Other activities

Champéry is just over a half-hour wind-ing drive up the mountain from Montreux and Lausanne. Monthey, in the valley, has a covered bridge and open-air market. The town is about two hours from the airport at Geneva.

The Palladium Sports Center offers ice skating, curling and swimming as well as a fitness center, sauna and massage.

Paragliding costs €66 per flight. Contact Vincent Marclay at 479-2408 or Simon Wiget at 079-306-4667. A visit to the thermal baths of Val-d’Illiez (www.thermes-parc.com) is a relaxing must with hourly train connection. Entrance is between €10 and €15.

Night skiing is also available from the end of December until Easter in Planachaux. Five kilometers of slopes are lit twice a week until 10 p.m.. Heliskiing and ski mountaineering is offered with qualified guides for €230 a day plus flight fees.