The Patrouille des Glaciers and the Kurhaus

Every two years, in spring, a long line of headlamps stretches out across the Valais night. This is the Patrouille des Glaciers: the most famous ski-mountaineering race in the world, linking Zermatt to Verbier across the high glaciers, by way of Arolla. At the heart of our valley, the Grand Hôtel & Kurhaus is one of its privileged witnesses.

A race born in 1943

The first Patrouille des Glaciers was run in 1943, as an endurance test for the Swiss army, designed to measure the strength and resilience of its soldiers in the high mountains. Eighteen three-man patrols set off; the following year there were forty-four. After a tragedy in 1949, the event was suspended for decades, before being revived in 1984 under the army’s aegis, with rigorous safety protocols. Today, military and civilian teams compete side by side.

Zermatt – Arolla – Verbier

The full route links Zermatt to Verbier via Arolla, along a high-mountain itinerary of around 53 kilometres for nearly 4,000 metres of positive elevation gain, at altitudes where the air grows thin. A shorter variant starts directly from Arolla. To reach the finish, the patrols cross passes and glaciers by night, roped together, in an effort that is as much expedition as race.

The Kurhaus, a stage on the course

Arolla is a strategic point on the Patrouille’s route. During the period of the race, the Grand Hôtel & Kurhaus places itself at the service of the event: it welcomes competitors, organisers and soldiers who come to train, eat and recover. A witness to the golden age of alpinism, the hotel then rediscovers its original calling — to offer a warm refuge to those who take on the high mountains.

The same valley and the same glaciers serve all year round as a playground for ski touring. The routes of the Haute Route, which links Chamonix to Zermatt, also pass through Arolla: a way, for those who are not patrol racers, to taste the spirit of these places at their own pace.