Blatten Belalp
1,796m vertical drop, 38.5km of pistes facing the Aletsch Glacier. Magic Pass access, uncrowded slopes, Switzerland.
Season 2026 - 2027
Opens
12 Dec 2026
Closes
11 Apr 2027
Days open
120
Annual snow
4m
The Overview
Michael Fulton
Melbourne-based skier and snowboarder with 50+ resorts across 5 continents. Specialises in Australian resorts and international resort comparisons.
Blatten Belalp spans 1,322 to 3,118 metres across the Upper Valais, delivering 1,796 metres of vertical drop and 38.5 kilometres of piste across 31 marked runs. The terrain splits 39 per cent beginner, 31 per cent intermediate, and 30 per cent advanced, with south-facing slopes positioned directly opposite the Aletsch Glacier, a 23-kilometre ice flow forming the centrepiece of the UNESCO World Heritage Site. Annual snowfall averages 4.3 metres, whilst the resort's inclusion in the Magic Pass network grants access to over 90 ski areas across Switzerland, France and Italy from May 2025.
The ski area divides between gentle rolling terrain above 2,000 metres suited to families and the Hohstock sector at 3,118 metres, accessed via a uniquely engineered T-bar that changes direction twice and remains the last of its kind in Switzerland. The Hohstock T-bar, opened in 1982, climbs 459 vertical metres from Hohbiel at 2,654 metres and accesses black pistes including the Hülsen, which forms the race course for the annual Hexenabfahrt in January. A 150-metre ski tunnel built in 1984 cuts through the mountain massif to the Tunnel Westseite run and freeride zones on the Unterbäch side.
The car-free hamlet of Belalp at 2,094 metres offers ski-in ski-out accommodation without road traffic, creating a quieter atmosphere than larger Valais resorts. Hexenland, positioned at the gondola top station, provides a free 40,000-square-metre beginner area with themed witch features and four conveyor lifts, earning recognition as best children's area from Skiresort.de in 2023. Views from the slopes extend to the Matterhorn, Dom, and Weisshorn, with 14 four-thousand-metre peaks visible from the summit, whilst a 9.9-kilometre toboggan run descends from Belalp to Blatten.
Magic Pass inclusion from May 2025 positions Belalp within a network covering major Swiss resorts including Saas-Fee, Grimentz-Zinal and Glacier 3000. The 2025-26 season runs 14 December to 6 April, typical for the region's elevation and snow reliability. Day passes range from 55 to 75 Swiss francs depending on booking timing and season, with the resort's dynamic pricing rewarding advance purchase. The resort suits families seeking uncrowded intermediate terrain, beginners using Hexenland facilities, and powder seekers accessing Hohstock freeride zones on storm days.
1796m
Vertical
31
Runs
38.5 km
Piste
4m
Annual snow
The Terrain
31 runs across 38.5 km of piste
Blatten Belalp spreads 31 runs across 38.5 km of piste of terrain. It leans beginner at 39%, with 12 beginner runs to find your feet and 9 advanced or expert runs when you want to push.
Terrain split
31
runs
31 runs across 4 grades
Beginner12 runs · 39%
Intermediate10 runs · 31%
Advanced9 runs · 30%
Expert0 runs · 0%
Time it right
When to visit Blatten Belalp
The 2025-26 season operates 14 December 2025 to 6 April 2026, spanning 114 days across the core winter period. Opening dates align with early December snowfall typical of elevations above 2,000 metres in the Upper Valais, whilst April closure reflects spring conditions and declining visitor numbers rather than snow scarcity. The resort opened its first cableway in 1953, initially for summer transport, with winter operations expanding through subsequent decades as tourism infrastructure developed on the car-free Belalp plateau.
Annual snowfall averages 4.3 metres, with the 2025-26 season recording 382 centimetres through mid-May and 66 centimetres in the most recent seven-day period. Base depth reached 207 centimetres in spring 2026, demonstrating the accumulation potential at altitudes where most terrain sits above 2,000 metres. The south and southwest-facing slope orientation receives abundant sunshine during clear periods, creating excellent visibility for the glacier panorama, whilst cold air flowing off the Aletsch ice sheet helps preserve snow quality despite the solar exposure. Modern snowmaking supplements natural precipitation on key sectors connecting high-mountain terrain to village returns.
January through March delivers the most consistent conditions, with January hosting the Belalp Hexe witch race festival, a week-long event culminating in the 12-kilometre Hexenabfahrt from Hohstock to Blatten on the third Saturday. First held in 1983 and inspired by Mürren's Inferno race, the Hexenabfahrt forms part of the Super Three cup alongside Saas-Fee's Mittelallalin descent. February and early March offer reliable powder potential without January's event crowds, whilst late March and April provide corn snow conditions under extended daylight hours, though the Hohstock T-bar may close earlier due to scree exposure.
Nine lifts and 30 trails operated during the 2025-26 season's mid-winter peak, with the upper Hohstock and Sparrhorngrat T-bars opening dependent on accumulated snowpack over scree fields. Night skiing does not feature in the programme, with lift operations concluding at standard afternoon closing times. The Mini-Maxi race for children precedes the main Hexenabfahrt by one week, whilst Witch's Night events on race-week Friday and Saturday evenings feature live music and traditional Valais fare, drawing participants and spectators to fondue chalets and mountain restaurants throughout the car-free village.
Season 2026 - 2027
12 Dec 2026
Opens
11 Apr 2027
Closes
120
Days open
4 m
Annual snow
Getting there
Getting to Blatten Belalp, and where to stay
Blatten Belalp occupies natural terraces above the Rhône Valley in the Upper Valais, 10 kilometres north of the transport hub of Brig in southwestern Switzerland. The base village of Blatten bei Naters sits at 1,322 metres, with the car-free hamlet of Belalp positioned at 2,094 metres directly facing the Aletsch Glacier, the Alps' longest ice flow at 23 kilometres and centrepiece of the UNESCO World Heritage Jungfrau-Aletsch protected area. The location places Belalp approximately 220 kilometres from Bern and 9 kilometres from central Brig, where main rail lines and the Simplon road corridor converge.
Brig functions as the primary gateway town, offering full services including supermarkets, railway connections and the World Nature Forum explaining the Aletsch region's glacial geography. Naters, immediately adjacent to Brig, provides the municipal connection to Blatten. The traditional mountain villages retain Valais timber architecture, with Belalp's car-free status maintained since the 1950s when the first aerial cableway established access. The surrounding landscape features working alpine agriculture alongside glacial formations, creating authentic mountain character within Switzerland's most significant protected natural environment covering the Aletsch, Fiescher and Aar glaciers.
Road access follows the A9 motorway through the Rhône Valley to Brig, where Route 19 branches north through Naters to Blatten's valley station. The drive from Brig takes 15 minutes covering 10 kilometres, with parking available at the gondola base including a heated garage charging 1 Swiss franc per hour with a 12-franc daily maximum. From Geneva, the 187-kilometre drive via the A9 requires approximately 2 hours 15 minutes, whilst Zurich sits 200 kilometres distant with driving times near 2 hours 40 minutes via the A2 and Furka or Grimsel passes when open, or 3 hours via Bern when passes close.
Geneva Airport lies 210 kilometres southwest with direct trains to Brig requiring 2 hours 37 minutes, departing hourly via Lausanne and Sion. Zurich Airport sits 230 kilometres northeast, with trains reaching Brig in 2 hours 28 minutes via Bern or Lucerne. Both airports offer frequent Swiss Federal Railways services, with Brig's station positioned as a major Simplon line junction. From Brig station, PostBus route 624 operates to Blatten bei Naters in 20 minutes, connecting with the gondola or aerial tram to Belalp. Sion Airport, 60 kilometres west, provides the closest air access but handles limited scheduled services compared to Geneva and Zurich's international connections.
Where to stay
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Latest News
From the SnowStash desk
FIS Weighs Holding World Championships in Almost Every Winter, Starting 2032
The International Ski and Snowboard Federation is looking at a major shake-up to its title events calendar. From 2032, World Championships could run not just in odd-numbered years but in every non-Olympic winter too, effectively putting a global title event on the calendar almost every season. The FIS Council has approved the concept following a feasibility study, though an accelerated rollout as early as 2028 is also under consideration.
4 Sept 2026
Mount Buller Becomes Latest Australian Resort to Call Time Early on 2026
Mount Buller closes out its 2026 season this Sunday, joining Falls Creek, Hotham and Charlotte Pass in a cluster of closures landing almost simultaneously and roughly a month ahead of schedule. The culprit is stark: Spencers Creek's benchmark snow depth hit 31.2cm on 3 September, just 18% of the 73-year average and an all-time low for this point in the season. Six of Victoria and NSW's best-known resorts will have shut their lifts early within a span of about two and a half weeks.
4 Sept 2026
Tremblant to Add New Timber Summit Ski Sector for 2027/28 Season
Tremblant has confirmed a major expansion of its Quebec ski area, with a new Timber Summit sector adding 62 acres of terrain, eight trails and a high-speed quad chairlift for winter 2027/28. It's part of a CAD 42.5 million investment that also includes a new beginner learning zone at Versant Soleil opening this coming season. The project has grown considerably since it was first announced back in 2020, when it carried a far smaller budget and an opening date that never eventuated.
2 Sept 2026
Mount Hotham to Close for the 2026 Season on Sunday, September 6
We knew when the Bird Bath Pond Skim showed up on Hotham's Instagram that the season was on its way out. It's been a rough one - I only managed two days on snow all year, at Falls Creek - and now Baw Baw, Selwyn and Hotham have all called it, possibly the worst Australian season I've seen in a decade. Hotham's last day of lift operations is Sunday, 6 September, with a Retro Day, Father's Day après and closing sales before the lifts stop turning for good.
1 Sept 2026
Thredbo to Replace Ageing Gunbarrel Quad With New Six-Seat Chairlift for 2028
Thredbo Alpine Resort has confirmed plans to replace its 37-year-old Gunbarrel quad chairlift with a new six-seat Doppelmayr D-Line, targeting winter 2028. The AUD 35 million project will keep travel time roughly the same but lift capacity from 2,800 to 3,000 skiers per hour. It's part of a broader investment push that also includes doubled snowmaking capacity at Friday Flat for 2027, with the ageing Kosciuszko Express now flagged as the resort's next major lift replacement after Gunbarrel.
31 Aug 2026
Aerial Tram Collides With Crane at Alpe d'Huez: 23 Injured
An aerial tram carrying around fifty passengers struck the boom of a construction crane on the route to Pic Blanc at Alpe d'Huez on Wednesday morning, injuring 23 people, three seriously. The cabin tipped on impact before the operator reversed it to right the car. Most of the injured were treated on site, with five taken to hospital in Grenoble, including a pregnant woman assessed as a precaution.
28 Aug 2026
Why Glaciers Are Collapsing - And What Happens When They Do
A deadly flood on the Nepal-China border, a decade-old tragedy on Italy's Marmolada, and an unstable glacier right now above a village near Zermatt - three very different mountain ranges, the same underlying story. Warming ice is destabilising terrain that was considered settled for generations, and the results range from catastrophic floods to slow-motion monitoring situations that could go either way.
27 Aug 2026
Pitztal Glacier Set to Reopen for the 2026/27 Ski Season on 26 September
Tyrol's highest ski area is gearing up to open a full month ahead of most of the Alps. The Pitztal Glacier is scheduled to start its 2026/27 season on Saturday 26 September, running through to 2 May 2027, with the lower-altitude Rifflsee area following in December. High-altitude terrain up to 3,440 metres gives the glacier a head start on snow, though as always, the actual opening extent will depend on how September's weather plays out. Early online ski pass bookings can save up to 30%.
26 Aug 2026
Blatten Belalp Webcams
4 live angles across the mountain. Tap any camera to go full-screen.
About Blatten Belalp's live webcams
Check live conditions across Blatten Belalp with 4 real-time webcams showing snow, weather, and lift operations, updated every 10 minutes. Check high-elevation cams for powder visibility and base-area cams for crowd levels before you head up.
Camera guide
- Belalp Aletschbord2160m
- Experience spectacular glacier panoramas through this Belalp webcam at Aletschbord at 2160 meters elevation. This Blatten Belalp live cam captures 360-degree views of the Great Aletsch Glacier and surrounding UNESCO World Heritage landscape, providing breathtaking visibility across Europe's largest glacier. Essential for monitoring high-altitude snow conditions, this live snow cam showcases the dramatic alpine scenery, while this Blatten Belalp web cam reveals the unique glacier-adjacent skiing that makes this Valais resort a special destination for nature enthusiasts and skiers seeking pristine mountain landscapes.
- Belalp Hohbiel2668m
- Monitor conditions from the resort's highest webcam point through this Belalp live cam at Hohbiel at 2668 meters elevation. This commanding Blatten Belalp webcam offers unparalleled glacier views and showcases the challenging terrain near Hohstock summit across dramatic alpine landscape. Perfect for advanced skiers assessing upper mountain conditions, this live snow cam captures spectacular visibility across glacier-adjacent slopes, while this Belalp web cam demonstrates the impressive high-altitude terrain that attracts serious skiers to this authentic Valais destination in the heart of the UNESCO protected Aletsch region.
- Belalp Tschuggen Village1619m
- Check mid-mountain village conditions through this Belalp webcam at Tschuggen at 1619 meters elevation. This Blatten Belalp live cam updates every 10 minutes, showing the car-free mountain hamlet atmosphere and intermediate terrain access across welcoming slopes. Essential for monitoring the charming alpine village, this live snow cam captures the traditional Swiss character, while this Belalp web cam reveals the peaceful mountain community ambiance that makes this Valais resort perfect for visitors seeking authentic alpine experiences away from crowded international destinations.
- Blatten Village1312m
- Monitor base village conditions through this Blatten webcam in the valley community at 1312 meters elevation. This essential Blatten Belalp web cam updates every 10 minutes, showing arrival conditions and cable car access to the high-altitude skiing terrain above. Perfect for checking departure weather and valley conditions, this live snow cam captures the traditional Valais village atmosphere, while this Belalp live cam helps visitors plan their scenic gondola ascent to the car-free mountain resort and pristine skiing terrain overlooking the Great Aletsch Glacier.
Blatten Belalp snow cams FAQ
How often do Blatten Belalp snow cams update?
All Blatten Belalp snow cams and webcams update every 10 minutes with fresh images showing current mountain conditions. This frequent update schedule ensures you have access to near real-time conditions for planning your ski day at Blatten Belalp.
Which Blatten Belalp webcam shows the best powder conditions?
The high-elevation Belalp Hohbiel webcam at 2,668m provides the clearest view of powder conditions and snowfall. These Blatten Belalp webcams capture fresh snow accumulation and visibility better than base area cameras.
Can I see Blatten Belalp lift queues on the webcams?
Yes. Multiple Blatten Belalp snow cams specifically show lift queue areas and chairlift operations, helping you time your arrival and avoid peak queue periods.
When is the best time to check Blatten Belalp snow cams?
Check Blatten Belalp webcams early morning (7-8am) for overnight snowfall assessment, and mid-afternoon for current crowd levels and weather. The live cams are most useful after storm events to assess fresh powder.
How can I check current conditions before buying Blatten Belalp lift tickets?
Use our Blatten Belalp webcams alongside the live snow report to assess conditions before purchasing lift tickets. The webcams show real-time visibility, snow quality, and operational status.
Do Blatten Belalp webcams work on mobile devices?
Yes. All Blatten Belalp snow cams and webcams are optimized for mobile viewing, so you can check live conditions from anywhere using your phone or tablet.
More Blatten Belalp intelligence: snow report, lift tickets, trail map, resort overview.