Justine Tyerman finds a lesser-known alpine spa town in the Lower Engadine Valley with the Swiss National Park on the doorstep - a world away from the glitz and glamour of Switzerland's famous five-star resorts.
Autumn may be a quiet season in other parts of Switzerland but the Lower Engadine Valley in the Grisons, the most easterly canton of Switzerland, was buzzing with visitors when I was there recently. The Belvedere Hotel in Scuol where I stayed had a full house of mainly Swiss guests enjoying the extensive spa facilities, hiking, biking, rafting and kayaking, and magnificent autumn weather and colours.
I've never seen so many fit, energetic, happy family groups and couples of all ages. They're out and about early in the day, doing impressive pre-exercise stretching exercises at bus stops, heading off on mountain bikes, piling into gondolas with their back packs, walking sticks and down vests. Later in the day, I find them padding down the Belvedere corridor in white robes and slippers to the splendid spa facilities at Engadin Bad Scuol. It's my kind of place.
With the Swiss National Park on the doorstep and 1500kms of marked trails in the high alpine valleys of the Grisons, the region is a hikers' paradise. A tramper from way back, one day I'd love to tackle the multi-day Via Engiadina through the ancient villages of Guarda, Ardez, Sent and Tschlin with awesome, uninterrupted views of the Dolomites. And the National Park Trail, a seven-day hike from Zernez and the Mustair Valley to Scuol and Samnaun, through a protected, unspoilt eco-system.
Luggage is no problem. Your belongings are transported between villages so you need only carry a day pack. What bliss! It's all part of the region's smart approach to tourism, pioneering 'barrier-free' holidays where obstacles to the full enjoyment of the experience are removed.
