[Removed user]

25 June 2019 at 16:32:10 #822472

Thanks so much in advance for any input. We are looking for a village for two nights while travelling next summer from Lake Como to Oberstdorf, Germany. As it will be the only two nights we spend in Switzerland we would love to find a quaint alpine village with at least a few restaurants and some good hiking nearby. Sorry, I know that sounds very touristy! We don’t want to get too far off track, but willing to detour by a few hours if it’s worth the extra road time. We considered Wenger (and may still do that) but if there’s something a little less out of the way we’d love to hear those options.

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[Removed user]

25 June 2019 at 17:00:53 #916064

Hello Kkrauss15 and Welcome to MySwissAlps,

What’s wrong about touristy, you’re visiting and traveling as a tourist! 🙂

You’re traveling by car, right?! I use Viamichelin for route planning, this as a start:
– http://www.viamichelin.com/

Maybe Davos or St. Moritz would mean less of a detour for you and have similar mountainous surroundings.
– http://www.myswissalps.com/da vos
– http://www.myswissalps.com/st moritz

Also make sure you read:
– http://www.myswissalps.com/ca r

Best,
Steph

[Removed user]

25 June 2019 at 22:45:06 #916065

Appenzell is the obvious choice.

It is less than 30 minutes deviation off the motorway route** from the Lake Como area towards the Obertsdorf area and less than 2 hours drive from Oberstdorf but is one of the most picturesque parts of Switzerland.

The Appenzell Alps region is fabulous, and perfect for a short stay in summer with a few (but not too many) mountain excursion options, and wonderful easy walking paths across the whole area. If you are interested in beer/brewing, the brewery tour in Appenzell is excellent (and the beer is ‘real’ Swiss beer brewed from local spring water …

http://www.appenzell.ch/en/ho me.html

** – the drive itself would be scenic but simple to achieve. There are two obvious routes for you to choose from :

1) Lake Como – Chiavenna – Splügen or

2) Lake Como – Lugano – Bellinzona – San Bernardino – Splügen

They join at Splügen, then you go Splügen – Thusis – Chur – Buchs SG – Oberriet (divert up the hill to Appenzell) – Oberriet – Dornbirn (Austria) – Oberstdorf

[Removed user]

26 June 2019 at 0:21:33 #916066

Thanks both of you!

I will look into both areas. I’m not familiar with the Appenzell area. Is there a specific village you recommend? Thanks for the brewery recommendation – my husband will love that!

[Removed user]

27 June 2019 at 0:30:00 #916067

Appenzell itself. It is even a ‘capital city’ in a sense (geo-politically speaking), but tiny on the grand scheme of things!

[JohnYorks]

28 June 2019 at 19:55:12 #916068

Appenzell is a lovely, historic and distinctive little town. As 1960man suggests, it’s the canton capital of tiny Appenzell Innerrhoden Canton (I think the smallest of the 26), but it runs its own fantastic and efficient railway to the nearby city of St Gallen and to rural retreats. It’s beautifully verdant, and there are plenty of mountains close at hand.

Attached are 2 photos taken last May – approaching Appenzell on the train from Herisau (a very picturesque ride), and the historic town centre. Painted wooden town houses are the norm here.

Hope that helps

John

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