Cervinia Ski Resort Italy

At the foot of Monte Cervino (a.k.a. the Matterhorn) on the Italian side of the border across from Zermatt is the Cervinia ski resort. Beautifully situated in a broad glacier capped bowl, Cervinia has awesome skiing & dining experiences at a bargain basement price in the Valle d'Aosta Italy.

Before Cervinia was developed as a ski resort, the village was a base for mountaineering types & it was known as Breuil. It’s officially now known as Breuil-Cervinia, but most people just refer to it as Cervinia. The resort includes Valtournenche & is lift, trail & pass interlinked with Zermatt in Switzerland to form one of the largest international ski resorts in the world (behind the likes of the monstrous Portes du Soleil).

Significantly less expensive than neighbouring Zermatt, Cervinia has awesome Italian food & drink plus ideal terrain for beginner, intermediate & freeride powder seeking skiers & snowboarders.

Pros & Cons for Cervinia Ski Resort

Pros

• Stunning views and landscapes.
• High altitude guarantees quality and reliable snow.
• Excellent, long distance piste trails for beginners and intermediates on a skiable vertical of over 1,400m on the Italian side.
• Ski lift infrastructure is being progressively modernised (gotta 'keep up with the joneses' over the border!).
• World's most spectacular learn to ski area.
• Long season, including summer skiing.
• Superb on-mountain restaurants & après ski.
• Great freeride terrain including tree skiing for advanced riders.
• Excellent value for money.
• Linked with Zermatt Switzerland (and a lot cheaper too).
• Quiet during the week.
• Lots of ‘ski-in’ lodging options.

Cons

• The Cervinia sector is very exposed during blizzards and upper mountain lifts often close during high winds.
• No piste trails for advanced riders.
• The drive up to Cervinia village (2,050m altitude) can be challenging during stormy weather or icy conditions, & when weekend traffic is coming the other way!

Pro or Con (depending on your perspective!)

• Off-piste skiing for more advanced riders requires a little bit of knowledge & effort.
• Much of the privately owned on-mountain apartment accommodation is old and dated, but also very cheap (renter beware!).
• High-end accommodation is more readily available in the last few years at Breuil Cervinia, but head to Zermatt if luxury is an important factor.
• Heli-skiing is available.
• Summer skiing is becoming increasingly limited as climate change takes hold.
• IKON Pass is valid in adjacent Zermatt but NOT in Cervinia!

Skiing & Snowboarding, Lifts & Terrain

The Cervinia ski terrain primarily consists of a large, sunny bowl that sits below the southern face of Monte Cervino (Matterhorn) and extends broadly across to the Gran Sometta. Combined with Valtournenche, the ski area is served by about 22 lifts, including a few brand new 6-seater chairs installed as part of an ongoing modernisation program. A total of 150km of runs on the Italian side are ideal for beginners and intermediates, with lovely long manicured slopes that are highway wide. In Cervinia at the Plan Maison, one of the world's most spectacular learn-to-ski areas exists for novices under the looming Monte Cervino. Advanced riders will find very little competition for off-piste powder, but the Cervinia on-piste trails have very little for expert skiers & snowboarders! Heliskiing is possible from the resort for those that are fiscally flush.

Check out the ski trail map for Breuil-Cervinia Valtournenche below.

Breuil Cervinia Valtournenche Ski Trail Map

Neighbouring Valtournenche has a range of long, mainly intermediate piste trails extending all the way into the valley. Beginner runs extend up from Salette via two slow chairlifts. The area is quite exposed and not pleasant for beginners in anything but the best weather. The 1,400m vertical valley run from Cime Bianche via Salette through the outskirts of Valtournenche town to the gondola base and car park is an absolute ripper - easily the best piste trail in the entire resort. A group of restaurants and bars just above town offer a superb place to stop on the way down.

Both Cervinia and Valtournenche have a true skiable vertical of around 1,400m in each sector with a total vertical of just under 2,000m. There are seamless piste trail & lift connections from Valtournenche to Cervinia and vice versa. To ski into Zermatt across the Switzerland border, either a ride up the Plateau Rosa cable car is required, or alternatively via the chairs to the Theodul Pass. The new Matterhorn Glacier Ride (Alpine Crossing) gondola now connects Plateau Rosa to the 3,883m Klein Matterhorn in Switzerland.

Interlinked with Zermatt Switzerland

The Cervinia ski resort is interlinked via the lifts and slopes with Valtournenche in Italy as well as the Zermatt ski resort over in Switzerland (weather permitting). The areas combined form the Matterhorn Ski Paradise, a massive ski domain that provides 360km of piste and plenty of off-piste terrain. You can either purchase a sector lift pass that covers only the Italian resort sectors or pay more for an 'International Pass' that includes Zermatt.

If you want to test the endurance of your thighs, head up Europe’s newest & highest cable car from Plateau Rosa/Testa Grigia (3,480m) to the Klein Matterhorn (aka Piccolo Cervino)(3,883m) and then schuss down a 20km and 2,359m vertical drop red (intermediate) run to Valtournenche. The run will be interrupted by a very short chairlift ride near the Cime Bianche just after you enter Valtournenche ski area but is otherwise a nice bit of exercise!

Ikon Pass

Worth noting for international guests that the IKON Pass has NO access to Cervinia-Valtournenche. IKON Pass is only valid for Zermatt.

Summer Skiing at Cervinia & Zermatt

Cervinia ski resort is open in the summer for skiing on the Plateau Rosa Glacier in a combined ski area with Zermatt. Summer skiing at Cervinia runs from late June to early September every summer and has 6km of ski run available on the Italian side and 21km on the Theodul Glacier on the Swiss side in Zermatt. The Zermatt summer ski terrain is open to skiing all year round. Get in quick because climate change is rapidly melting the glaciers, particularly on the Italian side of the border.

For more information on ski lifts, terrain, trail maps & lift passes, see our Skiing & Snowboarding Cervinia page.

Snow & Weather

Cervinia is located along the highest spine of mountains in Europe ensuring a long snow-sure season thanks to high elevations between 2,050m and 3,488m, Cervinia is so snow-sure that it combines with Zermatt to have the largest on-piste summer glacier skiing in the world.

With a predominantly southerly aspect, most of the slopes are bathed in sunshine when the big orb is out! The sunny aspect is a major drawcard for beginners as well as the Zermatt skiers who want to work on their tan. However, the weather isn’t always fine and due to the high and exposed nature of Cervinia ski resort, it can get very cold, windy and produce skiing by braille conditions, sometimes resulting in lift closures.

Where is Cervinia Italy?

Breuil Cervinia is located near the top of the Aosta Valley, 117km north of Torino (Turin) in north-western Italy. The neighbouring interconnected resort of Valtournenche is 9km by road south of Cervinia and is included in the ski resort area.

Cervinia ski resort's closest major gateway airports are Turin (TRN) (120km - 1⅔hr), Milan Malpensa (MXP) (190km, 2¾hr) and Geneva (GVA) (210km - 2¾hr) by rental car. Private Airport Transfers to the resort are available and are both efficient & cost effective, particularly for larger groups. For those travelling on a shoestring, there are train & bus transport options via Chatillon - Saint Vincent as well, but they take a bit longer & require a few changes of train before one finally gets on the bus.

For more detailed information on the best ways to get there, see our Travel to Cervinia page.

Cervinia Accommodation

Breuil Cervinia village sits in a stupendous location below the sunny side of the Matterhorn at a lofty 2,050m altitude. One of the most snow-sure ski resort villages in Italy, it has been largely purpose built (as opposed to having traditional village roots) , so there are a few ugly, dated concrete buildings, along with an ever-increasing number of modern, charming & up market hotels. When it comes to attractiveness, the village itself is probably middle of the road at best, but its snow surety, plus location in relation to the ski lifts & surrounding mountains is absolutely first class. The village has a much better range of accommodations available than it did 10 years ago. Quality has improved, but there are still a few absolute bargains in perfect locations. Our pick is the Hotel Meuble' Joli or a 4-star like Hotel Europa. A plus is that it’s compact and easy to stroll around the mainly pedestrian-only streets. Unless of course you are staying in an apartment on the Cielo Alto (or Cielalto), in which case a walk down and a shuttle bus up is the go! Cielo Alto has a huge range of self-contained apartments, all with ski-in ski-out access to the nearby chairlift & some ripping larch forest skiing. Some of the privately owned apartments are VERY basic, so beware. We suggest staying with Base Camp Alpine Apartments.

Above the village there are several fantastic ski-in ski-out lodging options. The traditional Hotel Baita Cretaz is located slopeside a few hundred meters above the village & has excellent après ski on the deck as well as superb rooms & suites. Further up at Plan Maison (2,555m), Hotel lo Stambecco is perfect for first tracks on a powder day. Back down the mountain, the ski-in ski-out La Cresta Chalet has exceptional new suite apartments overlooking the village.

Luxury 5-star accommodations are not prevalent in Cervinia, but a couple of good ones include the recently re-badged Grand Hotel Cervinia, Cervinia -VRetreats. Located in a quiet position below the village and oof the main road, it has a private shuttle to get guests comfortably to & from the ski lifts. The alternative is the remodelled ex-Club Med facility, now the upscale Valtur Hotel.

Several 4-star luxury hotels are in the village, very close to the ski lifts, and include the superb Aux Pieds du Roi Suite & Spa Hotel, plus the fabulous Excelsior Planet, known for its Michelin quality food & service. Others worth looking at include Hotel Punta Maquignaz with its excellent bar/restaurant, and the ski-in, ski-out White Angel Hotel, located above the village near La Cresta Chalet.

A hotel or apartment in Breuil Cervinia hotel typically costs much less than a Zermatt hotel which can be über expensive, although Cervinia can cost more than some other nearby Italian ski resorts.

Search & book here for all Cervinia ski accommodation.

Accommodation further down the valley at Valtournenche is cheaper and in a more authentic town, although access to the slopes & main gondola will require a bus or car ride from most hotels.

Search & book here for all Valtournenche ski accommodation.

Cervinia is an easy day trip from the Aosta valley towns of Châtillon & Saint Vincent. Availability is generally assured, but a car is required to make the journey viable.

Services, Ski Rentals, Guiding & Lessons

Ski rentals are available in both Cervinia ski resort villages. Receive a discount when you search & book via our Breuil-Cervinia & Valtournenche Ski & Snowboard Rental page.

If looking for an off-piste guide or ski lessons, head to our Cervinia Ski Lessons & Guiding page.

The villages of Breuil Cervinia & Valtournenche offer all the services required to survive if staying in a self-contained apartment. Banking, groceries & bakeries are plentiful as are outdoor clothing & ski equipment stores. High-end shopping is limited......... but who really cares! The world's most spectacular petrol station is bizarrely located at the entrance to Breuil Cervinia juxtaposed with the Matterhorn rising behind it. Super convenient though.

Food & Nightlife

The Cervinia ski area is serviced by more than a dozen mountain restaurants, some of which are self-service, others are classic full-service rifugi & none are too pricey. Après-ski drinking starts at a few slope-side bars. In town at Breuil Cervinia there are upscale restaurants, inexpensive pizzerias, and lively bars where you can partake in some fabulous Italian revelry.

See our Cervinia Food & Nightlife page for great photos & more information.

Nearby Ski Resorts

The Aosta valley has some of Italy's best ski resorts within a short distance. Courmayeur (with the amazing Skyway Monte Bianco), Pila, Crevacol and La Thuile are to the west. The Powderhound paradise of Monterosa Ski is to the east. Just to the south of Cervinia is gorgeous little Chamois, worthy of a half day visit.

There are some long-held plans to lift link the Cime Bianche at the top of Valtournenche/Cervinia with Frachey (Champoluc) in the Monterosa Ski area, creating one of the world's largest interconnected ski resorts. In this warming world, e will believe it when we see it!

Reviews

The Powderhounds are constantly reviewing new ski resorts in Europe (& across the globe) or having a second or third look at old ones. We have visited Cervinia a few times and had a great time on each visit, but we also think you spend time on the other side of the Matterhorn at Zermatt for a truly unreal ski & mountain experience. Click on the review link in the left column (or top of the page if on a mobile) to read all the reviews.

See how Cervinia compares to the rest of the Italian ski resorts on the Italy ski resort ratings page, or compare it to the rest of Europe on the European ski resort ratings page.

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