St. Moritz

St Moritz has twice hosted the Winter Olympic Games and in 2003 hosted the World Ski Championships for the fourth time. The resort is effectively in two parts. St Moritz Bad on the valley floor whilst the more fashionable St Mortiz Dorf can be found higher up on a steep slope. There are eccentric diversions from the skiing, with horse and dog racing, polo, winter golf and even cricket events held on the lake. The resort is also home to the world-renowned tobogganing Cresta Club and if you are brave (or foolhardy!) enough you can even embark on a course consisting of 5 descents (men only). You can experience a real white knuckle ride in a taxi bob down the actual Olympic bob sleigh run. Both Cresta and the Olympic bob run are open until the end of February.

The ski area

The skiing in St Moritz is dividedacross a number of areas, which are linked via the local bus network.  The main ski area, corviglia, is most easily reached by the Chantarella funicular from the centre of St Moritz Dorf. Over 80km of pistes can be found in this sector and the runs, which are mainly for the intermediate skier, are on south facong slopes. Long runs from the summit of the Piz Nair to Celerina are ideal for the intermediate skier. The second largest area, Corvatsch, reached by ski bus from St Moritz, features the highest point in the area at over 3300m. Runs here are perhaps more varied than those on Corviglia and, due to their northerly aspect, provide the best skiing later on in the season. Here too the runs are particularly suited to the indermediate skier, however advanced skiers can find some interesting off-piste runs. This area links with Furtschellas, a sector largely served by drag lifts, offering a long descent to the valley floor at Sils Maria. Snowboarders will find a fun park equipped with various jumps.