Ski resorts are so much more enjoyable in summer – here are the best ones to visit

 There’s a saying in ski resorts that often surprises visitors: “People come for winter, but stay for the summers.” 

It can be hard, when you’ve spent a lifetime regarding mountains as an exclusively winter holiday option, to reimagine the monochrome landscapes as playgrounds in summer too.

The reality is that, once the snow melts, they reveal a technicolour world of lush pastures littered with wildflowers and duck egg blue glacial lakes fed by burbling rivers. Warm but rarely hot, the mountains offer a welcome respite from the soaring temperatures of traditional beach holiday destinations. Instead, they inspire action-packed days spent hiking and biking, rather than lazing on a sunbed. 

Where ski holidays often involve seeking out the maximum possible value of your (increasingly expensive) lift pass, summer trips to the mountains tend to be more diverse. Larger resorts sell guest cards at a fraction of the cost of a full lift pass, which provides access to public transport and the (restricted) lifts operating in peak summer months: plus free or discounted guided walking tours, outdoor yoga classes, e-bike rental, swimming pools and more. The lifts grant effortless access to trail running, high-altitude walking, and biking trails. The mountains are also littered with restaurants serving light Alpine fare laden with fresh vegetables from the fertile valleys below. 

Summer travel to the mountains is far from new – curative Alpine holidays predate recreational skiing by centuries – yet the appeal is growing steadily in a world of healthy, adventurous travel. Furthermore, top European resorts are becoming increasingly crowded in winter, as limited periods of optimal ski conditions often coincide with peak holiday weeks and inflated prices. When one Christmas week in a catered chalet can cost the same as three summer weeks in the same property, it makes a lot of financial sense to swap pistes for pastures. 

Here’s how some of Europe’s top winter ski resorts transform in the warmer months – and how to visit them this summer.

1. Engelberg, Switzerland 

Best for hiking  

Set in the heart of Switzerland at the foot of the mighty Titlis mountain (3,239m), Engelberg offers winter visitors challenging skiing on two distinct ski areas, with keen powder hounds scooping a total 9,999m of vertical descent in a day by skiing all of “Engelberg’s Big 5” (Galtiberg, 1,960m; Steinberg, 1,275m; Laub, 1,194m; Steintäli, 576m; Sulz, 729m).

Come summer, freeriders are replaced by hikers enjoying over 310 miles of trails, which range from child-friendly nature strolls to the 28.5-mile Buiräbähnli Safari. The latter is a multi-day adventure that combines a circular hike from Engelberg, with overnight accommodation in rustic farmsteads, and rides on eight Buiräbähnli – local dialect for farmer’s cable cars. Traditionally used to transport farmers and their families from farms inaccessible by road, some of these cable cars date to the 1960s and are designated Swiss cultural assets.

A far cry from the winter bustle of Engelberg’s modern rotating Titlis cablecar, these vintage cable cars offer a rare glimpse into the tranquil pastoral world of Switzerland’s high-Alpine farms. 

Summer secret

Treat tired post-hike feet to an invigorating barefoot “tickle path” (Kitzelpfad) as you plunge them into the natural Kneipp-style trail in the scenic Härzli lake, at the top of the Brunni chairlift.

What to book

Ski Lodge Engelberg has double rooms from £1627 per night, B&B. You can fly from London to Zürich with SWISS from £121 return, and travel to Engelberg by train in two hours.

2. Chamonix, France

Best for mountaineering

Set at the foot of Mont Blanc (4,809m), Chamonix has been steeped in mountaineering history since the first ascent of the peak in 1786. 

A winter bucket list destination for keen skiers, Chamonix tops the list for aspiring mountaineers in summer. Join the Shackleton Challenges expedition and training programme in a bid to summit Mont Blanc – the week-long course includes a comprehensive preparation programme as well as glacier skills training and guiding to the summit (from £7,495 per person, including six nights’ full board and airport transfers).

For something gentler, La Compagnie des Guides de Chamonix (the world’s oldest guiding outfit at over 200 years old) offers a range of climbing courses ranging from one-day mountaineering skills courses to multi-day botanical hikes. Skiers who have tackled the infamous Vallée Blanche in winter can retrace their steps with guided walks across the glacier, pausing for lunch and panoramic views at the skiers’ favourite refuge, Le Requin. 

Summer secret

Follow in the footsteps of some of the world’s greatest mountaineers and adventurers and spend a night at the foot of the Vallée Blanche in the historic Refuge du Montenvers. 

What to book

Peak Retreats offers seven nights in a self-catered two-bedroom apartment in Le Cristal de Jade from £409 per person, based on four sharing, including a return DFDS ferry crossing. 

3. Whistler, Jasper and Banff, Canada

Best for raw nature 

Canada is one of the planet’s great natural realms, a geological mosaic of mountain peaks, glaciers, simmering volcanos, plunging fjords and dense forest. It’s also a place of big-mountain ski legend: home to North America’s largest lift-served ski area (Whistler Blackcomb, BC); the birthplace of heliskiing, and home to some of the world’s most scenic pistes in the Canadian Rocky Mountain Parks (a Unesco World Heritage Site).

Each summer, the winter landscape transforms into a world of wildflowers, waterfalls, vivid blue lakes, roaming moose, elk, black and grizzly bears. Explore this raw beauty with Audley Travel’s 16-day self-drive western Canada tour, which includes visits to Whistler, Jasper and Banff as well as guided wildlife tours and a scenic helicopter flight.   

Summer secret

Martha McCallum, an experienced mountain guide, biologist and yoga instructor, leads Heli-Hikes in the peaks above Banff. A scenic helicopter ride over the Rockies deposits you in the pristine Mt Charles Stewart alpine basin to enjoy a guided nature hike in untouched nature. 

What to book

Audley Travel offers a 16-day Jewels of Western Canada tour from £5,355 per person, based on two adults, including return flights, hire car, accommodation and excursions. 

4. Cervinia, Italy

Best for summer skiing  

Thanks to the cross-border Matterhorn Alpine Crossing cable car linking Zermatt and Cervinia, the Matterhorn ski season blends seamlessly from winter to summer. 

Europe’s largest and highest summer ski area, the Cervino Ski Paradise encompasses some 15 miles of pistes on the Plateau Rosà glacier (3,500m) above Zermatt, which remains open until early September. The quiet, sunny slopes are ideal for focusing on piste skills with the expert instructors of the Warren Smith Ski Academy, which offers five-day summer courses that blend on and off-snow technique, biomechanics and physiology tuition. Available in July and August, the courses include full mornings of on-snow instruction, leaving afternoons free to enjoy Cervinia’s extensive non-ski summer activities, including mountain biking, via ferrata, horse riding and Nordic walking.