November/December 2025
whose 7th century hermitage apparently evolved into the city. Other important sites include the magnificent baroque cathedral, library and textile museum, which displays the development of St Gallen’s lace and linen industry which actually pre-dated our Irish linen trade by several hundred years. If the idea of Swiss wine seems odd, I would recommend the local beer at Restaurant Brauwerk, manufactured both on the premises and supplied by Switzerland’s oldest brewery,
the nearby Brauerei
Schützengarten, founded in 1779. And what better preparation for the long drive south to my next destination than a lunchtime pint of Hefeweizen bier accompanied by a local delicacy, an unusual-looking white sausage called Kalbsbratwurst, served with a rich onion sauce. Where to Stay: Tailormade Hotel LEO, St Gallen, an industrial style modern hotel close to the railway station.
tmh.swiss/en/ leo/
www.nitravelnews.com
THE GRAND TOUR OF SWITZERLAND | 73
ST MORITZ
If you want to experience all four seasons in the space of a few hours, an early autumn drive across the Alps down to St Moritz will deliver exactly that. An important feature of the Grand Tour is the recommended route between each destination, which will bypass motorways and major roads, in favour of more scenic drives.
take longer, but the journey is much more rewarding.
It may
Gallen with its deciduous forests beginning to turn to rust, and up towards the snowy peaks of the mountain passes with numerous hairpin bends near Davos and Klosters, there were several opportunities to get those all-important photo stops and breathe the chilled mountain air before arriving at St Moritz. Although out of season when I visited, the luxury Alpine resort is nevertheless a vibrant town before the snow arrives, accompanied by international ‘jet setters’, intent on hitting the slopes. I managed to absorb a little bit of the glamour by riding the funicular railway from the town, up to the fabulous Muottas Muragi hotel and restaurant, perched 2456m above sea level on a mountain summit. Obviously no trip to Switzerland is complete without sampling a fondue, a lunch of molten cheese and cubes of bread. The next day at the town centre Restaurant Lapin Bleu suggested that the perfect souvenir would have been a fondue set, had there been room in my suitcase. Following a bracing walk by the beautiful Lake St Moritz, it was back to the trusty Cabrio Bus – a convertible version of a minibus, complete with sliding roof – one last time for the final leg of the road trip.
Where to stay: Hotel Hauser, St Moritz. A modern ski-lodge style hotel with attached bakery in the town centre.
hotelhauser.ch
Leaving the landscape of St LUGANO
The descent from the high altitude of St Moritz, via another stunning photo op at the San Bernardino mountain pass, saw pine forests giving way to clusters of palm trees, a distinctly balmy feel to the air and the Germanic road signs being replaced by rather warmer Italian words. Before too long we had arrived at Lugano, tucked inside Switzerland’s southernmost border, close to Italy’s Lake Como.
and famous for its very own Lake Lugano, vineyards,
Located in the Canton of Ticino, temperate climate,
charming
villages and, surprisingly, a very rich seam of geologically-important fossils – a drive up to Monte San Giorgio revealed a fascinating fossil museum and, more importantly, Antico Grotto Fossati.
This traditional restaurant
served up a lunchtime platter of local game, paired with risotto, polenta and locally foraged mushrooms. We returned to Lugano via an unusual tourist attraction opened in 1959. Swissminiatur is a park featuring 128 scale models of the country’s most famous buildings and landmarks. If travelling with children, this is a must-see, and the park even has its own red frame for a slightly surreal, Land of the Giants-type, photo stop. Despite
the lavish lunch, I managed to find space for a delicious dinner at Cantinetta Balmelli, a small Italian restaurant just a short walk from the hotel. Although it was time to return home the next day, the adventure wasn’t quite over - most of the journey back to Zurich Airport was spent aboard the Gotthard Panorama Express, from Lugano to Arth-Goldau. The train, as the name suggests, has large windows allowing for maximum viewing pleasure of the surrounding scenery during the journey north. And what scenery it is – rolling green valleys with Heidi-style farmhouses dotting the hillsides surrounded by handsome bronze cows complete with a bell, snowy Alpine peaks and little ancient villages where time seemingly stands still. As my Grand Tour came to an end, my thoughts echoed those of my Grand Touring muse Lord Byron who, no doubt recalling his 1816 visit to Switzerland, wrote “My greatest grief is that I leave…”.
Where to stay: Park Hotel Principe, Lugano. A substantial hotel set with extensive gardens and swimming pool.
parkhotelprincipe.com
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