Engelberg is a throw back to a time when ski resorts were populated with skiers not wannabee millionaires. It's a skiers resort, has an excellent snow record and some of the best off-piste in the Alps. Best time to be there is the beginning of the week when it quietens after a busy weekend. A guide is essential if you haven't been here before. Easily my favorite resort in Europe.
Anyone who thinks that this (Engelberg) is some sort of undiscovered off-piste paradise is in for a shock. Was here last week and the place was tracked out by 10am: big queues for tickets and the lift from town. Not quite what I was expecting as I had heard this place was quiet. Lots and lots of people on fat skis - nice town though.
Went to Engelberg last year and I didn't think it was particularly good compared with Verbier for instance. There were big queues at Easter when it seemed like half the world rocked up.........village is limited and there is nowhere for my family to ski as Brunni was cooked and brown. The off piste is limited to a few itineraries and you can ski the place in one day, it is disjointed and you have to bus it to the slopes. I took a guide and we did the same runs I had done after one day. I have experienced many better places to ski than this .
We went to Engelberg in late March 2009 and the skiing conditions were fantastic.
Engelberg is accessible by train so a great choice if you are not driving. Frequent train services run from Luzerne and it is an amazing experience as the train climbs up the mountains to reach 1000m.
Englberg is perfect for advanced skiers - we particularly enjoyed slopes at Jochpass and Jochstock - fantastic views and well groomed pistes.
The only disadvantage I can think of is the fact that it takes about 30mins to get from the main gondola station to Jochpass as you need to take the Trubsee hopper as well.
I wouldn't go to Engelberg if you are a beginner as the blue runs can be quite tough (especially at Engstlenalp) for inexperienced skiers.
Amazing skiing otherwise.
I live at Engelberg, so maybe I am biased, but I think Engelberg is the best resort in Switzerland. It has a huge vertical drop, and loads of great off-piste areas. It is totally worth getting a guide to show a group around the mountain. One thing people haven't already mentioned is that this resort (Engelberg) is quiet cool for beginners. It might not look like it on the piste map, because most runs are red and black, but actually all the beginners I know who come here have a great time. I think this is because beginners don't really need a lot of runs, but they want really good beginners runs. Engelberg has really cool blue runs on both sides of the resort. Because most people come for the off-piste or the harder stuff, the blue runs are generally pretty empty. Also, this town is a lot more foreigner friendly than most places in Switzerland. It is cool to speak English and not German, and the folks here understand that tourists are supporting their economy, not invading their paradise. The Yuctan bar is definitely the place to go for a pint in the afternoon. For those with family or on a budget, check out Sunmatt real estate. The guy to speak to is Evatt. He has loads of apartments for rent at reasonable prices, and he is very fair and straightforward to deal with. One last thing: if you have never seen cheese making in action, you must check out the dairy products store that is found inside the monastery. They have a cheese making set up in a round glass room in the middle of the store, and you get to see the whole process very clearly. When you see how Alpine cheese is made, then you can say you have seen Switzerland. Precision, cleanliness, indulgent. Engelberg is a very cool town.
Engelberg the greatest resort of them all - i've been to all the great resorts in the alps eg Zermatt, Chamonix ,St Moritz, Flaine, Les arcs, Meribel and loads more but this resort blew me away. I arrived to 8 meters of snow at bottom station, snow drifts the size of my house - it had been snowing constantly for 22 days and the next days the skies had cleared and I went skiing at the Jochpass where they'd had 1.8 meters of fresh powder one more meter and the lifts would have shut it was so thick it looked like I was skiing on my knees you have got to come to this resort whatever you do don't go to Meribel - it's crap.
Just came back Feb 11. Great place. If you visit try to stay central. Easy access to Brunni and Titlis. Loads of fresh snow last Wed and Thur. A good 2 hr drive from Basel. Must visit Yucatan bar happy hour 5-6 4pint pitcher 9 pounds get 1 free.
I went to Engelberg in the middle of Feb 2005. It had been snowing for 8 days non stop and the pistes were lovely. There was 5 metres at the top lift and 3 metres at the bottom. There was snow flicking off behind us and the slopes were knee deep powder. By Thursday skies had cleared and there were some amazing conditions on the slopes, especially the runs to the resort, which were excellent. Engelberg also has some excellent off piste skiing. Highly recommend resort.
We had some incredible skiing with the guys from snowride.net in January last year.
This truly was the stuff that dreams are made of. Travelling to Engelberg we knew it had been snowing - on arrival the snow had stopped, but started again overnight and kept going non stop for four days. Due to the heavy snowfall most of Mount Titlis was closed, but, no problem, the guys from Snowride guided us through waist deep snow on the Brunni, the safer side of the valley.
We were able to make descents through areas you can only ride through after a huge dump, we were riding over walls, fences, down roads, past cattle sheds in a never ending deep and white world. There are so many routes through the trees to Engelberg when there is this much snow - but the highlight of the Bruni descents must be down to Grünenwald, where you catch the hourly train back to Engelberg.
On the Thursday, the weather cleared, blue skies, super cold (-22 at 2500m) and amazing snow. We were some of the first to be on Titlis, first tracks were made down Gross and Klein Sulz, we then made our way to the Laub, a huge slab of 35 - 45 degrees off piste heaven with over 1000m of vertical. The snow was so deep and light you could just let your self go, speed was not a concern as the snow was so perfect. We made endless huge turns in the most perfect snow - a highlight of my ski experiences.
So overall, incredible terrain, but you do need a guide to get the best from the area, check out http://www.snowride.net to arrange guiding - highly recommended.
Engelberg is a great resort for people who like off piste skiing/boarding. Some say its Snow Boarder's heaven! The lifts do close a little early for my liking but the skiing is awesome. The are three main ski areas but the best is found on the Titlis glacier (3020m). The runs are pretty fast and you can ski from the top of the glacier to the resort, with only one short chairlift journey over the lake half way down which provides a welcome rest for the legs. This is a beautiful ski run with stunning views and varying ski levels. There aren't a vast choice of runs but those available are very good offering a challenge for all levels. The advanced will relish the challenge or perish of/on the mightily steep black run and for those who like powder, the Laub beckons (1000m of pure poweder.) However there are many opportunities to hit powder next to the pisted runs. These areas are like honey to the bee for snow boarders. I've only skied Engelberg once but I will definitely be returning at some stage.