Graubünden: travel guide

Why visit Graubünden

Graubünden (Grisons in French, Grigioni in Italian) is Switzerland’s largest canton by area, yet one of its least densely populated. A landscape of extraordinary variety occupies this mountain territory at the south-eastern corner of the country: over 150 valleys radiate from a central spine of high Alps, draining north into the Rhine, east into the Inn, and south into the Adda and Ticino. The same mountain mass divides the climatic zones — the northern valleys are cool and green, the southern Engadin opens into the drier, high-altitude basin with 300 sunny days per year.

Three official languages co-exist in Graubünden — German, Romansh (spoken by about 15% of the population in its various valley dialects), and Italian in the southern valleys — and the cultural mix this produces is genuine rather than touristic. Village names appear in two or three languages on signposts; Romansh words appear on road signs and in café menus; Italian cooking and attitudes prevail south of the Maloja Pass.

Two of the world’s most celebrated scenic railways cross this territory. The Glacier Express connects Zermatt to St. Moritz via the Oberalp Pass, Andermatt, and the Engadin; the Bernina Express crosses the Bernina Pass on the highest railway in the Alps and descends to Tirano in Italy. Both journeys are genuine engineering achievements and among the finest train experiences in the world.

Key destinations

Chur

Chur is the capital of Graubünden and the oldest city in Switzerland, with evidence of continuous settlement dating back 5,000 years. The old town is compact and walkable, its narrow streets climbing to the 12th-century cathedral — a mixture of Romanesque and Gothic styles with an exceptional altarpiece by the Master of Flums. The Kunstmuseum Graubünden has a good collection of regional art including works by Giovanni and Alberto Giacometti, both born in the canton.

Chur functions primarily as a transport hub — the starting point for the Glacier Express and Bernina Express rail journeys, and the junction for routes south into the Engadin and west towards Surselva — but the old town deserves a couple of hours in its own right.

St. Moritz

St. Moritz is the archetype of the luxury Alpine resort — a name synonymous since the late 19th century with glamour, wealth, and winter sport. The village sits at 1,856 metres in the upper Engadin Valley, beside the frozen/unfrozen (depending on season) Lago di San Moritz, with the peaks of the Maloja range rising above the southern shore.

The ski area (Corviglia, Corvatsch, Diavolezza) is one of the finest in the Alps: high, snow-sure, and varied. The Cresta Run — the original toboggan run, still operating on its 1884 course — and the White Turf horse races on the frozen lake (February) are St. Moritz traditions unlike anything elsewhere in skiing.

In summer, St. Moritz reveals a different character: the lake is crowded with windsurfers (the altitude creates consistent thermal winds), the hiking trails of the upper Engadin are among the finest in Switzerland, and the Segantini Museum holds the complete works of the great Symbolist painter of Alpine light. The town’s permanent population is small; the resort infrastructure swells dramatically in both winter and summer seasons.

Davos

Davos is the largest mountain resort in Europe at 1,560 metres, strung along a high valley six kilometres long. It is best known internationally for the World Economic Forum — the annual January gathering of global political and business leaders that has made the name a shorthand for elite globalisation. But before the WEF and before Thomas Mann used it as the setting for The Magic Mountain, Davos was a tuberculosis sanatorium resort, its clear high-altitude air considered therapeutic throughout the 19th century.

The ski area (Parsenn, Jakobshorn, Pischa, Madrisa) is extensive and challenging, with excellent off-piste terrain on the Parsenn. The Jakobshorn is the snowpark and freeski hub. In summer, the mountain biking infrastructure in Davos has become genuinely significant, with a downhill park and extensive marked trail network.

Top experiences

The Glacier Express

The Glacier Express from Zermatt to St. Moritz (or reverse) is one of the most celebrated train journeys in the world — 8 hours through 91 tunnels and across 291 bridges, climbing to the 2,033-metre Oberalp Pass before descending through the Engadin to St. Moritz. The panoramic windows of the modern rolling stock give unobstructed views of the Rhine Gorge, the Uri Alps, and the high Graubünden landscape.

Booking is essential — reserve your Glacier Express ticket well in advance. The journey is covered in part by the Swiss Travel Pass but requires a seat reservation supplement. The Glacier Express guide covers booking, the best seat positions, and options for splitting the journey over two days.

The Bernina Express

The Bernina Express from Chur (or St. Moritz) to Tirano crosses the Bernina Pass at 2,253 metres on the highest standard-gauge mountain railway in the world — no rack and pinion, just adhesion. The 4-hour journey from Chur includes the Rhine Gorge and the spectacular Brusio spiral viaduct, a circular bridge that allows the train to gain altitude in a loop visible from above. The descent from the Bernina Pass to Tirano passes by the Morteratsch Glacier and drops 1,800 metres in 60 kilometres.

Both the Albula/Bernina section of the Bernina railway and the Rhine Gorge section of the Glacier Express route are UNESCO World Heritage listed.

Hiking in the upper Engadin

The upper Engadin Valley — between Maloja and Scuol — has exceptional long-distance hiking routes across glacial terrain. The Via Engiadina traverses the valley from Scuol to Maloja in 10 stages. Individual day routes include the Diavolezza to Morteratsch glacier descent (a classic high-alpine route above the glacier surface with crampons available from the station), the Fuorcla Surlej route across to Corvatsch, and the many routes in the Macun Lakes area above Lavin.

Skiing the Parsenn

The Parsenn ski area above Davos is one of the great classic ski mountain experiences in Switzerland: wide, open pistes dropping through the Weissfluhjoch and Gotschnagrat onto long valley descents that reach villages 1,800 metres below the starting point. The Parsenn Derby (held in spring since 1924) covers the 12-kilometre run from the Weissfluhjoch to Küblis — a descent that remains the longest ski race run in the world.

Getting there and around

Chur is on the main Swiss rail network (Zurich to Chur in 1 hour 20 minutes). From Chur, the Rhätische Bahn (RhB) network extends through the canton. St. Moritz is 3.5 hours from Zurich via Chur and the Albula railway. Davos is 2 hours 30 minutes from Zurich via Landquart. The Swiss Travel Pass covers most RhB services; the scenic railway supplements apply to reserved express services.

Best time to visit

Graubünden has the greatest seasonal variation of any Swiss region. Winter (December to March) is when the ski resorts operate at full capacity; snow is reliable at higher altitudes. Summer (June to September) opens the high hiking routes and the Bernina Pass road. The Engadin is particularly beautiful in late September when the larch forests turn gold.

Practical information

St. Moritz is among the most expensive resort destinations in Switzerland; Davos and Chur are more moderate. The RhB scenic railways require advance seat reservations for the Glacier Express and Bernina Express. For the comparison between Davos and St. Moritz see the St. Moritz vs Davos guide. The Engadin region is covered separately for the lower valley. Graubünden connects well to Central Switzerland via the Glacier Express route and to Ticino via the Bellinzona-Thusis road.