Verbier

Verbier draws travellers who ski seriously. Steep off-piste terrain, the Four Valleys, mountain restaurants and a young international crowd give the Valais village an energy quite distinct from the ceremonial Alpine resorts.

Verbier sits on a sunny shelf at 1,500 metres above the Val de Bagnes in the French-speaking Valais. A small farming hamlet until the 1950s, it grew into a resort of chalets and lifts and became the centre of Les 4 Vallées, which links Nendaz, Veysonnaz and Thyon. The summit of Mont Fort, at 3,330 metres, gives views from the Matterhorn to Mont Blanc.

Its reputation rests on its terrain. The Mont Gelé and Mont Fort faces, the Vallon d’Arbi and the itinerary runs above the village draw expert skiers and mountain guides from across Europe. The village itself, gathered around Place Centrale and the Rue de Médran, has an informal, international character, and its evenings are livelier than those of the older Swiss resorts.

The season runs from early December to late April. Christmas, New Year and the February school weeks are the busiest; January brings colder snow and quieter slopes, while March often delivers the deepest base and the best conditions for off-piste skiing with a guide. Late March or early April brings Xtreme Verbier, the final of the Freeride World Tour, on the north face of the Bec des Rosses.

In alternate springs the Patrouille des Glaciers race arrives in Verbier from Zermatt. Between the seasons, in May and in October and November, much of the village closes. Summer has its own great event: the Verbier Festival of classical music, from mid-July to early August, gathers celebrated soloists and young orchestral players in the village’s Salle des Combins and church.

The village is dominated by private chalets, but two hotels anchor it. W Verbier stands on Place de Médran, ski-in and ski-out beside the main gondola; Experimental Chalet, on the route into the village, brings a smaller boutique style with its own restaurant and spa. Beyond them, much of the best accommodation is in catered private chalets, many with ski access to the Savoleyres or Médran lifts.

LVXVRY books W Verbier through Marriott STARS & Luminous — at the official hotel rate, with the privileges the programme attaches to the stay. Experimental Chalet and private chalets are independent, and LVXVRY advises on and arranges those stays directly, including guides for the off-piste and transfers from Geneva, about two hours by road.