Loveskiing’s Davos Review
Nestled high amongst the Swiss Alps, Davos is among the most famous of Swiss resorts. Davos’ fame is no doubt down to its size. Davos is often acknowledged to as a city rather than a village and can in a sense be referred to as the original mega resort. Although its appearance may give the impression of a concrete jungle, there is some serious skiing to be done within Davos. The resort itself has two main centres, Dorf and Plate; there is roughly 2km between them. Out of the two centres Dorf is better placed for the Parsenn area and Platz is in turn better placed for the Jakobshorn area. Due to its sheer size Davos has plenty on offer off the slopes. Originating as a health resort, Davos maintains its heritage through its excellent facilities. The sports facilities are superb, with Davos home to Europe’s largest natural ice rink. Although there are a lot of nightclubs and bars on offer, Davos doesn’t seem to attract party goers, with standard clientele fairly reserved. The nightclubs tend to be expensive, sophisticated and lacking a certain atmosphere. Like the other Swiss resorts, Davos is renowned for its scenic views; the town is surrounded by mountains! Davos’ slopes are vast and extensive. Davos’s slopes are shared with neighbouring Kloster with them both combining an impressive 305km of pistes and an astonishing 59 lifts. There is a huge amount of skiing and boarding on offer with your combined piste pass giving you access to five different mountains areas (Parsenn, Jakobshorn, Rinerhorn, Pischa and Madrisa). There is a great choice of snow parks within the region. The biggest snow park is the Sunrise Park in Jakobshorn; home to the O’Neil Evolution contest. Compared with other Swiss resorts, Davos’ snow reliability is pretty good. However, the reliability of the snow gets poorer the lower down you go. Davos is among the best for intermediates with Parsenn’s ‘super runs’ a particular highlight. Cross-country skiers will love the area, with Davos boasting a total of 75km of trails. There is also a cross-country ski centre. Despite Davos’ exterior being reminiscent of a concrete jungle, the extent of its slopes and surrounding beauty more than makes up for it.
• Lots of terrain parks – great for freestylers. All four surrounding mountains have one. The Sunrise Park in Jakobshorn is home to the O’Neil Evolution contest.
• Massive ski area, 2nd largest ski area in Switzerland after the Portes du Soleil. Combined with Kloster, Davos offers an impressive 305km of pistes and 59 lifts.
• Great off-piste opportunities.
• Good cross-country trails – over 75km!
• Lots to do away from the slopes. Davos is huge area with plenty on offer, whether it be shopping, skating or even gambling!
• Great scenic views.
• Too many t-bar lifts for an area this big.
• Davos is a concrete jungle. Davos is better likened to a city rather than an alpine village.
• The size of the resort may be a bit too big for families.
• The only piste back from the main Parsenn area is a black.
• Huge amount of traffic.
• Intermediates
• Powder monkeys
• Those who go for the skiing/boarding not for the alpine atmosphere
• Free-stylers
• Cross-country skiers
• Families
• Those who prefer the traditional alpine village ambiance.
• Those who prefer more intimate resorts.
• Those who are scared of cars – there is a lot of traffic in Davos.
I tend to disagree with one comment that it’s no good for families, we’ll be going on our third trip there next February with our son who is 8 – and we all enjoy it equally as well. We like the larger town as its less expensive than small villages and there is plenty to do.