Ski & Winter · 15–17 Jan 2027
The longest, fastest downhill in the World Cup runs above Wengen every January, 4.5 km (2.8 miles) at 160 km/h (100 mph) under the Eiger. How to see it, ski it, and sleep smart one train stop below.
The oldest and most storied stop on the ski World Cup, run above car-free Wengen since 1930, and still the one the racers most want to win. The downhill is the longest and fastest on the calendar, about 4.5 km (2.8 miles) from the start below the Lauberhorn summit to the finish above Wengen, hitting speeds around 160 km/h (100 mph) past features every Swiss schoolchild can name, the Hundschopf leap, the Wasserstation tunnel, the Haneggschuss. All of it under the triple stare of the Eiger, Mönch and Jungfrau. Around 30,000 fans, brass bands, fighter-jet flyovers, church bells: alpine Switzerland at maximum volume, 15–17 January 2027.
All three races start on the Lauberhorn above Wengen. Times below are the published start times for 2027, from the official race programme; weather moves ski racing more than any other sport, so check it again the week before you travel.
| Day | Race | Start |
|---|---|---|
| Friday 15 January 2027 | Super-G | 12.30 |
| Saturday 16 January 2027the one to come for | Downhill | 12.30 |
| Sunday 17 January 2027 | Slalomtwo runs | 10.00 & 13.00 |
If you are coming for one day, come for Saturday. The downhill is the race the Lauberhorn is famous for, the one the crowd triples for, and the one the village plans its weekend around. Sunday’s slalom is the better day for actually seeing racers up close without a 30,000-strong crowd in front of you, and it finishes early enough to ski the afternoon.
Prices below are the official 2027 figures from the Lauberhorn ticket page, checked 17 October 2026. Two tickets cover what most people actually want.
| Ticket | Fri | Sat | Sun | All three |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lauberhorn Ticket, adultstart, Girmschbiel or Innerwengen, and you can move between them | 95 | 105 | 65 | 210 |
| Lauberhorn Ticket, child 6–15 | 30 | 30 | 25 | 65 |
| Grandstand, adultstanding room, uncovered, at the Innerwengen finish | 110 | 160 | 85 | 280 |
| Grandstand, child 6–15 | 50 | 80 | 45 | 125 |
All figures in Swiss francs. Children under 6 go free on both. The Grandstand puts you at the finish line but it is standing room and it is not covered, so on a cold January Saturday you are paying CHF 55 more than the Lauberhorn Ticket to stand still in one spot. The Lauberhorn Ticket lets you move between three vantage points during the day, which for a first visit is the better ticket.
Put a family of four together on the full weekend and the whole World Cup costs CHF 550, two adults at 210 and two children at 65. For three days of the fastest downhill racing in the world, that is less than a single day at most ski resorts.
Every Lauberhorn Ticket has a version with a regional ski pass bundled in. On the Saturday it is CHF 145 instead of 105, so the pass is costing you CHF 40, against CHF 79 to 83 to buy a day pass on its own. If you were going to ski that week anyway, take the bundle and save around CHF 40 a head. The three-day combination is CHF 330 against CHF 210.
| Hospitality | Fri | Sat | Sun |
|---|---|---|---|
| Home of Legends LoungeWorld Cup village, from 4pm, bib draw and awards | 175 | 175 | n/a |
| Gold Cardreserved areas, catering, VIP parking and shuttle | 290 | 380 | 290 |
| SWISS Loungeroof terrace above the finish, catering | 610 | 750 | 610 |
| Canadian CornerVIP platform up at Wengernalp, lunch and aperitif | 790 | 990 | n/a |
Gold Card is three days for CHF 750, or 870 with the ski pass. The Home of Legends Lounge is the interesting one on that list: for CHF 175 you get the evening rather than the race, the bib draw, the awards and the World Cup village, which is where a lot of the atmosphere actually is.
Two things to know. Tickets can only be booked online, and you have to create a booking profile before you can buy anything, so do that part before the morning sales open rather than during it. And as of today the organisers have not published a sale date for 2027, which means the only reliable way to catch it is to watch lauberhorn.ch/tickets. If you see a date quoted elsewhere, it is a guess.
The Gold Card and the hospitality packages are the ones that sell out. General admission for the Friday and Sunday is rarely the problem; the Saturday downhill is.
The village itself is free. Big screens, brass bands, the World Cup village, ski legends wandering about: none of that needs a ticket, and if you are coming with small children it is a perfectly good way to spend race day.
Wengen has no road, everyone arrives on the same cog railway that leaves from Lauterbrunnen station, which makes the valley the natural place to sleep. On race morning you join the migration up, 15 minutes, festival atmosphere already on the train, and after the last racer you ride back down past the queue for the overpriced beds above. Book spectator tickets and check the programme on the official Lauberhorn site, and book the train-side accommodation early, race week is the valley's busiest winter moment.
The clever version of this trip is not a day trip, it is a ski week with a World Cup weekend in the middle. Ski Mürren's quiet steeps while the crowds watch the racing, then when the circus leaves town, ski the Lauberhorn course itself, most of it is a normal marked piste on the regional pass (CHF 404 for six days). For American visitors: yes, the week including the World Cup costs less than an ordinary week at a Colorado resort, here is the math.
Race week aside, mid-January is deep winter done properly: reliable snow up high, frozen waterfalls down low, and the village at its most atmospheric. The full picture, including the honest bits about valley-floor sun, is in our January guide.
Common questions
The Lauberhorn World Cup weekend in Wengen runs 15–17 January 2027. Super-G on Friday 15 January at 12.30, the downhill on Saturday 16 January at 12.30, and the slalom on Sunday 17 January with the first run at 10.00 and the second at 13.00. Confirm the final programme on lauberhorn.ch before travelling, race scheduling can shift with weather.
Saturday 16 January 2027, starting at 12.30. That is the one to come for if you only come for one day, and the one the village builds its weekend around. The Super-G runs the day before at the same hour, the slalom the day after in two runs, 10.00 and 13.00.
Take the cog train from Lauterbrunnen up to Wengen, about 15 minutes, then follow the crowds. Wengen is car-free, the train is the only way in, and on race weekend it runs a reinforced timetable from the valley.
A Lauberhorn Ticket, the general admission one, is CHF 95 on the Friday, CHF 105 for the Saturday downhill and CHF 65 on the Sunday, or CHF 210 for all three days. Children aged 6 to 15 pay CHF 30, 30 and 25, or CHF 65 for the weekend, and under-6s go free. A family of four can do the entire World Cup weekend for CHF 550.
Yes for the spectator zones and the grandstand on race days. The village itself is free: big screens, brass bands, the World Cup village and ski legends wandering about cost nothing, which makes it a reasonable option with small children.
The organisers have not published a date. Tickets can only be booked online and you have to create a booking profile first, so set that up in advance and watch lauberhorn.ch/tickets. Any date quoted elsewhere is a guess.
Usually yes. The Saturday ticket is CHF 105 on its own and CHF 145 with a regional ski pass, so the pass costs CHF 40 against CHF 79 to 83 bought separately. If you are skiing that week anyway it saves about CHF 40 a head.
Most of the famous course is a marked piste outside race week, so yes, at your own pace, Hundschopf jump not included. It is one of the great must-ski runs of the Alps and it is on the normal regional pass.
Wengen itself sells out about a year ahead at premium rates. Lauterbrunnen, one train stop below, is the practical value base, you ride the same train up on race morning and sleep for far less.
Wengen sells out a year ahead; Lauterbrunnen is the value base on the same railway. An apartment and two studios by the station, hot tub included in The Apartment.
Nightly ranges for our own three places, before cleaning. What you actually pay moves with the dates, the length of stay and how far ahead you book, so treat these as the shape of it rather than a quote. Dollar figures are converted at 1 USD = 0.835 CHF, set 15 October 2026.
What’s open, what’s shut, what the weather and the trains are up to, and which weeks are quiet. One email, first of the month, written here.
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