Best of the Alps comes to Toronto

Sammy Salm, CEO of Best of the Alps, says multi-generation travel has found its way to the slopes.

“Best of the Alps destinations are ideal for multi-generational travel,” says Salm, in Toronto yesterday as part of a North American roadshow that also featured a stop in Montreal. “First of all, we’re rather small places, the biggest town, which is the highest in the Alps has 10,000 people in Davos, everybody else is much smaller. You’ll find activities for very small children, for their parents, for the grandparents. Everybody can do something they like, re-gather easily… we really believe our destinations are the ideal place for this big trend.” 

Best of the Alps is an association of classic mountain resorts in Austria, France, Switzerland, Germany and Italy. While they are all made up of ski resorts and destinations, the association promotes year round travel.

“We are the original places in the mountains where tourism started some 300 years ago — all old towns and villages, very authentic with people who have lived their for many generations. Most hotels and family-run hotels. We are all season, operating year round. Yes, we are ski resorts, yes we are summer, hiking and biking. Yes, we are foodie destinations, yes we are spa destinations. We have more than 1,000 events throughout the year.”

Salm says travel advisors can reach out to the association to determine which resorts and which destinations are best suited for their clients and what they are looking to experience.

“Many North American people think of Italy as a postcard. Beaches, hills, wine, Tuscany and the south of Italy, but Italy is more much. Sometimes they just forget that we have the Alps. In Italy you can have mountains, the highest mountains of Europe, slopes, snow, a lot of snow and always the same hospitality and authenticity,” Alessandra Borre, press and international relations manager for CSC Centro Servizi Courmayeur, Italy, tells PressToday. “There is a whole other Italy to discover.”

Although Courmayeur is the smallest of the 10 ski resorts that are part of Best of the Alps, Borre says they are big for food, authenticity, giving an Italian welcome and the big outdoors.

“We are at the foot of Mont Blanc so if you are an outdoor lover, you can find in Courmayeur all kinds of activities in summer and in winter,” Borre says. “Of course it sounds french but it’s 100% Italian.”

Switzerland’s Andreas Stoffel, deputy head of marketing and sales marketing manager for Europe and North America for Davos Klosters says train travel is one of its big draws.

Travellers can embark on the Glacier and Bernina Express from Davos and ride along the UNESCO World Heritage Rhaetian Railway. Picture wise, getting a photo of a train passing over the Landwasser Viaduct, with its five masonry pillars, is another highlight.

“Davos is a pioneer in tourism. More than 150 years ago we could welcome the first winter guests in Davos, before we had a lot of summer tourism,” adds Stoffel. “All of winter sports, winter tourism started in our area. For example, we opened the first ski lift in the world in 1934. We have a long history. It’s also very known for the ice hockey. We are hosts of Spengler Cup tournament, this is the oldest cup tournament in ice hockey and it takes place between Christmas and New Years since 1923. But the area offers a lot more, we also have a lot of summer possibilities.”

Off the slopes, Stoffel says Davos also has lots on offer for those looking to enjoy après-ski.

“Cortina d’Ampezzo is called the Queen of the Dolomites because of the shape of the valley — all around the valley are the peaks and they form like a crown,” notes Maria Alessandra Montuori, foreigns markets and pr manager for Cortina Marketing, the tourism board of Cortina d’Ampezzo. “It’s pretty famous for hosting the Olympics. The first time it hosted the Olympics was in 1956 and we are about to host again in 2026 along with Milan.”

Along with winter sports like skiing, hockey and curling, Cortina d’Ampezzo is also loaded with summer options from mountain biking to hiking.

“The town is small with only 5,000 inhabitants more or less with a lovely pedestrian street and over 300 shops,” she adds. “It’s quite peculiar being in such a small town in the mountains but you have a lot of choice in terms of food and shops with many local and many big brands.”