Switzerland’s Engadine Valley is a perennially popular destination to enjoy a round of golf while also providing a wide range of wellness activities. Breathe the fresh Alpine air, and experience golf amidst a backdrop of the country’s most majestic mountain and lakeside scenery.
The Kulm Golf St Moritz par 3 course & nearby Lake St Moritz
Switzerland announced recently that it would welcome double jabbed visitors, which makes the Engadine the perfect place to escape to this summer.
Golf has long been associated with the Engadine. The historic 9-hole course at the Kulm Golf St Moritz was created in 1891 and was one of the first layouts in Switzerland, established for the benefit of the many British guests who decamped to the region for extended summer sojourns during the Victorian era. This year, on 1st August, Kulm Golf celebrated 120 years since it held its first official golf tournament in 1901.
Comprised solely of par 3s, the course is set in a unique location 1,860 metres above sea level (one of the highest in Europe) dipping and diving between towering pine trees, the iconic Olympia Bob Run and the former Olympic Stadium, which makes it both physically challenging and hugely picturesque with stunning vistas over Lake St Moritz and the surrounding snow-capped peaks.
In addition to this short course, the Engadine Golf Club has two very different 18-hole courses – Samedan and Zuoz-Madulain, which are just a 10- and 20-minute drive respectively from St Moritz.
Established in 1893 as the first 18-hole golf course in Switzerland, Samedan is a classic parkland course with something of a links feel to it courtesy of several gently undulating fairways and sloping greens. Set amongst ancient larches on the valley floor, the rolling terrain combines with a host of water hazards to ensure a challenging round of golf despite its forgiving broad fairways and modest rough.
Samedan & Zuoz courses © Golf Engadin St. Moritz AG
Nearby Zuoz-Madulain, almost always simply referred to as Zuoz, opened much later in 2003. Designed by the revered Canadian golf course architect Les Furber, Zuoz is very different to Samedan. Laid out on the side of the mountains flanked on one side by natural thick pine forest, this course provides a tricky combination of elevation changes, sloping fairways and testy greens.
Like golf, the health benefits and restorative powers of a stay in the Engadine have a long association; St. Moritz may now be better known as a glitzy winter resort, but it owes its original popularity to its healing spas with their iron-rich spring waters that date back almost 3,500 years and became popular places of pilgrimage during the Middle Ages.
Kulm Spa St. Moritz outdoor pool; Kulm Hotel room with a view
The Kulm Hotel St. Moritz (www.kulm.com) has built on this tradition, creating an extensive destination spa that makes an ideal base for a wellness break in the Engadine. The Kulm Spa St. Moritz offers a range of facilities, including indoor and outdoor pools (with hydrotherapy features), steams and saunas, a relaxation room and Kneipp path, as well as treatment rooms for detoxification and regeneration therapies, and private grounds for simply relaxing on a lounger while soaking up the stunning panoramic views.
For those who prefer to get active in the great outdoors, there are multiple, easily accessible opportunities to hike, trail run and bike in the mountains, as well as to swim, stand-up paddle board, sail and kitesurf on the various lakes of the Engadine valley.
After a day of golf and wellness, the hotel has multiple bars and restaurants where guests can rehydrate, refuel and re-energise in readiness for another day’s exertions on and off the course. There’s even an outdoor cinema in the grounds of the hotel on Thursday, Friday and Saturday evenings up until 28 August, showing cult classics for a trip down memory lane!
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The Kulm Hotel’s ‘Golf Break’ package starts from CHF 1,240 per person sharing a double room for a minimum of two nights, including:
- 2 or 3 nights, including sumptuous breakfast buffet and daily Gourmet Dine Around (half-board)
- Complimentary green fees at the 9-hole Kulm Golf Course St. Moritz
- 1 complimentary green fee on the 18-hole Samedan or Zuoz / Madulain golf courses
- From the 4th night, the green fees at Samedan or Zuoz / Madulain golf courses are complimentary
- unlimited access to the Kulm Spa St. Moritz
- unlimited use of the hotel’s tennis courts
- unlimited use of all open mountain railways in the Engadine St. Moritz region and public transportation in the valley (bus and Rhaetian railway)
Valid upon request and subject to availability; additional nights can be booked. A surcharge of CHF 25 will apply over the weekend (Friday and Saturday). Reservations can be made by phone on +41 81 836 80 00 or by e-mail on reservations@kulm.com.
The Kulm Hotel St. Moritz will close on 12 September 2021.
The nine-hole Kulm Golf St. Moritz course, first laid out in 1891, meanders harmoniously through the town, past the St. Moritz bobsleigh run and the former Olympic Stadium (two winter Olympics have been held on the course, in 1928 and 1948), while enjoying spectacular views over Lake St. Moritz. Lying at a height of 1,860 metres, this demanding par 27 course is among the highest in Europe and was re-laid in 2001 to bring it up to date for the needs of today’s golfers.
In addition to the course, the Club has a practice putting green and a driving range, as well as its own Club restaurant “Chesa al Parc”. An integral part of the offering at the Kulm Golf St. Moritz is the Academy, where beginners can discover the fascination of golf and seasoned players can improve their technique. Our experienced pros are on hand to provide individual instruction to guests, making use of state-of-the-art technical and audiovisual aids.
Kulm Hotel St. Moritz (www.kulm.com) was the first hotel to be built in St. Moritz.
The Kulm Hotel opened its doors in 1856 and immediately became popular for summer spa and painting holidays, particularly among the British who comprised around 75% of the hotel guests. The then owner of the Kulm Hotel, Johannes Badrutt, initiated winter holidays to St. Moritz from 1864 and, as a result, the hotel, resort and Switzerland itself celebrated 150 years of winter tourism in the 2014/15 season.
Since the 19th century, the Kulm Hotel has changed considerably through expansion and renovation, but the fabulous location at the heart of St. Moritz with views over the Lake remains the same. A member of The Leading Hotels of the World, Kulm Hotel St. Moritz has 164 rooms, five restaurants (including formal dining in the Grand Restaurant, the K by Mauro Colagreco, the Italian Pizzeria with 14 Gault Millau points and local Engadine specialities at Chesa al Parc), the extensive Kulm Spa St. Moritz (with a 20m indoor pool with underwater music, various saunas and steam room, a Jacuzzi, a fully-equipped gym and treatment rooms, all with stunning views over Lake St. Moritz) and six conference rooms, with capacities ranging from 50 to 500 people.
Entertainment and summer sports facilities include the 9-hole Kulm Golf Course St. Moritz (the oldest golf course in the country), three tennis courts and the Marmotta Kids’ Club for younger guests.
Recent awards for the Kulm Hotel St. Moritz include:
2021 A Michelin star for the K at Kulm Hotel St. Moritz
Bilanz Concierge of the Year – Cornelius Haug
2020 Conde Nast Traveler Reader’s Choice Award – Best Hotels in Europe
2019 A Michelin star for “the K by Tim Raue” & 17 GaultMillau points
Conde Nast Traveller Readers’ Choice Awards – 4th in the Top 20 Hotels in Central Europe category
Connoisseur Circle – Best Hospitality Grand Hotel
TripAdvisor Traveller’s Choice Award, Hall of Fame and Certificate of Excellence
Forbes Travel Guide Award
2018 GaultMillau Hotel of the Year
Bilanz Chef of the Year – Claudia Canessa
TrustYou: Award of Excellence
Top rating in the hotel rankings of SonntagsZeitung, the renowned Swiss newspaper
Trivago National Award
Private Luxury Hotel of the Year at The World Luxury Hotel Awards
Weltwochen Ranking No.2
2017 One of the top ten most welcoming luxury hotels in Switzerland at the PRIX BIENVENU awards
Additionally, TripAdvisor Traveller’s Choice Awards for five years in a row (2014-2018 inclusive)In May 2016, Jenny and Heinz E. Hunkeler of the Kulm Hotel St. Moritz were named “Hoteliers of the Year 2016” by leading Swiss newspaper SonntagsZeitung, which publishes annual Hotel Rating Awards, the only honours sanctioned by Switzerland Tourism, the national tourist office.
Both the Kulm Hotel St. Moritz and its sister property Grand Hotel Kronenhof are owned by the Niarchos family.
