This series features various winter sports-loving royals from around the world. The first part is about Thailand’s royal family Who was Skiing in the ski resorts of Europe for generations.
The tradition of skiing in the Alps for the Thai royal family began when the grandfather of the current king moved to Lausanne, Switzerland, with his sons, the father and uncle of Rama X, in 1933 to protect them from a coup. It was there that the royal family discovered their passion for winter sports. The family’s children attended school in Switzerland and learned basic French. There they met a private instructor who taught them to ski. The Thai royal family often stayed at the Kulm Hotel in Arosa to ski (today the Arosa ski area is part of the Kulm). Arosa-Lenzerheide).
The Arosa-Lenzerheide ski area is located in the Swiss canton of Graubünden/Grischa. Arosa is one of the oldest Swiss ski resorts and was known for its understated elegance and natural beauty. Before the advent of ski tourism, Arosa was known as a summer resort and was home to one of Switzerland’s many sanatoriums. Arosa is still one of Switzerland’s most glamorous resorts and offers luxury hotels and a two-Michelin-starred restaurant in the Tschuggen Grand Hotel. The Arosa ski area was linked to the Lenzherheide ski area in the 2013–14 season when the connecting Urdenbahn cable car opened. The combined ski area offers 225 kilometers of groomed slopes with a vertical drop of 1,645 meters and is served by a total of 43 ski lifts. It is one of the largest ski areas in Switzerland.
Ananda Mahi Dol, the uncle of the present king, became King of Thailand in 1935. He stayed in Switzerland for most of his reign, as Thailand’s kings had only symbolic power at that time. Mahidol visited Thailand again in 1945 and died under mysterious circumstances in 1946. After his death, Bhumibol, the father of Rama X, was crowned King of Thailand. However, he stayed in Lausanne until 1951 to complete his studies at the university there.
Bhumibol and his wife, Queen Sikrit, continue skiing in Europe. They visited several ski resorts in Switzerland, such as St. Moritz and Gstaad, but since these were not official state visits, details were rarely made public. One of their visits to Gstaad, Switzerland was photographed by several photographers. In 1961, the royal family of Thailand celebrated New Year’s Eve in Gstaad. Bhumibol was very sporty and often went water skiing and played ice hockey.
Gstaad is a city with several ski areasthe a total slope length of 200 kilometers and over 43 lifts. The city is in Canton Bern And is a meeting place for the world’s jet set. The Gstaad Palace Hotel is particularly popular with celebrities. Bhumibol and Sikrit have stayed there, as have Hollywood actors such as Elizabeth Taylor. and music legends like Elton John. The area is known for its picturesque landscape and charming small towns. Near Gstaad you will find the glacier 3000 ski area, which offers skiing from October to May.
Another celebrity hotspot is St. Moritz in the canton of Graubünden/Grischa. The local ski resort Corviglia has 94 miles of slopes and connects four different cities. The ski area covers an altitude difference of over 4400 feet whichcan be accessed with 24 different lifts. The resort has a rich history And was the venue for the second Winter Olympics in 1928. The games were held here again in 1948.
Bhumibol passed his passion on to his son Maha Vajiralongkorn, who became king in 2016. Vajiralongkorn, known as King Rama X, is one of the world’s richest monarchs and lives mainly in a small town south of Munich, Tutzing, near the German Alps. King Rama X stays at the Hotel Sonnenbichel, a luxurious resort that he books entirely for his family as well as his security guards and soldiers. He often skis in the Garmisch-Classic or Germany’s highest mountain, the Zugspitze, He also often comes to nearby Switzerland, where he learned to ski.
Garmisch Classic and Zugspitze are two ski resorts in southern Germany that skiers can use with the same ticket.The resort’s slopes have a total length of 40 miles And the Zugspitz Resort is located on Germany’s highest mountain which is also called Zugspitze. The Zugspitze reaches a height of 9,717 feet.
Rama X probably chose the resorts because they were close to his residence in Tutzing and were easily accessible from there. They also offer a gigantic varied terrain which ranges from beginner-friendly slopes to one of the steepest slopes in Germany The Kandahar. The ski resort of Garmisch Classic hosts the FIS Alpine World Cup every year and is the scene of a famous New Year’s ski jumping competition that attracts many visitors every year. The city of Garmisch-Partenkirchen hosted the 1936 Winter Olympics.
If you happen to ski at the same resort as the Thai royal family, you may notice many skiers dressed in black with a yellow badge on their arm. These are the King’s security guards and servants. You will also notice that they walk around hunched over as their heads are not allowed to be higher than the heads of the royal family.
The Thai royal family’s tradition of skiing in Europe has had many positive effects on the region and the hotels frequented by the royal family have been used by the royals to promote their hotels. On the other hand, many people in Tutzing are annoyed that the Thai king lives tax-free in Germany, while his subjects in Thailand are upset that their king resides abroad.
You might also like:
