Autumn Is The Best Time For Hiking 
In Switzerland

Winter in the Alps is a race for the lifts. Autumn is a different story. ‘In the winter, there’s an energy, you’ve got people racing for the lifts, people want to do everything very fast paced,’ says Fiona. ‘Whereas when autumn comes, it’s a really nice time to just enjoy the mountain and get to hike at your own pace.’

In Valais, that means golden larch forests and quiet paths. Near Simplon Dorf, the Hittuwald is home to larches between 700 and 850 years old – the oldest larch forest in Switzerland – and glows gold against the old Chrummbacheri irrigation channel. Closer to Verbier, the Larches of Balavaux offer a gentler walk among more ancient trees. For a bigger day out, the Aletsch Forest looks down on the longest glacier in the Alps.

Autumn is when the mountains get their wild side back. ‘At the end of the summer, the cows start to move down the mountain, and that’s when the wildlife reclaims the Alpine pastures,’ says Fiona. ‘You can hear more wildlife. You can see chamois, you can see the marmots.’ (Catch the marmots while you can – they turn in for their winter sleep as the season goes on.)

For a guaranteed encounter, join a guided walk in Nendaz to listen to the deer rut at dusk. Or ride up Pilatus above Lucerne for an ibex safari, with guides who know exactly where to look.

Autumn sometimes brings a sea of fog to the lowlands, which is no reason to stay at home. Katherine Price, the journalist who starred in our first film, has a tip: always check the mountain webcams before you set off. If it’s grey in the valley, it’s often sunny at the top.

In Central Switzerland, the little OBSI+NIDSI cable cars lift you straight out of the fog. From Flüelen, ride up to Oberaxen and the Wildheuer Trail with views over Lake Lucerne. Or take the Chlital–Gietisflue cable car and follow the Wanggrat ridge to the summit cross of Schartihöreli, and look down on the mist hanging like a lake below.

The Engadin’s larch forests are some of the most spectacular in the country come October. Behind Sils, car-free Val Fex is especially peaceful in autumn, with hardly any day visitors and views of the Fex Glacier.

Further east, in the Lower Engadin, Val S-charl is the kind of valley where you might feel you have the whole world to yourself. For something longer, the Via Engiadina high trail looks down over the Upper Engadin lakes.

Autumn hiking doesn’t have to mean summits. In Vaud, the Chestnut Trail winds through the chestnut groves and vineyards of Luins, Vinzel and Bursins, with Lake Geneva and the Alps beyond, and can end with a seasonal lunch at a traditional inn. Above Lake Lucerne, the Rigi Chestnut Trail between Weggis and Vitznau does the same with mountain views.

Further north, the Seetal Wine Trail links four wine villages above Lake Hallwil as the vines turn red and gold.

Since autumn is Switzerland’s best kept secret, it’s the perfect time to discover one of its secret trails, too. Above Lake Thun, the Justistal is a pristine Alpine valley that’s at its most atmospheric in autumn. Near Gstaad, the walk from the Sparenmoos moorland to Hundsrügg ends with a view of 427 peaks, with mushrooms springing up along the way.

In Ticino, where the outdoor season runs longer than anywhere else, the hike to Lago Salei rewards you with a mountain lake all but to yourself. For more inspiration, browse Switzerland Tourism’s most enjoyable hikes.

Most trailheads are a train, bus or cable car ride away, and the Swiss Travel Pass covers trains, buses and boats across the country.

After a day on the trail, there are few better places to land than one of Switzerland’s spa and wellness hotels. Or soak in the open-air thermal baths at Ovronnaz in Valais, where summer may be over but swimsuit season isn’t. For something more rustic, the Typically Swiss Hotels range from country inns to Alpine houses, with local cheeses at breakfast and hosts who know every path in the valley.  Or if you’d rather cover the ground on two wheels, the Swiss bike hotels know the best routes and will look after your bike overnight.