The Swiss Alps include the Swiss Section of the Alps. They are known Swiss Alps especially for the many tourist and climatic health resorts. Since the beginning of the 20th century. the mountains are developed for tourism and famous for their ski areas, hiking routes, mountain huts and mountain railways.
Regions
The Swiss Alps are spread across the mountain cantons Valais, Uri, Obwalden, Nidwalden, Glarus, Grisons as well as parts of the cantons Bern, Schwyz, St. Gallen and Ticino.
according to topography:
The Swiss Alps belong, with the exception of the Bernina as the highest mountain group in the Eastern Alps, to the Western Alps.
The high alpine mountain groups of the Swiss Alps are the mountains south and north of the Rhone:
- The mountain group of Bernese Alps are the high alpine part of the Swiss Alps north of the Rhone with the largest glaciation in the entire Alpine region, including the Aletsch Glacier as the largest glacier in Europe in terms of area. There are a total of nine independent four-thousand-meter peaks.
- The Valais Alps are the part of the Western Alps located south of the Rhone and are spread over the countries of Switzerland and Italy. The state border runs on the main ridge, there are a total of 43 four-thousand-meter peaks. Subgroups are Combining group, Dent Blanche Group, Matterhorn group, Mischabel group, Monte Rosa, Weisshorn Group and Weissmies group.
places
- Tuna, on Lake Thun, in the canton of Bern
- Brig-Glis, Valais
- Arosa in the Schanfigg, Grisons
- Interlaken between Lake Brienz and Lake Thun, Bern
- Zermatt in the Mattertal, Valais
- Chur in the Rhine Valley, Grisons
- Manners/ Sion, Valais
other known valleys
Other goals
- Aletsch area, UNESCO World Heritage Site
- Jungfraujoch with the summit Virgin
- Zermatt, Place below the Matterhorns
background
The Switzerland 60% is covered by the Alps. They make up a large part of the country's identity, both culturally and historically. The Alps are considered by non-Swiss people the Swiss feature, even if only a small minority of the people still live here today. Many of the smallest valleys and their valley sides have died out or are in danger of becoming obsolete.
In the Alps, a federation was founded between Uri, Schwyz and Unterwalden, which can be seen in a simplified way as the starting point of the Swiss Confederation.
language
Be in the Swiss Alps French, Swiss German in different dialects, Italian and Romansh spoken. Everywhere where Swiss German is spoken, the people also understand German, as do almost all Rhaeto-Romans.
getting there
Since the Alps are divided into many valleys, the journey is to be planned well. Sometimes you need a lot longer despite the short distance as the crow flies. If you want to go to the north side of the Alps, you'd better leave the Swiss Mittelland arrive. The cities are also located there Bern, Zurich, Geneva, Baselwhich have excellent connections to the rail and road network as well as airports.
Ins Valais you come from the north through the new Lötschberg base tunnel or through the old Lötschberg tunnel. In Kandersteg there is a car transport. From there it takes twenty minutes by train Goppenstein. The Valais can be reached from the south via the Simplon Domodossola.
In the street
in the winter by spring there are often many Alpine passes Closed due to snow conditions or snow chains are mandatory. If you are not used to winter road conditions, it is advisable not to use the car.
As winter-safe connections will - as far as the circumstances permit - keep the following connections open.
- Gotthard - road tunnels A2
- Lötschberg (car transport) - Simplon - route A9
- San Bernardino - road tunnels A13
- Lukmanier Pass
- ins Engadine the Car loading through the Vereina tunnel between Monastery-Selfranga - Sagliains
see also:interactive road condition map of the TCS
in the summer During the main travel times, the cross-Alpine connections are often overloaded by the volume of traffic. The most popular cross-alpine connections are
- Gotthard - road tunnels A2, especially on the evenings before the weekend in north-south direction and on Sunday evenings in south-north direction there are long traffic jams in front of the gates of the Gotthard road tunnel, it is best to drive at night. In summer you can use the Gotthard pass road or avoid the San Bernardino pass.
- San BernardinoA13 with the vertex tunnel
- Simplon A9
- Great St. Bernhard
You can load your car through the Lötschberg from Valais to Bern and vice versa in Kandersteg (Bernese side) and Goppenstein (Wallisian side). You stay in the car and drive through the Lötschberg tunnel in fifteen minutes. Kandersteg - Goppenstein car transport service, Reservation recommended
You can get to the Simplon Pass from Piedmont in Northern Italy to Brig-Glis in Valais. There is also a pass road there, but there is also a car train from Iselle to Kandersteg and vice versa. Cost for a normal car: 90 CHF (57.50 EUR). Car transport Kandersteg - Goppenstein, Reservation recommended
Mountain Post Roads
There are many, preceded by a sign showing a yellow horn on a blue background Mountain Post Roads in the Swiss Alps. Postbuses (the yellow and white public buses) must be given right of way on these roads. The approaching post bus draws attention to itself in confusing areas with the three-tone horn, then you have to drive to the side at an alternative point and wait for the post bus to pass, otherwise you have to reverse. Visitors who are not familiar with the area are advised to drive carefully and to display at a passing point in order to have a column of local vehicles overtake them. In particular with "thick ships", wide rented mobile homes, one should not drive too ambitiously on all Alpine roads but rather park the vehicle during the day and take the post bus to the villages.
By train
In terms of rail technology, the Swiss Alps are largely developed through a number of marvels. So in Grisons many viaducts on the Rhaetian Railway (RhB).
The train is basically a reliable means of transport in the Alps. Trains rarely fail due to line interruptions caused by storms. Often even the train is still in operation when the road has been closed due to the danger of avalanches, because the trains pass through protective tunnels and galleries at critical points.
mobility
Due to the high mountains of the Alps, mobility is inevitably limited. Often there is only one access to villages. These villages can then be cut off from the environment when storms such as floods, rockfalls, debris flows or avalanches destroy or block traffic and communication routes.
The public transport reaches every village in the Swiss Alps, so you can confidently do without the car. However, some of the connections are not very frequent.
Tourist Attractions
- Aletsch Glacier
- Matterhorn in Zermatt
- Eiger, Mönch and Jungfrau im Bernese Oberland
activities
In the Alps you can climb, mountaineering, hiking, biking, Skiing and snowboarding.
kitchen
Usually you meet a middle class Swiss cuisine on, but there are some specialties.
- fondue, "Cheesesoup"
- Cheese or bacon platter
- Capuns is a packet of spaetzle dough that is wrapped with chard, lettuce or spinach leaves. The traditional dish from the Canton of Graubünden is enriched with chopped salsiz or Bündnerfleisch. Capuns are boiled in milk water and, depending on the recipe, baked with mountain cheese. To do this, a sauce is made from the milk water (half bouillon and milk).
Capuns in the Valsertal
Capuns in Uors
There are further region-specific dishes in the articles of the respective Regions and places.
More on this topic can be found at Eating and drinking in Switzerland
nightlife
There is hardly any nightlife in the small villages. If you are looking for a disco or bar, you will find it in the larger towns or in ski areas. However, every village certainly has a restaurant that is also open in the evenings during the week.
security
The Alps are an extreme habitat - also for humans. The dangers are less human than natural.
Countless people die in avalanches every year. It is therefore essential to follow the current information in ski areas. For ski tours, information should always be obtained first; it is still best to bring an experienced mountain guide with you. You can always ask for this at the local tourist office. A current avalanche bulletin is available daily for each region and nationally at Federal Institute for Snow and Avalanche Research in Davos.
The crime is basically very small in the Alps. In smaller villages it is usually not a problem to leave cars, bicycles or apartments open. Luggage and skis are also safe.
climate
In summer, especially after thunderstorms, which are often accompanied by a sudden change in weather, dangerous situations can arise. Locals can often assess the weather and the danger situation very well. In summer, small brooks in particular, which can grow into torrential rivers and rockfalls, pose an increased risk. gg
trips
literature
- Handbook of the Swiss Alps, Heinz Staffelbach; Comprehensive, scientifically sound and practice-oriented nature guide on plants, animals, rocks and weather conditions;
cards
There is one for hikers and mountaineers National map of Switzerland on a scale of 1: 25,000. These maps cover the entire area of Switzerland in a strictly geometric grid of rows and columns, without taking into account mountain regions or administrative division in the map section. Then there are the so-called Compositions, in which several neighboring maps for particularly interesting areas are combined into one sheet on a scale of 1: 50,000.
For the ski routes there is the "National map of Switzerland with ski routes" with a selection of the particularly interesting regions and on a scale of 1: 50,000 (sheet identification "nnn S ").
