verbier invests in a few more high-speed ski lifts, this really would be the best resort ever.
I had some pretty shocking coffee-drinking experiences in Verbier so I'm only going to recommend one café, but this really is a mountain-top gem: the
Cabane Mont Fort. It's a Heidi-hi style cabin on the Cabane (red run) from the Col des Gentianes. There's a large terrace, hot drinks, freshly baked cookies and brownies, hot food, and they even have accommodation (www.cabanemontfort.ch)
On the Ruinettes run back into Verbier, there's a charming restaurant called
Chez Dany. It's more expensive than the average mountain eatery, but the traditional Swiss fare is good, the cinnamony mulled wine is delicious and, again, there's a nice terrace. (Ch. de Clambin, Verbier. Tel: +41 (0) 2 77 71 25 24)
As for après-ski, the
Farinet is a completely mad, fun bar. I saw people dancing on the tables in ski boots and spilling beer all over each other, like an Alpine version of the bar in
Coyote Ugly. The
T Bar next door is more chilled-out, and shows lots of sports matches.
Pub Mont Fort is another well-known après-ski spot, and fun in a cheesy kind of way (www.pubmontfort.com).
