Upper Valais, also known as the Grosse-Wallis, is the eastern-most, German speaking part of Valais. It’s a sporty, rural area with excellent mountain access and beautiful scenery. For convenience, I’m clustering the central valley floor destinations in this post, but also check out the deeper valleys and peaks to the North and South:
Brig, Brigerbad, Naters
At the base of the valley, Brig is more of a staging area than a destination, with many interesting valleys / passes just off it, including the **Simplon Pass (just okay for car people, not the most scenic). The historic center is a good stretch-your-legs stop, with a grand palace and several cute squares lined with restaurants.
There’s an interesting and very easy stop (you’ll be within a block while driving past) – the **Ossuary in Naters, built in 1514 to store the bones from an over-crowded cemetery. The impressive skull wall (visible from the street), has 1,857 skulls, a selection of approximately 31.000 skulls in the ossuary. It’s not quite at the level of Leukerbad’s Ossuary, where you can get much closer, but I’d still make time for the detour.
Brigerbad is essentially a spa on the outskirts of Brig, with some houses, hotels, and campgrounds surrounding it. **Thermalquellen Brigerbad is arguably the largest spa in Valais, and famous for its 184m-long water slide. We had a blast – the slide is terrifying (awesome), there’s a lazy river that turns into a crazy inferno once an hour, there’s plenty of room to spread out, and there are indeed hot pools. We stuck to the outdoor, kid friendly areas, but there’s an adult indoor section as well. Very popular with families.
Niedergesteln
Niedergestein is a lovely medieval village celebrating its 900th anniversary in 2025. It’s easy to miss from the roadway, tucked behind a hill. Get closer, and you’ll find a major waterfall, a collection of well-preserved historic homes, and – above on the hill – the ruins of the Gestelnburg Castle. Likely built during the 12th century by the Barons de la Tour family, it was destroyed by the Upper Valaisans in 1384.
Walk up to the castle for the views, and keep walking beyond where you think the path ends – behind the castle there is a cave called Feschtiloch, which originates from the last ice age. We loved this – it’s quite hidden, but you can go all the way through to the other side on a small, lighted passage.
We stayed at an excellent Airbnb, in a historic property (1499) beautifully renovated, just below the church. Dinner was at *Roti Wychüafa, which didn’t quite work. It’s a nice space, with a playground for the kids, friendly owners, a fairly elaborate menu aiming for fancy. The schnitzel was good, everything else on the bland side.
Raron
Raron has existed for at least 1100 years, and features a striking hilltop church/castle with very explicit murals – the Unesco designated ***Felsenkirche. The views are excellent, and the poet Rilke is buried in the attached graveyard.
The town up close is packed with historic architecture and some very impressive renovations.
We had an excellent lunch at the family run **Schmitta. There’s also a fine dining restaurant (+ hotel) in town, **Kapitel 7 Boutique Hotel und Restaurant that’s very elegant. Elaborate menus with wine pairings in a building with high concept and surprising layers (ask to see the hidden downstairs and the giant wooden table).
Bisse Hike #15, the ***Manera – Stägäru – Lüegjeru route, was a winner. Great views, paths through vineyards, lots of Bisse action, hanging bridges, walks through caves. Not particularly easy with a lot of steep uphill. One-way is very convenient (between Ausserberg and Hohtenn train stops) if you manage your timing. You’ll pass the ***Lauber restaurant in St. German along the way. Very good, high end dining in a 1980s style environment. Service is formal, worth a detour to visit.
On the freeway next to the Raron exit, **Rothis Western City is a fairly cringe-worthy “western roadhouse saloon.” It’s not bad, relatively authentic burger menu. Closed at the moment, perhaps permanently.
