Chur

Chur is the capital of Graubünden in south-eastern Switzerland.

Understand
Chur is one of the oldest towns in Switzerland, having been inhabited since pre-historic times.

By plane
Zurich International Airport is the closest international airport to Chur. Direct trains run between Chur and the airport with a travel time of about 1 hour and 50 minutes, see SBB.

By train
By rail from Zurich, which is 120 km away from the.

By car
Chur is situated near the A13 motorway, heading northbound to Zurich, and connecting southbound with the A2 motorway towards Lugano and Milan.

Get around
Chur is a very small city; much of it is easily walkable. There are taxis and buses, which operate on five different routes. Driving in Chur is possible. However, the old town of Chur is car-free. Trains from Chur to Chur West and Chur Wiesental in the north of the town are available.

Do

 * Hiking or skiing - Go up the Brambrüesch (2,200 metres above sea level). In the winter, you can ski up there. There are a variety of runs - from easy to difficult.
 * Swimming - Go to the swimming pool Obere Au. There are outdoor (50m, M-F 08:00–20:00, Sa-Su 09:00–20:00) and indoor swimming pools (25m, M-Th 08:00–21:30, F 08:00–21–00, Sa-Su 09:00–18:00). In addition to the outdoor swimming pools (50m, children's, and non-swimmer), there is a table tennis table, a football pitch, a volleyball field, and a place to barbecue. Inside, there are three pools (25m with 6 lanes, children's, and non-swimmer) and a slide.
 * Trekking - You can hike from Haldenstein to Tamins. Take the train from Chur to Haldenstein and hike to Tamins (approx. 3 days) any time between June and October. You can eat in the huts along the route and sleep at the Calandahütte and the Ringelspitzhütte. To get back to Chur, take the bus from Tamins.
 * First day (approx. 4 hrs): Haldenstein – Parfuoss – Arella – Oberberg – Pt. 1792 – Altsäss – Haldensteiner Alp - Calandahütte
 * Second day (approx. 5 hrs): Calandahütte – Haldensteiner Tal – Rossboden – Felsberger Älplis – Taminser Älplis – Pt. 2008 – Balsura – Kunkelpass – Pt. 1461 – Beim Ahorn – Grossalp – Ringelspitzhütte
 * Third day (approx. 2 hrs): Ringelspitzhütte – Lawoibach – Hinter Säss – Vorder Säss – Sgaiwald - Tamins

Buy
Most shops can be found along the Bahnhofstrasse and in the old city of Chur. There are international shops like H&M, NewYorker, etc., and local shops. Two big department stores (Coop City and MANOR) are located along the Bahnhofstrasse.

Go next
The well known regions of the Engadin and Prattigau valleys are very easily accessed from Chur, in them containing the ski resorts of St. Moritz and Davos/Klosters. The lesser known resorts of the Surselva and Arosa are the nearest to Chur. All nearby regions can be accessed by road and by train.