The view from Hoher Kasten, elevation 5,886 feet /1,794 meters.
Appenzell is one of the most endearing regions of Switzerland, offering a laid-back folksy lifestyle, a paradise of velvety green hills, and some of the most striking limestone peaks that you’ll see anywhere in the Alps. You’ll experience the best of Appenzell and more during our 4 day (3 night) Taste of Appenzell Swiss Alps Hiking Getaway.
Your base for this trip is the historic and colorful village of Appenzell, Switzerland. Walk down the cobbled streets of Appenzell village and you’ll find aromatic Konditoreien (cake shops); traditional butchers, taverns and artisan workshops; and gabled houses with richly decorated facades, many of them portraying scenes of country life in an achingly beautiful and bucolic district. You’ll have free entry to interesting museums around Appenzell, and we’ll also give you insider tips to explore a few of our favorite hidden gems.
From Appenzell, we’ll send you on our favorite hikes in the Alpstein Mountains. The Alpstein range is the centerpiece of the Appenzell region offering airy ridge line hikes (great for snapping photos), sunny alpine meadows (great for alpine picnics), and a colorful assortment of alpine farms and mountain inns (great for sampling local alpine specialities). Some of these mountain inns are only accessible by foot which makes visiting them a very peaceful mountain experience.
The secret to the Alpstein’s eye-popping scenery lies in the limestone formations which have eroded over time and produced some very spectacular shapes. Mountains look like shark’s teeth, hiking trails follow knife-edge ridges, rock spires appear folded like taffy, and lakes drain into the mountains like giant bathtubs, their waters bubbling underground and remerging miles away. There are caves in the Alpstein Mountains too, some with fascinating histories. In the Wilkirchli caves, for example, remnants of human habitation date back 40,000 years. In the same caves, cave bear bones date to 90,000 years ago. You’ll have a chance to walk through these caves.
Click here and here to read more about our 4 day (3 night) hiking getaway in Appenzell. We can also customize this Appenzell hike to suit any desire. Please inquire!
