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Crans-Montana, Switzerland
A weekend in Crans-Montana
Skiing, golf and open air on a plateau in the Valais Alps
Where to staySkiingGolfBudget

Crans-Montana stretches along a sunny plateau, perched above the Rhône valley in the Swiss Valais. It's an unusual setting: you ski facing the peaks, with the valley opening up below. We spent four nights there in March 2021 — two in a hotel, two with family.

✓ Stayed in March 2021

01Where we stayed

Arenas Resort Valaisia
2 nights · CHF 300 per night · half board included
Route de Vermala 10-12, in Crans-Montana. A comfort double room with a balcony, on half board — having dinner included makes a real difference in Switzerland, where eating out weighs heavily on a budget. CHF 600 in total for the two nights, roughly €545 at the exchange rate of the time.
With family
2 nights
The following two nights, which brought the final bill down considerably — and let us extend the trip without doubling the cost.

02Skiing

One day on the slopes, with passes bought in advance. Crans-Montana's Pass Dynamic works like an airline ticket: the earlier you book, and the further you are from busy periods, the less you pay.

Pass Dynamic 1 day × 2CHF 36 + CHF 37
Keycard × 2CHF 10
Total skiing for twoCHF 83
✎ CHF 36 for a day's skiing in Switzerland is remarkably little — the walk-up price is far higher. That's the whole point of the Pass Dynamic: book ahead, online. And the keycard, at CHF 5, is a deposit and reusable from one season to the next, so keep it.

03Golf

We also hit a few balls at the golf club's driving range — a first for both of us. And without realising it at the time, we hadn't picked just anywhere to start.

Golf Club Crans-sur-Sierre is one of the most famous courses in Europe. It hosts the Omega European Masters every year, a European Tour event, and its main course carries the name of Severiano Ballesteros, who redesigned it. It's hard to imagine a more striking setting for your very first swings: the valley below, the Valais peaks straight ahead.

✎ you don't need to be a golfer to go: the driving range is open to beginners and you pay by the bucket of balls. It's an excellent fallback for days when the snow doesn't cooperate.

04The budget

What we paid, per person, based on two travellers:

Hotel, 2 nights half boardCHF 300
Ski pass, 1 day + keycard≈ CHF 41
Subtotal per person≈ CHF 341 (around €310)

Outside that total sit the journey there, the driving range and any meals beyond half board.

✎ these amounts date from March 2021 and are given in Swiss francs. Two things have moved since: the prices themselves, and the franc, which has strengthened considerably against the euro. At today's rate, the same bill in francs would cost a euro-zone traveller noticeably more.
View over the Valais Alps from Crans-Montana Mountain landscape at Crans-Montana Snow-covered peaks above Crans-Montana Panorama over the Rhône valley Crans-Montana, Valais Alpine scenery at Crans-Montana
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