Your typical day starts with a delicious buffet breakfast at our hotel - a feast of freshly baked bread and croissants, local meats and cheeses, cereal, fruit, eggs, coffee and freshly squeezed juice - which gives you the energy needed for the day ahead. Before setting out on your hike, visit a bakery and market for lunch supplies, or bring some money for a stop in one of the alpine restaurants along your route. Soon, you'll be out on the trail for 6-8 hours, with many hiking options to choose from.

You should finish your hike around 4 pm, giving you time to wash up, relax, perhaps settle into the pool, or just gaze upon the outside panorama from your room balcony. After that, you'll enjoy dinner at your hotel restaurant. These are multi-course feasts, often centered on local specialties like bratwurst, rösti, or cheese fondue, but may also feature chicken, fish, or other continental specialties. Our hotels all serve fabulous food, and dinners will be hearty, filling, well-earned and very delicious.

With two charming villages, lofty trails, and flexible hikes, the Engadine tour is an excellent introduction to one of the world's greatest hiking areas. You'll have many hikes to choose from, but here are some of our favorites:

Day 1 Arrive in Switzerland, and transfer by train to Guarda. There is a train station in the Zurich airport, and transferring to Guarda will be an easy introduction to Switzerland. The trip itself is incredibly scenic, and takes about 3 hours from Zurich. Perhaps you'll arrive a few days early, with time to take the famous Glacier Express between Zermatt and the Engadine valley. After you arrive, take a short walk through town, enjoy the crisp mountain air, and settle in for dinner at your lovely hotel.
Day 2 There are a number of lovely hikes in the area, including an energetic climb to the rugged mountain views of the upper Tuoi valley. Here you can visit a small alpine hut, delight in the myriad wildflowers, and enjoy dramatic views of the local peak, Piz Buin. The nearby village of Scuol is also a noted spa resort, and makes a great rainy day destination.
Day 3 Transfer to the lakes region of the upper Engadine, to the mellow and pretty resort town of Pontresina. The hiking here is amazingly varied, and you'll have numerous hikes to choose from. For your first hike, you might enjoy the mellow forested walk into the Roseg valley, or perhaps a steeper climb to one of the huts ringing the valley.
Day 4 One possibility is a morning transfer down to the charming, Italian-steeped village of Soglio, where you can take a rising traverse route back to the Maloja pass. Broad-leaved beeches, medieval villages, welcome waterfalls, and sunny views of the Piz Badile and other mountains accompany you along the way.
Day 5 The mighty Morteratsch glacier is an impressive destination, and a moderate climb to the Boval hut rewards you with panoramic views of white-capped giants in every direction. On a rainy day, a mellow walk through the woods and along the lake of St. Moritz is another option.
Day 6 One of our favorite hikes anywhere is the panoramic Muragl traverse above Pontresina. Boasting quiet wooded stretches, abundant wildlife, and surprising views of the giant Piz Bernina and the paternoster lakes of St. Moritz, this hike makes a fitting finale to a wonderful week.
Day 7 Today we say adieu, and depart for our post-tour destinations.

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Our self-guided prices are per person, based on two people sharing a standard double room. This tour includes 6 nights prepaid hotels in Guarda and Pontresina, breakfast and dinner each day, a Transfer Ticket railpass for 2 free days of rail travel, hiking maps, detailed route descriptions (including longer, shorter, and rainy day options), train schedules, sightseeing suggestions, and lots of useful information to help ensure a successful trip.

Our preferred 3-star and 4-star hotels in Pontresina are very good, with great food and a wonderful pool and spa, but there is also a very nice 2-star hotel for a budget Engadine tour. Please ask if you're interested. We also offer a self-guided, inn-to-inn combo tour to the same region, our Engadine Highlights tour.

Not included are lunches, drinks with dinners, extras (such as laundry, phone calls from the room, etc), or transportation not covered by your railpass.

If you'd like to lengthen or shorten this tour, add destinations, or create a customized tour of Switzerland from scratch, let us know. We have extensive experience all over Switzerland, and will be happy to work with you to build the hiking vacation that best suits your needs.

Learn more about custom and self-guided tours