2019-02-01_Lonely_Planet_Traveller

Getting there
The most convenient airport is
Geneva, a two-and-a-half-hour
drive away. Direct flights leave
from various UK cities (from
£130; swiss.com). The usual
car-hire firms are available
land-side (from around £50
per day; rentalcars.com).
Note that the Swiss authorities
clamp down hard on anyone
caught speeding and impose
heavy fines – be careful!

Getting around
There are local buses in the
Lötschental, largely for
ferrying skiers to the cable car

in Wiler that whisks them to the

Lauchenralp ski resort. If you

don’t have a car, you could

walk – the four villages are

about four miles end-to-end.

Further reading

Pick up a copy of our

Switzerlandguide (£15.99)

and take a look at the tourist-

board site at MySwitzerland.

com and loetschental.ch

MAP KEY

Bietschhorn

Blatten

Ferden

Kippel

Wiler

MAKE IT HAPPEN

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BREITHORN HOTEL

Spick and span rooms at this hotel in Blatten

come with wall murals (showing historic local

scenes), plenty of wood, and walk-in showers.

There’s a little library for guest use, and a boot

room to dry off wet clothes and shoes. The

small restaurant on the ground floor serves up

hearty, filling Alpine food, such as käseschnitte

(a grilled cheese dish) and pasta.

From £90; hotelbreithorn.ch

DAS GENUSS HOTEL

NEST- UND BIETSCHHORN

This 150-year-old hotel is the oldest in the valley,

but has been freshly renovated, with bright pine

floors, wood-clad walls and clean-lined modern

furniture in the bedrooms, and a sauna that’s free

for guests to use. The cosy restaurant is more

traditional with big wooden beams, an open

fire, and high-quality cooking on display in a

menu of Alpine favourites such as schnitzel,

fondue, and calves’ liver.

From £95; nest-bietschhorn.ch

DAS SILENCE HOTEL EDELWEISS

There’s a much more contemporary feel at

the Hotel Edelweiss, near the end of the

Lötschental in the village of Blatten, with views

from some bedrooms out over the valley

behind. Blonde wood dominates the

comfortable, quiet bedrooms, all of which

have balconies. Food is a particular highlight

here; the restaurant specialises in modern

takes on regional cuisine, including wild boar

bouillon and veal steak.

From £135; hoteledelweiss.ch