Resort height: 1050m
The mountains
You can ski two sides of the valley in Engelberg. One, south-facing Brunni, is good for gentle, intermediate-level cruising, but the main attraction are the slopes of the 3020m Titlis, opposite. Here you'll find some steep and exciting pistes, as well as several memorable off-piste runs. One, the Galtiburg, is a 2000m descent that covers every conceivable kind of ski terrain and feels like a wilderness adventure as much as a skiing or snowboarding run. It will take all but the most expert skiers and snowboarders an entire afternoon to complete. The other, the Laub, is an extraordinary 1000m run that never wavers from a 30-45 degree pitch, and is never once broken by rock bands or trees. On a powder day, it's paradise, and the best skiers and snowboarders do repeated laps of it until their muscles explode. Neither should be attempted without a guide - both are very prone to avalanches.
Getting there
Engelberg is a 90-minute drive from Zurich airport, or 2 ½ hours by train.
Rating: 
9/10
Après-ski
You wouldn't expect such a small town (permanent population, 3,600) to be so lively - but Engelberg has some great bars, fuelled by a combination of weekending locals and a sizeable Swedish contingent. Yucatan in particular is a spacious, fun and cosmopolitan place, and Spindle a nightclub which is rammed at weekends. For dinner in Engelberg, many people eat in their hotel restaurants, but for a special treat the traditional Schweizerhaus restaurant is the place to go, for innovative cooking which mixes Swiss staples with seasonal specialities, and a surprising amount of fish.
Rating: 
7/10
Non-skiers
Engelberg has a long tradition of summer tourism so non-skiers won't feel like an alien species here. If you're prepared to wrap up warm and venture onto the ski slopes you could have a lot of fun, too: Brunni is a great place to go tobogganing, and the flat valley floor is perfect for first-time cross-country skiers too. Plus the revolving cable-car to the summit of Titlis is worth riding even if you don't plan to ski or snowboard from the top.
Rating: 
6/10
Cost of living
Many of the hotels in Engelberg may look grand, but they're not expensive. Most of the bars and mountain restaurants are pretty reasonable too.
Rating: 7/10
Attractiveness of the resort
The mountains are stunning, but Engelberg itself isn't as charming as many mountain villages, thanks to the large and rather sombre 19th-century hotels which predominate.
