Short ride up, long run down: Grawand cable car leads worldwide comparison
Where can skiers enjoy the most downhill distance for the least time spent riding a lift? Montenius Consult explored this question in a comparative study commissioned by Schnalstaler Gletscherbahnen. The result: among the installations examined worldwide, the Grawand cable car at Italy’s Schnalstal Glacier offers the best ratio of ski run length to lift journey time.
A ride of around five minutes gives access to a 7.9-kilometre descent. That equates to approximately 1.6 kilometres of skiing for every minute spent travelling uphill – an outstanding result for skiers who want to make the most of their time on the slopes.
The study drew on Montenius databases containing technical information on around 30,000 lifts and more than 20,000 kilometres of digitally mapped ski runs. A multi-stage screening process identified promising candidates, whose associated descents were then measured. Only secured ski runs leading directly from the top station back to the bottom station of the same lift qualified. The comparison measures lift journey time alone; queuing time is excluded.
Prepared by Christoph Schrahe, the study reflects the 2025/26 season. It offers a fresh perspective on ski resort quality: beyond the overall size of the ski area, another useful measure is how much downhill skiing each minute of uphill travel delivers.