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DISCOVER SWITZERLAND

What you need to know about Switzerland’s only national park

Whilst Switzerland has many natural parks it only has one designated national park. Needless to say it's stunning and well worth a visit.

Published: 11 September 2023 15:23 CEST
Updated: 30 October 2023 17:09 CET
Ibex
Switzerland's many parks are worth a visit. Photo by Adrien Stachowiak.

Established in 1914, Switzerland’s one national park based is located in Engadine, an Alpine valley in the eastern Swiss Alps.

It’s imaginatively called the Swiss National Park and was the country’s only nature conservation park for many years and is the oldest national park in the Alps and central Europe.

The park is made up of 28 percent forest, 21 percent Alpine grassland and 51 percent unproductive terrain (scree, rocks, high mountain region).

Following a partial revision of the Federal Law on Nature and Heritage Protection in 2007, additional natural parks were later developed throughout Switzerland.

In addition to the Swiss National Park the country also has 19 natural parks that are perfect for a visit.

Today, a distinction is made between four park categories: the Swiss National Park, the new generation national park, the regional natural park, and the natural adventure park.

Though in principle all parks aim to preserve and maintain Switzerland’s natural and cultural landscapes, their approach is slightly different.

READ MORE: 10 waterfalls you have to visit in Switzerland

Swiss National Park

Extending over 170 square kilometres, the Swiss National Park is the nation’s largest protected area – the park is designated by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature as a category 1 nature reserve (highest protection level) – but that doesn’t mean visitors aren’t welcome.

Hikers looking to visit the Swiss National Park can choose from among 21 routes which are suitable for casual walkers, seasoned hikers and everyone in-between.

You also have the option of discovering the National Park as part of a guided tour for a cool 380 Swiss francs. The tour lasts around 6-7 hours and is usually conducted in German.

While out and about you will have the chance to see around 20 different animal species depending on the season, including red deer, brown bears, snow voles, and ibex.

However, while you are more than welcome to enter the park during its open season (May-October), you must obey the park’s protection regulations before setting out.

Here are some of the ‘dos’ and ‘don’ts’ pertaining to the Swiss National Park:

First, the dos:

  • Pack a pair of binoculars
  • Stick to the marked trails when observing wildlife
  • Pay attention to information boards
  • Keep calm so as not to upset animals
  • Travel by public transport

And now some of the don’ts:

  • Stray from the marked paths or resting areas
  • Pick up or remove any natural object (animals, plants, sticks, stones, etc.)
  • Make a camp fire
  • Litter
  • Disturb nature
  • Bring a pet along (not even on a lead)
  • Spend the night at the park or inside your parked vehicle (including along the main Pass dal Fuorn (Ofenpass) road)
  • Visit in the winter (November-April)
  • Partake in any no winter sports, cycling or flying of any sort
  • Bathe in lakes, pools, streams and rivers

When is the best time to visit?

The best time to visit the Swiss National Park is definitely during the summer months (July-August) when you can observe a large variety of plants and animals and partake in varied hikes.

The park’s visitor season begins between the end of May and the end of June when nature slowly awakens, and you are able to spot a few animals already.

Meanwhile, the deer rutting season starts around mid-September to early October and you can observe them primarily in park’s Val Trupchun area – also known as the stag arena of the Alps. During the summer, the park’s deer population is 1,800 to 2,000.

New app to help you visit 

The new SwissPark app includes an interactive map displaying various activities, and makes it possible to find routes between chosen points. They can be downloaded even without an internet connection.

After seven days of testing the application for free, the cost will be 36 francs per year. 

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DISCOVER SWITZERLAND

Goodbye Edelweiss: Swiss tourism body unveils its new logo

After three decades with the same 'old' logo — the Edelweiss flower — Switzerland’s tourism board has now re-branded itself. What is its new symbol now?

Published: 30 April 2024 13:13 CEST
Goodbye Edelweiss: Swiss tourism body unveils its new logo

For nearly three decades, Switzerland Tourism, which promotes the country’s charms abroad,  depended on the Alpine flower to sell ‘Swissness’ to foreign tourists.

Coloured in gold, with a Swiss flag in the middle (perhaps so as to distinguish it from the edelweiss that also grows on Alpine meadows in Austria, France, and Germany), the flower had been part of the organisation’s official logo since 1995.

Image by Switzerland Tourism

 

Crossing its t’s

Now, however, the tourism board is taking its logo to a whole new level — or at least that is how the organisation is referring to the new design it unveiled at a press conference in Geneva on Monday.

And what could be more Swiss, or more emblematic of Switzerland, than… the country’s flag (you may argue that the iconic Matterhorn would be a good choice as well, now that it is no longer featured on the Toblerone chocolate).

The new logo features the word ‘Switzerland’ (in English), with the letter ‘t’ replaced by the flag.

With this new image, the tourism board “is now spreading its new identity throughout the world,” Switzerland Tourism said.

Another Swiss icon: Roger

Whatever you may think of the new logo, and even if you don’t think about it at all, the fact remains that Switzerland Tourism has had some clever ideas up its sleeve to ‘sell’ the country to foreign visitors.

Over the past few years, it has teamed up with retired tennis champ Roger Federer (who, in turn, had teamed up with other high-profile individuals) to promote Switzerland worldwide.

This is one example:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wXcBGfXXL4w&t=13s
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