Quarantine Rules Removed in Switzerland as of 4 December
Great news! The quarantine rules will be removed in Switzerland starting 4th December.
It was rather unfortunate timing the arrival of the new Covid variant Omicron. This when the first snow fall in Switzerland and resorts were starting to open!
Switzerland Tourism just shared the news that the Swiss Federal Council has announced today that these measures have been lifted.
All countries will be removed from the quarantine list. This means, per Saturday 4th December, entry into Switzerland will be possible without quarantine.
There will be a stricter regime in place.
Vaccinated and recovered travellers will have to present a negative PCR test before entry. They will have to carry a second test (PCR or antigen) between day 4 and 7. The test results will be reported to the Cantonal authorities.
Ikon Pass to include Zermatt and Cervinia for the 2019/20 ski season
Ikon Pass expands into Europe with the addition of Zermatt in Switzerland and Cervinia Valtourneche in Italy for the 2019/20 ski season
Soak up the magic of the Matterhorn as Zermatt in Switzerland becomes the first European destination partner on the Ikon Pass. Now Ikon Pass holders have access to snow at 41 global destinations across five continents.
The iconic Matterhorn towers over more than 3,500 acres (1,416 hectares) of terrain that spans both Switzerland and Italy, offering Swiss hospitality coupled with Italian lifestyle, in the highest skiable terrain offered in the picturesque Alps. Connected lift service offers Ikon Pass holders access to Rothorn, Gornergrat and the Schwarzsee-Matterhorn glacier paradise within the Zermatt ski area, plus Cervinia-Valtournenche ski areas in Italy, collectively known as Matterhorn ski paradise.
The IKON Pass extends into Europe. Ikon Pass to include Zermatt and Cervinia for the 2019/20 ski season.
Ikon Pass holders will have seven-day access to Zermatt and the Matterhorn ski paradise network on the Ikon Pass with no blackout dates, and five-day access on the Ikon Base Pass, also with no blackout dates.
“The Matterhorn is a true icon known around the world, so we are thrilled to have Zermatt join the Ikon Pass community,” said Erik Forsell, Chief Marketing Officer for Alterra Mountain Company. “Ikon Pass strives to continually offer pass holders unique experiences in the mountains. Now they can experience Zermatt’s glacier skiing, traditional Swiss fondue, plus its infamous European après ski across two countries, on one pass.”
“Zermatt and Matterhorn ski paradise are pleased to be the first European destination on the Ikon Pass, and we look forward to offering our best Swiss quality and Italian lifestyle to Ikon Pass holders everywhere. We are excited to share our passion and devotion to skiing within the Ikon Pass community and its impressive destination partners across the globe,” said Sandra Zenhäusern, Director of Marketing, Zermatt Bergbahnen AG.
A torrent of water in the Triftbach stream caused unexpected flooding in the Swiss resort of Zermatt. A pocket of meltwater in the glacier above is believed to be the cause.
Despite it being the hottest day of the year without a drop of rain in sight, the Triftbach stream took Zermatt by surprise on Wednesday when it transformed into a gushing torrent of grey water for a while. News website 20 Minuten was able to source footage from readers.
(Keystone / Philippe Mooser) Swissinfo.ch. Stream bursts banks and floods Zermatt.
No one was injured, the municipality said.
A glacier is probably at the origin of these torrents of water carrying sand and stones, said mayor Romy Biner-Hauser, who described it as “an unpredictable whim of nature”.
Stranded tourists heli-ported after Stanserhorn CabriO cable car breakdown
From Swiss.ch
Around 150 tourists stranded at the top of the Stanserhorn mountain in central Switzerland had to be rescued by helicopter after the cable car they came up with broke down.
On Friday evening, the monitoring system of the open-air cable car triggered an emergency shutdown due to a technical defect, said the operators. Passengers in the cabins were able reach both ends thanks to a backup mechanism. However, those who were at the top of the mountain were stranded. They had to be transported by three helicopters to the valley below.
The Stanserhorn Cabrio is arriving to the top station in Stanserhorn mountain. Stranded tourists heli-ported after Stanserhorn CabriO cable car breakdown.
“At no time were they in any danger,” said the Stanserhorn cable car operators.
Repairs were scheduled for Saturday morning and the cable cars are expected to return to service Sunday morning. A similar incident took place a week ago on the Niesen mountain in the Bernese mountains. The breakdown of the funicular railway had necessitated a rescue by helicopter.
Swiss village plans to sell ‘houses for one franc.’
From The Local
A municipality in Switzerland’s Italian-speaking canton of Ticino is looking at selling off nine properties for the symbolic price of one Swiss franc (€0.90).
The aim of the plan (here in Italian) is to breathe life back into the far-flung but picturesque hamlet of Monti Scìaga, right near the Italian border.
Monte Sciaga – Swiss village plans to sell ‘houses for one franc.’
The Italian border is a virtual stone’s throw from Monti Scìaga.
The local council wants to build a hut for hikers and cyclists while nine further properties could be up for grabs for one franc each if local building authorities sign off on the project this autumn.
The catch
But there is a catch. The stone houses – or rustici as they are known locally – are little more than ruins, and anyone buying them would have to fully renovate them in line with local laws.
St Moritz has been awarded the 2023 International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation (IBSF) World Championships.
St Moritz, the renown Swiss resort, has been awarded the 2023 International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation (IBSF) World Championships. Sochi, Whistler and Winterberg have applied to be the host of the 2024 edition of the event.
During the IBSF Congress in Prague, the Olympia Bob Run St Moritz-Celerina track was confirmed as the location for the 2023 World Championships.
It is the 24th time that St Moritz has being host on its entirety or part of the IBSF’s flagship event outside of the Olympic Games.
St Moritz has been awarded the 2023 International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation (IBSF) World Championships.
St Moritz has also been given the hosting rights for the IBSF Junior World Championships in 2021 at the Congress in Prague.
Heike Größwang, IBSF secretary general has told delegates at the meeting that Sochi (Russia), Whistler (Canada) and Winterberg (Germany) have submitted bids for the 2024 World Championships.
The Sanki Sliding Centre in Sochi was the stage of both bobsleigh and skeleton events at the 2014 Winter Olympic Games but was not included on the list of IBSF World Cup venues for the 2019-20 ski season.
Zermatt to try recycled plastic ‘green’ road re-surfacing project
From Traffic Technology Today.
Zermatt is always a leading resort in lifts development and now it has taken a ‘green’ approach in resurfacing roads. They are using a new technology from a Scottish company that uses waste plastic to create an environmentally-friendly pavement.
Laura Tinham and Nick Burnett – MacRebur Switzerland. Photo: RRO. Zermatt to try recycled plastic ‘green’ road re-surfacing project
Already Zermatt is a car-free town and uses electric cars to whizz passengers and their luggage from the train station into their lodgings. For this pilot project, one of the main road junctions has been re-surfaced using this new technology from MacRebur, an award-winning Scottish company that allows waste plastic that wold go to incineration or landfill to be used in an asphalt mix.
New lifts and piste for Portes du Soleil for the 2019-20 ski season
Portes du Soleil will be improving its ski area and strengthen the lifts connecting the resorts. SERMA – (Avoriaz Ropeway Operating Company), is launching replacement works for the Léchère chairlift, as well as the construction of a new chairlift and a new red run on Les Cases. The chairlift manufacturer will be from the Bartholet company.
Avoriaz will open a third connection between its ski area and the Swiss resort of Champéry – Les Crosets. This will be made possible with the construction of two new lifts to facilitate the skiing opportunities throughout the Portes du Soleil ski area, composed of 12 resorts with 650 km of linked runs in France and Switzerland.
New lifts and piste for Portes du Soleil for the 2019-20 ski season. Avoriaz photo.
The first chairlift will replace the current triple chairlift La Léchère with a high-speed detachable sextuple alleviating the uplift of skiers and riders. The new sextuple will carry 2700 skiers per hour in comparison of the 1,800 carried by the actual triple.
Cliffhanging restaurant opens for the season in Switzerland: Äscher Mountain Restaurant
This summer the Äscher mountain restaurant had a weather delay that did not allow it to open in time. This restaurant is a bucket list place to go – nested by a cliff. One of the hiking routes up to the restaurant via the Blättli and Alp Bommen, are still closed due to high avalanche risk.
There are other paths to reach the restaurant that are still covered with snow. You should get the latest route information before venturing to the restaurant.
The restaurant is now under new management, because the people taking care of it until last year decided to cease their work there as the hotel had become victim of its own success, not being able to cope with soaring visitors’ numbers.
Cliffhanging restaurant opens for the season in Switzerland: Äscher Mountain Restaurant. Instagram photo.
The hotel is an Instagram sensation, and you can see by watching the pictures why. But it also got very well-known thanks to be named one of the world’s five most
The Äscher came to prominence in 2014 when it was named one of the five most interesting restaurants in the world in the Huffington Post.
Also, National Geographic featured it in the “Destinations of a Lifetime’ special. To reach the restaurant, you need to take a cable car and a short walk from Wasserauen in the canton of Appenzell Innerrhoden.
The foundation that owns the restaurant said last year that they were working on improving the establishment.
A lift employee has died and six were injured in an accident while maintaining a lift from Titlis Bergbahnen.
During a revision work on the Titlis cable car, a serious accident occurred. The gondola lift was closed to tourist traffic at the time of the accident and there were also no gondolas on the rope, as reported by the cantonal police Obwald.
When employees of the Bergbahnen Engelberg-Titlis were working on the Gerschnialp on the cable lift of the gondola lift on Wednesday morning, a temporary bracing loosened in the rope splice area of the hoist rope, whereupon the workers were hit by the conveyor and the rescue rope.
A lift employee has died and six were injured in an accident while maintaining a lift from Titlis Bergbahnen.
As a result, an employee of the Titlis bahnen was so badly injured that he died at the accident site. Two other people involved in the work were severely injured and one person was injured a bit more moderate. There were also three more injured.
The deceased employee was an experienced employee who had been working for the company for 20 years.
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