Thrilling New Swing at Swiss Ski Resort Soars Over Vertical Cliff

High on the slopes of a Swiss ski resort, visitors are swinging.

Villars-Gryons-Diableret recently debuted a giant swing called the BalancAIR. Perched at nearly 7,000 feet, the swing floats over a vertical drop and provides views of the surrounding mountainscapes and valleys.

The AFP reported that the swing uses an “ingenious system of cables and pulleys,” hoisting visitors into the air and putting them in a position where they face down. Then, they plunge into the void. The bravest swing-goers can choose a 90-degree launch angle, if they like.

One, who spoke with the AFP, said the experience makes you feel like a bird, although she acknowledged she had a pit in her stomach beforehand.

Found atop the Grand Chamossaire lift, the BalancAIR is included with transport tickets or can be booked in advance online for CHF 8.

While the BalancAIR looks like fun—plain and simple—it also reflects a more challenging reality for Europe’s ski resorts. Some have shut down as snow lines creep higher, while others, like Villars-Gryons-Diableret, are rethinking their summer offerings to entice visitors during the off-season.

“We are really trying to diversify,” Villars-Gryons-Diableret’s director, Martin Deburaux, told the AFP.

Deburaux noted that the ski area hopes to triple its summer attendance in the coming years. As of now, over 700,000 people visit Villars-Gryons-Diableret in the winter. That number is just 100,000 in the summer.

“We see that we are facing climate change. We also conducted a study on the snowfall potential that we will have in 2050, and we are simply preparing to have less snow or to have more random snowfall,” Deburaux said.

While the addition of the swing may have a serious tilt for Villars-Gryons-Diableret, ski resorts, including those in North America, have long sought to keep people interested after the snow melts. Mountain biking, hiking, disc golf, and scenic lift rides are all among the common warmer-month revenue drivers.

There are even some giant swings at ski resorts on this side of the pond.

At Bromley Mountain, in Vermont, a giant swing “looms as high as a four-story building, swings riders at speeds approaching 40mph, and produces 3G’s of gravitational force,” according to the ski resort’s website.

New Hampshire’s Cranmore Mountain has one, too, alongside other summer diversions like a mountain coaster and zip rides.

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