Engelberg (Switzerland) is a ski resort that has been hosting athletes for many years. It is located in the canton of Obwalden, 35 km southeast of Lucerne, at the foot of Mount Titlis (3,239 m).
Engelberg is a very small town in Switzerland with a population of about 4,000 people. Tourists who come here to go skiing and watch ski jumping competitions will not be able to get lost. Dorfstrasse, the city’s main street, is home to most of the shops and restaurants, and there is a tourist office on Klosterstrasse, not far from the train station.
Engelberg has brought Switzerland international fame, as it hosts important winter competitions: the Ice Ripper Style Trophy snowboard tournament is held in November, and the European Night Ski Jumping Cup is held next month.
What Engelberg offers skiers
Given the fact that of all the mountains in the center of Switzerland, it is Titlis that has the highest altitude, and the Yohpas pass, known as the center of the ski area of the same name, is one of the most snowy places in this area, it is not surprising that the local slopes are of excellent quality. Moreover, Engelberg uses structures that intensively create artificial snowmaking.
The ski season runs from early November to mid-May, but glacier skiing and ski jumping in Engelberg are available for 9 months of the year.
General characteristics of the resort
- Heights in this Swiss resort range from 1050 – 3028 m.
- Service is provided by 27 lifts (7-tow lifts). The maximum number of lizhniki is 7000 per day.
- The ski slopes have a total length of 82 km, there are trails for carving and cross-country skiing, marked hiking trails, an ice rink and a springboard for jumping.
- On the territory of the recreation area there is a snowXpark park, 3 ski schools are open with special areas where children can walk and jump on skis.
There are 2 sports spaces in Engelberg. On the northern side of the valley is Bruni (1860 m), which includes” blue “and” red ” trails. Novice skiers are engaged here, and family vacations are popular.
Main slopes
The main area is located a little further to the south and has a very original landscape: 2 steps-a plateau of large dimensions. First, Gershnialp (1250 m), where there are bugels and “blue” trails, then Trubsee (1800 m), where the frozen lake is located. From Trubsee, you can take a cab up to Klein Titlis (3,028 m), to the northern part of Titlis with difficult routes, or take a chairlift up to the Joh Pass (2,207 m). There are several directions that you can go further with Yoh:
- go back to the north and down a rather difficult slope where you can make ski jumps-to Trubza;
- return to the hilly and occasionally sloping slopes leading to the Engstlenalps from the south;
- climb the flagpole (2564 m).
There are 21 lifts available to serve the southern sections. On the territory of these sections, there are 73 km of marked routes, and difficult ones prevail. Even for those professionals who have repeatedly made ski jumps from the ski jump in Engelberg, the lower part of the Roteg path from Titlis is a serious challenge – it goes along a glacier with many splits, along steep and icy sections without snow.
For snowboarders, there are also good places, in particular, equipped with a fan park on the slope of Shtand with jumps for jumping and Terrain Park near Yoh, which has a quarter pipe, big airs, half pipes. There are 3 routes for luge enthusiasts with a total length of 2500 m.
Please note! A half-hour drive from Engelberg, in the direction of Lucerne, is one of the most beautiful viewing platforms in Switzerland on Mount Pilatus.
Ski jumping in Engelberg
The first ski jumping took place in Engelberg back in 1905, and in 1908 the Engelberg Ski Club built its own ski jumping complex on the Sandrane. The first ski jump in Titlis was built in the 1920s, but after a competition where death occurred, it was soon reconstructed. Finally, in 1964, Kleintitlisschanze-K62 with floodlights was built, and a little later — Bubenschanze-K36.
Engelberg has been an integral part of the Ski Jumping World Cup since 1980. From March to November 2016, an upgrade was carried out with the adaptation of the springboard profile for jumping, as well as a new treadmill and floodlight system.
Characteristics of the ski jump:
- Total height-HS 140 meters;
- K-Point — 125 meters;
- Total height-135 meters;
- Table length-7 meters;
- Table tilt — 11 degrees;
- Table height — 3.15 meters;
- Speed 93-95 km / h;
- The slope in the landing zone is from 37.8 degrees to 110 meters.
- The stadium capacity is 20,000 people.
Ski passes
A ski pass can be purchased for skiing and jumping on the Engelberg Titlis both for one or several days. However, if the days are consecutive, then as the number of days increases, the cost of each of them becomes less. Prices for the ski pass also depend on the age of the skier.
Conveniently, there are various benefits and discounts – you can find out more information about them, as well as the exact prices, on the official website of the resort www.titlis.ch.
What else to do in Engelberg
During the season, in addition to skiing, or in the summer, when the weather in Engelberg is not conducive to such sports activities, you can find other types of entertainment.
Active leisure
There are 14 ski shelters right next to the slopes, and many cafes and restaurants are open. There is something to do in the town itself: it offers tourists restaurants, discos, a cinema, a casino, a massage parlor, a solarium, and there is also a sports center with a swimming pool, tennis court, ice rink and a wall for mountaineering. In summer, cycling and hiking (a type of sports hiking) are very popular.
Engelberg is located at the foot of Mount Titlis, where hiking trails, mountain bike paths and scooter bikes are laid out- in the summer, many events are organized here. The summit can be reached not only on foot – in 1992, the world’s first cable car with rotating booths was built. On the mountain there is a unique ice park with an ice cave, a panoramic restaurant and a karaoke bar are waiting for visitors. In addition, from a height of 3239 m, very beautiful photos of Engelberg in Switzerland are obtained.
Engelberg has an ideal location for hiking in the Alps – this is the area around Lake Trubsee. From the lake, which can be reached by ski lift, and then through the Joh pass, there is a hiking trail-the path along it is interesting for opening views of the nearby mountains and Lake Trubze.
On a note! At 95 km from Engelberg, there is another nice mountain resort with plenty to do both in winter and summer. For more information about it, see this page.
Cultural sightseeing tour
For those traveling in Switzerland, Engelberg attracts not only skiing, but also various attractions. In 1120, a Benedictine monastery was built here, which is still active today. The main church of the complex was built in 1730, its design is made in the Rococo style.
On the territory of the monastery complex there is a cheese factory-it is a small room with glass walls, through which visitors can personally observe all the stages of cheese preparation. By the way, in the souvenir and cheese shop on the territory of the monastery complex, you can buy not only cheese, but also yoghurts made here-you can’t find such products in city stores.
The monastery complex is located east of the railway station, it is possible to visit it:
- from 9: 00 to 18: 30 on weekdays,
- Sunday – from 9: 00 to 17: 00,
- A 45-minute guided tour is available daily at 10:00 and 16:00.
Admission is free.
Where to stay in Engelberg
Engelberg has more than 180 hotels and guest houses, many apartments and chalets. Most of the hotels belong to the category of 3* or 4*, characterized by quite reasonable prices by Swiss standards. For example:
- in 3* Hotel Central, the cost of accommodation starts from 140 CHF,
- in 4* H+ Hotel & SPA Engelberg-from 170 CHF.
Accommodation in this resort can be selected and booked through well-known search engines, using different search parameters, for example, star rating, room type, prices, reviews of former guests. You can also study a photo showing where housing is located in Engelberg and what the interior looks like.
Without any doubt, a trip to Engelberg can be recommended for those who want to go skiing in Switzerland at a minimum cost.
How to get to Engelberg
The best way to get from Zurich and Geneva to Engelberg is by rail, changing trains in Lucerne, a beautiful city by the lake. You can find out the exact travel schedule on the Swiss Railway portal — www.sbb.ch.
From Zurich train Station to Lucerne, trains depart every half hour, the journey lasts 2 hours, and a second-class ticket costs 11 CHF.
From the “capital of the world” Geneva, trains depart hourly, for a ticket you need to pay a little more than when traveling from Zurich.
There is a direct train from Lucerne to Engelberg, the journey time is about 45 minutes, and the ticket costs 9.2 CHF.
During the season, the slopes can be reached by a bus from Engelberg Train Station, which takes skiers there for free. From June to mid-October, buses run every half hour to take tourists to their hotels: if you have a train ticket or Swiss Pass, travel will be free, in all other cases you need to pay 1 CHF.
From Lucerne to Engelberg (Switzerland), you can also reach by car – 16 km on the A2 highway and then another 20 km on a good mountain road.
