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Bellwald

The village of Bellwald and the hamlets of Ried, Egga, Bodmen and Fürgangen form a typical hillside municipality high above the Goms region and the Fieschertal valley. In the 8th and 9th centuries, Alemanni immigrants arrived and settled in isolated dwellings that gradually developed into small hamlets and villages as the clan expanded. Until the end of the Second World War, the population lived almost exclusively from mountain agriculture, including cattle breeding and crop farming.

Timber storehouses known as “speicher” are a typical feature of Bellwald’s townscape. In the past, supplies, valuables and clothes were kept in these storehouses, which were less vulnerable to fire than the main residence. Like Bellwald’s barns, the storehouses stand on wooden supports topped with rounded stone slabs.

The construction of the road in 1971 acted as a catalyst for the development of tourism in Bellwald. Without tourism, Bellwald would probably have fallen victim to the exoduses suffered by so many other mountain villages in the Alpine region. In the tertiary economic sector, however, the development of tourism has had only a modest impact to date.

 

Altitude:
1'560 (m. above sea level)
Number of inhabitants (as of 31.12.2022):
338
Languages of municipal administration:
German
Travel time by car to/from Visp:
39 min
Distance by car to/from Visp:
34 km

Gemeinde Bellwald
3997 Bellwald

Phone: +41 (0)27 970 19 40
gemeinde@bellwald.ch
www.gemeinde.bellwald.ch