Page 98 - Verbier News Today

Alpine resorts offer mass Covid tests to stem new outbreaks  Popular ski resorts are likely to see a lot of people mixing especially during the school holidays. Keystone / Leandre Duggan The western Swiss canton of Vaud has become the latest to launch mass Covid-19 testing, with a pilot scheme in its three biggest ski resorts.  This content was published on February 5, 2021 - 12:43 February 5, 2021 - 12:43 RTS/jc Starting on Friday, the canton is offering free, voluntary testing ...

What its like to have a ski resort to yourself CNN 2/3/2021 © Courtesy Sian Maher With no tourists, locals have the slopes to themselves. Skiers dream of empty slopes and pristine powder to plunder at leisure, but what price would you put on this notion of nirvana? The idea of your own ski resort has been close to reality for a lucky few in some mountain regions of Europe this winter because of Covid-19. Ski lifts are open, with assorted caveats, in many resorts in Switzerland, Austri...

Deep dive: artist Claudia Comte on preserving marine life through art Deep dive: artist Claudia Comte on preserving marine life through art We caught up with the Swiss artist and recent Verbier Art Summit speaker about the role of art in driving positive environmental change Still image from Dreaming of Alligator Head by Claudia Comte, which sees the artist’s Underwater Cacti installation at Alligator Head Foundation in Jamaica transformed into a virtual experience at König Galerie An a...

There has been another fatal avalanche in Switzerland taking the death toll to 17 this season. Overall in the Alps it is now more than 50 - already half the annual average. In the latest incident 1 person has died & police said others may be buried under the snow, but no other victims have been found so far. It follows 4 deaths in the Tirol over the weekend. It is one of the most dangerous periods in recent years across the Alps. There have been more than 50 deaths so far this winter and ...

PRINCESS EUGENIE, who announced she was pregnant last September, has already booked her future child a school place, it has been claimed.

Update: The weather in the Alps will remain broadly similar and stay mild for the rest of the week, though it will generally be a little brighter on Thursday and Friday. Here’s the outlook from Fraser Wilkin at weathertoski.co.uk: “The mild (and in places damp) weather this week means that snow quality will be highly variable, especially in the north-western Alps, where there will be wet snow lower down in resorts such as Villars, Gstaad, Grindelwald, Flumserberg and St Anton. “For more c...

Extreme Caution Urged As More Snow Falls on Unstable Base 28th January 2021 In Switzerland and parts of France the avalanche risk is now Level 5 – ‘Very High’. The snowpack is ‘extremely unstable’ and the risk will be ‘critical’ in places by Friday. Already in Switzerland this winter 16 people have died in avalanches. There have been further fatalities and avalanches in France. UPDATED UPDATED: The avalanche danger level has been raised to Level 5 in some parts of the Alps as t...

Jessica Morgan and Joan Jonas at the 2020 Verbier Art Summit. Courtesy of Alpimages. In the five years since it launched, Switzerland’s Verbier Art Summit has defined itself as a unique annual retreat where thought leaders in the art industry come together, away from a world of buying and selling, for a weekend to discuss how the cultural sector might create positive change in the larger global landscape.  “Summit” is the ideal word to describe the event: It takes place in the Swiss Alpi...

Government Confirms Ban on All Ski Holidays 27th January 2021 Last modified on January 28th, 2021 Snowsports holidays are included in the existing ban on all foreign holidays. The measures have been in place for a while but appear to have been flouted or misunderstood by some. A small number have found claimed loop holes.     People travelling out of the the country will first be required to declare their reason for travel and prove it is essential the Home Secretary, Priti Patel, has told M...

Why Are There Currently So Many Fatal Avalanches in the Alps? 25th January 2021 Last modified on January 27th, 2021 The snowpack is highly unstable in places and some people are simply skiing and snowboarding where they should not be given the current conditions. The worrying aspect is professionals have also been caught out. The conditions are some of the most dangerous in recent years.   There have been a multitude of deadly avalanches recently in the Alps. Some of those people caught are i...