WHAT’S NEW in Davos Klosters, Winter season 2023-24

WHAT’S NEW in Davos Klosters, Winter season 2023-24

In the beautiful Graubünden region of eastern Switzerland, the nation’s snowsports capital Davos Klosters embarks on the 2023-24 winter season with an exciting new downhill piste, a rewilding initiative, the relaunch of a celebrated hotel and two centenaries.

New Piste : between Usser Isch and the Carjöl areas of the Jakobshorn, the new piste offers strong skiers an attractive 2.5 km run down to Davos Platz relieving the pressure on the Gämpen slope which is largely a forest road.

Rewilding : The now defunct FIS Ischalp slalom run has been reforested, giving more than 10,000 square metres of the mountainside back to nature.

New Hotel : Klosters’ 4*superior boutique Hotel Alpina re-launches in December 2023 as the Seven Alpina. A full renovation and redesign took place during the summer when management duo Räto and Verena Conzett retired after 30 years. A collaborative partnership between Davos Klosters Mountains and the Seven Group has recreated the property in a mountain-chic style while preserving its cosy charm and introducing a cool dining option: 52 rooms, pool/wellness area, restaurant, bar, lounge with open fire and sunny terrace. Doubles from SF275 (£248) B&B. https://seven.ch/en/news/SEVENALPINA

100 years of the Parsenn Derby : skiing’s original downhill marathon was the brainchild of Ski Club of Great Britain member Fred Edlin. First contested from Parsennfurka to Küblis on 13 January 1924, with categories for juniors, seniors, veterans, guides & teachers, and women. The Davos Ski Club moved the start to the Weissfluh summit in 1933, stretching the race to 12km with a vertical drop of 2000m. Now a people’s race, the Derby is still a highlight on the international racing scene with team and individual races over a shorter course. The event is on every amateur racer’s tick-list and attracts around 500 competitors each year.

100th Anniversary of the Spengler Cup Davos : the world’s oldest international ice-hockey tournament takes place between 26 and 31 December 2023 at the impressive indoor Ice Stadium in Davos. Six teams from five countries will compete for the prestigious trophy.
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The combined attractions of high altitude and abundant snowfall place Davos-Klosters firmly at the top of the A-list for a classic Swiss Alpine winter holiday. 57 lifts serve 300km of manicured piste across six distinct ski areas, with limitless off-piste, touring and cross-country ski opportunities. Non-skiers are equally spoiled with scenic winter walking trails, excellent shops, fine dining, wellness facilities, museums, cultural events and evening entertainment.

A favourite of the British Royal family and annual host of the World Economic Forum, Davos Klosters’ British connection dates back to the 19th century. Robert Louis Stevenson came for his health and wrote Treasure Island there in 1881. Arthur Conan Doyle’s account of an adventurous ski tour from Davos to Arosa in 1894 fuelled British interest in the then new sport. The annual Anglo-Swiss parliamentary ski race is a tradition that goes back to the 1950s. Thomas Mann’s masterpiece The Magic Mountain, set in a Davos health resort, was published in November 1924.

Davos is a vibrant cosmopolitan ski town catering for all tastes and winter holiday activities. Klosters is a stylish village with a quieter vibe, attracting a loyal clientele of British regulars who hand their passion for skiing and Switzerland down the generations.

The destination is easily accessible by train in 2 hours from Zurich to Klosters and 2.5 hours to Davos.

The six ski areas of Davos-Klosters
Gotschna-Parsenn (Davos and Klosters; big skiing, including the famous 12km Weissfluh to Küblis run)
Jakobshorn (Davos; paradise for boarders, freestylers and après-skiers)
Madrisa (Klosters; family fun in the sun)
Rinerhorn (Davos; uncrowded family favourite)
Pischa (dedicated freeride mountain)
Schatzalp (Davos; ‘slow mountain’ for unhurried skiing of times past. Separate lift pass required).

Event highlights winter 2023/24
8–23 December : https://www.songbirdfestival.ch/ Switzerland’s biggest singer-songwriter Festival
15–17 December : https://weihnachtskonzerte-klosters.ch/en/ young Royal College of Music talent in Klosters
23 December : https://www.fis-ski.com/en/snowboard world’s best boarders fight for victory at the legendary Bolgenhang
26–31 December : https://chasingthepuck.com/2023-spengler-cup-line-up-announced/ ice hockey’s oldest club tournament
January (tbc) : British-Swiss Parliamentary Ski Week 2023
1 January : Traditional Pig Racing on New Year’s Day in Klosters
3-4 January : FIS Tour de Ski https://www.fis-ski.com/en/cross-country the top cross country skiers compete in the night sprint (skating) and 20 km chase (classic)
16-17 February : https://www.artonice.com/en/ the leading figure skating show in the world
March (tbc) : https://www.davos.ch/en/information/portrait-image/storybook/parsenn-derby the most traditional People’s Ski Race in Switzerland
21-24 March : https://www.coverfestival.ch/ music and fun on the mountain and in the valley

Rugged Hank

Education Technology Day must be extended to prisons

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Typically thought of as being an easy to clean area of the home, hard floors have risen in popularity in recent decades. Globally, hard floors are the most common floor type,2 and research released today by Dyson has uncovered poor cleaning habits that mean hard floors are likely to be harbouring an array of hidden nasties. This comes as 32% of Brits – equating to 21.6 million people in the UK – will use the same dirty mop head for six months or more before replacing it. What’s more, one in 20 also admit to keeping the same mop for a year or longer, and one in 10 think it is acceptable to use the same mop 100 times, spreading dirt around their floors every time they use it. Cross contamination is a primary issue for most common and traditional mopping methods with germs and bacteria further being unknowingly spread around homes as Brits use dirty water to clean floors.3 45% only change the water to new water between rooms, whereas 41% wait even longer until it looks dirty. This could mean that floors are being washed with dirty water, adding more dirt rather than taking it away. Surprisingly, almost one in 10 (9%) even admit to not changing the dirty water at all when mopping. Over a quarter (28%) admit to mopping their floors once a fortnight or less while over half (53%) admit they don’t regularly clean behind appliances and leave dirt to build up for as long as six months at a time. image002.jpg On how to achieve a perfect barefoot clean feel after mopping, Geli Lee, Dyson Engineer and Home Cleaning Expert offers their top tips for eliminating dirt around the home: 1. Create a cleaning schedule to stay on top of dirt build-up. In the last year, there has been a 15% global reduction in the number of people who maintain regular cleaning schedules. 47% of the British public admitted to only being motivated to clean when they spot visible dirt or dust.4 Regular floor cleaning with a wet hard floor cleaner like the Dyson WashG1™ removes more stubborn dirt than vacuuming alone. It is important to have a debris free surface, clear any clutter from the floor or other surfaces. Choose the right machine: Different vacuums are designed for different floor types and home sizes. Some machines will be engineered with hard floors in mind and will struggle on thick pile carpets, for example. Choosing the right machine for your home will make a big difference to the ease and speed with which you’re able to clean your home. Clean your floors ‘little and often’. Washing your floors frequently in areas that receive more foot fall will help to stop dirt building up and getting trodden into your floor. Using a dedicated wet floor cleaner on hard flooring such as the Dyson WashG1 is helpful for this, as the versatile format means it vacuums and washes the floor simultaneously. Cleaning schedules have also become less regimented. In recent years only 41% of people claim to have a regular cleaning schedule, and 60% admit to cleaning reactively; being motivated to clean only when there is visible dirt or dust5. It’s perhaps not surprising, that a fifth of people are still concerned their floors are dirty after they’ve mopped them (22%) and one in four6 feel extremely worried about indoor dust at home. Geli Lee, Dyson Engineer and Home Cleaning Expert reveals why it is important to change the way we mop: “Cleaning your hard floors properly and regularly is important for maintaining a healthy environment around your home. Without a proper cleaning routine, dirt may unknowingly build up and spread around your home. It is evident from our research that current mopping habits mean British households aren’t cleaning their floors as effectively as they should. “From ignoring problem areas where dust and debris build up, cross contamination with dirty water to not replacing mop heads or inconsistent cleaning, current mopping behaviours may be making floors dirtier as opposed to cleaner. Moving away from traditional methods, wet floor cleaners like the Dyson WashG1 simplify the floor cleaning experience and provide a modern efficient and hygienic solution” To help take the guesswork out of mopping, the brand new WashG1 is Dyson’s first dedicated wet floor cleaner that tackles wet and dry debris in one go. Engineered for hygienic cleaning and maintenance, the WashG1 is revolutionising wet floor cleaning, removing the need for multi-products and multi-steps to achieve a barefoot clean feel around the home. To put the product to the test, Dyson have cleaned one of London’s most iconic landmarks The Victoria and Albert Museum. From cleaning the grand marble floors housing the most prestigious exhibits, to cleaning up leftover food in the Gamble Room Cafe, the WashG1 had a dirt busting tour of the museum leaving it spotless. Images can be found here. The WashG1 introduces Dyson’s engineering expertise to cleaning hard floors. With a 1 litre clean-water tank to cover flooring up to 290m2, the Dyson WashG1 uses a combination of hydration, absorption, and extraction technologies to remove wet and dry spills and stains simultaneously. The Dyson WashG1 is available to purchase now from Dyson.co.uk, retailing at £599.99.

Typically thought of as being an easy to clean area of the home, hard floors have risen in popularity in recent decades. Globally, hard floors are the most common floor type,2 and research released today by Dyson has uncovered poor cleaning habits that mean hard floors are likely to be harbouring an array of hidden nasties. This comes as 32% of Brits – equating to 21.6 million people in the UK – will use the same dirty mop head for six months or more before replacing it. What’s more, one in 20 also admit to keeping the same mop for a year or longer, and one in 10 think it is acceptable to use the same mop 100 times, spreading dirt around their floors every time they use it. Cross contamination is a primary issue for most common and traditional mopping methods with germs and bacteria further being unknowingly spread around homes as Brits use dirty water to clean floors.3 45% only change the water to new water between rooms, whereas 41% wait even longer until it looks dirty. This could mean that floors are being washed with dirty water, adding more dirt rather than taking it away. Surprisingly, almost one in 10 (9%) even admit to not changing the dirty water at all when mopping. Over a quarter (28%) admit to mopping their floors once a fortnight or less while over half (53%) admit they don’t regularly clean behind appliances and leave dirt to build up for as long as six months at a time. image002.jpg On how to achieve a perfect barefoot clean feel after mopping, Geli Lee, Dyson Engineer and Home Cleaning Expert offers their top tips for eliminating dirt around the home: 1. Create a cleaning schedule to stay on top of dirt build-up. In the last year, there has been a 15% global reduction in the number of people who maintain regular cleaning schedules. 47% of the British public admitted to only being motivated to clean when they spot visible dirt or dust.4 Regular floor cleaning with a wet hard floor cleaner like the Dyson WashG1™ removes more stubborn dirt than vacuuming alone. It is important to have a debris free surface, clear any clutter from the floor or other surfaces. Choose the right machine: Different vacuums are designed for different floor types and home sizes. Some machines will be engineered with hard floors in mind and will struggle on thick pile carpets, for example. Choosing the right machine for your home will make a big difference to the ease and speed with which you’re able to clean your home. Clean your floors ‘little and often’. Washing your floors frequently in areas that receive more foot fall will help to stop dirt building up and getting trodden into your floor. Using a dedicated wet floor cleaner on hard flooring such as the Dyson WashG1 is helpful for this, as the versatile format means it vacuums and washes the floor simultaneously. Cleaning schedules have also become less regimented. In recent years only 41% of people claim to have a regular cleaning schedule, and 60% admit to cleaning reactively; being motivated to clean only when there is visible dirt or dust5. It’s perhaps not surprising, that a fifth of people are still concerned their floors are dirty after they’ve mopped them (22%) and one in four6 feel extremely worried about indoor dust at home. Geli Lee, Dyson Engineer and Home Cleaning Expert reveals why it is important to change the way we mop: “Cleaning your hard floors properly and regularly is important for maintaining a healthy environment around your home. Without a proper cleaning routine, dirt may unknowingly build up and spread around your home. It is evident from our research that current mopping habits mean British households aren’t cleaning their floors as effectively as they should. “From ignoring problem areas where dust and debris build up, cross contamination with dirty water to not replacing mop heads or inconsistent cleaning, current mopping behaviours may be making floors dirtier as opposed to cleaner. Moving away from traditional methods, wet floor cleaners like the Dyson WashG1 simplify the floor cleaning experience and provide a modern efficient and hygienic solution” To help take the guesswork out of mopping, the brand new WashG1 is Dyson’s first dedicated wet floor cleaner that tackles wet and dry debris in one go. Engineered for hygienic cleaning and maintenance, the WashG1 is revolutionising wet floor cleaning, removing the need for multi-products and multi-steps to achieve a barefoot clean feel around the home. To put the product to the test, Dyson have cleaned one of London’s most iconic landmarks The Victoria and Albert Museum. From cleaning the grand marble floors housing the most prestigious exhibits, to cleaning up leftover food in the Gamble Room Cafe, the WashG1 had a dirt busting tour of the museum leaving it spotless. Images can be found here. The WashG1 introduces Dyson’s engineering expertise to cleaning hard floors. With a 1 litre clean-water tank to cover flooring up to 290m2, the Dyson WashG1 uses a combination of hydration, absorption, and extraction technologies to remove wet and dry spills and stains simultaneously. The Dyson WashG1 is available to purchase now from Dyson.co.uk, retailing at £599.99.

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