Latest edition : 06 March 2019
It's not easy to go on vacation in the snow with your grandchildren, 2 and 5 years old! In the morning, the fight begins: gloves, hat, helmet, ski boots, sunglasses, sunscreen, diapers. Then, towards the ski lifts, the smallest on grandfather's shoulders: "can't walk ..." Of course, not easy with ski boots .... Enough to be exhausted before reaching the slopes!
In front of the cable cars that take skiers to Hannigalp station, a patient family, letting everyone pass. "We are waiting for the Puss in Boots cabin," explains the mother, smiling.
This is one of the peculiarities of Grächen, which promises families to experience a "winter tale": in 10 cabins, children (and adults) can listen to a tale by the Grimm brothers while they arrive at the Hannigalp. It's in German, but Lorina and Mathis, our grandchildren, are listening intently.
On the sunny plateau,
four zones allow children and young people from 2 to 15 years old to let off steam in the snow, learn to ski and demonstrate prowess on a track fitted out with steep curves, jumps, tunnels.
Excited, Lorina and Mathis run in all directions, climb the ropes, slip into the igloo before taking the "magic" carpet to reach the top of the track. And let's go for a toboggan run. Again and again. A snow merry-go-round helps them calm down a bit. Though.
It is time for the grandparents to also take advantage of the good weather and calmly explore the slopes of the domain. As the price of the package includes two hours of daycare, it would be a shame to do without.
The only downside is that you first have to take a pull-butt to reach the chairlifts which take skiers up to Seetal at 2,868 m. While spring is already arriving in the valley, the snow on the heights is excellent. In all, there are about forty kilometers of track to cover. Not huge for big skiers but more than enough in the context of "holidays with the little ones"!
At midday, the terraces of the family restaurant in Hannigalp are taken by storm: the view of peaks over 4000 meters, including the Matterhorn, is breathtaking. Even the little ones love to eat their fries in this beautiful setting.
About the restaurant: the cooks on duty exude a contagious good mood. And that day, they also offered a jar of jam "made by ourselves". All that remains is to hope that the skier does not fall on the trail back to the village, with the jam in his wetsuit pocket!
Many activities punctuate the week: après-ski for children, treasure hunts through the village, pizza making, introductory snowbike lessons. A rather impressive event: to taste a fondue in a cable car. Okay, fondue is a bit expensive (48 CHF per adult, 29 CHF for 6 - 15 year olds, 10 CHF for 3 to 5 year olds) but it is an unforgettable memory.
At the end of the afternoon, the children, still not tired,
have fun in the game room of the family hotel Désirée in the heart of the resort. In Grächen, this is one of the perfect addresses for spending a holiday with children or grandchildren. A buffet just for the little ones allows them to eat at their own pace and slip back into the playrooms under the care of an instructor.
The parents can then dine quietly (more or less, because the restaurant room looks like a small beehive). With the little ones under guard, this is also the time to stroll through the peaceful alleys of this pretty village perched at an altitude of 1,620 m.
Grächen, who looks back to more than 60 years in winter sports, was voted best ski resort in 2018 out of 55 selected in Austria, Germany, France and Switzerland. Besides, Lorina and Mathis would have stayed well again!
