Val Poschiavo ( lmo, Pus'ciaf, german: Puschlav, ) is a valley in the southern,

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

-speaking part of the

Swiss Swiss may refer to: * the adjectival form of Switzerland * Swiss people Places * Swiss, Missouri * Swiss, North Carolina *Swiss, West Virginia * Swiss, Wisconsin Other uses *Swiss-system tournament, in various games and sports *Swiss Internation ...

canton of Graubünden (Grisons). The main town is

Poschiavo Poschiavo ( it, Poschiavo, lmo, Pusciaaf, german: Puschlav, rm, Puschlav) is a municipality in the Bernina Region in the canton of Grisons in Switzerland. History Poschiavo is first mentioned in 824 as ''in Postclave'' though this comes from ...

Geography

Val Poschiavo can be reached from the Upper

Engadin The Engadin or Engadine ( rm, ;This is the name in the two Romansh idioms that are spoken in the Engadin, Vallader and Puter, as well as in Sursilvan and Rumantsch Grischun. In Surmiran, the name is ''Nagiadegna'', and in Sutsilvan, it is ' ...

valley in the north via

Bernina Pass The Bernina Pass (el. .) ( it, Passo del Bernina) is a high mountain pass in the Bernina Range of the Alps, in the canton of Graubünden (Grisons) in eastern Switzerland. It connects the famous resort town of St. Moritz in the Engadin valley ...

(''Passo del Bernina'') and from the

''comune'' of

Livigno Livigno (; local lmo, Livígn ; german: Luwin) is a town, ''comune'' and a special-administered territory in the province of Sondrio, in the region of Lombardy, Italy, located in the Italian Alps, near the Swiss border. History Livigno's firs ...

via

Livigno Pass Livigno Pass or Forcola di Livigno Pass ( it, Forcola di Livigno, rm, Fuorcla da Livign) is a high () mountain pass in the Alps on the border between the canton of Graubünden in Switzerland and the Province of Sondrio in Italy. It connects B ...

. In the south it stretches down to the village of

Campocologno Brusio ( Lombard: ''Brüs'', Romansh ''Brüsch'') is a municipality in the Bernina Region in the canton of Grisons in Switzerland. History Brusio is first mentioned in 1106 as ''Bruse''. It was first mentioned as Brusio in 1212. Previously it w ...

at the end of the valley, bordering directly on the Italian town of

Tirano Tirano ( lmo, Tiràn, german: Thiran) is a town in Valtellina, located in the province of Sondrio in northern Italy. It has 9,053 inhabitants (2016) and is adjacent to the Switzerland-Italy border. The river Adda flows through the town. Main ...

. Beneath Bernina Pass, the

Val da Camp Val da Camp is a valley in Bernina District, Grisons, Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal c ...

mountain valley leads up to Val Viola Pass in the northeast. The valley is drained by the

Poschiavino river Poschiavino is an long river that rises in the Swiss canton of Graubünden and flows into the Italian province of Sondrio. The majority of the river is in Switzerland, with just in Italy. The source of the river lies at above sea level in the ...

, flowing through

Lago di Poschiavo Lago di Poschiavo is a natural lake in the Val di Poschiavo in the Swiss canton of Graubünden. Geography It has an elevation is , a length of , a surface area of and a maximum depth of . The lake is both fed and drained by the Poschiavino rive ...

. Smaller lakes in its basin include Lago Bianco,

Lago di Saoseo Lago di Saoseo (''Lagh da Saoseo'') is a lake in the Val da Camp, a valley in the Poschiavo region of the Grisons, Switzerland. Due to its intense blue color and picturesque surrounding nature, it is considered one of the most beautiful mountai ...

, and

Lago di Val Viola Lago di Val Viola (Lagh da Val Viola) is a lake in the Grisons, Switzerland. The lake is located near Lago di Saoseo, in the Poschiavo region. See also *List of mountain lakes of Switzerland This is a list of high-altitude lakes in Switzerland ...

. From north to south, the valley descends from an altitude of to , passing through different altitudinal zones. The surrounding mountains of the

Bernina Range The Bernina Range is a mountain range in the Alps of eastern Switzerland and northern Italy. It is considered to be part of the Rhaetian Alps within the Central Eastern Alps. It is one of the highest ranges of the Alps, covered with many glaciers. ...

and the

Livigno Alps The Livigno Alps are a mountain range in the Alps of eastern Switzerland and northern Italy, around the Italian village Livigno. They are considered to be part of the Central Eastern Alps. The Livigno Alps are separated from the Bernina Range in ...

include the

Piz Palü Piz Palü is a mountain in the Bernina Range of the Alps, located between Switzerland and Italy. It is a large glaciated massif composed of three main summits, on a ridge running from west to east. The main (and central) summit is 3,900 metres ...

, ,

Piz Cambrena Piz Cambrena is a mountain in the Bernina Range of the Alps, overlooking the Lago Bianco in the canton of Graubünden. It is situated between Piz Palü and the Bernina Pass The Bernina Pass (el. .) ( it, Passo del Bernina) is a high mounta ...

, ,

Piz Varuna Piz Varuna (3,453 m) is a mountain in the Bernina Range of the Alps, located on the border between Italy and Switzerland. It lies east of Piz Palü, between the Val Poschiavo and the Val Malenco Chiesa in Valmalenco is a ''comune'' (municipal ...

, , and

Piz Lagalb Piz Lagalb is a mountain of the Livigno Alps, overlooking the Bernina Pass in the canton of located in Graubünden. In winter it serves as a ski area. See also * List of mountains of the Alps * List of mountains of Switzerland accessible by pu ...

, . The metre gauge

Bernina railway The Bernina Railway (german: Berninalinie; it, Linea del Bernina; rm, Lingia dal Bernina) is a single-track railway line forming part of the Rhaetian Railway (RhB). It links the spa resort of St. Moritz, in the canton of Graubünden, Switze ...

from Tirano over the Bernina Pass into the Engadine

Pontresina Pontresina ( rm, Puntraschigna) is a municipality in the Maloja Region in the canton of Graubünden in Switzerland. History and name Pontresina was first mentioned in medieval Latin documents as ''ad Pontem Sarisinam'' in 1137 and ''de Ponte Sa ...

and

St. Moritz St. Moritz (also german: Sankt Moritz, rm, , it, San Maurizio, french: Saint-Moritz) is a high Alpine resort town in the Engadine in Switzerland, at an elevation of about above sea level. It is Upper Engadine's major town and a municipality in ...

region is the only rail link between Italy and eastern Switzerland. A branch of the narrow-gauge

Rhaetian Railway The Rhaetian Railway (german: Rhätische Bahn; it, Ferrovia retica; rm, Viafier retica), abbreviated RhB, is a Swiss transport company that owns the largest network of all private railway operators in Switzerland. Headquartered in Chur, the RhB ...

, it is the highest-elevation

adhesion railway An adhesion railway relies on adhesion traction to move the train. Adhesion traction is the friction between the drive wheels and the steel rail. The term "adhesion railway" is used only when it is necessary to distinguish adhesion railways from ...

route in Europe and together with the

Albula Railway The Albula Railway (german: Albulalinie; it, Linea dell'Albula; rm, Lingia da l'Alvra) is a single track metre gauge railway line forming part of the so-called core network of the Rhaetian Railway (RhB), in the canton of Graubünden, Switzerla ...

UNESCO World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...

since 2008. The two

municipalities A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...

of Val Poschiavo,

and

Brusio Brusio ( Lombard: ''Brüs'', Romansh ''Brüsch'') is a municipality in the Bernina Region in the canton of Grisons in Switzerland. History Brusio is first mentioned in 1106 as ''Bruse''. It was first mentioned as Brusio in 1212. Previously it w ...

, form

Bernina District Bernina District is a former administrative district in the canton of Graubünden, Switzerland. It had an area of 237.2 km² and a population of 4,619 in 2015. It was replaced with the Bernina Region on 1 January 2017 as part of a reorgani ...

in the canton of Graubünden. Villages and hamlets in the valley, some bearing names in the local Lombard language, include:

Miralago Miralago is a village in the Val Poschiavo in the canton of Graubünden, Switzerland. It lies at above sea level at the southern end of Lago di Poschiavo, and the Poschiavino river flows out of the lake in the village. The village is some sou ...

, La Rasiga,

Campascio Brusio ( Lombard: ''Brüs'', Romansh ''Brüsch'') is a municipality in the Bernina Region in the canton of Grisons in Switzerland. History Brusio is first mentioned in 1106 as ''Bruse''. It was first mentioned as Brusio in 1212. Previously it ...

Zalende Brusio ( Lombard: ''Brüs'', Romansh ''Brüsch'') is a municipality in the Bernina Region in the canton of Grisons in Switzerland. History Brusio is first mentioned in 1106 as ''Bruse''. It was first mentioned as Brusio in 1212. Previously it w ...

, Viano, Cavaione,

Prada Prada S.p.A. (, ; ) is an Italian luxury fashion house founded in 1913 in Milan by Mario Prada. It specializes in leather handbags, travel accessories, shoes, ready-to-wear, and other fashion accessories. Prada licenses its name and branding t ...

, San Carlo, Privilasco, Sant'Antonio, Annunziata, Pagnoncini, Cantone, Li Curt,

Sfazù Sfazù is a hamlet in the upper part of the Val Poschiavo in the canton of Graubünden, Switzerland. It lies at above sea level at the point where the Val da Camp enters the Val Poschiavo. It is on the southern approach to the Bernina Pass, and ...

, Müreda, Motta, Cologna,

Cavaglia Cavaglia is a hamlet on the western flank of the Val Poschiavo in the canton of Graubünden, Switzerland. It lies at above sea level, and is in the municipality of Poschiavo, some north-west of the village of the same name. Because of the of ...

, Pedecosta and Angeli Custodi.

External links

Val Poschiavo tourist office
Valleys of the Alps Regions of Switzerland

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