TOP TEN REASONS TO VISIT CERVINIA
1. The Matterhorn is here!
I always remember the famous Matterhorn roller coaster at Disneyland emulated after THIS mountain. This is the original mountain! One of the most spectacular mountains in the world. The Matterhorn is situated in the Pennines Alps on the border between Switzerland and Italy. The Italians call it “Cervino”. The Matterhorn is a pyramid shape with four distinct faces North, South, East and West. The South side faces Cervinia, Italy and the North side faces Zermatt, Swtizerland.
2. It’s close to Milan where I live.
Many local Milanese drive their cars to the Alps. I was able to find a bus that was quite easy and cheap only 35 euro round trip! www.savda.it It starts at Milan Lampugnano on the green metro line in Milan. My three friends and I hopped in a taxi from work Friday, drove to where the bus was, and the bus departed at 5 pm. We did have to switch busses in Chatillon. There always seems to be some glitch and this was it but we really made the best of it. We got off at the wrong bus stop in the middle of NOWHERE… well somewhere in the snowing mountains!!! We didn’t realize this of course and waited for an hour. Finally, when we realized we were at the wrong stop and our bus would never arrive we ended up calling a taxi and it drove us the last stretch to Cervinia. In the end it all worked out and we were all still smiling and laughing. It’s about 2.5 hours all together.
The bus station in the middle of nowhere…
3. It’s close to Zermatt, Switzerland.
Cervinia and Zermatt are connected by the ski slopes. It is also connected to Valtournenche. You can buy either a Cervinia ski pass or the international pass which allows you to ski into Zermatt. If you are not skiing, you cannot switch over to the other resort you have to ski over.
4. There are many amazing hotels to stay in.
Book ahead of time. Cervinia can book up full a year in advance. In fact, we found an amazing hotel where the spa is that we wanted to reserve after being there. And they said they were already booked full for the next year. We were fortunate that we found a place at the last minute. We were all very nervous as to how it would be. But it turned out to be perfect. It had a view of the mountains and slopes where you could ski in an out. It had a quiet little sitting area with a fireplace. And it even had a hotel dog name Owen. He was a golden lab. He greeted you at the door and followed you around.
5. The village is adorable.
I have been to a few of the Alps ski resorts and they are all amazing. I was a little nervous about going to Cervinia because when you read online about the town it’s not that impressive and many people say it lacks charm. However, my friends and I found it absolutely charming. In fact, it is now my favorite. There are many restaurants, bars, stores, cafes to choose from.
6. It’s great for every level of skier even beginners.
I have been skiing my whole life, however all three girls that came were beginners so I am not going to lie I was a little nervous. They were all super pumped about learning to ski and I wanted them to love it as much as I do. Your first experience generally makes or breaks you. You can take a cable car up to an area called Plan Maison. Here they have a ski school and many flat areas. My friends signed up for private lessons and had a fantastic experience. I myself, found numerous intermediate level slopes. There was a moment when I became a little nauseous because of the high altitude.
7. The view is unbelievable.
I had many moments where I was in utter awe, wanting to pinch myself. I’m here in the Alps and it is beautiful. The peak of Cervino is 4000 meters high. Many of the runs are above the tree lines. There are mountains all around every direction you look. There are over 150 miles of slopes. Saturday was crystal clear blue skies with backdrops of white mountains. I felt as though I were in a painting.
8. The food is delicious… come on you are in Italy!
Every restaurant we went to… we were impressed. The food was fresh, natural and delicious. The atmosphere in every place had a quaint ambiance. The “Apres” life was perfect. Hot mulled wine, pizza, fresh hot soups… the list goes on. Every article I have read has said if you are in Zermatt… cruise over to Cervinia for lunch. And it’s true. I even had lunch at a restaurant up on the slopes and it was like an old mom and pop Italian restaurant. Perfect.
9. There is so much to do.
We were only there for the weekend and we managed to ski, go to a spa, go out to dinner, shop in the village, enjoy the “apres” life of hanging out at the bars, dancing. There is also cross country skiing, sledding and many more activities. The village has an international flair. People travel here from all over the world. We met so many people from around the world.
10. It is me being true to myself…
There is so much life to live and sometimes you can get caught up and lost in life. I instantly become me at the mountain, happy, relaxed true to me. After all, I did start skiing as a wee little girl following my older brothers around. I spent the weekends in ski school with Paije beginning in fourth grade and there were many dares that happened like going down Seventh Heaven, etc. amongst our friends. And I was fortunate enough to grow up with the Olympic Mountains out my window. But I have moved away from that and I need these trips to bring me back to who I am.
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