Ebenalp - Appenzellerland

Convenience wins people over: the cable car from Wasserauen has been running since 1955 and carries up to two hundred thousand passengers a year, the drive from surrounding villages is short, parking is plentiful and waiting at the lifts is minimal. The view of the snow-covered Alpstein is called the highlight of the day. There is a long valley descent, practice lifts for children and the floodlit Horn slope at Schwende.

Scale is the complaint: this is the largest area in the canton, which shows how modest the offering is - a day out, not a holiday. Up top there are only drag lifts and variety is thin. Ratings on specialist catalogues are middling, around 2.6 out of five. The car parks can be nearly full by half past nine, so an early start is advised. The lower part of the Horn lies very low and depends entirely on artificial snow.