Val de Bagnes, also called the Vallée de Bagnes (German: Bangital or Baniental) is a valley located in the Entremont District in the

Canton of Valais Valais ( , , ; frp, Valês; german: Wallis ), more formally the Canton of Valais,; german: Kanton Wallis; in other official Swiss languages outside Valais: it, (Canton) Vallese ; rm, (Chantun) Vallais. is one of the 26 cantons forming the Sw ...

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 courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

Geography

Val de Bagnes is traversed by the

Drance The Drance (french: La Drance/Dranse, ) is a river in Valais, Switzerland with a length of to the confluence with the Rhône, a maximum length of . It has a drainage basin of . The river is formed from the confluence of the ''Dranse d'Entremon ...

de Bagnes. In the upper part of the valley is the

Lac de Mauvoisin __NOTOC__ Lac de Mauvoisin is a reservoir in the canton of Valais, Switzerland. The reservoir is formed by the Mauvoisin Dam, which is high. The dam is the 11th highest in the world, and the 6th highest arch dam. It was built in 1951–1957, and ...

and towards the southern end of the valley the Glacier de FenêtreGlacier de Fenêtre
auf ETHorama and the

Chanrion Hut The Chanrion Hut French: (Cabane de Chanrion ) is a mountain hut located in the upper Val de Bagnes in the Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Valais in Switzerland. It lies in an isolated area south of Lac de Mauvoisin at an altitude of 2,462 metre ...

. From Val de Bagnes, the

Aosta Valley , Valdostan or Valdotainian it, Valdostano (man) it, Valdostana (woman)french: Valdôtain (man)french: Valdôtaine (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = Official languages , population_blank1 = Italian French ...

can be reached via the

Fenêtre de Durand The Fenêtre de Durand is an Alpine pass connecting Switzerland and Italy. It connects Fionnay (in Valais) on its northern side to Valpelline (in the Aosta Valley) on its southern side. At an elevation of above sea level, the Fenêtre de Dura ...

in the Grand Combin. At

Sembrancher Sembrancher () is a municipality in the district of Entremont in the canton of Valais in Switzerland. History Sembrancher is first mentioned in 1177 as ''Sancti Pancratii de Branchi''. Its German name ''St Branschier'' is no longer used. Ge ...

, the Val de Bagnes flows into the Val d’Entremont. The main mountain peaks in Val de Bagnes are: *

Grand Combin The Grand Combin is a mountain massif in the western Pennine Alps in the canton of Valais. At a height of the summit of ''Combin de Grafeneire'' is one of the highest peaks in the Alps and the second most prominent of the Pennine Alps. The Gran ...

La Ruinette La Ruinette is a mountain of the Swiss Pennine Alps, overlooking the Lake of Mauvoisin in the canton of Valais. With an altitude of 3,875 metres above sea level, it is the highest summit between the Grand Combin and the Dent Blanche. La Ruinet ...

Mont Blanc de Cheilon Mont Blanc de Cheilon (also spelled ''Mont Blanc de Seilon'') is a mountain of the Pennine Alps, located in the Swiss canton of Valais. The mountain lies between the valleys of Bagnes and Arolla. Culminating at 3,870 metres above sea level, it ...

* Petit Combin * Mont Gelé *

Pointe d'Otemma The Pointe d'Otemma is a mountain of the Swiss Pennine Alps, located south of the lake of Mauvoisin in the canton of Valais. It lies at western end of the chain separating the Brenay Glacier from the Otemma Glacier. On the west side of the mo ...

Rosablanche The Rosablanche is a mountain of the Swiss Pennine Alps, overlooking the Lac des Dix in the canton of Valais. It lies on the range between the valleys of Bagnes (west) and Hérémence Hérémence is a municipality in the district of Hérens ...

Mont Avril Mont Avril is a mountain of the Pennine Alps, located on the Swiss-Italian border. Its summit has an elevation of 3,347 metres above sea level and can be reached by a trail from the Fenêtre de Durand The Fenêtre de Durand is an Alpine pass ...

Municipalities

Most of the valley is organized into a single municipality, also called Val de Bagnes, while a small part extends into the neighboring municipality of

. The most famous resort in Val de Bagnes is

Verbier Verbier is a village located in south-western Switzerland in the canton of Valais. It is a holiday resort and ski area in the Swiss Alps and is recognised as one of the premier off-piste resorts in the world. Some areas are covered with snow all ...

. Other villages include: * Le Châble, the municipal seat. * Villette * Le Cotterg * Fontanelle * Médières * Vollèges * Vens * Le Levron * Bruson * Versegères * Prarreyer * Champsec * Lourtier * Sarreyer * Fionnay

Tourism

Tourism emerged in Val de Bagnes at the end of the 19th century. Numerous infrastructure projects have been carried out for tourism; the Médran chairlift was built in 1950 (winter tourism); Summer tourism began in Fionnay as early as 1890, then also in Bruson and Verbier.

Transport

*Val de Bagnes is accessible by rail through the Martigny–Orsières Railway. The

Martigny Martigny (; german: Martinach, ; la, Octodurum) is the capital city of the district of Martigny, canton of Valais, Switzerland. It lies at an elevation of , and its population is approximately 15000 inhabitants (''Martignerains'' or "Octodurie ...

–Sembrancher line, which continues to Orsières in the Val d’Entremont, was completed in 1910. The Sembrancher – Le Châble branch line into the Val de Bagnes was completed in 1952. *At Martigny, the A21/ H21 branches off from the A9 in the direction of the Great St Bernard Tunnel and branches off at Sembrancher into the Val de Bagnes and Val d’Entremont.

References

{{Authority control

Bagnes Bagnes is a former municipality in the district of Entremont in the canton of Valais in Switzerland. On 1 January 2021 the former municipalities of Bagnes and Vollèges merged to form the new municipality of Val de Bagnes. With an area of , Ba ...

Landforms of Valais