This is a great winter outing for non skiers that still want to enjoy mountain views and winter sun. It would be particularly for a parent looking after a small child while the rest of family skis. This winter hike loop uses gondolas to skip the hard climbs, so your walk is an easy downhill stroll on a groomed snowy trail, snowshoes not required. You can even pull a child along on a sled. There are restaurants along the way when you need to take a break. After the hike, you can skip the last gondola and instead sled 3 km down the mountain.
| Location: | Flumserberg, Heidiland, Eastern Switzerland |
| Car: | Parking at Flumserberg Tannenheim (47°05’23.9″N 9°18’09.9″E) 1hr10 from Zürich |
| Train: | Bus stop: Flumserberg, Tannenheim 1hr40 from Zürich HB |
| Trail: | 3.8 km, walking time about 1hr20 |
| Elevation: | highest point 1791m, 0m up, 220m down |
| Condition: | usually groomed snow, conditions may vary |
| Skill: | easy |
| Open: | winter trails maintained mid-December through mid-March |
| Price 2021: | “Heidi” winter hiking ticket: CHF 35/adult No reductions for travel cards |
| Services: | restaurants along the trail |
| More info: | www.flumserberg.ch • webcams |
Location
Flumserberg is a mountain resort southeast of Zürich in eastern Switzerland. The trail is reached by gondola.
Winter map
Here’s the winter map for Flumserberg, where I’ve pointed out important elements of this excursion. This outing might seem a little complicated, but I’ll walk you through all the steps.
In Tannenboden, ride the BergJet cable car up to Maschgenkamm, where you’ll find a restaurant with a panorama terrace. From here, ride the chair lift down to Panüöl, where you’ll find another restaurant. (You can optionally hike down to Panuol, but the trail is quite steep and requires more steady footing.)
From Panüöl, start the winter hiking trail, which winds around the mountain about 3.8 km to Prodalp, where you’ll find another restaurant. At Prodalp, you can ride the gondola down to Tannenheim or rent a sled and sled about 3 km down. In Tannenheim, you can catch a bus back to your starting point.
Trail Map
Here’s the trail map showing just the winter hiking trail from Panüöl to Prodalp. It’s on a wide groomed trail, shared with slow skiers, slowly descending about 220m.
Cheaper, simpler option: You could just walk up and back the path from Prodalp to Panüöl. This is simpler because you can start and end your day in Tannenheim (no extra bus ride). In this case, you would need a return ticket on the Tannenheim-Prodalp gondola, which in 2021 costs CHF 16/adult. The downside is that you have to walk uphill on the way to Panüöl.
Directions
This outing is a loop that starts at Tannenboden and ends at Tannenheim. There are several ways you can plan your day. Below is just a suggestion.
By car: For efficiency, I suggest that you park at the end of your outing at Tannenheim and ride the bus to Tannenboden, where your outing starts. Alternatively, you could park at Tannenboden and when you end your outing at Tannenheim, take the bus to Tannenboden then.
Here’s what I would do: Drive to Flums (exit 49 Flums off the freeway), then up the winding mountain road to Flumserberg Tannenheim. Park in the lot across from the gondola station (Flumserbergstrasse 147, 8897 Tannenheim). You will end your day here later. Now take the short bus ride to Flumserberg, Tannenboden where you start the outing. During ski season, the bus runs every 30 mins on the xx:15 and xx:44. The ride is 10 mins.
By public transport: Take a train to Unterterzen, then the SeeJet gondola up to Tannenboden. Walk across the parking lot to the ticket office and BergJet gondola and start your outing here. As described above, you start by riding the BergJet gondola up to Maschgenkamm. Then follow the rest of the instructions above for your outing. Your day will end at Tannenheim (you either took the gondola down or sled down). In Tannenheim, catch the bus down to the Flums train station, where you can catch the train back home.
Ticket prices
This winter hiking route uses the “Heidi Ticket,” which includes all transport required for this journey. In 2021, this ticket cost CHF 37/adult, CHF 24/youth (12-18) and CHF 18.50/child (6-11). If you plan to sled down from Prodalp, you can rent a sled at Prodalp for CHF 16. See current Flumserberg winter prices.
Services
There are restaurant and toilets at Tannenboden, Maschgenkamm, Panüöl, Prodalp and Tannenheim. There are no services along the trail between Panüöl and Prodalp.
I would bring water and snacks for the trail. But otherwise you can easily get refreshments at any of the restaurants along the way.
What to wear and bring
You should dress warmly with layers and waterproof outer clothing. I would suggest wearing waterproof ankle hiking boots to keep out the snow and wetness. Children can wear whatever snow boots they find comfortable. If conditions are icy, you may like to bring traction cleats and hiking sticks just in case.
If you are bringing small children, I’ve seen families on this trail pushing a stroller. But sometimes the snow gets mushy and rutted by mid-day, making it difficult to push the stroller. Other families pull a child on a wooden sled with rails. Or use a child carrier.
Photo story of the trail
From Tannenboden, you’ll ride the BergJet gondola up to Maschgenkamm. Here’s you’ll find a restaurant with a panorama terrace and toilets.
From Maschgenkamm, you can ride the chair lift down to Panüöl as shown in this picture. It is normal for walkers to ride down this lift, so simply ask the lift operator if you need assistance with your children or loading a sled.
Once at Panüöl, turn left walking east, following the pink winter trail signs to Prodalp. Do not follow the red ski trail signs, shown on right!
The path gradually descends 200m in elevation over about 3.5 km. This part of the trail is easy walking, dipping in and out of the forest. At one point in the trail, it forks with a Panoramaweg going slightly uphill. Jessica took the Panoramaweg and said it was more work than the main trail, with a bit of uphill, but still doable with her three year old. She says that the main trail is an easy light walk.
Jessica pulled her son on a sled behind her as she walked on this trail. It would be a little easier with a traditional Davos-style wood sled.
The path is wide and groomed.
Packed hard enough even for bikes.
At Prodalp, you can ride down the cable car to Tannenheim, then catch a bus back up to Tannenboden alp where you started. Remember to check the bus schedule beforehand. It runs every half-hour from 8:15 to 16:15, then every hour until 21:15.
Or you can sled from Prodalp down to Tannenheim on the 3 km long sled run. The sled run is best in the morning when it’s freshly groomed. But by mid-day, it can be very slushy with big grooves, which makes it slow and annoying. So consider yourself warned.
If you didn’t bring a sled, you can rent them at the cable car station for CHF 16 + deposit. The sled run ends at Tannenheim, where you can return your sled at the cable car station. Then catch the bus back up to Tannenbodenalp where you started.
Optional detour
From the bottom of the chair lift at Panüöl, you can optionally turn right and walk west to Fursch, where you’ll find a mountain hut restaurant. You could have lunch, then return to Panüöl, ride the chair lift up, then ride the cable car back down. This is a relatively easy walk 2 km each way, only slightly uphill gaining 50 m of elevation. This is a very popular route for walkers, but Jessica found the path not as well groomed as the path back to Prodalp. It was quite bumpy and a little difficult for her three year old to manage. Of course conditions vary, but be prepared.
