Langwies: Walser Culture, Viaduct and Hiking Trails

Langwies can be explored from various perspectives: the Walser history of the Schanfigg, the Langwies Viaduct and hiking trails each offer a different focus. When planning your trip, you can choose between railway and engineering history, cultural sites, and trails in the village and the wider Schanfigg.

Viaduct and Railway Line

The Langwies Viaduct is on the Chur–Arosa line. Built in 1912, the reinforced-concrete bridge has a span of 284 metres and is 287 metres long. It rises 62 metres above the gorge where the Plessur and Sapünerbach rivers meet. When it opened in 1914, the structure caused a worldwide sensation.

You can view the viaduct on foot from Langwies station; walks around the village also offer new perspectives on the bridge time and again. Crossing it by train is an impressive experience. This lets you encounter the structure in different ways: on foot, from the railway line and through its history.

The Viadukt Museum Langwies occupies several historically significant rooms near the station. It brings the viaduct’s history to life with technical plans, construction photographs and original exhibits. One display uses a rotating timeline, a distinctive world map and historical advertising posters to show why the viaduct is known as the “bridge to the world”. Exhibition content may change.

In the waiting room of the Viadukt Museum, you can listen to an audio station featuring stories told by a former stationmaster, while viewing his reconstructed workplace. Alongside the technical and structural aspects, this adds personal stories about the railway line.

Walser History and Culture in Langwies

The inner Schanfigg, including Arosa and Langwies, was settled by the Walser people in the 13th century. The farmers, originally from the Valais, shaped the culture, buildings and language of the Schanfigg. Langwies’s Reformed church also dates back to a bequest made in 1384; its tower and nave walls are from this period.

The Kulturhuus Schanfigg, a cultural meeting place for locals and visitors, is housed in the former school building in Langwies. It is home to the Schanfigg Cultural Archive, the Raetica Library of the von Sprecher family of Jenins, and a lending library for children and families. The building hosts exhibitions; visits to the archive and library are also possible. The association regularly organizes film evenings, readings, talks and exhibitions. The programme and access arrangements may change.

Above Langwies, the Holzzeichen-Hüttli displays decorative Walser wood-mark patterns and explains their significance. The patterns were collected by local folklorists Walter and Töni Engel. This insight into a design tradition adds a tangible motif to the history of language and building culture.

Hiking Trails and Landscapes in the Schanfigg

The Dörferweg Schanfigg is a 53-kilometre hiking trail network through the Schanfigg, connecting the villages. One route passes through Litzirüti and Langwies on its way to Peist. You can hike the circular route over several days or choose individual sections for a day trip, combining them with the Rhaetian Railway or the postbus. Check connections and combinations before your trip.

The Schanfigger Höhenweg also passes through the wider Schanfigg landscape. It runs across alpine pastures and past hay barns on the steep slopes of the Hochwang range. The landscapes described also include marshlands and dry meadows extending as far as the Mattjisch Horn. This makes its scenery different from that of the Dörferweg, whose character is shaped by the connections between villages.

The Fondei in the upper Schanfigg is considered a well-preserved, typical Walser cultural landscape. From Langwies, it is easiest to reach on foot or by car in summer, and on snowshoes in winter. Access depends on seasonal local conditions. For a winter outing, there is also an approximately five-kilometre toboggan run from Casanna back to Langwies. Natural stone cairns in the Gründjitobel are among the sights.

If you are considering Langwies as a travel destination, your planned focus can help guide you: the viaduct offers engineering and railway history, while the hiking options vary in the length of their stages and in seasonal access.

Discover more destinations: Sankt Peter, Tschiertschen, Castiel, Pagig, Praden, Molinis, Parpan, Churwalden

For the overview of the wider region: Plessur.