Anzère Ski Resort Switzerland
Anzère ski resort is one of the many fabulous Swiss Alps ski resorts in the Valais near Sion. With a backdrop of high peaks including the provocatively named Sex Noir & Sex Rouge, loads of freeride powder potential on deserted, sunny slopes and a ski-in village, everyone is likely to enjoy a visit here.
There are so many resorts that are empty from Monday to Friday in January & out of school holiday periods, even when big winter storms have, or are about to, dump huge volumes of snow on them. Anzere is one of those resorts. Chalk it up on your board as a ‘go to’ ski area for midweek powder in Switzerland.
Pros & Cons for Anzère Ski Resort
Pros
- Family-friendly ski resort with something for everyone, including experts.
- Masses of fun off-piste terrain in powder, & very few people skiing it!
- Simple & efficient ski lift system.
- No lift lines mid-week and out of holiday periods.
- High-quality on-piste trails, particularly for intermediates.
- Superb value lift pass, and Magic Pass is valid too.
- Exceptional mountain views from every part of the ski area.
- Several excellent restaurants in the village.
- Public transport access by train & then bus is very good (you are in Switzerland after all).
Cons
- No beginner/easy trails descend off the resort's high points, making route planning awkward for them.
- Valley return trail for beginners along the Route de Grillesses is flat & hard work.
- Limited on-piste tails for advanced/experts.
- Sunny south-facing slopes can get sun-baked on warmer days.
- Village lacks atmosphere after dark.
Pro or Con (depending on your perspective!)
- A purpose-built village that whilst functional, lacks the charm of a fully traditional Swiss Alps village.
- Majority of accommodation available is in self-contained apartments with very few hotel rooms.
- If only skiing on-piste, depending on your ability, there may not be enough trail variety to sustain a full week’s holiday. Luckily there are a lot of other ski resorts nearby for day trips!
Skiing & Snowboarding, Lifts & Terrain
For skiers & snowboarders, there are over 60km of south-east aspect slopes on 920m of skiable vertical, served by 13 lifts. This ski resort has ample terrain for all abilities including marked off-piste routes and masses of freeride terrain.
Check out the ski trail map for Anzère below.
Terrain
Anzere’s 60km of pistes & wide-ranging off-piste are on a broadly sunny south-aspect. Toward the eastern end of the resort at Les Rousses, the terrain aspect is more easterly, perfect for sunny mornings & cold afternoons. The resort’s altitude range from 1,500m up to 2,420m is ok but not super-high. On warm days in winter the snowpack in the main part of the resort could well get cooked, but c’est la vie!
Anzere has two novice ski areas at opposite ends of the spectrum. One is situated in the heart of the village, beautifully sheltered amongst the buildings & forest. The other is up at one of the higher points in the ski area (accessible from the top of the gondola), providing a larger learning zone, but only in favourable weather.
Skiers and snowboarders above the rank of novice will find a variety of terrain to suit everyone, and it will likely be in perfect condition and devoid of other people if skiing here mid-week. There is no beginner trails off either of the resort's high-points, so some awkward choices may have to made if they are in your group. Intermediates have the best of the on-piste here, and should be able to ski everything, even the black trails.
The off-piste bowls & trees in the zone above Grillesses, the steeper slopes (and amongst the avalanche fences) below Pas de Maimbre to the gondola mid-station deliver powder riding at its finest. When it comes to first turns from the gondola on a powder day, hit the Raphy route pronto, and repeat it quickly. After that, the pressure is off. Expert freeriders will find some sublime off-piste offerings at Anzere, particularly in the lower half of the mountain. Steeps, cliffs & pillows are throughout. Just go when the snow is fresh, and the base is deepish.
If tempted by the off-piste trees, whoops & yips below Restaurant Le Tsalan, you may end up on the beginner village return trail, Route de Grillesses. We don’t recommend the trail be used by snowboarders. It is flatter than flat along almost its entire distance. When freshly groomed it may be ok, but you have been warned! Same goes for beginners.
Because of strong winds & blowing snow, during our visit to Anzère, we only skied a little more than half the hill. However we enjoyed it immensely. An old local told us the sector down to Les Rousses had the best terrain on the mountain, but of course that is what was closed, mainly due to high avalanche danger at the time.
Ski Lifts
Despite having 8 surface tows amongst its 13-lift infrastructure, the majority of the terrain can be accessed via the main gondola and 4 chairlifts. The La Combe T-bar & Turin J-bar provide access to the remainder. If one starts early, you are nearly guaranteed first gondola in the morning. The gondola starts spinning officially at 8.45am, but you never know when you might get on early!
Where is Anzère Switzerland?
Anzere is in the French-speaking, western half of canton Valais, south-west Switzerland. The resort is on the north side of the Rhône River close to the major town of Sion and overlooking some the Swiss Alps most splendid alpine peaks. By road, Anzère is 16km (25min) north of Sion, 177km east of Geneva (2¼hr drive), 290km (3¼hr drive) south-west of Zurich and 70km (65min drive) west of Brig.
It is easy and quick to drive yourself in a rental car to Anzere, but you are in Switzerland, so why drive? Take the train & bus; instead. We did!
The nearest international airport is Geneva (GVA) which has easy transfers to Anzere via taxi, shuttle bus or train. The small airport at Sion (SIR) airport is close to Anzère and is an option for travellers from London, Zurich and those with their own private plane!
The Swiss railway system & bus network provides a perfect mode of travel to Anzère via Sion. Trains from Geneva airport take a little over 2hr (on IR90 service, direction Brig) to get to Sion, where buses or private transfers can finish the journey up to the resort. From Sion train station, the regular route 342 or 351 PostBus services connect to the Anzère village in around 45min. The sheltered bus terminal is right out the front of the train station.
Search & book here for train tickets to Sion. Purchase bus tickets from the driver.
If public transport is not your thing, one can easily fork out the francs for a private transfer direct to your hotel from the airport. Whilst it can be quite time efficient & affordable for groups of 3 or more people, part of any Swiss ski experience is using the trains, so get on board. Costs can be reduced by organising the transfer to meet your train service at Sion. In this case, using the train for most of the journey, you will be doing the environment a favour too - POW (Protect Our Winters) .
Search & book here for all airport transfers to Anzere.
Once in the village, free ski buses circulate regularly throughout the day, shuttling guests to the lift bases. If doing day trips by car to Anzère from other locations, parking is available for a small fee at the gondola base in the village. An alternative to the main village is at the extremely quiet far-eastern end of the resort at Les Rousses, where a chairlift takes one from 1,770m elevation all the way to the highest lifted point at 2,420m La Bate. Note that this end of the resort can be closed during winter storm days.
For hints, tips & warnings about getting to Swiss ski resorts in winter, see our Travel in Switzerland page.
Anzère Accommodation
The village at Anzère is located on a sunny, south-facing bench at 1,500m altitude, high above the Rhône River valley. A purpose-built resort village, it consists mainly of apartment building & chalets constructed in a modern Swiss alpine style, not displeasing to the eye, but lacking some the charm of a truly traditional mountain village. The village has an adequate town-centre with all the bars, restaurants & services one could require whilst visiting.
Lodging options include a limited number of reasonable hotels (including the Eden Resort Anzère, Hôtel de Charme la Poste and Hotel Zodiaque), plus many individual apartments spread across the village. Most of the upper village accommodation is ski-in, and occasionally ski-out as well.
Search & book here for all Anzère ski accommodation.
Sion is the gateway city for several ski villages & resorts, plus a sightseeing location of note. Perfect for day-trippers to the many ski resorts in the region, access to the city is fabulous via the train. Buses from the train station make regular journeys to the ski lifts at Anzere. The city centre has full services and some comfortable, well-priced hotels (including the Hôtel Elite, Hôtel du Rhône), a few lovely guesthouse rooms (like Chambre d'hôte Valère) and an affordable youth hostel with private rooms (Sion Youth Hostel). Upon arrival at Sion, you will immediately notice the castles looming over the town; three are all up - Majorie Castle, Valère Castle, and Tourbillon Castle. They make a classically European diversion on a down day.
Sion can also be used as a base to explore resorts up & down the Rhone Valley, utilising the train & buses to get to 4-Vallees, Crans Montana, Aletsch Arena & even Zermatt.
Search & book Sion ski accommodation.
Ski Rentals, Lessons & Guiding
Ski rentals & lessons are available from our local partners in the centre of the village just near the gondola. Receive a discount when you search & book via our Anzere Ski & Snowboard Rental page.
On or off-piste ski lessons & mountain guiding with are available via our local partners. For more info & options, compare, search & book via our Anzère Ski Lessons & Guiding page.
Nearby Ski Resorts
Anzère is in the heart of a major Swiss ski region. On the north side of the Rhone River valley in the Valais, its neighbours include Crans Montana & Leukerbad-Torrent to the east and Ovronnaz to the west. On the south side of the valley, the massive 4-Vallees may be the obvious choice, but smaller offerings at Nax Mont Noble, Saint Luc-Chandolin & Grimentz-Zinal have definite powder hound appeal.
Review
The Powderhounds visited Anzère in January 2023 and were gob-smacked by the lack of people skiing its powder-laden slopes during some serious winter storms, by how quiet the village was during the week and how good the value was. We will be heading back with our Magic Pass this coming season. 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 Anzère compares to the rest of the Swiss ski resorts on the Switzerland ski resort ratings page, or compare to the rest of Europe on the European ski resort ratings page.
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