Leysin

Our home away from home.

The first mention of Leysin was way back 1232, a privileged place bathed in sunlight and hidden from site and unwanted visitors. In other words, off the beaten track.

What sparked the interest of doctors was the life expectancy of the locals here, which was much higher than places such as Berlin or Paris.

At the end of the 19^th century tuberculosis was raging throughout Europe (medicine was proving useless in the fight against the plague) and an experiment was conducted with the worst affected patients. Its amazingly fresh alpine air and natural sun terrace overlooking the Rhone Valley was the perfect combination for rehabilitation. The population grew from a few hundred to 6000 with only two residents succumbing to the illness in the 40 years it was utilised as a sanatorium.

By this point penicillin had been developed and was making great inroads in fighting the battle against the disease , and along with the stock market crash in 1929 deprived the village of its well to do clientele paying their way to rest and recuperation.

Finally in the 60’s Leysin made a comeback, this time targeting the tourist dollar and slowly shedding its TB rehabilitation label.

 Now it is a sprawling ski resort with over 60km of runs at an altitude of up to 2200m with access to 17 ski lifts. It also hosts the largest toboggan run and half-pipes in Europe. Within a half drive there is Les Diableretes with the Glacier 3000. Cable cars whisk you up the mountain almost to the summit at Scex Rouge. To ski from here back to Reusch (where the cable car starts) is a 2000m decent over 14km. I took the kids over to have a good look around during low season (it was so lush and vibrant…the land was, that is, not the town, it was very quiet) so we can compare the difference to its peak season in winter. Les Mosses is another ski station 20km from here. Whose weekly summer market was worth a look for its historical Swiss artifacts.  We made a few small purchases there to help us feel a bit more local.

A year round attraction in Leysin is the Kuklos, a solar powered revolving restaurant sitting atop of La Berneuse (2,048m). With impressive alpine views extending from the Eiger to Mont Blanc including the Matterhorn and Dents du Midi. The cable car takes you up past our back door into a winter (and summer) wonderland. Apparently there are over 250km of walking and mountain biking trails in the surrounding countryside.

Now home to around 3480 people Leysin is rather spread out and a little disjointed in places. Split between the old town at the top of the hill which plays host to world renowned International collages and The Swiss Hotel Management. Who have utilised the grand old multi story apartments from the TB days. To the more successfully positioned central tourist strip in the middle of the village which has taken over and left a handful of empty shops dotted around its upper reaches. It will take us a little while to work out what’s best and from where.

The drive to Aigle, where Tim will be working at the World Cycling Centre takes about 20 minutes or the Aigle-Leysin line provides a direct link by Cog train between the valley and the mountain, luckily it runs in all weather conditions.  The train works on a central cogwheel which engages with a toothed rack between the rails to provide the traction. This way they are able to climb and descend the steepest slopes in perfect safety…so they say! So there will be no excuses for Tim not making it to work on time….well except for maybe the 10 minute bike ride from the train station to WCC in the snow.

Well, that’s pretty much all I have learnt so far. In time we will learn the ins and outs of the village and no doubt some fascinating tid bits about famous characters that have graced these lands.

Better yet will just have to come and visit and check it out for yourselves!