Title: Swiss Alps | European Mountain Range | Alps Travel
Headings: Swiss Alps
Swiss Alps
The European Alps
The Swiss Alps
Highest Peaks in the Alps
Glaciers in the Swiss Alps
Tourism in the Swiss Alps
The Swiss Alps and European Travel and Trade

Content: Glaciers in the Swiss Alps
Of the total glaciated area of the Alps, 44% is located in Switzerland. The glaciers of the Swiss Alps cover an area of 1,220 square kilometers—3% of Switzerland’s territory. The highest concentration of glaciers in the Alps is in the Jungfrau Region of the Bernese Alps. The Greater Aletsch Glacier in the Bernese Alps is the largest and longest glacier in the Alps, with a maximum depth of 900 meters. Along with the Fiescher and Aar Glaciers, the surrounding Jungfrau Region became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2001. Tourism in the Swiss Alps
Tourism in the Swiss Alps emerged during the Golden Age of Alpine Mountaineering as early alpinists, mostly from Britain and accompanied by local guides made the first ascents of the highest peaks of the Alps (Jungfrau in 1811, Wetterhorn in 1852, Monte Rosa in 1855, Dom in 1858, Matterhorn in 1865, and Weisshorn in 1861). Thomas Cook organized the world’s first international group tour by bringing a group of travelers to Switzerland in 1863. British tourists who first came to St Moritz in 1865 are considered the start of winter tourism in the Alps. The construction of tourist facilities commenced in the mid-nineteenth century with the building of hotels and mountain huts (creation of the Swiss Alpine Club in 1863) and the opening of mountain train lines on (Rigi in 1873, Mt. Pilatus in 1889, Gornergrat in 1898). The Jungfraubahn opened in 1912;