Good to know
Good to Know
- This is a genuinely lift-served commercial resort, not a touring-only area — Grimentz and Zinal are permanently linked by cable car, so a single pass covers both villages' terrain.
- Grimentz-Zinal is well known among freeriders for easily accessible off-piste right beside the marked runs, but the marketed freeride zones (like Gardes de Bordon) are explicitly unpatrolled and only opened when avalanche risk is below level 3 — check conditions and consider a guide.
- True beginners have fewer easy options here than at bigger resorts — expect long T-bars/button lifts and only around a dozen groomed blue runs, concentrated more in the Grimentz sector than Zinal.
- Snowboarders should be aware of some long, flat linking trails and off-piste-only exits in parts of the Grimentz sector that can be awkward on a board.
- Much of the terrain faces north/northeast, which locals and guides cite as the reason snow tends to stay cold and untracked for days after a storm compared to some better-known Alpine resorts.
- 'Ski routes' (e.g. Vallon d'Orzival, Abondance, Pylon 6) are marked on the map but are not groomed or systematically patrolled the way pistes are — treat them with the same caution as off-piste.
- The 6-day Grimentz-Zinal adult lift pass (CHF 290 at the start of the 2025-26 season) covers all three Val d'Anniviers ski areas (Grimentz-Zinal, St-Luc/Chandolin, Vercorin), so it's worth planning to ski more than one valley if buying multi-day.
- You'll need a CHF 3 hands-free Skidata card to hold any pass if you don't already own a compatible one — factor this small mandatory fee in on your first purchase.
- Opening is staged (weekends from mid-November, full daily operation typically from around December 20) and closing is typically mid-to-late April — both are snow-dependent, so don't book a trip at the very edges of the season assuming full-area access.
- There is no coworking space or coliving setup in Grimentz — if consistent daytime workspace matters to you, budget for working out of your rental or a café rather than expecting nomad-oriented infrastructure.
- Zinal and Grimentz are linked by cable car rather than both being ski-in/ski-out from the village centers — check exactly where a listed chalet/apartment sits relative to the lift base before assuming true ski-in/ski-out.
Resorts And Terrain
Primary Resort
- Name
- Grimentz-Zinal
- Total Lifts
- 21
- Longest Run Km
- 7
- Total Piste Km
- 115 km of marked pistes and ski routes (some marketing/guiding sources round up to ~120 km)
- Altitude Range M
- 1,570 m to 2,900–2,920 m (sources vary slightly)
- Part Of Wider Pass Area
- Val d'Anniviers lift pass also covers two other separate lift-served areas nearby (St-Luc–Chandolin and Vercorin), bringing combined total to roughly 210 km / 46 lifts, but those are distinct ski areas, not part of Grimentz-Zinal itself.
- Description
- Grimentz has no independent ski lift system of its own — it is permanently linked by a 3 km aerial tramway (one of the longest in Switzerland) to the neighboring village of Zinal, and the two villages operate as a single commercial lift-served ski area called Grimentz-Zinal. This is a genuine, currently-operating lift-served resort, not a touring-only area.
- Lift Pass Pricing Note
- Day-ticket pricing below is for the combined 3-area 'Val d'Anniviers' pass (Grimentz-Zinal + St-Luc-Chandolin + Vercorin), not a Grimentz-Zinal-only ticket, since that is how passes are sold locally.
Terrain Park
- Name
- Orzival snowpark
- Access
- Orzival T-bar lift, Grimentz sector
- Features
- Kickers, boxes and rails across difficulty levels, plus a separate beginner-level kids' snowpark and a 300 m² Big Airbag.
Lift Breakdown
- Chairlift
- 5
- Gondola Circulating
- 3
- T Bar Button Platter
- 9
- Aerial Tramway Reversible
- 1
- Moving Carpet People Mover
- 3
Terrain Difficulty Mix
- Advanced Percent
- 26–40% depending on source
- Beginner Percent
- 23
- Intermediate Percent
- 37–51% depending on source
- Notes
- One source set (Ultimate-Ski) breaks it down as roughly a dozen blue runs, 15 red runs, and 10 black runs. Another (Powderhounds terrain summary) gives Beginner 23% / Intermediate 37% / Advanced 40%. Both agree beginner terrain is the smallest slice at ~23%.
Named Lift Served Pistes
Piste De Lona
- Sector
- Grimentz
- Difficulty
- black
- Vertical M
- 1300
- Notes
- Best-known black in the Grimentz sector, starts below Becs de Bosson; sun-exposed and known to slide, so conditions-dependent.
Couloirs Supérieur & Inférieur
- Sector
- Grimentz
- Difficulty
- black
- Vertical M
- 710
Chache-Avoin
- Sector
- Grimentz
- Difficulty
- blue
- Vertical M
- 810
- Notes
- Runs down into Grimentz village.
Crêts
- Sector
- Grimentz
- Difficulty
- black
- Notes
- Short, steep black leading back to the top of the Bendolla gondola.
Piste Du Chamois
- Sector
- Zinal to Grimentz
- Length Km
- 7
- Difficulty
- black
- Vertical M
- 1280
- Notes
- Longest run in the ski area, starts near the top of Espace-Weisshorn; steep at the top then wide and undulating through forest into Grimentz.
Arête
- Sector
- Zinal
- Difficulty
- red
- Notes
- Signposted access point to reach the top of Piste du Chamois.
L'Arête
- Sector
- Zinal
- Difficulty
- red
- Notes
- Descends from Corne de Sorebois with valley views.
Durand–Coupe Du Monde–Aigle
- Sector
- Zinal
- Difficulty
- red
- Vertical M
- 1200
- Notes
- Long red run down into Zinal village.
Col
- Sector
- Zinal
- Difficulty
- black
- Notes
- Considered one of the steepest pitches in the Zinal sector.
Genuine Off Piste Backcountry
Genuine Backcountry Beyond Lift Access
- Heli Skiing
- Heli-skiing is offered in the wider Val d'Anniviers by local guiding outfits as an additional (non-lift) backcountry option.
- Guiding Required
- Multiple local operators (UIAGM-certified mountain/ski guides) explicitly market this valley's backcountry and state guided access is strongly recommended, given the terrain is big, high-alpine, and not avalanche-secured.
- Description
- Distinct from the lift-served sidecountry above, Zinal is also a recognized starting point for multi-day hut-to-hut ski touring, requiring skinning/touring gear rather than lift access, heading north toward Saint-Luc and west toward Brig.
Lift Served Sidecountry Freeride Zones
Gardes De Bordon / Sorebois Freeride Area
- Size
- approximately 100 hectares of unmarked terrain
- Type
- official but unpatrolled freeride zone, distinct from groomed pistes
- Access
- lift-served via the Sorebois sector
- Safety Notes
- Not avalanche-secured; the resort itself states it is only opened when avalanche danger is below level 3, and operating hours are roughly 9am–4pm when conditions allow. Val d'Anniviers also hosts Switzerland's first dedicated Avalanche Training Center at Zinal for beacon/shovel/probe practice.
Durand Freeride Zone
- Type
- lift-accessed sidecountry
- Access
- via the Durand surface lift in the Zinal sector, either side of the Crête and Durand pistes
Corne De Sorebois Off-piste
- Type
- lift-accessed off-piste bowl/faces
- Access
- top of the Sorebois lift
- Altitude M
- 2895
Marked Ski Routes Not Groomed
Pylon 6
- Difficulty
- ski route (difficult/very difficult, not regularly groomed or patrolled like a piste)
Abondance
- Difficulty
- ski route
- Notes
- Has several chutes to drop into; condition-dependent.
Vallon d'Orzival
- Difficulty
- ski route
- Notes
- Only skiable in favorable conditions; north-aspect descent of roughly 1,500 m vertical through alpine, tree, and meadow terrain toward St-Jean, from where a bus or taxi returns to Grimentz.
Route to St-Jean
- Difficulty
- ski route
- Notes
- Forested descent ending at St-Jean (1,327 m); requires a bus/taxi transfer back to Grimentz.
Sample Lift Pass Prices 2025 26
Adult day ticket (25-63yr)
- Adult Day Ticket (25 63yr)
- CHF 73
Senior day ticket (64yr+)
- Senior Day Ticket (64yr+)
- CHF 66
Youth day ticket (16-24yr)
- Youth Day Ticket (16 24yr)
- CHF 62
Child day ticket (6-15yr)
- Child Day Ticket (6 15yr)
- CHF 44
6-day Val d'Anniviers pass
- 6 Day Val D'Anniviers Pass
- CHF 295
CHF
Logistics Accommodation And Remote Work
Lift Pass Pricing
- Currency Local
- CHF
- Multi Day Example
- CHF 290
6-day adult pass, Grimentz-Zinal ski area, start of 2025-26 winter season
- Mandatory Access Card Fee
- CHF 3.00
Non-refundable hands-free Skidata card required to carry any pass (one-time purchase unless you already own a compatible card)
- Half Day Morning Pass Deposit
- CHF 20
Refundable card deposit required for the half-day 'morning' pass, refunded if the access card is returned before 1pm
- Notes
- Passes purchased for Grimentz-Zinal are valid across all three Val d'Anniviers ski areas (Grimentz-Zinal, St-Luc/Chandolin, Vercorin). Exact single-day and full-season pass prices could not be confirmed with a specific figure from the resort's live pricing pages at the time of research.
Accommodation Options
- Ski In Ski Out
- Lodging directly at or immediately below the Grimentz lift base (near the Grimentz-Sorebois/Espace Weisshorn cable car departure on the main street) offers genuine walk-to-lifts access. Village-center chalets and apartments in Grimentz itself are compact enough that most lodging is only a short walk from the gondola.
- Cost Data Caveat
- We were not able to confirm current, representative monthly furnished-rental figures for either ski-in/ski-out or valley-based lodging in Grimentz from live rental-listing sources at the time of research. Do not treat any number as confirmed until sourced from an actual current listing.
- Town Valley Based
- Zinal, at the head of the valley and linked to Grimentz by one of Switzerland's longest cable cars, is the other main base — described as a quieter, more traditional former Maiensäss (alpine hamlet) with its own restaurants and bars, reached by lift or the connecting cable car rather than being ski-in/ski-out from most lodging.
Gear Rental And Storage
- Ski Lockers
- Ski lockers are located next to the main ticket desks in Grimentz, directly below the Grimentz-Sorebois cable car, and a separate heated, dehumidified locker room with ski cabinets exists at the Zinal-Sorebois cable car departure point. Staff dry stored skis and boots overnight.
- Locker Hours
- Locker room opening hours are daily from 8:30am to 5:15pm.
- Rental Shops
- Ski/snowboard rental shops operate in Grimentz village, with dedicated hire outlets also handling activity-specific gear such as toboggans (e.g. Do-Sports and Epiney Sports offer toboggan hire for the Bendolla-Grimentz run).
Remote Work Infrastructure
- Coworking Coliving Found
- No
- Note
- No dedicated coworking space or coliving operation could be identified in Grimentz itself. This is a small traditional Valais mountain village (built around its historic chalet architecture and the ski lift base) oriented almost entirely around tourism and skiing rather than remote-work infrastructure — nomads relying on daytime workspace should expect to work from a rented apartment/chalet or a hotel/café with Wi-Fi rather than a purpose-built coworking venue. We did not find evidence of this being an established digital-nomad base.
Season Length And Snow Reliability
- Typical Window
- Partial/weekend opening from mid-November, full daily operation from around December 20, running to mid/late April
Notes
- The Bendolla and Sorebois sectors are typically opened at weekends from mid-November, with the Sorebois sector moving to daily operation in early December and the full area opening seven days a week from around December 20, snow conditions permitting.
- The resort closed for the 2024-25 season on April 21, 2025.
- Usual opening is mid December, and usual closing is Mid April, though this is explicitly subject to current snow conditions each year.
- The area's north/northeast-facing terrain and snowmaking on part of the pistes are cited as supporting early- and late-season skiing, and the wider Grimentz/Zinal area (1,570m-2,900m) is generally described as offering good snow reliability from mid-November to the end of April.
AI-generated estimateData refreshed July 2026
This section has no cited sources.
More About Grimentz
Data last updated July 2026 · Verify anything important.