The Best Alpine Resorts for Non-Skiers at Christmas

The short answer

The Alpine resorts that work for non-skiers at Christmas are real towns with a life of their own: Zermatt, Lech, Cortina d'Ampezzo and Morzine carry our top non-skier rating. Look for walkable streets, a Christmas market or decorated centre, restaurants worth an afternoon, and lifts or railways that take pedestrians up to the views.

What a non-skier needs from a Christmas resort

A non-skier spends the day in the village, while everyone else is on the mountain. The resort needs to give them a reason to be out and about: somewhere to walk that is not a road, cafés, shops people actually use, and a way to meet the skiers at lunch. At Christmas it also needs to feel festive in daylight, not only after dark.

Walking and winter paths

Resorts with groomed winter walking paths let non-skiers get into the mountains without skis. Ask the tourist office for a winter walking map on arrival.

Lifts and railways for pedestrians

This is where some resorts pull ahead:

• Zermatt: the Gornergrat railway, running since 1898, climbs from the village to a viewing platform at 3,089 metres facing the Matterhorn. It runs all year.
• Saas-Fee: the Metro Alpin, an underground funicular opened in 1984, runs from Felskinn to Mittelallalin at 3,456 metres.
• Zermatt and Cervinia: the Matterhorn Alpine Crossing, opened in 2023, lets people travel between the two resorts without skis, so a non-skier can have lunch in Italy.

Lunch with the skiers

Mountain restaurants reachable by pedestrian lift or on foot let the group meet in the middle of the day. It does a lot to make a non-skier feel part of the week.

Our top resorts for non-skiers

Resort	Non-skier rating	Christmas atmosphere	Snow Score	Why it works
Zermatt	5/5	5/5	87	Car-free village, Gornergrat railway
Lech	5/5	5/5	45	Horse-drawn sleighs, snowy lanes
Cortina d'Ampezzo	5/5	5/5	62	Corso Italia passeggiata, shops
Morzine	5/5	4/5	46	Real market town, Christmas market
Saas-Fee	4/5	5/5	87	Car-free, Metro Alpin to the glacier
Val Gardena	4/5	5/5	50	Ladin villages, woodcarving
St Anton	4/5	5/5	68	Pedestrianised centre

Zermatt is the resort that works for almost everyone: it has one of our higher Snow Scores for the skiers, and for the non-skier it has a village, a railway and a view. Cortina, which co-hosted the 2026 Winter Olympics and first hosted in 1956, is a stylish choice for someone who would rather walk the Corso than ride a chairlift.

How Christmas week runs for a non-skier

Arrival

For Christmas 2026, Christmas Day is a Friday, so the Christmas week runs from Saturday 19 to Saturday 26 December. For non-skiers, Swiss rail access is a real advantage: Zermatt is reached by train from Visp, and Saas-Fee by PostBus from Visp station, so there is no mountain drive at the end.

Christmas Eve

The 24th is when the Alps celebrate. In Austria the tree is lit in the late afternoon and the Christkind brings presents in the evening; the main meal is eaten that night. The carol Silent Night was first performed on Christmas Eve 1818 in Oberndorf, near Salzburg, and you will hear it everywhere. In French resorts the evening brings torchlit descents by the ski schools, which non-skiers can watch from the bottom of the piste.

Christmas Day

The lifts run and many skiers head out in the morning, so it is a quiet day in the village. A long lunch is the point of the day for most of the Alps.

26 December

In Italy, Santo Stefano is a national holiday and a day for the passeggiata and for visiting nativity scenes, which suits Cortina and Val Gardena well. Austria's Stefanitag is also a holiday. In Switzerland the 26th is a holiday in most cantons, but not in Valais, where Zermatt, Saas-Fee and Verbier are, so shops there generally keep ordinary hours.

What to watch for

• Low resorts and thin snow: the charming lower villages can be green at the bottom in a lean December. That matters less to a non-skier, but it changes the look of the week.
• Evening cold: a high village near the shortest day is cold after dark. Choose accommodation close to the centre.
• Christmas Eve closures: in Austria many shops and businesses close in the afternoon of the 24th. Shop for presents earlier in the week.

For groups with children too, read our family guide; for the full picture, where to ski at Christmas.

Sources

• en.wikipedia.org — Gornergrat rack railway from Zermatt to 3,089 m, open since 1898, runs year-round
• en.wikipedia.org — Metro Alpin underground funicular opened 1984, runs from Felskinn (2,980 m) to Mittelallalin (3,456 m)
• cervinia.it — Matterhorn Alpine Crossing linking Cervinia and Zermatt opened 1 July 2023, usable without skis; winter closure 7 January to 26 February 2027; Plateau Rosa station 3,458 m
• zermatt.swiss — Zermatt is car-free; shuttle trains from Täsch at 20-minute intervals taking 12 minutes; 2,100 covered spaces at Täsch; about three and a half hours from Zurich Airport and four from Geneva or Basel
• saas-fee.ch — Saas-Fee is reached by PostBus from Visp station; the village is car-free
• avoriaz.com — Avoriaz is car-free with snow-covered streets shared by skiers, pedestrians and horse-drawn sleighs; you can ski to the bakery; 20 sleigh drivers and 100 horses
• en.wikipedia.org — Cortina d'Ampezzo co-hosted the 2026 Winter Olympics with Milan; Cortina hosted in 1956
• en.wikipedia.org — St Stephen's Day, 26 December, is a national public holiday in Italy, a day for visiting family and nativity scenes
• whychristmas.com — Austrian Christmas starts around 4pm on Christmas Eve when the tree is lit; the Christkind brings presents on the 24th; the main meal is eaten on Christmas Eve, often fried carp
• thelocal.at — Austrian shops close early on Christmas Eve; most shops and supermarkets are closed on 25 and 26 December
• en.wikipedia.org — Silent Night was first performed on 24 December 1818 at St Nicholas Church, Oberndorf bei Salzburg; UNESCO intangible cultural heritage 2011
• publicholidays.ch — St Stephen's Day is a holiday across Switzerland except Geneva, Jura, Neuchâtel, Solothurn, Valais, Vaud and Zug
• en.wikipedia.org — Christmas Day is a public holiday in all Swiss cantons; St Stephen's Day is not observed in Valais
• skiarlberg.at — Lech Zürs operates a limit on the number of skiers, after which passes are restricted to other Arlberg sectors
• en.wikipedia.org — Val Gardena is a Ladin valley with Ladin, German and Italian spoken; woodcarving tradition
• timeanddate.com — Christmas Day 2026 falls on a Friday; Saturdays are 19 and 26 December 2026