My Christmas in the Alps

Christmas in the alps

Last year, I didn`t have a chance to go to my home country for the winter holidays. Since I couldn`t share the magical moments of Christmas with my family, I have decided to find the Christmas spirit in Switzerland:  in the heart of the winter Alps!

At the end, two other friends have decided to join to this magical winter experience.  As the Christmas holidays were approaching, we were more and more excited for our winter alpine adventure.

Overall, we love nature, its beauty and tranquility, therefore it wasn`t a question that we wanted to spend Christmas in a traditional mountain chalet, surrounded by snowy peaks of the Alps.

We did not have to research for a long time to decide that the perfect Christmas location was Brunnihutte. Being just above Engelberg at 1860m altitude, it is surrounded by deep snow and beautiful mountain panoramas. It’s warm and cozy Swiss chalet atmosphere combined with the hospitality of the hut wardens, Irene and Livia, made us feel very welcomed and instantly at home.

However the chalet can be reached all year round with chairlifts, being active hikers we have decided to climb up to the chalet from Engelberg. After arriving to the village and warming up with a coffee and some Unicum (Hungarian spirit made of herbs, you must try once if you are not familiar with it!), we started our ascend to towards Brunnihutte.

We were halfway of our hike at Ristis when we finally entered to winder wonderland. As far as the eye sees there was snow, with the spectacular summits of the Alps in the background.

From there, we continued our walk with snowshoes in a beautiful panoramic trail with an amazing view of the Titlis and the Hahnen.

After arriving at the chalet and settling down, we had a delicious a 3-course dinner with traditional mountain dishes and we closed the evening by chatting with our hosts and the other guest while sipping a mug of mulled wine.  

On Christmas day we could experience the real magic of the winter Alps. When we woke, the snow was falling in big flakes, and it continued throughout the day. By late morning we had around 30 cm fresh snow and it reached the middle of our tights by the end of the afternoon.

It was a unique and unbelievable experience to have such a breathtaking moment in the Alps, especially in Christmas day. We felt completely accomplished sitting in the cosy communal area of the hut admiring the phenomenal winter alpine panorama and being outdoor enjoying the fresh snow like children. I never made that many snowmen and snow angels in my life than that day!

More guest arrived by dinner time, so after a traditional festive meal we continued to mingle and make new friends. This is another reason why I like staying in mountain huts lost in the mountains. The people you meet there are open and friendly, and it`s easy to chat the evening away by sharing travel stories and experiences with others having the same interest.

On the third day the winter Alps showed us a completely different face. We woke up to sparkling sunshine, and the mountain soon was full of people arriving on skies, snowshoes or on foot to enjoy a beautiful winter day in the Alps.

The day had a lot of adventures for us as well. We sledged down from the hut to Ristis, (again, an experience you must try once!) and then we put on our snowshoes again and hiked down to Engelberg.

We took a look to the Abbey before we headed home, fulfilled with the magic of the winter Alps.

It was such a wonderful experience, that I decided to share with others as well. Therefore, you will find it within our Swiss Travel Experiences.

What is your favorite winter alpine moment? Is it related to Christmas like for me?  Let me know via XzI+LSs+Hz44Pis6OicvOi02OjE8OnE8MDI@nospam!

Wishing a week full of fun and adventure!

Marta