Switzerland

                                   Spotlight On St. Moritz

                                                                 (Originally written for OnTheSnow.com)
                                                                                      by Ted Heck

St. Moritz. The name itself conjures up “Top of the World,” a slogan the resort has promulgated to skiers around the globe.

The small town in southeastern Switzerland, a short crow’s flight from Italy, isn’t bashful about its place in winter sports history. In mid 19th century a visionary hotel owner, with a bet, induced a bunch of Brits to come for a cold weather holiday; they enjoyed it so much that they stayed until spring. St. Moritz is able to say they started winter tourism in the Alps.

Badrutt Palace, the hotel that bears his name, sits over a lake that freezes enough in winter to accommodate horse races and polo played on the snow. Patrons in the hotel, one of six five-star hotels, may be hedonists and extroverts, a clientele to which the tourist office unabashedly says the town caters.

Animal activists won’t enjoy St. Moritz; there are more fur coats per capita than in Beverly Hills, but it is much colder here. However, skiers need not show up in a Rolls Royce or a private jet to enjoy great skiing in the Engadine Valley. Wide open, sunlit slopes of Corviglia, many of them ideal for cruising, are just above the town, beneath Piz Nair peak. It is a favorite venue of mine for its mixture of terrain. But I head for a very long gully, a trench perhaps 30 yards wide, looking like a snowboarder’s halfpipe, but not quite so challenging. I ride up one side, transfer my weight to the uphill ski, and swoop down and up to the other side. I set up a rhythm and have an exciting roller coaster ride.

West of town is the village of Silvaplana, over which the impressive Corvatsch looms, offering enough pitch and peril for any skier. South of town, below the Pontresina resort, are Lagalb and Diavolezza, two mountains across the main road from each other, with enough steep and powdery stuff to keep powder hounds baying. All the areas are on a common ski pass.

Cross country tracks are everywhere for folks who prefer Nordic exercise. That’s not just a handful either, as St Moritz is the site of the Engadine marathon that each winter gets as many as 14,000 participants.

The town is celebrating its 60th and 80th Olympic anniversaries in 2008. St. Moritz was host of two Olympics, first in 1928 and 20 years later in 1948 when the Games resumed after World War II. In 2003 the town hosted the World Alpine Championships. A bobsled run is here for current contests and joy rides by tourists.

If that all sounds too vigorous, you can amble along winter walking trails, which are free, or browse in boutiques and shops, which are not. But you do not need a secret Swiss bank account to be part of the scene, even to dine in a town noted for its annual gourmet festival. One of my favorite lunches is inexpensive Roesti, roasted strings of potatoes. I always ask the chef to top them with a fried egg.

Take your pick of happenings in the hilly part of town, for the best people watching, or in the spa section down near the lake. Sportive tricks and cultural events are on the calendar every week of the year.

St. Moritz is one of 12 resorts in five countries that promote themselves as “Best of the Alps.” Observers question whether that’s not presumptuous of some of the other resorts, but that criticism doesn’t apply here.