Days
Destination
Switzerland
Davos
overview
A true walker’s dreamland, Davos offers miles of scenic Alpine trails ambling through meadows scattered with wildflowers, exciting tramway adventures, and soaring peaks that brush the sky. Settle in at the elegant 19th-century Hotel Meierhof and relax as you enjoy the complete flexibility that comes from staying at a single inn and choosing your own daily destiny. When you’re ready, set out on footpaths that lead past quintessential Swiss mountain peaks like Scalettahorn and Schwarzhorn, and take the cable car to the serene settlement of Sertig and Gross Alp’s hypnotic waterfall. On mountain routes lined with irises, you’ll meander past grazing cows and rare larch-roofed chalets to panoramic summits like Hauderalp. In the village of Monstein, you’ll find Europe’s highest-altitude brewery, and in Davos itself you’ll explore one of Europe’s oldest mountain resorts. Filled with a wealth of unique shops and entertainment options, the town features cultural highlights like the Ernst Kirchner Museum’s extensive collection of acclaimed works, and bountiful dining possibilities that offer Swiss delicacies from wild-mushroom ragout with olive ravioli to sweet home-baked strudel.
tour includes
- Buffet breakfast and dinner daily (lunches and beverages are not included)
- All accommodations (with private bathrooms) while on tour
- Local transfers as noted in the itinerary
- Detailed route notes and maps
- Davos Card for unlimited travel on most cable cars, gondolas, funiculars, local rail, and buses
- Basic travel insurance coverage
- The exclusive ease of a mobile phone rental with our Cellhire partnership. Receive preferred calling rates, free phone rental, and complimentary shipping of mobile phones
- The unbeatable and cumulative experience of the CW staff
Details
Length
8 days, 7 nights
Activity Level
Easy to moderate; 4-12 miles daily
Meet and Depart
Davos, Switzerland
Itinerary and Accommodations
Day 1
Davos Dorf
Arrival in Davos
We meet you at the station and transfer you (approximately 5 minutes) to your hotel, where you settle in and anticipate the first of many delicious dinners and the week-long adventure that lies ahead.
Hotel Meierhof Davos
Davos Dorf, Switzerland
This 19th-century hotel is situated in the heart of Davos Dorf within easy access to all local events and attractions. The fully renovated rooms are spacious and modern, with traditional furniture, light wood and colors, and balconies. In addition to two gourmet restaurants, a bar, a terrace for breakfast, there is also an indoor swimming pool, wellness area, and gym. Davos Dorf and Davos Platz are two adjacent towns connected by a bustling main street of stylish shops, restaurants, chocolate shops, and banks—the combination is a pleasant Alpine community also with interesting old buildings, secret parks, and hidden squares.
Day 2
Davos Dorf
Dischma valley; 7km/4mi/2hr or 13km/8mi/3.5hr
This morning, from the tranquil hamlet of Durrboden, framed by the mighty snow-capped Scalettahorn (3086 meters or 10,125 feet) and Schwarzhorn (3146 meters or 10,322 feet), a rocky trail winds through scarlet daphne to charming Teufi by the river. Lunch can be enjoyed on the terrace of the village restaurant. You return along a trail through pine forest, alive with the chatter of wood pigeon, with increasingly more open views over Davos, nestled under the mighty Weissfluh.
Hotel Meierhof Davos
Davos Dorf, Switzerland
This 19th-century hotel is situated in the heart of Davos Dorf within easy access to all local events and attractions. The fully renovated rooms are spacious and modern, with traditional furniture, light wood and colors, and balconies. In addition to two gourmet restaurants, a bar, a terrace for breakfast, there is also an indoor swimming pool, wellness area, and gym. Davos Dorf and Davos Platz are two adjacent towns connected by a bustling main street of stylish shops, restaurants, chocolate shops, and banks—the combination is a pleasant Alpine community also with interesting old buildings, secret parks, and hidden squares.
Day 3
Davos Dorf
Clavadeler Alp; 8km/5mi/2hr or 15km/10mi/4.5hr
After a hearty buffet breakfast, you embark on a wooded trail, bright with angelica and mountain scabious, that leads to Mt. Jakobshorn and breathtaking views over Davos shadowed by the snowy Graubunden peaks.
Continuing onward, with Lake Davos’ shimmering blue waters below, you reach today’s ideal lunch spot, Jakobshorn Gasthaus. After your meal, you descend to Clavadel, perhaps stopping off to taste the spicy mountain cheese before joining the riverside trail back to Davos.
Hotel Meierhof Davos
Davos Dorf, Switzerland
This 19th-century hotel is situated in the heart of Davos Dorf within easy access to all local events and attractions. The fully renovated rooms are spacious and modern, with traditional furniture, light wood and colors, and balconies. In addition to two gourmet restaurants, a bar, a terrace for breakfast, there is also an indoor swimming pool, wellness area, and gym. Davos Dorf and Davos Platz are two adjacent towns connected by a bustling main street of stylish shops, restaurants, chocolate shops, and banks—the combination is a pleasant Alpine community also with interesting old buildings, secret parks, and hidden squares.
Day 4
Davos Dorf
The serene Sertig valley; 7km/4mi/2.5hr or 17km/11mi/4.5hr
This morning’s walk begins from Mt. Rinerhorn cable car. You descend in and out of pine forest to pretty Sertig hamlet, lost in a sea of meadows dotted with perennial cornflowers. It’s then on to the dramatic waterfall under Gross Alp—a clash of jagged limestone peaks and whitewater cascades. Finally, a wooded path follows the meandering River Sertig to Frauenkirch for a short bus ride to Davos.
Hotel Meierhof Davos
Davos Dorf, Switzerland
This 19th-century hotel is situated in the heart of Davos Dorf within easy access to all local events and attractions. The fully renovated rooms are spacious and modern, with traditional furniture, light wood and colors, and balconies. In addition to two gourmet restaurants, a bar, a terrace for breakfast, there is also an indoor swimming pool, wellness area, and gym. Davos Dorf and Davos Platz are two adjacent towns connected by a bustling main street of stylish shops, restaurants, chocolate shops, and banks—the combination is a pleasant Alpine community also with interesting old buildings, secret parks, and hidden squares.
Day 5
Davos Dorf
Classic Alps walk; 11km/7mi/3hr or 18km/11mi/5.5hr
Today’s route begins at the Alpinium, home to hundreds of rare alpine blooms. Winding past larch-roofed mountain chalets and high meadows dotted with alpine cows grazing, you reach Stafelalp. With commanding views over the Mittaghorn and Jakobshorn, this is a great picnic spot. At your leisure, you descend through a narrow valley, alive to the crashing River Chummer to Glaris, returning to Davos by bus.
Hotel Meierhof Davos
Davos Dorf, Switzerland
This 19th-century hotel is situated in the heart of Davos Dorf within easy access to all local events and attractions. The fully renovated rooms are spacious and modern, with traditional furniture, light wood and colors, and balconies. In addition to two gourmet restaurants, a bar, a terrace for breakfast, there is also an indoor swimming pool, wellness area, and gym. Davos Dorf and Davos Platz are two adjacent towns connected by a bustling main street of stylish shops, restaurants, chocolate shops, and banks—the combination is a pleasant Alpine community also with interesting old buildings, secret parks, and hidden squares.
Day 6
Davos Dorf
Walser villages; 10km/6mi/3hr or 18km/11mi/5hr
A mountain path lined with irises and yellow vetchling leads over sparkling mountain streams to Hauder Alp, where the cheery farmer sells you fresh milk by the glass this morning! You continue onward with panoramas over snowcapped Bodmen Alp, then descend to delightful Monstein, with its two inns and medieval brewery. After lunch, you dip into oak forest, with lapwings and kittiwakes flitting through the dappled shade, to descend to Jenisberg for an exciting mountain railway ride (30 minutes) back to Davos.
Hotel Meierhof Davos
Davos Dorf, Switzerland
This 19th-century hotel is situated in the heart of Davos Dorf within easy access to all local events and attractions. The fully renovated rooms are spacious and modern, with traditional furniture, light wood and colors, and balconies. In addition to two gourmet restaurants, a bar, a terrace for breakfast, there is also an indoor swimming pool, wellness area, and gym. Davos Dorf and Davos Platz are two adjacent towns connected by a bustling main street of stylish shops, restaurants, chocolate shops, and banks—the combination is a pleasant Alpine community also with interesting old buildings, secret parks, and hidden squares.
Day 7
Davos Dorf
Grand Panoramic Trail; 8km/5mi/2hr or 19km/12mi/6hr
What better way to end the week than with the aptly named Panoramaweg, or Grand Panoramic Trail? With Lake Davos shimmering below, you ascend to the tinkle of cowbells to tiny Lake Schoansee. Soon, Klosters frames the horizon as you climb to Gotschnagrat for the most panoramic lunch yet. Returning to the hotel, you make your way through edelweiss and gentian and may spot marmots playing on limestone boulders as you descend to Davos for a final five-course gala dinner.
Hotel Meierhof Davos
Davos Dorf, Switzerland
This 19th-century hotel is situated in the heart of Davos Dorf within easy access to all local events and attractions. The fully renovated rooms are spacious and modern, with traditional furniture, light wood and colors, and balconies. In addition to two gourmet restaurants, a bar, a terrace for breakfast, there is also an indoor swimming pool, wellness area, and gym. Davos Dorf and Davos Platz are two adjacent towns connected by a bustling main street of stylish shops, restaurants, chocolate shops, and banks—the combination is a pleasant Alpine community also with interesting old buildings, secret parks, and hidden squares.
Guest Comments
R. Reedy, Oregon, June 2012
Davos is a great place to visit and hike. We have been on CW guided trips and were a little concerned about taking a self-guided trip, but everything was well-described in the tour booklet. The trip was great, with great diversity in hiking, and great flexibility in changing the hiking schedule.
J & J Berry, Maine, June 2012
The detailed hike descriptions gave us great flexibility—and the timing of our trip in early June was perfect for seeing alpine wildflowers in abundance, having trails to ourselves, having a wide variety of hikes without moving hotel to hotel The setting is beautiful! The detail provided [in the route notes] was great, so even though on long trails with no others in sight, we felt quite comfortable. Further, with the detail provided, we were able to make adjustments with ease, combining hikes. The closet and cupboard space was wonderful for a week's stay so that we didn't feel we were "living out of a suitcase". Our balcony on the 5th floor gave views of the alps and valleys. Hotel staff were very helpful.