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    Lower Engadine
    JoachimKohler-HB / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 4.0

    Switzerland

    Lower Engadine

    City

    The Lower Engadine is the lower part of the Engadine valley in Graubünden, between Zernez and the Austrian border. Its main town is Scuol, at about 1,290 meters.

    by Felix Gillen

    1. Home
    3. Destinations
    5. Switzerland
    7. Graubünden
    9. Lower Engadine
    The Lower Engadine is the lower part of the Engadine valley in Graubünden, between Zernez and the Austrian border. Its main town is Scuol, at about 1,290 meters. Since 2015, Scuol, Guarda, Ardez, Ftan, Sent and Tarasp have formed a single municipality whose official language is Romansh.Scuol has been a spa town since the 19th century. More than twenty mineral springs rise within the municipality, you can taste the water straight from five village fountains, and the Bogn Engiadina has carried on the bathing tradition since 1993. Across the valley, Tarasp Castle stands on a hill and can only be visited on a guided tour.Guarda sits at 1,653 meters on a sunny terrace high above the Inn. The village, with its painted 17th-century Engadine houses, received the Wakker Prize in 1975 and inspired Selina Chönz and Alois Carigiet to create the story of Schellen-Ursli (A Bell for Ursli). From Scuol, the Rhaetian Railway takes you to Zernez and the Swiss National Park in just over half an hour.

    Sights in Lower Engadine

    Discover the most important sights and attractions

    Tarasp Castle
    Museum

    1Tarasp Castle

    The castle, perched on a hill above the Inntal, looks back on a history of approximately a thousand years. Around 1900, the Dresden industrialist Karl August Lingner purchased the dilapidated castle and had it restored. Since 2016, it has been privately owned. You can visit it only with a guided tour and by prior online registration, daily in summer except Mondays. In the former armory, there is an organ on which concerts are still held.
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    Bogn Engiadina
    Spa

    2Bogn Engiadina

    Opened in 1993 in the center of Scuol, this bath continues the local spa tradition and was home to Switzerland's first Roman-Irish bath. This is also the starting point for the approximately one-hour Scuol Fountain Tour, which passes through the Soleturm and by the mineral water fountains in the old village.
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    Guarda

    3Guarda

    The village, with around 200 inhabitants, is located at 1653 meters on a sunny terrace above the Inn, away from the valley road and railway line. The painted Engadine houses from the first half of the 17th century earned Guarda the Wakker Prize in 1975; a house in the village served Alois Carigiet as a model for Schellen-Ursli’s parents' home.
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    Restaurants in Lower Engadine

    1

    La Chadafö

    Restaurant in the Hotel Altana on Via da la Staziun in Scuol, near Scuol-Tarasp train station. The menu features Swiss classics and Engadine specialties, with daily vegetarian, gluten-free, and lactose-free dishes; in summer, enjoy the garden with views of the Lower Engadine Dolomites.
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    2

    Alpetta

    Restaurant above Scuol. On fine days and weekends, dishes from the large pan are served, such as Pizzokels or Älplermagronen.
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    Lower Engadine Culture

    In the Lower Engadine, Rhaeto-Romanic language, Engadine houses and old customs shape the village scape.Engadine Houses and SgraffitoYou'll find well-preserved Engadine houses in the old village part of Scuol Sot and especially in Guarda, whose narrow alleys, sgraffiti, and painted facades are a prime example of Rhaeto-Romanic village culture. Guarda's village scape is of national importance; a GPS app guides through 15 stations on its history, crafts, and nature.Schellen-Ursli and ChalandamarzThe story of Schellen-Ursli, by Selina Chönz with illustrations by Alois Carigiet, originated in 1945; Carigiet drew inspiration for Ursli's parents' house from a stately Guarda home. In Guarda, a themed trail dedicated to the story can be walked in stages, even with children. The village also observes the Chalandamarz custom, where winter is driven out with large cowbells.Water and BathsThe variety of mineral springs relates to the unique geology of the Lower Engadine Window. Scuol's water was mentioned as early as 1369; from around 1860, the healing springs were used on a larger scale. The Museum d'Engiadina Bassa in Scuol exhibits furniture, tools, looms, and traditional costumes from the valley's rural life in historic rooms.

    Getting Around the Lower Engadine

    Scuol-Tarasp is the end of the Rhaetian Railway line in the Lower Engadine. Since 1999, the 19-kilometer Vereina Tunnel has linked the Prättigau with the Engadine year-round: from Chur, you reach Scuol in about 1 hour 45 minutes with a change in Landquart.Regional trains connect Scuol with Guarda, Ardez and Zernez; the ride to Zernez takes about 33 minutes.Guarda station lies below the village at 1,432 meters, and PostAuto buses run up to the village.For Tarasp Castle, take the bus to the Tarasp-Florins stop and walk about eight minutes.In summer, a PostAuto bus runs from Scuol into the remote Val S-charl; in winter, S-charl can only be reached on foot, on skis or by horse-drawn sleigh.

    Accommodations in Lower Engadine

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    Campgrounds in Lower Engadine

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    Nearby

    Swiss National Park

    Swiss National Park

    Founded on August 1, 1914, the Swiss National Park in eastern Graubünden is the oldest national park in the Alps. On 170 square kilometers, between 1400 and 3174 meters altitude, nature is allowed to develop without human intervention; the park is classified as a wilderness area of the strictest IUCN Category Ia. Roughly half the area is rock and scree, and just under a third is forest.The starting point for most visits is Zernez in Engadin, home to the National Park Centre. Twenty-one hiking routes, totaling around 100 kilometers, lead through the park. The Ofenpass road from Zernez towards Val Müstair crosses it, and PostBus stops at the trailheads. With luck, you could see red deer, chamois, ibex, marmots, and bearded vultures.Since 2017, the park has formed the core zone of the UNESCO Biosfera Engiadina Val Müstair. The rules are strict: Stay on marked trails, dogs are forbidden even on a leash, and in winter, the park is closed to protect animals.
    Val Müstair

    Val Müstair

    Val Müstair is located in the far southeast of Graubünden, beyond the Ofenpass. The PostBus route through the valley continues to Mals in Italy's Vinschgau. In the village of Müstair stands the Benedictine Convent of St. John, which has been a UNESCO World Heritage site since 1983.According to tradition, Charlemagne founded the monastery around 775 after surviving a snowstorm on the Umbrailpass. The convent church preserves the largest and best-preserved fresco cycle from the Early Middle Ages: Carolingian murals from around 800, rediscovered in 1894 beneath later layers of paint, and Romanesque frescoes from the 12th century. Benedictine nuns still live here today.The convent museum, housed in a residential and defensive tower over a thousand years old, recounts the monastery's more than 1200-year history. From Zernez, you can reach Müstair by PostBus, traveling over the Ofenpass and through the Swiss National Park, in about 50 minutes to just over an hour. The valley, together with the National Park and Scuol, forms the UNESCO Biosfera Engiadina Val Müstair.
    Arlberg

    Arlberg

    The Arlberg Pass, at 1,793 meters, separates Vorarlberg and Tyrol. On the Tyrolean side lies St. Anton; on the Vorarlberg side, the road leads over the Flexen Pass to Zürs and Lech. Known as the cradle of alpine skiing, the region is a summer hiking area with mountain lakes, cable cars and the Skyspace by James Turrell.
    St. Moritz and Oberengadin

    St. Moritz and Oberengadin

    St. Moritz is located in Graubünden in the Upper Engadin, a wide high valley with a chain of lakes. The town hosted the Winter Olympic Games in 1928 and 1948 and is a hub for the Rhaetian Railway, whose Albula and Bernina Lines are a UNESCO World Heritage site.The Albula Line from Thusis to St. Moritz was opened between 1903 and 1904, and the Bernina Line to Tirano in Italy in 1910. Together, these approximately 122 kilometres have formed the Rhaetian Railway World Heritage site in the Albula and Bernina Landscapes since 2008. At Berninapass, the railway reaches 2253 metres, and from the Bernina Diavolezza stop, a cable car ascends towards Piz Bernina, the highest mountain in the Eastern Alps. At Lago Bianco near Ospizio Bernina, there are short hiking trails. The Glacier Express from Zermatt also terminates in St. Moritz.
    Graubünden

    Graubünden

    Graubünden, in eastern Switzerland, is the largest canton by area and the only one with three official languages: German, Romansh, and Italian. It is known for the Engadin valley with St. Moritz and the Rhaetian Railway lines over Albula and Bernina, which have been a UNESCO World Heritage site since 2008.High valleys, lakes, and passes make Graubünden a region perfect for scenic rail journeys, summer hiking, and winter sports.

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