A valley over from Zermatt, the experience is very different (low-key, not particularly touristy, lacking the bling and high-end shopping, generally giving 1990s vibes). In addition to the more famous Saas-Fee itself, there are two other towns within a 15 minute drive – Saas Grund (home to the Hohsaas Ski Area), and Saas-Almagell (home to the petite Saas-Almagell Ski Area).

Saas-Fee

A charming place and worth a two-night stay. We’ve visited twice for skiing – see below – and in May 2021 visited for an off-season stay and really loved it. The town shuts down, perhaps three hotels remain open in May and through mid-June. It’s super quiet, still a bit snowy and cold, but the trails are open and you have wide open spaces all to yourself. It’s marmot central as well! July and August are the peak summer months and we’re told it gets quite busy.

There’s one museum in town that is worth a 20 minute stop, the **Saaser Museum. It’s open 8 am -7 pm on an honor system (twint at the door), in a well preserved historic house. The WHAM exhibit is cute, and there’s a lot of content around historic village life, clothing, furniture, and the like.

Food and Dining

• ***The Capra Hotel is very nice, with modern Danish-meets-Alpen design. Good spa with outdoor pool (very hot), very high end restaurant, lovely staff. Has a ski room right at the edge of the lift. Expensive. 
• *Chämi-Stuba serves Thai-ish Asian food, unfortunately not very good and expensive.
• **Esstube was a lovely dinner spot, traditional food of the region.
• ***The Fletschhorn is very nice, a 5 star hotel with very large rooms, nice staff, great views. Food is well done, large portions, aiming to please with traditional favorites. Large wine list and a small spa. It’s quite out of town, about 2 km out on a dirt road. Very central for access to hiking. Would be a less convenient location for skiing.
• **Boutique Hotel La Gorge & Restaurant Zer Schlucht is a newer, high end property. The rooms look expensive and neutrally posh. Staff is friendly, restaurant is good and formal, with an excellent view over the gorge.
• **belMont Apart Lodge & Restaurant has apartments to rent right on the piste, and a surprisingly nice restaurant. It’s family run, with a recently redone interior. The menu is fairly wide, with a dozen (really, a dozen) types of cordon bleu. We’d definitely go back, one of the better meals we’ve had in Saas-Fee.
• **Wellness & Spa Hotel Schweizerhof was fine. I actually liked the spa – there’s a big, family friendly sauna and pool area, and a separate adults-only area with a large, hot sauna. Better than expected breakfast, and friendly service. Room was a bit functional. Not screaming personality, but not a bad option for a reasonable price.

Ski Report: Get up early, and try to be in line when the lifts open at 8:30. The run from the very top is a very nice, long run, and don’t miss plattjen – a steep, North-facing run that is accessible from the village. The skiing is good in general but be prepared for really long tram and gondola rides which can absorb a lot of time. We do like this area for being unlike anywhere else in Switzerland – if you want to get right up next to a glacier, this is the place to go. On the mountain, the restaurants are stuck in the 1970s and a little dingy. We had a drink at Steinhaus Längfluh, which is fairly conveniently located.

Saas-Almagell

Saas-Almagell is a very old, and until recent times quite isolated, village – first mentioned in 1291, though likely older. Car access wasn’t possible until 1958. We found it more charming than Saas Grund, with a wealth of mid-range hotels. There’s a surprising amount of historic architecture tucked away (the cows are very much in the middle of town), and take the time to look for the original main street, which passes nearly the entire length of town.

Our hotel choice was excellent – decorated in rustic Italian style with themed rooms, **Hotel Olympia has very nice owners, a tasty meat-focused restaurant, and appears to be the local party destination for après. The sauna is spacious. Very affordable, with parking.

Another option to check out: https://www.wellnesshotel-zurbriggen.ch/ (some older and some newer buildings, seems to be quite large).

**Restaurant-Pizzeria Channa was a very strong recommend – clearly the local favorite, family run, with thin crust pizza cooked in an oven in the center of the dining area. Festive and tasty.

Galen’s Ski Report: Saas-Almagell is a mid-elevation, local village spot. Super cute for half a day, or perhaps a full day. Easy groomers, of medium steepness. All runs are in the trees with beautiful views of the valley and mountains. Only two chair lifts.

There are three places to eat on the hill – we made a brief stop at the cute **Bergrestaurant Alpina for a drink. Friendly owners.

Saas Grund

Galen’s Ski Report: The Hohsaas Ski Area has high elevation groomers, though not many of them (2.5 slopes). Fast rollers, a fairly long run, and really fun, all above tree line. There’s absolutely no off-piste as the entire place is a rock field. Great for one day of fast skiing. When we visited on a Saturday in March 2026, it was totally empty – we’re told because it’s not on the magic pass (which Saas-Fee is), most people avoid paying for a separate ticket.

**Berghütte Hohsaas, at the uppermost point of the ski area, looks to be the place to party, with excellent views and DJs. There’s a large, cafeteria-style dining area.

**Bergrestaurant Kreuzboden, on the piste, has newer owners who are trying to overcome what looks to be a long legacy of bad service. We liked it, schnitzel and rösti type options, nice and efficient service.

Visperterminen

Back towards Visp in the same valley, **Visperterminen is a pretty town on the edge of the hillside, with access to many hikes and a wealth of historic architecture. It claims to have the highest elevation vineyards in Europe.

We did the longer section of ***Bisse Hike #19, the chapel trail to Hueterhusi. It’s not an easy one – the first section is straight uphill – with relatively flat terrain after that. Don’t miss the Heuterhusi itself, which has the best views and bisse action. Route is very poorly signed. The chapels (10 in all) march up the hill from Visperterminen – the pilgrimage church contains one of the oldest playable organs in existence, believed to date from the 16th century.