Swiss national park. What to see. How to get there. National parks and nature reserves in Switzerland Nature reserves in Switzerland

Address: 7530 Zernez, Canton of Graubünden, Engadin Valley region, Switzerland
Telephone: +41 81 851 41 41
Official site: www.nationalpark.ch
Square: 172.4 km²
Date of foundation: August 1, 1914
Working hours: daily from 9.00 to 12.00 and from 14.00 to 17.00, Saturday and Sunday – days off
Cost of visit: free admission, free parking

The only national park is located in the Engadin Valley, which extends in the east of the country. Here, in the legendary foothills, you can admire pristine natural landscapes and watch animals in their natural habitat. Swiss National Park – perfect place for hiking and a unique opportunity to explore the wild nature that we are seeing less and less due to the rapid growth of urban areas.

For reference

The reserve was opened on one of the most terrible days in human history, the day the First World War began, which claimed the lives of more than 17 million people. Switzerland is known for its unshakable decision to remain neutral: it was not involved in the war. Instead, enterprises opened in the state, the economy developed and, of course, all kinds of tourist centers.

On August 1, 1914, the Engadin National Park began operations. Concerned about the endlessly picturesque places of the park, many rules of behavior were introduced here. The first of them says that leaving special hiking trails under no circumstances is it possible. The second rule prohibits overnight stays on the territory of the reserve (for the safety of the guest, too, since an impressive number of animals live here).

However, there are exceptions to this rule - the Il Fuorn hotel and the Chamanna Cluozza hut. Within the walls of the hotel and forest house, no one will disturb you, and you will spend time with comfort and pleasure. There is no point in listing all the rules, but you should remember that order is very closely monitored in the park. You can get a fine for even the most ordinary loud noises (be it music or your own voice, it doesn’t matter), because they can scare representatives of the local fauna.

Flora and fauna of the reserve

The fauna is represented by about 60 species of mammals, more than 100 birds and about 70 amphibians. Some of them are even endemic, for example, the alpine ibex and the alpine newt. Here you can meet stone marten, which boldly makes contact with humans, fast lynx, brown bear and chamois. Common in Europe and Asia Noble deer and the white hare are also residents of the reserve. Sly foxes, squirrels, toads and frogs, nimble voles - you won’t meet anyone at this celebration of nature. By the way, snakes are rarely seen here. The only snake state reserve– northern viper, which can reach 60-65 cm in length.

Of the birds, bearded vultures, or, as they are also called, lambsbills, are especially interesting. The winged rulers of the Alps received their second name because of researchers who mistakenly believed that these birds fed on sheep. In fact, their best food is carrion and bones, and their claws are completely unsuited to attacking and killing. Also flying over the reserve are nutcrackers (birds of the corvid family), huge eagles and white partridge, the only local bird that does not leave the reserve even in the harsh winter.

Despite the fact that 51% of the Swiss national park consists of rocks without the slightest hint of vegetation, there is plenty of interesting greenery. While mountain pines, endless larches and spruces form entire forest armies, stemless gum, beloved by butterflies, all kinds of orchids, fairy bells, forget-me-nots, glacial bekwichia and many other plants with difficult-to-understand names create an interesting flavor of the park. Lingonberries also grow in these parts. Green endemics include alpine poppy, alpine edelweiss and, no matter how terrible another repetition of this word may sound, alpine aster.

How to get there?

You can get to the oldest alpine reserve by bus from the city of Zernez to Mustair. Transport links between the cities are excellent, with departures to Müstair hourly new bus with passengers. Entrance to the reserve is free, parking is also free. Payment is taken exclusively for exhibitions. Please note that the park is closed on Saturdays and Sundays, but on weekdays guests are always welcome from 9.00 to 12.00 and from 14.00 to 17.00.

Every year there are more and more visitors to the park. From the first days of June until mid-autumn, more than 150 thousand tourists from all over the world come here, wanting to spend at least a little time with wildlife face to face. However, people tired of city life are not the only ones who visit the reserve. Very often special events are held here for the younger generation. They are aimed at developing respect for nature and a deep understanding of the value of its riches. Therefore, the park is also perfect for family vacation With

Swiss national park (Schweizerischer Nationalpark) is the only national park in the south. It is located in the Engadin Valley area (Engadin), and is located at altitudes from 1400 to 3200 meters above sea level. Its area is more than 170 square kilometers, and it is also the oldest national park in the Alps.

This amazing place primeval nature where everyone can enjoy alpine meadows, forests, mountain slopes and just picturesque views. Many species of wild animals and birds live here. For every nature lover, the national park has developed many hiking trails and excursion routes. This place is definitely worth a visit if you are traveling in Switzerland.

Swiss National Park: How to get there

The most convenient way to get to the municipality of Zernez (Zernez), where the main entrance to the Swiss National Park is located. In addition, it is highly recommended to use public transport in order to preserve the purity of the park's nature.

Automobile. The distance between Zurich and Zernez is about 178 kilometers. The journey will take you about 2.5 hours along the A3 and No. 28 highways. The car will need to be left in the parking lot.

Next you need to get to the information center (Nationalparkzentrum) where the main entrance to the park is located. It is located at: Urtatsch 2, Zernez 7530, Switzerland. You can go by car or take a taxi.

Swiss National Park: Lifehacks

From the very beginning of your exploration, the Swiss National Park is worth a visit information Center (Nationalparkzentrum), where there is also a museum, exhibitions, and you can book a guided tour. There you will get acquainted with information for tourists, and by visiting the museum, you will have the opportunity to learn the history of the national park, its features and learn about its inhabitants. Entrance ticket costs 7 EUR for adults, 3 EUR for children 6-16 years old, and free for children under 6 years old. It is possible to take a family ticket for 15 EUR. Information on prices for tours, the museum, as well as contacts and descriptions can be found on the official website of the Swiss National Park.

Next, you can take a walk through the park itself. You can book a sightseeing tour or take a walking on one's own. About 80 kilometers of hiking trails and 21 routes will be available to you. You also need to prepare in advance and take sunscreen and glasses, raincoat, change of clothes and shoes, food and water. There are also some rules that must be strictly followed. For example, you cannot pick mushrooms and flowers, use a bicycle, or bring pets with you.

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Switzerland is a very interesting country in terms of excursions and educational experiences, but quite expensive. We have developed our programs in such a way that the cost of traveling around Switzerland is comparable to tours to other countries and regions of Europe. Having extensive experience in Switzerland, we offer various tours both to Switzerland itself and in combination with Bavaria, Austria or Italy. Using our own transport allows us to provide both high quality service and guarantee all stated tour dates.

Hiking is one of the most popular ways to spend leisure time in the country - more than 50 thousand (!!) kilometers of marked footpaths are laid across Switzerland - this is 1.25 times the length of the Earth's equator. For such a small country, the figure is simply incredible, but it will become even greater if you take into account about 23 thousand kilometers of specialized mountain routes with a higher level of difficulty, as well as an unimaginable number of trails for cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, sleigh rides, dog sledding and horseback riding, as well as about 4 thousand trails for water tourism. All this turns Switzerland into one of best places in Europe for active rest and ecotourism.

Swiss national park

Despite the very modest size of the country, protected areas occupy, to one degree or another, up to 14% of its area. And at the same time, there is only one full-fledged nature reserve - the Swiss National Park, or Engadin Park (www.nationalpark.ch), created in 1914 in the eastern part of the canton of Grisons, on the southern slopes of the Engadin valley. This is the first alpine reserve in Central Europe, moreover, created in an area intensively developed by man. In 1979, it was included in the UNESCO list of biosphere reserves, along with the adjacent Italian Stelvio National Park.

Here, on an area of more than 172 square kilometers, the unique natural complexes of the Rhaetian Alps are protected - mountain pine forests, alpine and subalpine meadows, as well as numerous lakes and wastelands, and almost half of this territory is secondary forests, recreated after the cessation of human economic activity. The fauna of the park is very rich - more than 60 species of mammals (including the Alpine ibex, chamois, stone marten, Alpine marmot, lynx, brown bear and others), about 100 species of birds, as well as about 70 species of amphibians, including the endemic Alpine triton. Despite the fact that literally everything here is protected (a fine can be issued even for loud noises!), 21 walking excursion trails with a total length of about 80 km have been laid across the territory, which allow you to see the life of the inhabitants of these beautiful places. But cycling within the park is prohibited.

Entrance to the park is free and free; along its perimeter there are nine equally free parking lots for cars, from which most of the trails and routes depart. The reserve is open to the public from June to October every day, from 8.30 to 18.00, on Thursdays - until 22.00.

You can get to the park by buses running at hourly intervals between the towns of Zernez (the park's head office is 1 km east of it) and Mustair.

Ela Park

The largest and youngest regional natural Park Switzerland - Ela (Parc Ela, www.parc-ela.ch) begins just 18 km from the northwestern border of the Swiss National Park. It was created in 2006 as an area protecting the untouched world of the vast mountain range between the peaks of Ela (Piz Ela, 3339 m) and Kesch (3417 m). The area of the reserve is 600 square kilometers, which is 3.5 times more area Engadin National Park, and here economic activity person is allowed on a limited scale. This leads to the fact that in Ela Park, in addition to getting to know the magnificent nature of the northern slopes of the Engadin, you can ride along railway Rhaetische Bahn included in the List World Heritage UNESCO (55 bridges and 39 tunnels over a 63 km length throughout the park, there is nothing to say about the beauty of the landscapes!), go skiing on the slopes of Savognin, Samedan, Celerina, Pontresina or St. Moritz (all these resorts are literally within 15- 20 minutes by car from the most beautiful places of the park), relax on the shores of Lake Marmorera (Lai da Marmorera) or visit the most high place pilgrimage in Europe - the Ziteil sanctuary (founded in 1580, altitude - 2434 meters above sea level) near Salouf.

Entlebuch

Well, the most easily accessible nature reserve in the country is the Entlebuch Biosphere Reserve (www.biosphaere.ch), located in the canton of Lucerne, just 20 km southwest of its capital. This is the first and only park of this type in central Switzerland. Here, on the most picturesque slopes of the Kleine Emme valley, an area of 395 square kilometers presents landscapes quite unusual for the country - endless peat bogs and heathlands, idyllic alpine pastures and forests, rocky karst formations and picturesque wild mountains. These regions are often figuratively called the “Wild West of Lucerne” - the local natural complexes are so diverse and beautiful. And at the same time there is a huge selection of services, hotels and mountain chalets, many old churches and monasteries, about 75 km hiking trails and even therapeutic mud baths at local thermal springs.

Jura National Park

From Le Sentier to Nyon on the coast Lake Geneva green slopes stretch Jura National Park(Parc naturel régional Jura vaudois) www.parc-jurassien.ch - second in the country in size and richness of flora. Despite the dense population of these places, it has been possible to preserve many local natural complexes characteristic of the low Jura Mountains and the famous Vallée de Joux, considered one of the most beautiful in Switzerland. Among the beauties of these places are beautiful mountain forests (the composition of the flora is one of the richest in the region - more than 320 species), ancient swamps, limestone cliffs, secluded meadows and mountain pastures. More than 90 species of mammals and 160 species of birds live here, and the picturesque Lake Zhu has almost 50 species of fish. Since there is an excellent network of hiking and skiing routes with a total length of 523 km (!!), there are many colorful Alpine cheese factories and vineyards, restaurants and chalets, the park is extremely popular among fans of hiking, horseback riding and cycling, and in winter it becomes one of the best centers mountain holiday- it is quite obvious that he is targeting not skiers, but fans of snowshoes and cross-country skiing.

There are literally dozens of ways to get to the park, since it is located next to the main transport arteries of the country. By rail, the easiest way to get from Nyon is by train Nyon - St-Cergue with stops in Bassins, Arzier, St-Cergue and Givrine or by train Nyon - Gimel with stops in Bassins, Vaud, Marchissy, Longirod, St-George and Gimel . When departing from Vallorbe - by train to Brassus, from Morges - by BAM train to Bière et l "Isle with a stop in Montricher. Travel options are equally varied on public transport of all major cities Canton of Vaud