If you have visited both resorts, how about giving me a comparison. I have been in Grindelwald several times, but I have never been to the Engadine. <BR>Next trip Pontresina, St. Moritz, Samedam, Chur, and Scuol are travel objectives.<BR><BR><BR><BR>

Bob, I have spent a pretty fair amount of time in Grindelwal, going back several times and I still love it. Have only been to St. Moritz once, for three days in the summer. It was OK, but just didn't do much for me. Took a train one day over the Bernina Pass which was the highlight of the stay there. <BR><BR>I'm heading this summer to the Engadine and spending four nights in Chur, and three nights in Poschiavo. I got turned onto that area from a Travel and Leisure article this past year and posters like Ingo have filled me in and inspired me even more. I'm hoping I like it more than the actual town of St. Moritz.

Good point. Let's drop St. Moritz from the title and substitute Engadine area instead.

Grindelwald is - in my humble opinion - just about the prettiest place in the Swiss Alps. It has become a little too large, bzt the Wetterhorn and the Eiger are such imposing mountains (they are not the highest peaks, but the setting is unique)and the town has retained its character with the wooden chalet architecture. St.Moritz is - in my experience - nut very friendly and &lt;smells of money&gt;. There are prettier places in the region, such as Poschiavo.

Good evening, Bob<BR>Have stayed but two nights in St. Moritz<BR>(not the Engadine, I'm sorry to say.)<BR>comparing it to Grindelwald. there is<BR>not a real compaision, there much, much<BR>more things to do in the Berneroberland<BR>and think Grindelwald as a much livier<BR>town than SM... Took the Bernina run<BR>from Milano one year and had a snow<BR>storm over the pass. Qhite interesting.<BR>Richard of Lagrange Park, Il..

Bob,<BR><BR>I don't know if you took notice of my trip report and the link to my photos on hpphoto (former cartogra.com) in September. I have just sent you an invitation (per email) to view them. So you can at least get an impression of Engadine villages and landscape.<BR><BR>I agree that St. Moritz is overbuilt (ugly apartment blocks), noisy and (mostly) expensive. But I appreciate it for its tourist facilities - skiing area (obviously not of interest for you though), railway/bus hub, the BIG COOP grocery, restaurants, caf&eacute;s and cultural events. Of course I prefer to stay in neighbouring villages.<BR><BR>You should consider the altitudes:<BR>Grindelwald 1000 m, Mt. Eiger 3970 m<BR>St. Moritz and the valley floor in general 1800 m, P. Corvatsch 3451 m (the highest visible peak).<BR>You see the difference? There is a much bigger impact of elevation (do you say so in English?) in Grindelwald.<BR><BR>The magic of the Engadine lies in its wide open valley with magnificent lakes and snow capped peaks above. If you want to see huge mountains with large glaciers you have to do trips (walk or by horse drawn carriage) to the lovely side valleys of Roseg, Morteratsch, Fex e.g. or go up by cable car (or hike) to one of the fantastic viewing points (Muottas Muragl, Alp Languard, Diavolezza, P. Corvatsch/Fuorcla Surlej e.g.).<BR><BR>I respectfully disagree with Richard. I don't know what he did wrong, but I think that there is plenty to do in the Engadine. It is even the advantage of the Engadine that you can easily explore the neighbouring Italian speaking valleys Poschiavo (by Bernina Express train) and Bregaglia (by Postal bus) with the unbelievable village Soglio, which doesn't find a pendant in Bernese Oberland.<BR><BR>Scuol and the Lower Engadine is by far not as spectacular (less glaciers and lakes) but a peaceful, still relatively unknown and quiet region. So it was able to remain its traditional architecture and charming atmosphere much more than Upper Engadine and also the Jungfrau region. Guarda, Ardez, Scuol and Sent are not to miss for people who are looking for picturesque villages.<BR><BR>I think Pontresina or Samedan are probably your best choices for a base. You can do day trips by train/bus to all directions - Chur (2 h), Scuol (1:20 h), Bernina Express (Tirano 2 h), Soglio (1:50 h) or Chiavenna (2 h). All these trips offer you great scenery along the route.<BR><BR>Well, that's it for now. If you have more questions, feel free to post again or contact me directly.<BR><BR>Ingo

Glad to see you found this and replied, Ingo. My file for this summer is filled with copies of your various posts. Not sure if I ever got back to you but we are booked in Chur (4 nights) at the Zunfthaus Rabluta and in Poschiavo at the Hotel Suisse (3 nights), per your suggestions. We will have a Swiss Pass as we are doing quite a bit of Switzerland, so we will be making good use of the trains and post busses in the area.<BR><BR>In defense of Richard above, I think he was saying there wasn't much to do in St. Moritz, but he admitted he didn't explore the Engadine. Like myself and so many others I think he went to St. Moritz because it is so famous and expected it to be THE thing to do in the area. WRONG!!!

Patrick, your decisions for Chur and Poschiavo are excellent! I can recall your interesting request. Hopefully the weather gods will be with you And please let us know how you liked it!<BR><BR>I must admit I misread Richard's post, I am very sorry. Patrick, you are right. You don't find the essence of the Engadine in St. Moritz.<BR><BR>Ingo<BR><BR>PS: I had a tennis match today and almost missed to reply in appropiate time.

Bob,<BR>Ingo is right. For sheer breathtaking mountain beatufy, Grindelwald is hard to beat. BUT, I also prefer the Engadine. The variation in the mountain vistas are magnificent. The views as you drive from Scuol south to Sils Maria (or further) are amazing and very different, from green, jungle-y mountains to rocky peaks. The hilltop villages of Tarasp and Guarda are unique and charming. The architecture (IMHO) is MUCH more interesting with the sgraffitti and last, but not least, the food is far superior!!!<BR><BR>I think Ingo covered the other points. I agree that St. Moritz is not the most attractive place to stay...just as Interlaken is not the best place to stay in the B.O. We have stayed in Scuol, Pontresina and Poschiavo.<BR><BR>Finally, we live in Switzerland and are leaving soon. I will be coming back to the Engadine but really have no desire to return to the Berner Oberland.<BR><BR>Have fun with your planning!<BR>Jan

Can I jump in here- Would it be better to take a bus or train from St. Moritz to Grindelwald, and how long would it take, in decent weather? Thanks...

The trip from st. Moritz to Grindelwald is a long, slow one: 7 hours.<BR>The route is back to Zurich, via Chur, then to Interlaken Ost, and then to Grindelwald.

Jan, hope to meet you in the Engadine at the GTG!<BR><BR>Bob is correct, the trip from St. Moritz to Grindelwald takes about 7 hours by train via Zurich. I don't know any bus connection actually.<BR><BR>But, there is an interesting option: If you start early in the morning (I guess 9 am) you can take the Glacier Express train to Brig, change there and continue via Loetschberg route to Spiez, from there via Interlaken to Grindelwald. IMO a very much more scenic route, surely longer, but it is worth it! I have not checked the schedule (www.rail.ch), but you will arrive in Grindelwald approx. 6 or 7 pm I guess. Well worth to consider!<BR><BR>Enjoy, Ingo