3 Best Sights in Valais, Switzerland

Saas-Fee lies in a deep valley that leaves no doubt about its source—it seems to pour from the vast, intimidating Fee Glacier. "Fee" can be translated as "fairy," and this primordial landscape could illustrate a fairy tale. See it up close by taking a gondola up to Spielboden and then a cable car to Längfluh, right on the glacier's edge, where there's a restaurant with magnificent glacial views.

Aletsch's famous glacier—23 km (14 miles)—was at its longest 155 years ago, but now recedes 100 to 165 feet per year. Concern about the recession of the earth's ice formations has made preserving the Aletsch Glacier internationally significant, so UNESCO designated a 250-square-km (97-square-mile) area around the glacier, shared between the cantons of Valais (77%) and Bern (23%), as a protected site. Generations ago, the Swiss sensed the need to safeguard the area and began placing parts in conservationist hands.

The glacier's starting point, Concordia Platz, is the confluence of three ice masses that move down from the Bernese Alps. Here the ice has been measured as deep as 2,952 feet—over twice the height of the Empire State Building. Another magnificent formation, the Märjelensee, is a lake with icebergs floating on top, carved into the glacier field with walls of ice and stone. As the glacier's ice recedes, nature reclaims the land, first with moss and small plants, then forest. Pro Natura, the conservation organization that oversees the region, describes the process as "forest emerging from ice." Though some of the area's pine and larch are 600 to 700 years old, extreme conditions keep them short. Animals thought to be extinct thrive here; chamois, martens, badgers, lizards, and birds have adapted to the elevation and temperature.

Cable cars ferry tourists to ridgetops above Riederalp, Bettmeralp, and Fiescheralp, where 360-degree views of the sweep of ice are framed by extraordinary peaks. You can see the Bernese Alps, including the Sphinx station on the Jungfraujoch called the "Top of Europe"; the Valaisan Alps; and even into Italy and France. Hiking trails lead to the glacier's edge, and guides take trekkers across parts of the ice field. All around are places to admire nature's grandeur and be grateful that it is being protected.

Villa Cassel, a turn-of-the-20th-century mansion, was considered a wealthy Englishman's folly when the Tudor-style structure was installed on the rugged pass above the village of Ried. It has weathered time well and is now the headquarters for Pro Natura Zentrum Aletsch, an environmental education center. The naturalist organization runs guided tours, glacier walks, and expeditions to spot marmots and eagles. In addition, the center offers self-directed paths, an Alpine garden, a tearoom, and even dorm and private rooms for overnight stays during the summer. Some information is available in English; prices vary according to the activity. To access the facility, take the cable car from Morel to Riederalp. From the village station it's a 30-minute walk, but more appealing and challenging is the hike from Moosfluh (an additional gondola ride) where you can catch views of the glacier rimmed by its old-growth Alpine forest.