Resorts Guide - Les Diablerets
Photo: SnowKings
Les Diablerets is a small, quiet resort set in the bottom of a valley in the Bernese Alps, about an hour from Montreux.
It's a genuine hidden gem, and it's location is spectacular - one of the most under-rated settings we've come across.
To be honest it almost seems a shame to have to include a review of Les Diablerets on the site - you know what it's like
when you discover somewhere special and you feel like you should just keep it to yourself !
We've been to Les Diablerets a couple of times, once in winter and once in summer, and whilst it's not got the
olde worlde
feel to it of say Wengen or Murren that some people are looking for when visiting Switzerland, it does have one
of the friendliest, relaxed and laidback feel
to it of any ski resort we've been to. You can often judge a resort by how friendly the staff are in the
resort's restaurants, bars, shops, ski schools etc, and we found them all excellent. If you're after a
relatively peaceful, friendly resort, suited to families and decent recreational skiing then definitely include Les Diablerets
in your list of possibilities. You won't be disappointed.
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On this page you'll find the following information about the resort...
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Click on the thumbnails to see the photos and images in all their glory...
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Traditional chalet dating back to 1891 with 10 recently renovated rooms.
Most rooms have a terrace with an unobstructed view of the fantastic Diablerets massif.
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Traditional wooden chalet constructed in 1738 and renovated in 2010 with a new designer kitchen.
The chalet comfortably sleeps 10 and is available for rental in the winter and summer seasons.
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Built in 1872, it is the last of the grand local hotels from that period and is listed as being of historical importance.
Renovated in 2007, it has a breathtaking view of the Diablerets Glacier.
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Here's a rough guide on how to get to the slopes in the three main ski areas:
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The Isenau slopes are reached by taking the Diablerets-Isenau gondola from the resort centre of Les Diablerets up to 1763m.
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There's a decent charlift to take you from the Vioz on the valley floor up to Mazots at 1720m.
Vers l'Eglise is a small village just down the road from Les Diablerets, so if you're staying there you can
get direct access to the slopes of Meilleret from the chairlift that starts there.
One of the advatanges of the Meilleret area is that it links into the resort of Villars which is on the opposite side
of the mountain. However, be aware that the chairlift that gives access to it is pretty slow and can be quite exposed
in bad weather.
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As with many glacier ski areas it's obviously not as easy to get to as the other ski areas in the resort -
you need to get yourself up the road on the skibus to the giant cablecar station at the Col du Pillon, it's not far and the scenery
really took us by surprise - the mass of rock that looms above you is incredible. Anyway, take the cable car from the Col du Pillon
up to Cabane and then get on another from their to the the top glacier station (for anyone staying on the Gstaad side of the Col du Pillon
you can get a cablecar from Reusch or a chairlift from Oldenalp and then join onto the final Cabane-Glacier leg).
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Les Diablerets is part of the
Alpes Vaudoises
Ski Region:
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Alpes Vaudoises
All the piste and lift info, the webcams, pistemaps and everything else you need for the
Adelboden-Lenk ski area.
More...
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There are three main ski areas around the village of Les Diablerets: Isenau, Meilleret and Glacier 3000.
Isenau and Meilleret are closest to the town and are on opposite sides of the valley whereas
Glacier 3000 (as the name suggests) is the highest area, with the most reliable
snow conditions as well as the steepest skiing, but is furthest from the resort centre.
We'd say the skiing is definitely most suited to beginners and intermediates.
Below is a description of the various skiing areas at Les Diablerets:
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The Isenau slopes are reached by taking the Diablerets-Isenau gondola from the resort centre up to 1763m.
There are then 5 t-bar lifts available to give access to a number of red and blue slopes, including the long
P14 blue that takes you back down to the gondola in town. The top range of the slopes at Isenau is 2109m, which you have to
use the Floriettaz t-bar lift to get up to. There are then 2 reds that come down the mountain either side of the lift.
The Isenau area is best suited to general recreational skiers and there are a couple of mountain restaurants and
bars up there.
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The slopes at Meilleret are good, mainly blues but with a smattering of more testing reds mingled in amongst them.
There's a decent charlift to take you from the Vioz on the valley floor upto Mazots at 1720m. There are some really nice
wooded runs up here - ski part way down the long Ruvine blue run (P26) and you can then get another chairlift up to the
highest point of this area - Meilleret at 1948m. There are a couple of reds down from here as well as a blue.
It's worth pointing out that there are blue runs from the top of Meilleret and Les Mazots right down to
the bottom of the Vioz-Mazots chairlift and also to the foot of the Vers l'Eglise chairlift.
Vers l'Eglise is a small village just down the road from Les Diablerets, so if you're staying there you can
get direct access to the slopes of Meilleret from the chairlift that starts there.
One of the advatanges of the Meilleret area is that it links into the resort of Villars which is on the opposite side
of the mountain. However, be aware that the chairlift that gives access to it is pretty slow and can be quite exposed
in bad weather. However, once you've got over there it does give you access to a whole host of other slopes, although
they did seem a lot busier in comparison to Les Diablerets.
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The slopes up at Glacier 3000 give Les Diablerets the chance to promote itself as a guaranteed snow resort, well at least
for the early and late month's of the season when other resorts might have no slopes opened. You cant ski there all year
round anymore because the of the reduction in the glacier, but it's handy nonetheless and give the resort some extra options
over it's nearby rivals. As with many glacier ski areas it's obviously not as easy to get to as the other ski areas in the resort -
you need to get yourself up the road on the skibus to the giant cablecar station at the Col du Pillon, it's not far and the scenery
really took me by surprise - the mass of rock that looms above you is incredible. Anyway, take the cable car from the Col du Pillon
up to Cabane and then get on another from their to teh the top glacier station (for anyone staying on the Gstaad side of the Col du Pillon
you can get a cablecar from Reusch or a chairlift from Oldenalp and then join onto the final Cabane-Glacier leg). Once up on top at the glacier
it's like a largish plateau. There are 3 blue's and a shortish red, although I've got to say the blue's are quite flat and will probably only be of real interest
to beginners. Les Diablerets only has two black runs and one of them (Olden-Audon) goes right from the
from the Scex Rouge cable car at 2970m round the back the back down to Oldenalp at 1840m - a vertical drop of 1130m and a great 10km run.
If you get on the chairlift at the end of this black and travel up to Oldenegg you can then goe down the
other (shorter) black run down to Reusch. The main black has some quite steep sections and was really icy when I came down it
- so be prepared ! Despite the blues being a bit too flat for my liking the scenery up their is genuinely incredible and definitely
worth the trip. The cablecar ride is fanstatic too - really dramatic stuff.
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When it comes to scenery Les Diablerets is a real hidden gem. Set in the bottom of a valley high up in the mountains,
one of the sides of the valley is a sweep of dramatic sheer-dropping cliff faces that provides a great panormaic view extending right round to
the Col du Pillon and the mass of rock that the glaciers sit on top of. The other side of the valley is not as dramatic but most of the
accomodation is built on the lower slopes of it anyway and face the other side of the valley.
The village centre is also home to one of the best located football pitches anywhere in the world (down next to the conference centre),
it has to be seen to be believed. Smashing home a last minute winner is great, but doing it on that ground must be extra special !
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There is a bit of confusion as to whether you can ski on the glacier in the summer.
You might read articles elsewhere listing Les Diablerets as a summer skiing option. Well it used to be but
the reduction in the glaciers has meant that skiing is available early in the season
(late October and November) and late in the season (May) but no longer throughout the main summer months.
The are actually two glaciers on the Diablerets mountain - the smaller of the two is
the Glacier des Diablerets which is located on the Valais side near the summit.
The much larger one starts on the east of the summit at Le Dome and drops down towards the Sanetsch Pass.
This larger glacier is officially called the Glacier de Tsanfleuron and has several ski lifts built into it.
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Annual Events in this and neighbouring resorts...
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The 2011 Les Diablerets Film Festival will be the 42nd running of one of Europe's largest events dedicated to films centred around the mountains.
Centre piece of the festival is a giant screen showcasing the latest action from some of the world's top outdoor film directors,
including some freeriding features. There also climbing walls and exhibition stands to visit.
Official Website:
www.fifad.ch
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Consider travelling by train - it takes just over 2 hours from Geneva with only one change required at Aigle.
It's a cracking journey too - sweeping you
around Lake Geneva to Montreux and past one of the great Swiss landmarks - the magnificent Chateau de Chillon. The train then
heads up into the mountains overlooking Montreux and Lake Geneva (prepare yourself for absolutely stunning views)
and onto Aigle. Board a slightly slower train there that heads further up into the mountains and about 45 minutes later
you arrive at the valley floor in Les Diablerets, almost smack in the centre of the resort.
The best airport for Les Diablerets when travelling from the UK is Geneva, it has the most options from the UK and is the nearest
to the resort too.
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