Chur: Guide, Hotels, Map & Photos
English|
CHF 60 - 150 Hotel Franziskaner
 The hotel Franziskaner is housed in a charming historical building, only 50 metres away from the famous Churer Obertor and about an 8-minute walk from… MoreCHF 95 - 199 Hotel Drei Könige
 Welcome to the Hotel Drei Könige! This historical hotel in the centre of the oldest city in Switzerland has offered hospitality with tradition since … MoreCHF 101 - 164 Ibis Chur
 The Ibis Chur is located at the edge of the old town of Chur close to the A13 motorway, an important route to the Ticino and Italy.
Here you will fin… MoreCHF 102 - 390 Pension Seminare Fontana
 The Pension Seminare Fontana is both a guest house and seminar hotel on a quiet spot, only 4 km from Chur and a few minutes´ drive from the famo… MoreCHF 133 - 290 Romantik Hotel Stern
 Located in the heart of the old town of Chur, the Romantik Hotel Stern is a traditional 3-star hotel with a cosy and romantic atmosphere.
We offer ou… MoreCHF 87 - 188 Hotel Chur
 Our 3-star hotel is situated right at the entrance to Chur´s Old Town, just an 8-minute walk from the railway station.
Located in the capital … MoreCHF 35 - 158 Hostel JBN
 Hostel JBN offers affordable accommodation with private and shared bathroom facilities. Free Wi-Fi is available in some rooms. Located in Chur, it is … MoreCHF 100 - 240 Ambiente Hotel Freieck
 Ambiente Hotel Freieck is set in the centre of Chur, one of the oldest towns of Switzerland. The Art Museum or the Church of St. Martin are close by.
… MoreCHF 60 - 170 Backpacker Planaterra
 Backpacker Planaterra is situated just 300 metres’ walk from Chur Main Railway Station. It offers self-catering accommodation in Chur’s historic … MoreCHF 115 - 282 Best Western Hotel Sommerau
 The Best Western Hotel Sommerau is located close to the A13 motorway exit Chur-Süd, a few minutes by bus from the city centre. It offers free W-Fi an… MoreCHF 96 - 180 Comfort Hotel Post
 This individual, comfortable B&B hotel is situated in the pedestrian zone of the old town of Chur, surrounded by numerous restaurants and shops, and o… MoreCHF 138 - 256 ABC Swiss Quality Hotel
 Hotel ABC is a modern B&B hotel with a refined, personal atmosphere for the individual guest, less than 500 metres away from the railway station of Ch… More | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Chur: Guide
Chur (Italian Coira (KOI-rah) ), is the capital of the Swiss canton of Graubünden and lies in the northern part of the canton.
History
The city of Chur, the residence of the bishop and capital of the Canton of Graubünden, is over 5,000 years old, rightfully claiming to be the oldest Swiss city.
Chur derives its name from Celt|Celtic: kora, koria, which means "clan, tribe."
It was once a Roman fortified camp, Curia Raetorum in Latin, and became the capital of the Roman Empire|Roman province of Rhaetia|Rhaetia Prima in 15 BC.
The bishopric still existed in the early 20th century, with jurisdiction over the Cantons of the Grisons, Glarus, Zurich, and the three Forest Cantons, as well as the sovereign principality of Liechtenstein. The gild constitution of the city of Chur lasted from 1465 to 1839, while in 1874 the Burgergemeinde was replaced by an. Einwohnergemeinde.
When Graubünden became a canton in 1803, Chur was chosen as its capital.
Ecclesiastical history and prince-bishopric
The Diocese of Chur comprises the Swiss Cantons of Graubünden (Grisons), Glarus, Zürich, Unterwalden, and Uri, as well as the sovereign Principality of Lichtenstein.
A Bishop of Chur is first mentioned in 451/ 452 when its Bishop St. Asimo attended the Synod of Milan (Mansi, IV, 141), but probably existed a century earlier.
Several holy and extraordinary men have contributed to the splendour of the Diocese of Chur. Four of its bishops are honoured as saints: St. Asimo (c. 450), St. Valentinian (530-48), St. Ursicinus (d. 760), and St. Adalbert (1151-60).
According to the "Kirchliches Handlexicon" (Munich, 1906) the diocese had a Catholic population of about 248,887 (non-Catholics, 431,367).
Description
Chur is built, at a height of 1949 ft. above the sea-level, on the right bank of the Plessur torrent, just as it issues from the Schanfigg valley, and about a mile above its junction with the Rhine, almost entirely surrounded by the Alps, overshadowed by the Mittenberg (east) and Pizokel (south), hills that guard the entrance to the deep-cut Schanfigg valley.
Chur has 33,500 inhabitants; languages spoken include Swiss German, Italian language|Italian and Romansh. In 1900 of its 11,532 inhabitants, 9288 were German-speaking, 1466 Romansch-speaking, and 677 Italian-speaking; while 7561 were Protestants, 3962 Roman Catholics and one a Jew.
It has a variable altitude in the city area from just 600 metres above sea level to 1,800 metres above sea level, while the Churer Hausberg Brambrüesch (accessible from the Old Town) is situated at 2,174 metres above sea level.
The water of Chur's spring is exported and sold as Passugger mineral water.
Sights
The modern part of the city is to the west, but the old portion, with all the historical buildings, is to the east. Here is the cathedral church of St Luzius (who is the patron of Coire, and is supposed to be a 2nd-century British king Lucius, though really the name has probably arisen from a confusion between Lucius of Cyrene, miswritten curiensis, with the Roman general Lucius Munatius Plancus, who conquered Raetia).
Built between 1178 and 1282, on the site of an older church, it contains many curious medieval antiquities (especially in the sacristy), as well as a picture by Angelica Kaufmann, and the tomb of the great Grisons political leader (d. 1637) Jörg Jenatsch|Jenatsch. Opposite is the Bishops Palace, and not far off, is the Episcopal Seminary (built on the ruins of a 6th-century monastic foundation). Not far from these ancient monuments is the new Raetian Museum, which contains a great collection of objects relating to Raetia (including the geological collections of the Benedictine monk of Disentis, Placidus a Spescha (1752-1833), who explored the high snowy regions around the sources of the Rhine). One of the hospitals was founded by the famous Capuchin philanthropist, Father Theodosius Florentini (1808-1865), who was long the Romanist cur of Coire, and whose remains were in 1906 transferred from the cathedral here to Ingenbohl (near Schwyz), his chief foundation. The Romano-Gothic cathedral where lie the remains of Jörg Jenatsch was begun by Bishop Tello (758-73), has a highly interesting crypt; it contains remarkable paintings by Albrecht Dürer|Dürer and Holbein.
In this town you may also visit the Giger Bar designed by the Swiss artist H. R. Giger, the Old Town, the art gallery, and the natural museum, all well worth the time.
Transportation
Chur is 74 km by rail from Zurich, and is the meeting-point of the routes from Italy over many Alpine passes (the Lukmanier, the Splugen, the San Bernardino) as well as from the Engadine (Albula Pass, Julier Pass), so that it is the centre of an active trade (particularly in wine from the Valtelline), though it also possesses a few local factories.
Chur Station has the SBB-CFF-FFS lines link with the RhB (Rhaetian railways) lines. While the SBB lines serve most of Switzerland, most of Graubünden's rail traffic is served by Rhaetian state railways.
There is also a bus station on top of the railway station.
is Chur's urban bus company's name in Swiss German, literally "the bus from Chur"
Chur is linked via a solitary motorway -- the A13 (Switzerland)|A13 motorway.
See also
Bishop of Chur for the list of incumbents
Mario Frick (football player)|Mario Frick - Liechtenstein|Liechtensteiner football player, born in Chur.
H. R. Giger - Artist born in Chur.
Angelika Kaufmann - Artist born in Chur
Sources and References
A. Eichhorn, Episcopatus Curiensis (St Blasien, 1797)
W. von Juvalt, Forschungen fiber die Feudalzeit im Curischen Raetien, 2 parts (Zurich, 1871)
C. Kind, Die Reformation in den Bisthflmern Chur und Como (Coire, 1858)
Conradin von Moor, Geschichte von Curraelien (2 vols., Coire, 1870-1874)
P. C. you Planta, Des alte Raetien (Berlin, 1872); Idem, Die Curraetischen Herrschaften in der Feudalzeit (Bern, 188i); Idem, Verfassungsgeschichte der Stadt Cur im Mittelalter (Coire, 1879); Idem, Geschichte von Graubünden (Bern, 1892).
External links
This "Travel Guide" section is drawn from the Wikipedia article "Chur". We hope you will edit and improve it. It is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License.