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Less touristy Swiss village in the mountains?

Posted by (Granite Bay, CA) on

We have done some traveling around Switzerland in the past and have been the BO are a few times. We plan to start our Europe trip in Switzerland before moving onto Germany.

We had a reservation for Klosters (after Appenzell, we have been there before) but now our hotel just cancelled our reservation. We have never been to that area of Switzerland, but now that our hotel cancelled I'm having second thoughts about going to that area. I see a lot of bigger hotels and we like a more personal touch smaller places.

Can anyone recommend a less touristy alp or mountain area to visit ? We can keep Appenzell (which we loved but have been there) and then have 3 nights before we go to Wengen, or we could scrap Appenzell and have 5 nights. We leave June 3, so this is rather last minute. We have not been to the Italian side of Switzerland, which could be interesting. Also, we will have a car.

Or, is Klosters wonderful and we should just find another hotel?

Thanks for any ideas!

Posted by
1995 posts

We have been to Bettmeralp and loved it! Thank you! I will look into Saas Fee.

Have you been to Klosters? Any feedback for us?

Posted by
6473 posts

Pontressina?
Altho five nights in Wengen is pretty tempting.
Have a great time.

Posted by
435 posts

Klosters should be relatively quiet in early June, especially compared to Wengen. The big hotels exist due to the popularity of skiing in the winter, but it has a different vibe in the summer (hiking, mountain biking are big) and there are plenty of smaller hotels too. Most mountain towns in Graubünden don’t really get busy until July and August, some mountain infrastructure might not be open until mid June. Guarda, Scuol, Zuoz, Zernez etc further into Graubünden will be even quieter. Personally I would say Graubünden is one of the nicest parts of the country and although dependent on tourists, rarely feels super touristy (major exception St Moritz due to Glacier Express). More open space and fewer mass tourism issues than seen in other places around Switzerland.

Posted by
1995 posts

Thank you so much for the suggestions! I will do my research, but they look amazing.

Posted by
44 posts

We enjoyed Arolla, staying at the Lac Blu pension, and hiking up into the mountains and down into Evolene many years ago. We had the place to ourselves in May (shoulder season, hiking across snowfields). I don't know how much it has changed (grown) but it required a ride on the Postal Bus to reach the pension, and that probably hasn't changed, which would automatically make it less touristy.

Posted by
435 posts

Toggenburg is nice, lots of rolling green hills. Given the location, very similar landscape to Appenzell. Not much in the way of villages or activities, but if you want to be off the beaten path, it’s nice countryside for walking.

Posted by
1773 posts

On the way to Como from Orta we stopped off in Morcote, a small village in a very pretty spot at the bottom end of Switzerland (too far?). We spent the better part of the day hiking a wooded trail above the village.

With a car you have easy access to Lugano and Bellinzona, the latter of which also has some nice hiking opportunites. We also hiked the Chestnut Trail, somewhere in the general Lugano area as I remember.

Lakes Como and Maggiore are close by.

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