Sion is the capital of Valais and quite striking as you approach it – it’s known for its stunning hilltop fortifications: the 13th-century **Tourbillon Castle ruins and the ***Basilique de Valère complex, with a basilica housing a playable organ over 500 years old. It’s one of Switzerland’s oldest cities, dating back 7,000 years. It’s surrounded by vineyards, and architecturally rich. If arriving by train, the prettier architecture is masked by quite a bit of bad choices made over the past fifty years, but continue towards the castle – it does get better. Every time we visit we remind ourselves we should spend more time in the area.

Sites

• The climb to **Tourbillon Castle is quite steep, but the effort offers amazing views in exchange (the castle itself is a ruin with little more than walls still standing). Built at the end of the 13th century, it’s newer than the basilica, and served as the residence of the bishops of Sion. It was burnt down in 1417, rebuilt some thirty years later, and in 1788 it was completely destroyed by another fire. The stones of the castle were used for some time for construction in the region before the ruins were reinforced in the 19th century to make it a historical monument. 
• The fortified ***Basilique de Valère is a far more exciting stop. It’s not as big of a climb, but offers amazing views. The complex was largely built over the period of 1100-1450 (Romanesque core), has been recently restored, and is packed with gorgeous art (including murals dating from around 1435). Has an organ of around 1430 generally described as the oldest playable instrument of its kind in the world.
• We particularly liked the **Valais History Museum in the Basilique grounds, which includes a creative range of artifacts covering the history of the region. There’s an excellent short video that shows the structure of the town and houses over thousands of years.
• **Cathédrale de Notre-Dame de Sion is most notable for it’s quite striking, modern stained glass – worth a quick stop. While the site is very old – likely built on a prior Roman structure, the current building is the third church to stand on this exact site. The first Carolingian church (8th century) burned down in 1010, and the second Romanesque cathedral was plundered and burned by Savoyard troops in 1352. The current church was built between the late 15th and early 16th centuries in a Late Gothic style. The 12th-century Romanesque bell tower survived, however, and is integrated into the Gothic structure.
• Next door, *Eglise St. Theodule de Sion (circa 1514) has almost cartoonish stained glass. Otherwise not especially memorable.
• The Jesuit Church of Sion had a rather short operational life (read about it here) and today is used as a museum. We saw an impressive show of the Neolithic steles of Sion – many of which have been found as recently as 2018 in the area. 

Dining

We enjoyed our meal at **Relais du Mont d’Orge: a fine dining experience in what feels like a local neighborhood, with views of the castle. Reasonably priced at lunch, fairly elaborate menus at dinner.

The ***Bisse de Clavau ends in Sion. it’s one of the easier Bisses, low effort on the logistics side (one bus, from Sion Gare to Icogne), and has a nice mix of wooded hillsides, one long cave, and lovely vineyard paths. Roughly 45 minutes before the end, there are two good dining options on the hillside – **Le Cube, which is a seasonal tasting room for Varone Winery, and La Guérite Brûlefer, which has a fuller menu (haven’t tried yet). Both are open April-Oct, Thurs-Sun, 10:30-6:30. We liked Le Cube, which has a great view, very friendly service, and wine tastings. Food was acceptable but not the primary reason to visit.

On the outskirts of town, there’s a big camping/swimming/family fun park plus a very impressive wave pool, **Alaïa Bay. My brother-in-law was very impressed (surprised, even), at the value for money, quality of the waves, and civility of the people surfing, and called it a highlight of the trip. For the rest of the party (as spectators), it made for an entertaining few hours. There’s a big deck/restaurant overlooking the action, and it’s fun – a party atmosphere. The menu was too long for my taste and had varying quality, but the drink menu was good, and really, are you there for the food?

Chiboz

***Relais des Chasseurs is a fabulous find, perched in a truly ridiculous spot waaaaay up on the hill. The drive is somewhere between terrifying and the most fabulous route you have ever traveled. The food is outstanding. The owner grows his own wheat behind the cabin for his pie crust.

Nendaz

Across the valley from Sion, Nendaz is not as dramatic from a scenery perspective, but reasonably close and full of Bisse hikes. Haute-Nendaz is the start of #4 **Bisse Vieux and Bisse du Milieu. Watch carefully for the signs – they are there, and if you miss them very easy to get off course. Quiet and peaceful experience.