*complimentary press trip*
Why hello there you wonderful bunch, I hope you’ve had a truly gorgeous weekend and you’ve managed to keep warm and dry, man alive this weather is awful, roll on spring hey!?
I’m back today with a little photo diary, shot on film, from our time in Switzerland earlier this month. We were ever so kindly invited out to the Swiss Alps, Andermatt to be precise for a couple of days of skiing and relaxing… Heavenly!
BUT alas, as you know, we weren’t very lucky with the weather and didn’t really get to ski all that much unfortunately. There was a huge snow storm which meant that for the duration of our trip there was only one ski lift open and only for a couple of hours at that. We managed two runs until the storm affected the electricity and the ski lift had no other choice but to close… Devastation!
However, we had a truly gorgeous time in Andermatt and I am forever grateful to be able to experience new places through my work.
And despite the lack of skiing, we did get a really lovely feel for Andermatt as a whole and as you can see from these film snaps, it really is such a beautiful place to visit.
Andermatt is a quaint village located in the Ursern Valley in the Swiss Alps and has recently been named among the worlds best holiday destinations for 2020 by The Times, how fancy! Andermatt offers 180km of pistes with 33 ski lifts (lol that we only got to experience one…) it is the largest ski region in central Switzerland with peak time spanning from December to April.
Despite Andermatt receiving a huge transformation in the last 18 months through transport and ski facilities it still retains it’s small-town charm which George and I really fell in love with.
A real highlight of the trip was the journey to Andermatt, a part of the trip that in all honesty I was slightly nervous about. After a short flight from Manchester to Zurich we embarked on our journey to Andermatt via four different trains. Usually this would be my idea of a nightmare journey, however it was such a pleasant and somewhat magical trip. Everything ran so smoothly without a single delay. The trains and stations were really gorgeous (unlike here in the UK) and the scenery was completely breathtaking.
I downloaded this app which was really easy to use and so useful when checking up on train times and platforms, meaning there was absolutely no panic when switching platforms and trains, I’d seriously recommend downloading the app if you are to travel around Switzerland by train which you should 100% do, the views are like nothing else!
We stayed at the Radisson Blu hotel, a super cosy 4* hotel that truly reflected the destination with it’s chalet styling. The hotel is within walking distance of the town and the ski lifts which was super handy, but there is also a bus stop on site which we took advantage of as it allowed us to see the resort completely, the buses are free and extremely reliable indeed.
The rooms at the Radisson Blu were spacious and cosy and again in keeping with the whole Swiss chalet style, similarly to the beautiful reception and bar area which offered cosy sofas in front of the fire, the perfect place to enjoy an espresso martini or two.
As we were snowed off we spent a lot of time at the hotel enjoying the facilities, experiencing the restaurant which was truly, truly delicious (we were both extremely impressed with the food) and cosying up with a glass of red wine, switching off and doing a puzzle, it honestly was so relaxing and such a stark difference to our day-to-day life.
Whilst wanting to ski but being snowed off is devastating, it’s nothing compared with booking a sunny holiday a thousand miles away only to be greeted by rain right? At least in the Swiss Alps you’re expecting to be cold and you can make the most of the bad weather by switching off entirely. Heck, we had 4 hours of no electricity and consequently no charged mobile phones which meant we were able to really escape from the rest of the world and have some quality time just the two of us.
And despite the power cut that we so unfortunately had the resort at Andermatt makes it really rather easy not to ski when the conditions are bad, whether it’s exploring the town or staying in your hotel and enjoying the lobby and bar area whilst doing a puzzle, making your way through the local brews at the bar or divulging in the spa, a ski resort isn’t just for the seasoned skier or snowboarder.
Speaking of the spa, we spent a morning relaxing by the beautiful pool area at The Radisson Blu Andermatt. The pool was seriously special (I’m frustrated I didn't take my own photo but trust me when I say it is GORGEOUS!) and the Stamp Massage that I experienced was unlike anything I’d had before, oh what a glorious morning that was.
With regards to restaurants in Andermatt you have to check out Spycher for a really relaxed atmosphere and truly delicious stone baked pizza cooked right in front of you. The pizzas, the music and the staff were all so wonderful, so much so we actually ate here twice, it was the perfect place to hide away from the cold.
We were hoping to experience the Michelin star restaurant The Japanese By The Chedi but unfortunately this is situated at the top of a mountain (how dreamy does that sound) and as we couldn’t make it up there were unable to but it’s high on our hit list for next time.
So there we have a little look into our trip to Andermatt. I hope you enjoyed this post and whilst I’m unable to report on the skiing, I can say that Andermatt is a truly beautiful part of the world and a place I would LOVE to experience again some time, without a snow storm please 😇
x M
It’s a shame you couldn’t get skiing but this looks like a dreamy place to switch off and enjoy the views for a few days <3
G is for Gingers xx
Honestly we were SO devastated, but we did have a gorgeous cosy couple of days together 🙂 Thanks so much for reading babe x