Home > Holidays > Walking > Alps

Walking in the Alps

By Rachel How

There is something immensely invigorating about walking in the Alps, and it is not just down to the mountain air, so fresh and pure.

If I had to give just one reason why I love walking in the Alps, it would have to be the grandeur of the scenery, breathtaking and humbling at the same time. The sight as I draw back the curtains of the lightly misted peaks through which the day's walk will lead never fails to send a tingle of excitement through me. And the views once you strike out into the mountains are amazing. What could be better than walking along the Mont d'Or ridge, with Switzerland on one side and France on the other, with magnificent views of the Mont Blanc range and some of the peaks of the Bernese Oberland? Or ascending to the Sefinenfurke Pass at 2,612 metres to be rewarded with views back down the valley to the towering summits of the Eiger, Mönch and Jungfrau? Other favourite views include the vistas of glittering Lake Lucerne from the spine of Mount Rigi, panoramas I believe you can never tire of.

In early summer (late June and the first half of July), however, even spectacular views such as these must compete for your attention with the wild flowers that light up the meadows. At this time of year, you arguably spend as much time staring at the ground as you do staring into the distance, gentians, Pasque flowers, cowslips and arnica together creating a carpet of blue, purple and yellow.

But there is much more to it than that. There is a real walking culture in Switzerland and Austria. It is not uncommon to see entire families out walking together, from 80-year-old granddad in his Lederhosen to 8-year-old grandson. And everyone you pass is so friendly, greeting you with a warm "Gruezi!" (Switzerland) or "Gruss Gott!" (Austria). This love of walking has led to the development of an extensive network of superbly waymarked paths which tends to astonish first-time visitors. Signposts at every junction offer a multitude of options, all with estimated timings, and of course you can always 'cheat' by taking cable cars or chairlifts into the high mountains – our Lakes & Mountainsand Lake Lucerne walks in particular are proof that Alpine walking need not involve long ascents and descents.

Walkers are never short of sustenance, either, the choice of eateries up in the mountains as wide as the choice of paths. Whereas in Britain it is rare to see cafés on mountainsides (the only ones I have ever encountered have been on peaks accessible by road or funicular), there are so-called 'huts' in the most inaccessible of spots in the Alps, the only neighbours cows whose bells clang in the distance. These 'huts' range from a few picnic tables outside a summer farm offering hunks of bread and mountain cheeses washed down with a cool beer, to 'proper' restaurants where you can enjoy tasty dishes such as local sausages, Rösti or home-made goulash soup. At all these establishments, "Gruezi" and "Gruss Gott" are replaced by "Guete" (the Swiss-German equivalent of "Bon appétit") or, in Austria, the all-purpose lunchtime greeting of "Mahlzeit", and there is a great sense of camaraderie as everyone tucks into their food in the warm sunshine.

If the rewarding routes, breathtaking scenery and great sense of camaraderie between walkers are not enough, you walk safe in the knowledge that at the end of the day you are going to be able to relax at a high-quality hotel – the majority of our Alpine hotels have three or four stars. You will find spacious, comfortable rooms, views of the peaks between (or over) which you have walked, window boxes whose colours rival those of the meadows above, and excellent facilities that often include a sauna, jacuzzi or indoor pool. On top of all this, you can enjoy high-quality cuisine. One of my favourite cuisines is that of the Lake Lucerne region, where menus have an accent on freshly caught fish from the lake.

For the perfect ending to a perfect day, take a glass of schnapps or kirsch outside after dinner and watch the sunset, such a beautiful sight that the Swiss and Austrians even have a word for the pink hue of the mountains under the disappearing sun – Alpengluh'n.

If you have any questions about our walking holidays in Switzerland and Austria, please email us.

< To the top of this page

< Back to Walking Index